FEATURED CAR OF THE MONTH

1973 Ford E100 Van 

Owned By Don and Lois Blonigen   

“Little Red”, one of the first mini vans. We bought this van in St Cloud MN at Bill’s Auto Sales in 1979. It was basic transportation at the time. It was, however, a mini camper conversion. It had a table and benches that folded into a bed. It also had a 2 burner gas stove, and 15 gal potable water tank, icebox and storage closet. It was an unusual van because most of the short wheel base vans back then were 6 cylinders with manual transmissions. This one came with a 302 V8, 3 speed automatic, power steering, power brakes and air conditioning. In the early 80’s I worked as a professional road musician for a few years and this van and I went through 6 states and Canada many times. Yes, I lived in it many times when rooms weren’t included with the job.  That old 302 always started no matter how cold the weather and never let me sitting. The body was restored in 1990 by Bill Jex and all of the camping equipment was removed. Also, in 1990 at 151,000 miles the tired 302 engine was replaced with a hi-performance 289 V8. Two years ago, with almost 200,000 miles on it, the C4 transmission, built Ford tough, was replaced with a Ford AOD transmission courtesy of Automotive Drive Line in Waite Park. The air conditioning was rebuilt and converted to R134A by Ideal Radiator. The seats and cushions were reupholstered by Preusser Upholstery last year. It is a hoot to drive so anyone wanting to purchase this van can do so at the estate sale. (Not too soon  

I hope). Don and Lois Blonigen