Ford F150 1979 4×4 Pickup 351 V8

The 1979 Ford F150 closed out an entire generation of Ford pickups, and the 4×4 models equipped with the 351 V8 were a comparatively rare combination on dealer lots. Under the hood sat a torque-heavy Windsor V8, and underneath rode a suspension design Ford had trusted since 1965. What does a truck built at the very end of a proven formula actually feel like to drive?

Nicely restored all the way around. The paint and trim look great, the interior is very clean, and it’s riding on a nice set of later model chrome wheels. It has the ultra reliable stock powertrain intact. Hope you find it interesting!!

By 1979, Ford had been refining its full-size pickup formula for over a decade, and the F150 was about to close out an entire generation in style. Four hundred thousand of these trucks would leave the factory that year alone, but the ones equipped with four-wheel drive and the 351 cubic inch V8 occupied a smaller, more interesting corner of the lineup. Most buyers who wanted the V8 stuck with two-wheel drive, which makes the 4×4 version something of an outlier on the used market today. What made Ford commit to a suspension design that was already fourteen years old by the time this truck rolled off the line?

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The Engine Under the Hood

The 351 cubic inch Windsor V8 was the workhorse option for buyers who wanted more than the standard inline six, delivering roughly 150 horsepower and 265 lb-ft of torque, numbers that sound modest today but were plenty for a truck built to tow and haul rather than sprint. Most 1979 F150 buyers paired their V8 with an automatic transmission, and on 4×4 models power routed through an NP205 cast iron transfer case built to survive real off-road abuse.

A Suspension Ford Trusted for Over a Decade

Ford stuck with its Twin I-Beam front suspension for 1979, a design the company had introduced back in 1965 and never saw a reason to abandon. It traded some of the precision of a fully independent setup for genuine ride comfort and durability over rough terrain, and most owners at the time found it handled backroads and job sites better than what the competition offered. With 1979 marking the final year of Ford’s sixth-generation F-Series, this truck represents the last word on a formula the company had spent years getting right.

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