The Ford F-Series has dominated the American truck market for approaching a half-century. Most F-Series trucks are so common that there are probably dozens in your neighborhood right now if there isn’t one in your own driveway. Yet, there’s a Ford truck everyone forgot about, and part of the reason is that it sold for just a couple of years before disappearing. The Ford F-250 “Light Duty” of the late 1990s was a weird stopgap between the then-new tenth-generation F-150 and the Super Duty trucks, and they’re such oddballs that even Ford truck fans have forgotten about them. These trucks had the bodies of the F-150 but brought more beef to the barbeque, and you may want one today.
For most of the 76 years of existence of the F-Series, Ford sold light-duty and heavier-duty trucks alongside each other. In the early years of F-Series trucks, you could buy the half-ton F-1 and the classes climbed all of the way up to the F-7 and F-8 “Big Job” trucks. Ford’s truck lineup stayed that way for decades, even as the names of the trucks evolved.
The F-Series has adapted to changing consumer preferences. Long ago, pickup trucks were largely work vehicles, but over time, Americans started using their trucks for more. Americans moving into suburbia took their trucks with them and suddenly, these trucks became daily drivers. Ford responded by bringing more car-like advancements to its trucks, great for the person using an F-Series for more than hauling.
In the late 1990s, consumer preferences pushed the bread-and-butter F-150 to become more car-like than ever. However, this was at odds with how owners of heavier-duty F-Series owners used their trucks. Sure, some people were buying F-150s to drive to their office jobs, but plenty of other people were still using their trucks for towing, hauling, farming, and building America. Thus, Ford decided to split the F-Series into two separate lines. The light duty trucks would continue their path of becoming more comfortable, feature-packed trucks, while Ford would create a line of beefy work trucks.
Those new heavier trucks would be bestowed with the name Super Duty, a nameplate previously affixed to a burly engine from the late 1950s and larger trucks in the F-Series lineup. The name was also used for the F-Super Duty of the late 1980s. Production of the Super Duty began in 1998 for the 1999 model year.
The late 1990s launch of the Super Duty initially put Ford in a weird spot. The tenth-generation F-150 went on sale in 1996 for the 1997 model year, but the larger classes of the F-Series remained on the old ninth-generation body. Ford’s solution to this mismatch was a short-lived F-250 with the body of the F-150, making a sort of oddball not entirely unlike the infamous Nissan Titan XD.
A New Truck For A New Era
This story starts in 1989 when Ford was in the middle of a design overhaul. The Blue Oval was ready to move away from its boxy designs of the 1980s into something new. Among those new designs would be a fresh Ford F-150 built and designed around the truck buyer of the 1990s.
As Bloomberg reports, the development of the tenth-generation Ford F-150 began that year. In that Bloomberg report, then Ford vice-president for light-truck development James E. Englehart credited designer James C. Bulin with the direction Ford took with the F-150. Back then, Bulin was a mid-level design staffer working in the basement and wasn’t even well-known.
Bulin’s initial work on F-150 development started with an ordinary assignment. He was ordered to assemble a pictorial history of truck design. Bulin brought in friend and auto consultant John Wolkonowicz to help with this project and reportedly, they came to a startling conclusion: Trucks hadn’t really changed for an entire generation.
Together, Bulin and Wolkonowicz decided to expand on this project without authorization from Ford. Soon, they started pinning images of other vehicles and consumer products to bulletin boards alongside their pictorial truck history. Eventually, Bulin and Wolkonowicz noticed a trend in that product designs updated at roughly similar times, but they didn’t know why. The pair kept on sticking other parts of American life to their bulletin boards, including pop culture, international relations, and the economy. What they found was fascinating, from Bloomberg:
From that kaleidoscope of images, Bulin hatched what Ford came to call its value groups strategy. Bulin concluded that the basic values that motivate purchases are instilled in each generation between their teens to mid-20s, formed by everything from their relationships with their parents to whether their lives were touched by war and the movie stars they worshiped. “The growing-up experience of each generation establishes the rules they live by,” Bulin says.
The hard part was turning those lessons into a pickup truck. Two-thirds of ninth-generation F-150 owners were over the age of 50 and the light-duty pickup was gaining so much momentum with the baby boomer generation that it was estimated that 80 percent of tenth-generation F-150 owners would be boomers. So, the big question became: How will Ford design a truck for a generation of people?
Ford decided to try something different with the F-150. Instead of benchmarking the competition, which was the industry norm, Ford would design its new truck around what its largest demographic of customers wanted. This meant making some concessions. For example, the designers of the new F-150 wanted to make the truck look like a mini big rig. This would end up being the direction taken by the Dodge Ram’s designers, but Ford’s customer-centric approach meant doing something else. As Bloomberg notes, the mini semi-tractor design died once Bulin pointed out that boomers liked the compact designs flowing in from Japan.
Bloomberg explains that the boomers of the 1990s put a lot of value into strength through physical fitness while remaining trim and sleek. These Americans grew up in an era where schools placed an emphasis on exercise thanks to President John F. Kennedy’s National Council on Physical Fitness. This was reflected in the products the boomers of the 1990s purchased, which performed well without unnecessary bulk.
To designers, this meant the new F-150 had to look powerful, but sleek and slim at the same time. There was no way they were going to get away with what Dodge’s designers were doing with the Ram.
Designers, including F-150 design director Andy Jacobson, took these ideas and ran with them. The cab was narrowed by two inches and lengthened by five inches. Wheels were enlarged to give the truck a commanding presence while a third door was added behind the passenger door to make carrying children easier. The windshield was tilted and the beltline dropped for better visibility. The cab lengthening made for, as reported by the Chicago Tribune, a “magical space” or extra space behind the seats for storage.
At first, higher-ups pushed back at a radical departure. Some consumer clinics also gave Ford some troubling feedback. While boomers loved the early friendly rounded design of the F-150, the ranchers and construction workers who already had older Ford trucks preferred the squared look of what we call the “Old Body Style” today. Bloomberg explains that under Ford’s old development system, designers might have been told to listen to the existing traditional owners, not the fresh faces who were in love.
However, Bulin’s data suggested that if Ford continued with the radical design, they were likely to have a home run on their hands. Ford execs were wary that their cash cow was endangered, but let the design go ahead anyway. In 1995, the future F-150 was previewed with the Triton concept.
The “jellybean” F-150 was not a mini semi-truck like the second-generation Dodge Ram, but Ford was certain its softer look was the real winner.
The tenth-generation F-150 launched in 1996 for the 1997 model year and as it turned out, Ford was right. Countless Americans walked into dealerships and drove out with F-150s as 780,838 and 746,111 F-Series trucks went to new homes in 1996 and 1997, respectively. And it wasn’t all in the design either, as the new trucks sported Ford’s modular SOHC V8, marketed as the Triton. The Triton wasn’t just a stout powerplant, but its design allowed for mass parts interchangeability and dramatically shortened engine development times.
A lot of younger folks don’t like the tenth-generation F-150, but when you consider the context, that makes sense. Ford designed the F-150 to appeal to our elders, not us. Well, I suppose Ford also designed it for tenth-gen lover Matt Hardigree. Anyway, the tenth-generation F-150 has a lot of high watermarks including the SVT Lightning and the Harley-Davidson Edition. Don’t forget the weird Lincoln Blackwood!
Today’s grail is something far less-known.
The F-250 “Light Duty”
As I stated earlier, the Super Duty officially marked a split in the F-Series family as the light-duty trucks began following a different development path than the F-250 and up. However, the split technically happened earlier than that with the launch of the tenth-generation F-150.
While the then-new F-150 got a new body, the F-250 and larger trucks continued with the 1997 and up model years, but under the old body style and chassis. As Auto Trader writes, Ford was working on the Super Duty, but wanted to launch a stopgap solution. This truck would be marketed as the F-250, which would be confusing as the old F-250 was on sale at the same time.
To create the new F-250, Ford beefed up the frame of the new F-150, a Sterling 10.25″ rear axle, and an upgraded suspension. The result was more or less an F-150, but more. A 1997 Ford F-150 Regular Cab F-150 had at best a 8,200-pound tow rating and a payload of 2,435 pounds, but the 1997 Ford F-250 Light Duty could tow 8,700 pounds and haul up to 3,340 pounds. The gap became greater with SuperCab trucks. A F-150 SuperCab could tow up to 8,000 pounds and haul up to 1,955 pounds while the F-250 still towed up to 8,600 pounds and hauled 3,075 pounds.
Ford advertised both the F-150 and F-250 Light Duty as having the highest V8 payload rating in the class of under 8,500-pound GVWR pickups.
Aside from the beefed-up equipment, the F-250 Light Duty was equipped and optioned like the F-150. They shared the same body, the same interiors, and nearly the same engine options. While the F-150 came standard with a 4.2-liter V6, the base engine for the F-250 was the 4.6-liter Triton V8 making 220 HP and 290 lb-ft torque. The top engine for both trucks was the 5.4-liter Triton V8, which made 235 HP and 330 lb-ft of torque in 1997. Transmission options were also similar between the trucks with both F-150 and F-250 having the option of a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic.
Sadly, it’s really hard to tell just how rare these trucks are. They’re considered to be rarer than other F-Series trucks just because of their short 1997 to 1999 run. But at the same time, Ford sold two F-250s at the same time, which has led to modern-day confusion. At the very least, the F-250 Light Duty seemed like a fine stopgap for someone who wanted the look of a newer truck plus a little more strength under the metal.
Additionally, Ford did keep this truck alive after 1999, sort of. You could buy this truck after 1999, but it was badged as the Ford F-150 7700, the number signifying the truck’s GVWR. By then, Ford got the Super Duty line in production so it was no longer necessary to have two F-250s on sale at the same time.
If you’re an F-250 Light Duty owner and search for F-250 mechanical parts, you’re likely to find parts for the OBS F-250. If you’re searching for body and interior parts, just save yourself the headache and search for 1997 F-150 parts. Thankfully, identification is easier. A Ford F-250 Light Duty is identifiable with its badge and 7-lug wheels.
Recently, we wrote about how the Nissan Titan XD failed so hard that it upset reviewers, owners, and mechanics alike. The Nissan Titan was such a disappointment that Nissan won’t even be building them anymore. The Ford F-250 Light Duty shows how to make the “half-ton, but more” concept work. Mind you, Ford was just trying to satiate buyers until the Super Duty came out.
An Illinois Gambler 500 chapter member owns one of these trucks and it’s a beast at off-road recovery. You see his jellybean truck roll up and you just aren’t prepared for the pulling it can do in any sort of muck and mud. If you’re a fan of the tenth-generation F-Series and just want it to work hard, this is the one to get. I have more good news, too. If you want one, they can be found for sale today in decent enough shape for trucks more than old enough to drink. It seems nobody cares about these things, either, so you can grab one for well under $10,000.
Do you know of or own a car, bus, motorcycle, or something else worthy of being called a ‘holy grail’? Send me an email at mercedes@theautopian.com or drop it down in the comments!
(Images: Ford)
Interesting. I had no idea. There’s one that looks decent near me with 211k on it for $3900. Hmmm… I’m thinking I want to trade my stable of old moon mile Rangers for this thing now.
I remember going to high school with a guy that loved his f250 light duty that he’d lifted. But he had to stick with the stock wheels because nobody made aftermarket 7 lug wheels
Pretty much this.
I saw my fair share of F250 LD / F150 7700 and they always stuck with their stock 7 lug wheels.
I also recall there was a max towing package / heavy payload package on the 12th gen F150 that would replace the stock 6 lug wheels with 7 lugs and add the towing mirrors. They’re super rare, I’ve only seen a handful or less and always with the 3.5 Ecoboost. Not sure if it could be optioned with the 5.0 or 6.2, though
Interesting, I didn’t know that was a thing! I have a ‘19 expedition max with the max tow package. Thing is rated at just under 11k towing capacity. It’s like having a heavy half and it tows like a dream
When I worked for the state in the late 2010s, we had a couple of these F-250s. One in complete disrepair used as additional outdoors storage, and the other was a running truck that was the 3rd option if your assigned truck was in the shop and you really needed to get out of the office. I found it odd we had an F-250 that looked identical to other F-150s of the same vintage. Though, I found many things odd about that job, so I didn’t ever bother to think about it. State cost cutting and ordering stripper models for the job seemed like a sufficient reason to have an odd truck. Now I know there’s a bit more to the real story.
Thanks for the write-up! An itch I never knew I had has ben satiated.
“Everybody forgot about it.”
Well, Pepperidge Farm remembered.
Also I think it was being discussed the other day while on the subject of OBS Ford trucks and “HD” F-150s (heavy payload package models, usually with the 7-lug wheels), but it was definitely an oddball solution at the time.
“Ford execs were weary that their cash cow was endangered…”
I hate to be that guy, but…should the word not be “wary”? Execs might find talking to designers (and engineers, for that matter) exhausting, but I really don’t think that’s what was meant here.
Next thing I know, someone will write that their subject “stepped foot” in a place, and I’ll have an aneurysm.
These are really interesting, and a cool quirk of history, but they are NOT “an f250 with the body of an f150”. That title is misleading.
What it is is an f150 with heavier springs. It has none of the hallmarks of a 3/4 ton, like a full floating axle or a solid front or a big block option or a heavier frame. This is what we call a heavy half ton.
And guess what? This “f250” was sold for 1998 model year, and for the 1999 model year, they continued to sell exactly the same pickup, but with an f150 badge. They continue to build heavy spec f150s in this same vein, just like the heavy half tons they sold before this 1998 experiment.
What it is is a heavy half with the wrong badge on it. No more, no less. It is an f150 with the body, and everything else, of an f150.
Yup. GM did this for years (decades?). The Chevrolet versions were “Big 10” and the GMC were “Heavy Half”. You typically got the HD suspension, typically the HD brakes, but that’s about it.
I still recall the GMT800 trucks could be ordered as a regular 1500 or a 1500 HD. A couple years ago I was going to buy a 2006 Crew Cab and it had 1500 HD badges, the 6.0 engine, stiffer springs and 4L80 transmission. Not sure if this package continued into the GMT900 and beyond
The F-150 was actually the original Ford ‘heavy Half’ trucks. Most of these were typically developed as a way to get mid-70s trucks over 6000 GVWR and thus be exempt from having to run catalytic converter and use unleaded gas for a couple of years. I had a 78 F-150, GVWR was 6050 lbs, and it still took regular. When all ‘light’ trucks had to shift to unleaded in 79 they only kept the F-100 for a couple more years and stayed with F-150.
You’re right. The F150 came out in ’75, while the Big 10 and Heavy Half came out in ’76. International Harvester also offered a kind-of heavy half. You could get the 1110 which came with an I-Beam front end instead of torsion bars, but it was rated to the same weight. It was supposed to be more stout through. I think that started in late ’60s.
F-175 or F-200 would have been a better name for it, but that would have required new badges.
Holy Ferd – I officially own an Autopian Grail!! About eight years ago I purchased an old six-plex apartment house conversion… place. Should’ve called it the meth-fortress considering the previous tenants. It sits next door to my primary residence and I decided it would be nice to have a bit more control over who lives there.
Anyway, I also needed to replace my decrepit ’94 F-150 work truck at that time and stumbled across a ’99 F-250 with the 5.7L, long box, regular cab, hose-out interior, and a Tommy-gate in decent shape for $3,000. The perfect work truck – Sold! And that thing has been perfect for a “hobby-landlord”. With that truck and a couple of furniture dollies, I can chase down fridges, tubs, ovens, furniture, whatever – I’ve even moved a couple of upright pianos by myself.
When I bought it, I didn’t know anything about it. I’ve since learned… that seven bolt wheels can be a pain in the ass to find, right along with the little dust-cover hubcaps. Ebay is one’s only hope.
But, that’s okay okay because overall it’s been great. In eight years I’ve managed close to 10,000 miles in (bought it with 151,000). It doesn’t look the best and yet I feel like I could drive it to Florida without issue. I’ve had to replace the starter, fuel tank, one rim (ahhhh), a few tires, and last year I finally gave it a tune-up with new plugs (so happy it’s not the 3-valver), coils, fresh transmission fluid and filter, new front brakes, and fixed the wobbly column shift. Running and driving great – hope to get another eight years out of it.
Fun to see it mentioned here as the only other time I’ve seen one in person was in Celaya, Mexico. Viva la 7-bolt Ford!
I will never forget this fact!
My GF’s (at the time) dad picked one of these up for a song circa 2004 (’97 5.4L) as a 2nd farm truck – he also had a ’02 F-350 7.3 with a flatbed – wanted a bed back in a truck he owned. I remember it well because he said we were going to look at a F-250 and we pull up and I said “that’s a F-150, look at it. Guy is trying to pull one over on you”. He corrected me on the “light duty” and sure enough the badges didn’t lie.
It was a song because of the styling as everyone wanted the Super Duty rugged looks even if the truck was nearly as capable as the other F-250
The old blue wheel barrow (’97 F250) has 340k miles and running like a champ!
I have a ’21 powerboost but it breaks my heart to own a 70k truck you can’t throw a sheet of plywood in the bed and close the tailgate gate. When I bought it back in the day it was a newspaper ad and the only one that didn’t have a photo. By the time I drove 100 miles one way to buy it I said screw it I’m buying it. I love going to home Depot and getting a pallet of 80 lb bags of concrete and driving off without a squat…
Seven lug wheels are fun.
My dad had one, it was green, tan along the bottom, it blew something and puked all the oil when the new owner came to pick it up, literally half way up the trailer. It ran fine before… It ran and drove ok before that. I guess the trailer pissed it off..
Also, Ford sold the Expedition with the same drive train, as the XLT model with the towing package, etc. I had one.
I own one of these. A 1998 with the original dealer installed camper shell with 163,000 miles. I bought it a year ago and put new discs, tie rods, tires, and some other odds and ends. The discs were fun to order…the kid at the parts counter was about 19 years old and I thought his reboot was going to take a while when I told him what I needed. Air blows ice cold, shifts nice enough. She runs nicer at 85mph than any other speed. I’d listen to reasonable offers.
Hah! Where are you based? email me matt@TheAutopian.com
There’s a light F250 around the corner from me that tows a camper. While they dropped the nameplate the 7700lb GVWR option on 99-03 F150s gave you the same capacity.
I’m Gen X and own a jelly bean truck myself. The styling reminds me of my 93 Ranger, and my 5’1″ wife loves the low belt line, and the 8′ bed swallows kayaks
I have one. I love it.
So, with the 10th generation, Ford basically killed the “Heavy Half” fully-optionable work truck that you could get up through the 9th generation… Then had to back up and punt and build one anyway but slap a “Light Duty F250” label on it and make it a parts-counter nightmare.
All because they wanted to go all-in on the Boomer consumer market.
It’s interesting how generational tastes and marketing play out. I’m Gen X, used to own a “bullnose” F150, and didn’t like anything about the 10th generation F150. And still don’t. The newer, squarer ones are more in my wheelhouse, although I still don’t want most of the luxury/car-like trim. Give me a simple truck with very little to break that I can just trust to get things done. Trucks used to be some of the least expensive and most versatile things on the lot — not any longer.
My truck choices for the last couple of decades have all been older — a Land Rover Discovery 1 when I needed an SUV/enclosed cargo hauler (Those things have a cavernous storage area with the seats folded and access through the big swing-out rear door), a squarebody Chevy from the 80s, and a second-generation Cummins-Dodge. I doubt any of them have the slightest appeal to a generation that’s only a year or two older than me. It’s odd.
I own one of these f250s but I read your comment. I owned an 08 LR3 and loved it. Wish I had kept it!
It’s wild that the 10th gen was designed to have a “commanding presence” in the mid-90s and it would vanish in the shadow of a modern Ranger.
I own one of these. It’s gold and if it didn’t have the original camper shell I’d lose it I. The parking lot every day!
Counterpoint: all modern trucks are not honest and cater to the Doom and Halo crowd with their angry styling. “Commanding presence” for trucks really hit in the ’10s. The SVT and supercharged Harley-D of the 10G were about street performance not I can do the Baja1000 or pretend Lewis and Clark of the modern era.
Shed a wistful tear for the bygone era of the handsome truck…
I don’t love every trend in modern truck styling, but calling a jellybean Ford handsome is insane.
Call me crazy, I’m ok with it!
I’m not a truck guy, so down rate my opinion if you must, but this generation has grown on me since everything has gone so aggressive. It seams so friendly, slim and trim. Sadly these things have rusted with great urgency around where I am. I haven’t seen one in ages.
Across the entire spectrum of trucks (with a bed, not a RR), “handsome” is definitely not a word I’d use on any of them. The only one that is close is the Blackwood as it’s trying oh so hard to be the 3.9gpa farm boy who took the prom queen to prom with it’s pinstriped tux. Nerdy handsome. With that said, jelly bean Ford 4-doors sold like hotcakes as they provided the softer looks of a car with the ruggedness of a truck.
I liked and like the blackwood. I have a very thick commercial golf mat in the bed of my zr2. people made fun of the blackwoods carpeted bed, my uber carpet/golf mat is great for 99% of the stuff I put in the bed. and I can take it out for the other 1% that may be wet, etc.
In Fast and Furious spec, it actually does look handsome. In most other specs, I can see why it’s so decisive.
I think these have aged really well. That two-tone green king ranch in one of the early pictures of the article looks particularly sharp.
Full disclosure: I owned a 2000 Lariat super cab (white/silver rockers and fender flares) with the 5.4L for a few years and I loved it. Had the captains chairs (with a CD changer in the console!) like the gray interior picture from the brochure that is posted.
First decent car purchase after I got a real job after school. Bought it used and never had an issue. Just changed the oil for 3 years.
My opinion is somewhat biased as I’m a Ford truck guy by default though (my dad is on his 5th F-250/350 in my lifetime). Sold the F150 when I bought my 2006 F350 (white/tan rockers) in 2008. It had 38k miles when I got it and is around 152k now. Probably be buried in it. It has the unpopular 6.0 powerstroke (my headgaskets shit the bed around 2016) but it’s been fully updated/deleted. I think it is right in the sweet spot between old and new for me. I love it. Still my favorite gen of Ford truck appearance wise too.
To add more confusion, they were sold until the 2004 model year, alongside the new body style, but called “F-150 Heritage”.
Bloomberg explains that the boomers of the 1990s put a lot of value into strength through physical fitness while remaining trim and sleek.
Has Bloomberg actually LOOKED at those Americans vs their forebearers? “Trim” and “sleek” are not adjectives I’d use to describe them.
I grew up with boomer parents, all my friends had boomer parents and all my boomer parents’ friends were boomer parents.
There was one who jogged. The rest of the boomer parents thought he was a silly bitch.
Bloomberg is consistently the worst news source. Maybe they’re used to covering financial stuff where you can make anything up and nobody ever checks anything. Headlines like “Stocks Drop on News of Upcoming Snowstorm” are common and seemingly accepted by their readers.
There was also a F250LD in the OBS trucks – it came with a 10.25″ semi-floating rear axle instead of the full floater in the F250HD and a Dana 44 upfront instead of the Dana 50. They were very popular in the oilfield where they were a bit more durable than the F150. I had a 1998 with a 5.8 and C6 auto – it was a great truck but a total gas hog.
Good thing you were right there in the oilfield!
A 3 speed C6 in a 1998? Sure it wasn’t an E40D?
Oops – typo – it was a 1988. That year, some models of the F510 had the E4OD but the F250 still had the C6. I really would have liked at least a lockup converter.
I had the same truck, mentioned it before I saw this post. 88 was the last year for the C6. Mine got 11-12 mpg pretty much no matter what it was doing, except towing a heavy load where it would drop down to 8.
Wow. I thought the only place to find a 3 speed auto in 1998 was in a Wrangler.
I remember these, but I thought I was the only one. As stated below, if you worked in parts around this time you had to work extra hard to make sure the guy was telling you what he really had: “Is it the newer style, ugly truck? Or the older-looking one?”
Don’t hurt Matt Hardigree’s feelings like that! LOL
These things are so ugly, I really don’t care how rare or well optioned they are.
I remember these. Wonky trucks. An F-150 with a 10.5 sterling? nuts.
This was the version that you would have expected to come out until Ford decided to make the F-250 and up it’s own unique model. See these around fairly often. I really like the 10th generation (jelly bean) trucks, bought a 1998 regular cab short bed with the 4.6 v-8 5 speed, loved that truck. It was comfy, handled decent and was ergonomically perfect for me as compared to my previous 89 f150 Lariat.
As someone who has worked in auto parts cataloging for many years, these have long been the bane of my existence. 1997-2000 is a messy era to get the parts cataloging right on Ford trucks.
Ford continued selling 7 lug F-150s after 2003 but only as the Heavy Duty Payload Package option, not a separate model. I think they ended in 2014.
https://www.f150online.com/forums/attachments/2009-2014-f-150/8379d1501224954-2009-2014-hd-tow-package-7-lug-question-mudflaps.jpg
Goodness, yes. Adding to the confusion is the fact that the jellybean F150’s began production in late 1995, so guys would tell you they had a ’96 “because it’s a September build date” and all the stuff would be wrong.
Equally bad is the 2007 Chevies sold simultaneously in two different generations.
Ram 1500 Classic, Silverado/Sierra 1500 Classic, and Silverado/Sierra 1500 Limited/LTD are all a pain to deal with since they were sold concurrently with the “normal” versions and can create cataloging landmines if you’re not careful.
A friend’s father was into late 1970s AMCs. When you pulled up to the door of the parts store in one of those, they would lock the doors and turn out the lights. AMC would change suppliers monthly (whoever would give them credit).
If you managed to park around the side and sneak in before they got the doors locked, they counter guys would commit suicide rather than try to get you a part – like the passengers on Airplane! when confronted with Ted Stryker’s war stories.
I’ve got an 82 Eagle. I must be saved by the crossover with the CJ, and that all the body panels are pretty much the same as all the other Hornet-based models.
My dad bought a real early first gen super duty and can confirm. He ordered it after seeing them at the auto show. Not sure what the build date actually was. I don’t remember the exact details but there were a couple parts for ’99 super duty’s that didn’t fit. He had to spec 98.5. It was a head scratcher on more than one occasion.
The wheels on these are crazy rare and expensive.
Even at the time there was almost no aftermarket support for the 7 lug pattern, so if you bent a factory wheel, you were SOL.
Funnily enough a couple of days ago one of these popped up in one of the many Facebook car groups I’m in and someone in the comments said they worked for some aftermarket wheel company when these were new (don’t recall which). Supposedly their company was the only one that made an aftermarket 7 lug wheel for these, so for a while those wheels were selling like hotcakes.