I just bought a 1979 500 and am new to the site. My family has always loved Rancheros and my grandfather had six of them over the years. I happened across this 500 at a decent price so I finally decided to get one. It needs some work but it does run and drive. The gauges and dash lights do not work, and the radio is out, but it moves down the road just like I remember them from 30 years ago. I am hoping to start working on it this weekend and see what secrets she holds including figuring out the door tag code 97D. I am hoping to learn a lot about the Rancheros and figure out what to do with the orange. I just bought the 5-part Ford service pack and the 1979 Ford Shop Manual to help me along. Any thoughts and ideas are welcome.
From 1972 through 1979 the Ford Body Code for Rancheros was "97" - that code being used to differentiate body panels and trim parts that are unique to the Ranchero line. The "D" means the car body and trim was Ranchero 500. A GT would be a 97R.
Yeah that really works on the 77-79's. Man, there have actually been some pretty good looking 'grampa years' cheros on here lately. It's nice to see them dressed up.
Keep the orange paint and move to Knoxville TN during football season. You'll fit right in. Seriously, I kinda like orange. It's different, and different can be good.
I am thinking of buying the lower GT decal set in black just to break up the orange a little. Does that bother the purists on this site? Dearborn has a sale this weekend for 15% off so I may get it today.
Get the full set and break up the top a little too! Maybe they have it without the GT... Ignore the purists... it's your car, do what makes you happy!
Yes, there are actually very few Rancheros that would be considered rare or special enough to preserve in their original form. I think the tan stripe kit would look great. Member aquartlow (Todd) has a 79 with bigger wheels that I think would also look good with that color scheme.
Yeah, there aren't many purist Ranchero owners. It would be kind of pointless since they are apparently one of the least popular ever built.
The paint color should be just below the word truck above the line where color is written. The "1481" after the DSO 71 shows this to be a special order for sales district 71, Los Angeles. The color is a standard Ford color mostly used on Pintos and highway dept. trucks. If the color was used for Rancheros the paint code would have been where it should be. Note on your stripe picture, the upper stripe at the door glass has the lines cut the wrong direction. Do what you want to the Ranchero. My 79GT has Cad seats and a 72 hood scoop grafted in, just the lower stripes, white pearl paint and that probably helps it's value.
A thought on your Tangerine. If you want the orange, check an auto paint supplier and see if they have a custom metallic orange that matches the original.
Thank you all for the help so far and the special order decode. I am the second owner so maybe I will ask the PO and see what was going on with the special order paint. I will never lose it in the parking lot. Are these hubcaps stock? I may just remount the tires to blackwalls for now. I cannot decide between 15" rims and TAs or something more modern like a 18". Hard to find pictures of these with different rims. Am I correct in figuring I can go between a 27-29" tire with 4" backspacing and still be ok?
If you go here http://www.performanceplustire.com/, they have a virtual wheel/tire simulator that ACTUALLY has a '77-'79 Ranchero body in it's database and you can choose between wheel (sizes and styles), tire(sizes and aspect ratios) as well as different body paint colors and ride heights. I haven't used it in a while, hopefully they still have the Ranchero as an option. It does give a decent perspective on what a chosen wheel will look like. As far as wheel sizes go, it's your opinion/decision on what will look the best to you on your ride. Personally I like a larger wheel, to a point. Good luck, Todd
Thank you for all of the comments and support! Performance Plus is about 45 minutes away so I will head down there in a few weeks and see what they have. Their Virtual Wheels website does not seem to work. I am looking for stock seatbelts, glove box lock, door panels and a stock FM radio so if anyone has a lead on these items please let me know!
At first look I do not see a way around the "GT" cut out area on the vinyl. Any type of patching would eventually show the edges. Ecklers has 10% off this weekend so I am for sure getting carpet and a headliner. Still on the fence with this decal thing. Has anyone put in aftermarket seatbelts? The stock ones I have are shot and I would like to get a new set.
I found and purchased a complete set of NOS belts (both sides), from these guys. WAY cheaper than having mine restored/rewebbed by a seatbelt restorer and the color was dead-on correct. They may just have what you need, good folks to deal with. This pic shows the Ford part number, the "W" is the color(Dark Red, Maroon) As far as finding "stuff" to fix or replace on your Ranchero, buy as many things NOS or "good" used as possible, they WILL fit better and give you the least aggravation. Good luck, Todd
