Minivans and Mystery Machines: the 1961-1967 Ford E-Series Van

Inspired by yesterday’s brightly painted Ford minivan, I’ve lined up another couple of Ford minivans for today.

These two are the original generation of the Ford E-series, or Econoline vans, though notably smaller than the massive vehicles that the E series vans are these days.  In fact, the modern reincarnation of the 1961-1967 E series is probably closer to the Ford Transit Connect than a brand new E-series.

These ‘61-67 vans are kind of cool with their unique brand of ugliness.  They are front engine vehicles that were powered throughout the span of their run by inline 6 cylinder engines.  Originally, a 2.4L (144 cubic inch) I6 sat above the front axle, sending 85 HP and 138 lb-ft of torque down the driveshaft to the rear wheels.

Because both the engine and the driver sat above the front axle of the rig, a 165 pound counter weight was placed along the rear of the van to balance it out.  These were actually pretty light weight machines due mostly to unibody construction that used the body as part of its framework.  They weighed in at just about 2,500 lbs.

This van was based on the Ford Falcon, and the 8 passenger version of it with 3 rows of seating was called the Falcon van. It’s actually smaller than most minivans you’ll see these days, being more on par with the VW microbus than modern minivans.  But of course, the V-dub had its engine in the rear.

The two we have today are both cargo van versions of the original E-series Ford van, but it could also be had in truck form and, as mentioned before, in passenger “Falcon Van” form.

I did some shopping around, and most of what I found were the truck versions of the 61-67 E-series, which ranged anywhere from around $3,000 for one that was in horrible, probably non-running condition and needed body work, interior work, and paint, up to around $19,000 for a custom and upgraded one in beautiful condition.  The stuff in between ranged from about $6,000-$12,000 for presentable specimens with decent paint.

Both these vans appear to be the same paint color, though the Mystery Machine probably had a respray prior to the application of the graphics (or more likely, it was just wrapped, but I bet its door sills are that same powder blue).  The Mystery Machine is also the older of the two vans, which we can tell from the little circular tail lights.  The less mysterious powder blue van has the vertical, rectangular tail lights that you’d see on a 1967 model.  They are certainly eye catching -especially the Mystery Machine van, which is being used to advertise for a graphics company.  I blurred out their contact info, but if somebody would like it, send me a message and I’ll give it to you.  I’m just a little wary of posting phone numbers and email addresses on line -even if they are being advertised to the public on a van.

I think these vans are cool, while at the same time, they spare their drivers from being clumped in with the rabid VW bus fanatic types.  I’d drive one to haul stuff around.