Ford pickups equipped with the 7.3L diesel tend to rack up huge miles, simply because these overbuilt beasts can take years of hard use without breaking a sweat. The example seen here is a top-shelf Lariat model with four full doors and the dually rear axle setup – and under 6,000 original miles on the clock. It’s hard to say why someone would buy a rig so obviously built for farm life or towing long distances on a regular basis and then choose not to use it, but it just means someone who will use it that way has a second chance to buy a brand new 1988 F-350. Find it here on craigslist in New Hampshire for $33,000.
The long bed and four doors make this F350 seem huge, and it certainly is – you’ll not want to take this anywhere with parking options limited to the street. The two-tone bodywork was a popular look on full-size domestic pickup trucks throughout the late 1980s, and it presents extremely well here. The polished wheels don’t appear to have lost a drop of their luster since new, and the dually rear axle fills out the flareside bed wheel arches nicely. The chrome bumpers also appear to be damage-free, and there’s not a door ding in sight or a single mis-alinged panel from what I can see.
The red interior is basically the same color red every domestic pickup of this era seemed to use, and there’s not much you can do about it if you don’t like the look – it’s everywhere. The good news is the seating surfaces, door panels, dashboard, and carpets all remain in excellent condition, certainly on-par with how you’d expect a truck with such low mileage to look. The seller notes that it will come with the full assortment of books and factory manuals, and also a detailed log of nitty-gritty details like every fluid change the truck has ever had. Being stored indoors since new has likely played a big role in the preservation on display here, along with making sure none of the few miles it has recorded occurred in the winter months.
The 7.3L diesel powerplant is perhaps the F350’s most attractive feature, as these engines are legendary for their overbuilt qualities and impressive durability. We’ve seen trucks with six digits on the odometer and a body to match going for big money, so it’s not surprising to see the asking price on a time-warp specimen like this. I’d even argue this truck represents a better value than those more heavily used rigs, as you’ll likely never lose a dime on this specimen while being able to drive it without the concerns that naturally creep up when daily driving a higher mileage vehicle. Would you use the F350 every day or keep it locked away as an investment vehicle?
i would use it to tow my dirtbikes and gear around to races.
I am in the process of looking for a truck for precisely the same reason, except that I currently do track..but with track season quickly wrapping up dirt may be the next category. I did have a Mazda B2600 pickup for a very short time but didn’t feel quite safe in it. Sold it and been looking for a full size. How full? Well, a extra cab or crew cab dually would be ideal. Don’t really need the 4 wheel axle in the rear as I don’t cary that much weight or pull any trailers but just love the look.
From what I have been seeing on the market in So Cal, the asking price on this one is a bargain when compared to a newer truck with similar mileage. In fact this one is close to 1/2 asking of the new duallies. Too bad I have a budget otherwise this would be quite tempting.
drivers fender obviously has been repainted…..
“at least he could polish the fenders…”
I drove a green 1997 version of this same configuration for a few years, and for me parking was never an issue. Compact cars only? No problem, just nose it in!
Too bad these were NON Turbo 7.3 engines
Love this. Probably lowest mileage in existence. Wonder what they get mileage with this…
My 7.3 IDI in my ’93 is 330,000 miles young
More like 107k but still very nice shape. No reason a 7k mile truck would have needed a new air filter, especially a gimmicky one installed.
Based on the tow rigging, I’d guess it was used for hauling a horse trailer to regional shows. Heck of a nice truck ! Even when I see a nice gas version F series of this vintage while out and about I take a pic… The price seems pretty fair considering prices of a recent model and the proven durability of this example.
Sure is a beautiful truck but its not a 7.3. That is a 6.9 IDI, non-turbo. 7.3 wasn’t introduced as a block until 1992 and turbo wasn’t added until 1993-4.
Actually, the 7.3 was brought out halfway through the ‘87 production season. I have a customer who bought (2) new trucks in ‘87, an F-350 dually that he put a service bed on and an F350 single-wheel Supercab pickup. The dually was earlier and it had/still has a 6.9. The Supercab had the 7.3. In early’94 he traded the Supercab for a turbocharged version which he still has today…
The “Cowboy Continental!” Worked on lots of these back in the day. Good strong pullers that weren’t yet stifled by emission regs. Some cold-start complaints. The 7.3 was equipped with a reduction starter which had lots of cranking power but could be lucky to spin the engine over at 150 rpm. You needed 200 to develop enough heat and to develop enough fuel flow out of the injection pump. Most starting problems were cured by installing the old 6.9 starter…