Looking for info on an old "Canadian Ford"

Hello everyone,
I'm doing a home movie focusing on my father's truck driving days in the mid 1970s in northern Western Australia. There are lots of family stories about his adventures in the truck, but not much about the truck itself! Sadly he passed away in 2013 so I can't ask him for specific details about the truck. My parents always called it a "Canadian Ford". It started out as a prime mover, and Dad converted it to a rigid truck. Any info about make, model or year would be highly appreciated. The two pics (the only ones we have of the truck) are of the truck in our driveway and an earlier very bad pic of the process of converting it.
Thanks in advance!
Tracy Sorensen
Bathurst, NSW

Hi Tracy, Looks like either a F8000 or possibly an F800 to Me.

If You're on facebook? Here's a link to a Page dedicated to them..
www.facebook.com/groups/199656908128082/

Tracey,
You could try contacting the Carnarvon Shire with that plate number, they may still have records on vehicles.
By the grill maybe mid 60's
Cheers Steve

I think it is a FORD F800 (4th series built from 1961-66).

Tracy,
The term "Canadian Ford" may relate to the Six cylinder, 240 or 300 cubic inch petrol motors made in Canada and fitted to many Ford trucks and buses. Otherwise and I don't know if it still applied in the 1960's but earlier, there were heavy import tariffs on importation of vehicles from outside the British Empire, so several American manufacturers set up factories in Canada so that the vehicle could be imported from Canada which was a member of the British Commonwealth.

Was it you and Doug looking at International trucks at a clearing sale near Wagga Wagga last last year?

Canadian Fords were usually badged as Mercury...

Ford set up their first Canadian factory in 1904 - years before the Model T. Initially it was just a normal commercial decision to do with local markets, cheaper labour etc but when the British Commonwealth became exceedingly protectionist most large manufacturers did likewise to get around the tariffs.

The USA and Canadian factories were within shouting distance of each other and the "Made in Canada" badges were often quite farcical with parts, complete vehicles and even workers traveling back and forth across the border. These days with consumer laws you would see what we do with many products on the supermarket shelf - "Made (or Assembled) in Canada" in large print and underneath in small print "From Local and Imported Parts".

Lang

[Petrol Engine was an F800. Diesel Engine was an F8000.

Interesting the diesel was a 160 Cummins...never knew that......Ive got the remains of one of these Fords in the yard,its a magnet for thieves .....some tealeaf has even started cutting the roof off with a hacksaw.

I have seen this truck - you would swear there is nothing left to steal, and yet.....

Jarrod.