Unlike a standard pickup truck, the Ranchero was adapted from a two-door station wagon platform that integrated the cab and cargo bed into the body.

[2] Over its lifespan it was variously derived from full-sized, compact, and intermediate automobiles sold by Ford for the North American market.

Shipped from Australia in complete knock down (CKD) form, these vehicles were assembled in South Africa at Ford's plant in Port Elizabeth.

In 1934, Ford Australia's designer Lew Bandt modified a coupe with a smoothly integrated loadbed that could be used like a car to drive to church or to deliver pigs to market.

[7] In North America, pickup trucks evolved into a heavier duty form with cabs and beds that were quite distinct from passenger automobiles.

An extremely basic standard model was marketed to traditional pickup truck buyers such as farmers, and the Custom picked up most of the options and accessories available on the Fairlane line, including stainless steel bodyside mouldings and two-tone paint.

Indeed, print advertising of the time played on the theme of the American Southwest that the Spanish model name and Longhorn symbol were meant to evoke, showing artistic representations of the vehicle being used in ranching and outdoor activities, proclaiming it as "More Than A Car!

The Ranchero was a hit with both the automotive press and the buying public, filling an untapped market niche for vehicles with the utility of a light pickup and the ease of operation and riding characteristics of a car.

[9] The 1958 version remained largely unchanged under the skin save for the new front sheet metal (shared by the big '58 Ford and inspired by the Thunderbird)[10] and its new four-headlamp arrangement.

The 1959 model was built with the same 118 in (3,000 mm) wheelbase as all 1959 Fords, giving the Ranchero the advantage over its predecessors of a new, longer 7 ft (210 cm) bed.

The popularity of small, economical cars like the Volkswagen Beetle perpetuated a shift in thinking among the three largest American manufacturers; 1959 had the introduction of the 1960 Falcon along with the 1960 Chevrolet Corvair and Plymouth Valiant.

Ford believed the market wanted a more practical vehicle, one much smaller, lighter, and cheaper than a full-sized pickup truck, and indeed the Ranchero sold well in this incarnation.

[14] Three almost entirely different coupé utility bodies were available for this generation of Falcon: the Australian Falcon Utility differed in having a shorter rear overhang than North American models, a cargo box that extended farther forward than the rear window, and shorter doors, while the Argentinian version also shared the sedan's overall length and short "four-door" doors, adding higher and more squared-off cargo box sides.

[18] This was a well-received and unique one-year vehicle, with clean, straight lines, dual stacked headlamps, and plenty of power; the Ranchero had entered the muscle car arena in 1967.

Changes across the 1969 model line were slight and included a flatter three-piece grille less the horizontal crossbar and Ford crest, relocation of GT grille badging from the crest to the lower right corner of the grille as viewed from the front, a change from black-faced instruments with white numerals to brushed aluminum with black numerals and a slimmer, two-spoke steering wheel pad similar to those across the Ford product line, unlike the wheel with its broader "safety pad" and separate horn ring used in the 1968 intermediates and compacts.

Available on special order, this was essentially a GT in the so-called "Grabber" colors of "Wimbledon White", "Poppy Red" or "Calypso Coral", partially blacked-out hood with scoop, side stripes, bed rails, vinyl top, and unique "Ford Ranchero Rio Grande" wheel centers.

As a result, Rancheros so equipped received Ford's "Special Performance Vehicle" identification on the data plate regardless of engine choice.

Both the Torino and Ranchero featured a shallow-pointed grille and front end with smooth, somewhat more curvaceous lines influenced by coke bottle styling.

Engine choices remained basically the same beginning with the 250 cubic-inch six-cylinder and a selection of V8s that ranged from the standard 302 to Cleveland and Windsor series 351s, plus the new-for-1972 400.

Cars were getting smaller and increasing government restrictions, and requirements on a car-based pickup truck made such a vehicle less and less attractive from a manufacturing standpoint.

Ford saw the way the market was going and decided small light trucks were the wave of the future, beginning with the Mazda-built Courier pickup.

Unlike the American version, it was based on the four-door sedan model, keeping the front part "as is", and knocking down the rear half to make it a light pick-up.

[21] Rancheros are reasonably collectible, though they are nowadays often overlooked in favor of the later-arriving Chevrolet El Camino, which stayed in production eight more years.

Hot Wheels also introduced (in 2011) the '65 Ford Ranchero that has a hard tonneau cover on the bed, and an opening in the hood that reveals the engine beneath.

The idea of a car-based pickup remains an attractive one and is an illustration of how favorable treatment for light trucks over cars by United States regulations skews the marketplace.

Aftermarket conversions of the Fairmont Futura and Mercury Zephyr Z7 sport coupes to a Ranchero-like "Durango" pickup were sold in select Ford dealers in the early- to mid-1980s.

Recently, interest in producing such vehicles again has grown, including those like the Subaru Baja, essentially an Outback station wagon with a stubby pickup bed instead of an enclosed cargo area.

Until the late-2000s, the North American market tended to lean towards compact and midsized crew-cab four-door pickups such as the Ford Explorer Sport Trac and Chevrolet Colorado.

[24] In Australia, Ford produced a right-hand drive car-based "pickup", with the FG X Falcon Ute available in style-side or tray-back form.