bullnose faq's
Where did the term "Bullnose" come from? What are the differences between the various years of Bullnose trucks? What is an F100 Pony? These, and other questions about the 1980 - 86 Ford trucks, are answered on these pages.
WHERE DID THE BULLNOSE NICKNAME COME FROM?
From time to time the question of how the Bullnose moniker came to be associated with the 1980 - 86 Ford trucks comes up. And here's the answer:
Back in March of 2011 dohc chump asked the following question in the thread What nick name do you think our Gen should have? on FTE: "67-72 are Bumpsides, 73-79 are Dentsides... What nickname would you give our 80-86 trucks?"
In response #3, our own blucollar4xford responded "A few years back some offroad mag my brother in law gets, did a three part story on our generation of trucks. The first time I ever heard a nickname for a generation (before learning just how common the term "dentside" really is), this rag called the 80-86 trucks "bullnose" trucks..." The discussion was on and raged for a week.
At that point our own ctubutis started a poll entitled Shall the nickname of the 80-86 trucks and this forum be "Bullnose?" The resulting vote was 80% for that nickname, and subsequently it has taken root and even those who aren't "into" them are beginning to know them as Bullnose trucks.
Back in March of 2011 dohc chump asked the following question in the thread What nick name do you think our Gen should have? on FTE: "67-72 are Bumpsides, 73-79 are Dentsides... What nickname would you give our 80-86 trucks?"
In response #3, our own blucollar4xford responded "A few years back some offroad mag my brother in law gets, did a three part story on our generation of trucks. The first time I ever heard a nickname for a generation (before learning just how common the term "dentside" really is), this rag called the 80-86 trucks "bullnose" trucks..." The discussion was on and raged for a week.
At that point our own ctubutis started a poll entitled Shall the nickname of the 80-86 trucks and this forum be "Bullnose?" The resulting vote was 80% for that nickname, and subsequently it has taken root and even those who aren't "into" them are beginning to know them as Bullnose trucks.
While to most people the 80 - 86 trucks are all the same, there were some significant changes along the way as well as many insignificant ones. Given that, I'm attempting to document some of the more obscure thereof:
Still need to figure out when these things changed, and what was involved:
- 1980:
- Wiring: The instrument wiring was different for the 1980 trucks, as described in this thread. In it my friend Paul said "The printed circuit for the 1980 models is green, and is wired differently than the 81-86, which has a red PCB."
- 1980 auto trans has the Neutral Safety Switch (NSS) located on the steering column, whereas it's on the side of the transmission & combined with the backup light switch in 1981+
- Brushed aluminum trim rings around the shift boots/unique to 1980 shift boots
- Lariat and Explorer high trim trucks had a vinyl (cloth on Explorer) trim panel above the door panel armrests only seen in 1980
- Radio and Clock wiring harnesses used a rubber (Trailer style) connector
- Last of the 11-digit VIN's. After that the VIN when to 17 digits.
- 1981: A transition year
- Amber turn signals: The 1980 trucks had clear turn signal lenses and amber bulbs. Ford's Master Parts Catalog says clear lenses were used before 12/80 and amber lenses were used after 12/80. However, from what I can tell only, as explained here, the Twin Cities and Norfolk plants used clear lenses for '81 trucks, and it appears that Twin Cities changed to amber lenses in September of 1980 and Norfolk changed by October of 1980. Or, said another way, out of 7 plants in North America producing 1981 Ford trucks, only 2 used clear lenses at all for that production year, and they stopped using them in September and October.
- Door Locks: The 1980 trucks all had slide door locks, and the parts catalog says that the cutover date for 1981 trucks was a build date of 3/81. However, like the turn signal lenses, that date isn't precise. As explained here, it looks like door locks changed fairly close to 03/81 in most plants, but not in all of them.
- Kansas City produced trucks in 03/81 with slide locks, but by 04/81 had gone to pins.
- Twin Cities was still using slide locks as late as 07/81.
- Exterior Trim: As of 4/81 the lower trim without vinyl insert was discontinued, as shown here on the Lower Moulding tab. In addition, the vinyl insert was changed to a different shape as of that date.
- 1982:
- The A/C system changed, with the round FS6 compressor replacing the twin-piston York or Techumseh. And, the hose that goes from the compressor to the evaporator went straight back to the firewall and across it rather than angling across the engine as it did previously. (See pictures of the 1983 Bronco survivor.)
- The Swiss cheese frame of the 1980 & 81 trucks was replaced by a solid frame
- The LGG (Last Great Grille as my FTE friend WilleyJoe is wont to say) of a simple egg crate was changed to a more complex one with a Ford emblem in the center
- 1983
- The tailgate straps were replaced by cables, so the tailgate itself has one fewer hole on each side.
- Probably at the same time as the straps changed to cables, the tailgate strikers changed from just open loops to ones with rubber bonded to the loops.
- Probably at the same time as the strikers changed, the screws that hold them on changed from Phillips to Torx.
- The 6.9L diesel was added to the engine options
- The 460 replaced the 400 as the big engine in the lineup
- Hydraulic clutch linkage was introduced for the F250's & 350's using either of the new engines - the diesel & the 460.
- The XLT replaced the Lariat as the top trim-line (Source: This thread.)
- 1984
- All trucks with manual transmissions got hydraulic clutch linkages
- The 4.9L six got a feedback carb controlled by the EEC-IV computer system
- Introduction of the 5.8L HO in November of 1983 for the '84 models. This engine had a Holley 4180 4bbl, a hotter cam, and DS-II ignition, while the standard 5.8L engines continued with the Motorcraft 2150A feedback carb and EEC-IV computer.
- The Thick Film Integrated (TFI) ignition system was introduced for all but the 351HO and 460 engines
- The hot-fuel handling setup was added to the 460's to prevent vapor lock.
- 1985
- In November of 1984 for the 1985 models the 5.0L 2V and 5.8L 2V engines, meaning those with 2bbl carbs, were discontinued leaving the 5.0L EFI, the 5.8L HO, and the 460 as the V8 gas engines.
- The coolant recovery bottle changed such that the hose connected to a fitting in the bottom rather than being inserted through an opening in the top.
- Trim: Early 1985 trucks had an upper body molding option that appears to have been used on only a few trucks and may have been discontinued for late 1985 trucks, as described in this thread on FTE, and pictured on the Upper Moulding/Regular Cab tab on my Exterior Trim & Moulding page. The latest usage I'm aware of is the 1985 F150 Survivor, which was built in 5/85 at the Ontario plant. However, there are/were two 1986 trucks in a salvage in AZ that had that trim. So it appears it may have been used into the 1986 production year.
- The Lariat was re-introduced as the top-of-the-line truck in '85, having been dropped from the lineup in '83.
- The locking hood release handle was changed to a black one, probably to match the new black headlight and wiper knobs. (Source: The MPC shows the prefix on the part number to be E5.)
- The DRW axles for the pickups, but not the cab & chassis trucks, were made longer to put the inside tire in line with the front tire instead of the space between the rear tires being in line with the front tire. This made the floor of the bed the same for the SRW as the DRW for 1985 & 6.
- 1986
- The wiring colors changed slightly as the hash marks and dots that had been used on the wiring up through '85 were dropped. Apparently the hash marks and dots turned into stripes, but the color code stayed the same. (Source: 1986 EVTM)
- The lights on/door open "buzzer" changed to a "chime" for the XL and XLT Lariat models, although the base model carried on with the buzzer. (Source: 1986 brochure)
Still need to figure out when these things changed, and what was involved:
- Wiring change in the 1980 models. When and what was the change?
- Door weatherstripping: 1982's appear to have different stuff as it gets HARD. When did it change back?
- 2G alternator
- Feedback carbs?
I don't know what an F100 Pony looks like. In fact, until today (5/13/2016) I'd never heard of one. And, at this point I'm not really sure there are/were any. But, Ford's 1980 - 89 Master Parts Catalog seems to say they existed, as shown below. Specifically, it is called out in the following sections:
UPDATE: More proof of a "Pony" is emerging. TSB's 82-25-16 and 82-25-16-S do mention an F-100 "PONY" ONLY, FUEL ECONOMY LEADER. However, the 1982 & 1983 Ford Light Truck Facts books don't mention the Pony, just the F-100 FS (Fuel Saver) Package, which is shown on pages 21 & 28, respectively, of the Vehicles/F-Series 4x2 tabs.
So, it would look like the Pony actually did exist but that it was Ford's slang term for the Fuel Saver or Fuel Economy Leader package. I say that because "Pony" appears to have never made it into the press material since none of the brochures I've seen mention it. However, the term "Pony" was mentioned in at least these three Ford internal publications.
- Fan Blade: The Pony gets a 7-blade 15" diameter fan while most others get a 4 or 5-blade 18 1/2" fan
- Fan Clutch: The 1982 Pony got a clutch all its own, but there's no mention of what the 83 & 84's got.
- Finger Guard: Apparently the Pony didn't get the finger guard that some others got. See the fan shroud
- Fan Shroud: At least the '82 Pony got a fan shroud even with standard cooling, although it doesn't say what others got. Further, the shroud it got was the same one used with 18 1/2" fans, so the little 15" fan was a loose fit.
- Radiator Hoses: This section seems to say that the Pony didn't come with A/C. That's because there is no "1" in the A/C column, meaning that truck didn't have that option. In any event, the Pony did get the upper radiator hose that was used on Super Cooling and A/C-equipped trucks. And it got the lower hose that most trucks got.
- Water Pump Pulley: The '83 Pony is singled out here, but there's no indication of what pulley the 82 & 84's got.
UPDATE: More proof of a "Pony" is emerging. TSB's 82-25-16 and 82-25-16-S do mention an F-100 "PONY" ONLY, FUEL ECONOMY LEADER. However, the 1982 & 1983 Ford Light Truck Facts books don't mention the Pony, just the F-100 FS (Fuel Saver) Package, which is shown on pages 21 & 28, respectively, of the Vehicles/F-Series 4x2 tabs.
So, it would look like the Pony actually did exist but that it was Ford's slang term for the Fuel Saver or Fuel Economy Leader package. I say that because "Pony" appears to have never made it into the press material since none of the brochures I've seen mention it. However, the term "Pony" was mentioned in at least these three Ford internal publications.
The F100 ran for just four of the seven Bullnose years as it was discontinued for 1984. But there were some oddities during that time, and this tab is to capture them.
First up are the wheels. It is a little-known fact that some of the F100's used wheels with a 5 x 4.5" bolt pattern. Here's a snippet from the Wheel Application Chart showing that a 4.5" bolt pattern wheel was used on F100's. (This is for 1982, but they were used from 1980 - 1983.) But, note that it shows that F100's also used wheels with a 5.5" bolt pattern.
First up are the wheels. It is a little-known fact that some of the F100's used wheels with a 5 x 4.5" bolt pattern. Here's a snippet from the Wheel Application Chart showing that a 4.5" bolt pattern wheel was used on F100's. (This is for 1982, but they were used from 1980 - 1983.) But, note that it shows that F100's also used wheels with a 5.5" bolt pattern.
So the question becomes which F100's got the smaller wheels. And to answer that we turn to the Front Hub chart, a portion of which is shown below. Notice that the F150, which we know all took 5.5" wheels, uses Parts List No. 15. So the hub in that parts list has studs on a 5.5" pattern. And we can see that F100's with power brakes and a GVW of 5000 to 5100 lbs shares that parts list. In addition, all F100's with manual brakes share the parts list, so have a 5.5" bolt pattern.
But the odd man out is the F100 with power brakes and a GVW from 4600 to 4700 lbs. These used the smaller bolt-pattern wheels.
But the odd man out is the F100 with power brakes and a GVW from 4600 to 4700 lbs. These used the smaller bolt-pattern wheels.
