When you look at the first photo of this 1955 International R-100 Pickup, you probably see a vehicle that is going to need some work before it is ready to hit the road again. Fear not, my friends. As you will scroll down you will see that a lot of work has now been done, and this old R-100 is now back on the road again. Located in Whitehouse, Ohio, it is listed for sale here on Craigslist.
The old girl has certainly scrubbed up quite well. The owner has done no more than give the Pickup a wash and a polish, and while it may not have a showroom finish, it still looks pretty good. The Pickup is said to be free of rust, and while it has a few dings and marks on the body, it is quite presentable as it is.
The time, effort, and money on this International have all been targeted towards bringing the mechanical components up to scratch. The original 220ci 6-cylinder engine and 3-speed manual transmission are both still in residence. The bright paint on the cylinder head is compliments of the head receiving a rebuild. In addition to that, the ignition system has been rebuilt, the electrical system has been converted to 12-volts including a new alternator and battery. The Pickup has also been fitted with a new fuel pump, new tires, new master cylinder and wheel cylinders, and new shocks. The owner says that it starts and runs perfectly, even in the coldest weather, and that it drives really well.
The interior of the Pickup is also in surprisingly good condition. The seat is looking quite torn on the driver’s side, but if you threw a blanket over it, you’d never know the difference. The rest of the interior appears to be original, and there’s really nothing that needs doing there.
The owner says that the Pickup is not perfect, but that it is ready to drive as it is, it could also be restored, or it could be used as the basis for a project. Personally, I’d probably leave it as it is and enjoy it for what it is. The owner has set the asking price for the International at $10,500. Given the amount of mechanical work that has been performed, coupled with the solid condition of the vehicle, I don’t think that it’s a bad price.
Here’s another “give that knife in my gut a turn” vehicles. I had a truck just like this in the early 80’s. I delivered sand to golf courses, and the truck was next to a shed. It looked just like this before buffing. I paid $100 dollars for it. Needed the usual stuff, brakes, fuel, etc.but had been the on the golf course it’s whole life, and had maybe 30K miles. The golf course couldn’t believe I wanted that old truck, and were glad to get rid of it. I got it going, and was my daily driver for 2 years. Mine was a SD220 like this, loved oil, but like the seller says, it never let me down, even in the coldest weather, and that was with the 6 volt. It would cruise about 55mph, not much more than that. I’m surprised the grill below the headlights is in good shape. Almost all of these, the parking lights( not turn signals, although, I did convert mine into turn signals) would rot away.As usual, I’m aghast at the price, and now you know why.
I join you in your aghast “ness”
We’ve just ‘aged’ out of the ‘Will Pay Too Much for Anything’ class.
Nice 3500 truck in my view.
Since when is “Pickup” a proper noun?
My uncle had a ‘51 L-110 parked behind the oil shed on his wheat farm. It was completely original right down to its hub caps. I thought it curious no one ever drove it, and asked my dad about it. Turned out it belonged to my cousin Jerry, who died in an automobile accident in 1967. “Don’t ask him about it,” dad said. In the late seventies my uncle sold the engine and transmission to a neighbor, who after pulling both, returned what was left of the truck to my uncle, who parked it in his truck graveyard in a draw south of the farmhouse. I thought it was weird, but it was his truck, and he was free to do what he wished with it.
How about that? There are still some good ones out there. If this was to come my way, I’d drive away and fix the front end sheet metal as I went. I’m not a big fan of converting over to 12V. They worked just fine on 6V so I feel no need to change. But that’s me. And, Howard, I feel your pain…
I go for any pickup truck from the 50s that wasn’t made by any of the Big Three and this International fits the bill. And the seller had new tires put on to boot.
I LIKE IT!
While IHC didn’t crank out as many light trucks as the others, there are a surprising number of them still sitting around. I think perhaps the lack of interest in the past has saved them for us now. Seeing a lot more interest in these as the Chevy and Ford prices go up.
I have a 1952 that’ll be back on the road this year. And last week I saw the long bed 4×4 cousin of this truck out driving in the snow. Same color scheme, factory 4×4. It’s nice to see them on the road and not being babied.
I recognize this one from the Hackenberger estate sale last year in Mansfield.
It looked like an honest unmolested truck, and like many other vehicles in the sale it had been shipped from out west and stored under roof for years.
It sold for strong money so the seller isn’t making a killing here. Glad to see that something from this sale was preserved.
I have a ’51 L112 with a BD264,which I bought 28 years ago.GREAT truck!
Funny a nice one just like the first picture showed up at the drive in burger joint this weekend. It was the owners granpa’s and was stock….they do make a nice looking pickup you don’t see much of.
Cute little Cornbinder. None of this quality in the rust belt. Nice cruiser for someone!! Good luck to the new owner!!
Cheers
GPC
These Silver Diamond engines (and yes, it should be silver) are great engines. They were fitted originally with hardened valve seats so they could run on propane. No worries running unleaded in these beasts.
Twice in the life of my ‘53, I’ve let it sit for 10 years only to have it fire up and run with little effort. Looking forward to turning my attention back to that project.
ahhh, the memories this truck brings. my FIRST vehicle ever was a ’54 IHC L100 with the SD220 engine. i was 16 years old back in ’77 when i towed it behind my brother in my father’s Ford PU using just a chain and hoping we wouldn’t get caught by the cops. it was a solid truck. i even rebuilt the tranny myself using nothing more than an exploded parts diagram. back then i was still able to buy a NOS 1st gear (cost me a staggering $300 at the time) but it purred like a kitten when i finished. when i moved across the country to VA for my first job after college my folks pushed me to ‘do something with it’. they didn’t want to store it for me any longer. at the time (around 1990), i had trouble GIVING it away. oh well.