Barn Finds Reader Rory S might have found the holy grail of 7th generation Ford F150s! This 1982 XLT Lariat had covered a mere 18,500 miles since new and was still like new when he found it. Unlike the original owner, he isn’t letting it just sit and he’s already put a little over a thousand miles on it since buying it! A truck like this was built to work, so we are glad to see that he’s enjoying it. I’ll let him tell you the story of finding and buying it below in his own words.
FROM Rory – I found the truck sitting along a country road for sale. I stopped to inquire about it and was met by an older gentleman who inherited it from his father in law. He stated that his in-laws only drove it to pull a camper. After their passing, it was parked in the barn for 10 years. His wife finally told him to get it out so her new car didn’t sit outside while a 38-year-old truck sat protected in the barn. I bought this on the first snowfall of the season and he didn’t want it to sit out in the weather any longer. So I made him an offer that he stated he wouldn’t take at first. I told him he could drive it back to his house and consider it sold or it’s a long walk back to the house in the snow. He turned to me and said, “I will see you tomorrow with the title”.
Congrats to Rory on landing this sweet find! It always amazes me to see low mileage trucks like this that were stashed away in a barn, rather than put to work. I want to thank Rory for sharing it with us and I hope he continues to enjoy it.
If you have an interesting find in your barn or have found one in a barn, we sure would love to see it! Please send photos and the story behind it to mail@barnfinds.com!
That is a gem, and that upholstery is really something!
It would be my dream Ford if it had a manual, a 4.9, and 4WD, but alas, it doesn’t… Probably one of the nicest out there.
OMG, a truck with real bumpers!
I never liked Ford after ’96.
They can keep their aero looks and overhead camshaft V8 from ’97 on up. Never warmed up to the “new” F150, ever.
This truck is odd to me that it’s ready for work but at the same time it’s too nice to rough up a bit, a 28 year old surviver. Take good care of it and it will last quite a long time.
The 4.6 V8 Ford used for a long time is actually a very good engine with a very long lifespan if maintenance is done. I do completely see your point in general about the newer body styles and too many electronics though.
@David Ulrey, I’ve never cared for overhead cam engines since I owned a Nissan hard body truck back in the late eighties, a 3.0 V6. Unbeknownst to me there was a scheduled replacement of the belt in the owners manual…that I foolishly never read. Belt broke the valves stopped and the pistons basically destroyed the valves, awe shucks! Traded the mess in for a used ’86 Mustang GT and vowed never to own another “import” or OHC motor.
My dad took delivery of a brand new company truck-a ’97 F150, with that 4.6 in it. Regardless of the 4.6 I just didn’t care for the entire truck in general. I got to drive it several times and more or less frowned the whole time. Had a ’96 F150, 5.0, automatic 4.10 gears, extra cab up until a few years ago….now that was a truck I enjoyed and was proud to own.
That is a damn, damn nice truck! Excellent find!
Now that is a truck. Enjoy!
I’ve always had a soft spot for these “bull nose” Ford trucks. My lb ast plow truck was a 1985 Ford F250, and it was a GREAT truck! I used it far too long, it resembled swiss cheese more than a truck by the time I got rid of it. Brakes were pretty well gone too, but I had a back-up brake system by just dropping the plow blade to slow me down.
I finally sold it about 2 years ago, back to the guy I got it from. He is back to using it on his suburban driveway. We are all safer for having it off the public streets lol. I sure miss it though!