I thought for sure this was a mislabeled “Camper Special” truck, but sure enough, Ford did create a model known as the “Trailer Special.” This clean 1979 Ford F150 is one of these upgraded rigs that retains its original paint and special tailgate badge denoting it as such, and the seller claims the truck comes with a rebuilt 302 engine under the hood. The Trailer Special offered truck shoppers a few different bonuses to make it a sweeter deal than a standard model, much like the Camper Special. The Ford will need new tires but the seller claims that’s it – otherwise, it’s a solid runner. Find it here on eBay with bids to $5,500 and no reserve.

You can just make out the Trailer Special badge on the bottom center of the tailgate. This package got you two different towing capacity limits depending on whether the “Heavy Duty” option was selected, ranging from 2,000 to 6,000 pounds. The rest of options were all the heavy-duty upgrades that were shared across vehicles like those with the Camper Special package, or the police-spec models. Things like a heavy duty radiator, external oil cooler, rear sway bar, trailer wiring harness, special mirrors and more were all included depending on which level of the Trailer Special package you chose. It’s hard to say which one this F150 was ordered with, but if there was a better photo of the build sheet in the gallery, we might be able to tell.

The seller reports that the engine was rebuilt 11,000 miles ago by Lucas Ford, which is presumably a Ford dealership in Burlington, New Jersey. I can’t say that for sure, but New Hope, PA where the truck is located is just 40 minutes from the dealership, so it seems likely. It’s an interesting scene, that of a vintage pickup truck like this parked at a new car dealer getting its engine rebuilt, and if I had to guess, this was a favor from someone at the dealership to the owner of the truck. I just can’t see a high volume Ford dealer wanting a bay tied up with an engine rebuild for a customer’s ’79 Ford F150 – unless the seller is perhaps an owner or otherwise interested party in the dealership.

Despite having over 113,000 miles, the Ford remains in very good condition for a used, unrestored example. Yes, the driver’s seat is torn among other blemishes associated with an unrestored survivor like this, but the overall vibe this truck gives off is that of a survivor. The seller mentions other original details beyond the paint and the build sheet, including wax factory markings and various Ford stickers still on the truck. The fact that it still has bias ply tires on it indicates that this F150 didn’t see much use over the last few years, so swap those out and get out there and tow something! I’m actually surprised bidding is so light, as this nicely preserved F150 seems well worth a few more bids than what’s shown here. Thanks to Barn Finds reader Russell G. for the find.