For a hot minute, I thought about getting into captive import / mini-truck ownership in the form of a 4WD-converted Courier pickup. Sadly, that example was too rusty to justify the purchase and investment in, but I still dig these oddball haulers. This example is ridiculously cheap at just $600 and listed here on craigslist in Syracuse, where the seller admits the winters have not been kind to the floors.
So there’s justification for the low asking price, which is listed as OBO. The seller says that in addition to the rough floors, the Courier isn’t running that well, either, and despite a new carb being thrown at it, it still doesn’t run well and likely needs “…wiring work.” The listing is fairly ambiguous about the actual ills of the truck, but the lower the price goes, the fewer questions need to be asked.
The hazy interior photo appears to show bucket seats from another model truck entirely, although the dash pad and steering wheel are original. The trouble is, even at $600, you don’t need to spend significantly more to get a drastically better example. That was the conclusion I came to, despite wanting to rescue an oddball like a lifted Courier.
It would appear that red is not its original color, which explains why the paint still looks so nice. The Courier may someday be considered an emerging classic, but right now it’s simply an artifact of an era of motoring that never went very far with consumers. This small-bodied pickup may be destined to become a parts truck by one of the few people still restoring Courier pickups.
Had one similar to this back in the day, same color. Loved the thing but was too small for my needs. Wish I had the room for a Courier project.
A buddy of mine had one of these as a high school student in the ’80s. It took all of the abuse a high school boy could throw at it and kept going and going – what a die hard little truck!
Had a green 81. Was a blast after I small blocked it.
A friend of mine had one that was converted to four wheel drive by an aftermarket company. It was very well done, and looked absolutely factory. I wish I had dealt him out of it before he passed.
There were a number of these running around with the 2.3 Pinto engine transplanted into them in place of the relatively weak Mazda engine they came with….. The Mazda version of this pickup offered the “Rotary Power” Wankel engine as an option, which made for pretty cool motorcycle haulers.
The dad of a friend of mine bought one around 1977 or so. It was black I don’t recall seeing one before. We lived in South eastern Michigan, and I didn’t see his dad too often. When I did see that Courier again it looked like it had been dipped in a salt water tank. Cars rust in Michigan, but this had only been 3-4 months. The next time the fenders and tailgate were wagging like a dog’s tail. I had never seen a vehicle waste away so quickly. That truck lasted maybe two years at the most, and then I realized why I never saw them. It was truly amazing.