AUGUST 2008 OLD TIME TRUCKS
FORD'S NEW "F8" TRUCK
By John & Shirley Sponholtz
During World War II the Ford Motor Company pretty much stayed with the styling that had been found in their earlier models, but in 1948 the company introduced a line of new trucks called the F-Series, which is, amazingly, still in production today. This truck had an entirely new style from previous models. These new trucks were heavy duty two-third ton trucks with a big V-8 engine that had been upgraded from 100 horsepower to 135 horsepower, a five-speed gearbox and hydrovac brakes. The F-Series trucks could also be bought in a 6x4 configuration. In 1949 a model was introduced with a 6-cylinder forward control delivery chassis. The truck seen here is a 1949 Ford F8 with a V-8 engine. The truck was originally purchased as a fire truck and then later bought by Gerald Mueller. Mr. Mueller completely restored the truck with a frame-up restoration. Once the basic restoration was complete, he bought a Wilson livestock trailer and cut it down to twenty-four feet and put a new nose on it. The truck has a 391 cubic inch Ford big block engine, a five-speed transmission and a two-speed axle. As a fire truck it was not driven very much and even today the truck has less than 40,000 miles on the speedometer. The current owner is Gerald’s son Steve Mueller. Steve rebuilt the back of the trailer so he could put his 1952 International Harvester tractor in it and take it along to the shows. Today, besides hauling the antique tractor, this F8 is retired and only goes to shows and other fun events.