this is the story of 3 trucks.
-1st one is not relevant to your story but rounds out the trivecta.
it was a '79 F-150 4x4 short wide. it had a 351M motor in it. It ate brakes almost as fast as it ate gas. It was a huge , gutless wonder, barely had enough guts to get out of it's own way. I never got more than 8 MPG with it, and that's Imperial Gallons. I traded it on a GMC S-15 and laughed all the way to the bank. Sorry no pic of that one. here's the S-15 I traded it for.

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-2nd is a '72 F-250 long bed 2WD. It had an FE 360 in it. It got even worse gas mileage than the 4x4 above. The best, again in Imperial Gallons, 4.54 Litres each, the
Best I ever got running it in neutral downhill and shutting it off idling at traffic lights was also 8 MPG. I was constantly checking the gas tank for a leak, as I just couldn't believe that truck could drink as much gas as it did.

By this time I was pretty disgusted with Ford trucks in general. I had had several GM trucks that did way better on gas and they all had 4 barrel carbs on them. All my fords had 2 bbls. Then the brewery where my dad worked closed down and I bought the shop truck off them for a song. It was a 78 F-100 long box Custom cab. The only options it had was the
302 and automatic, unless power steering and brakes were also options. I moved everyone I know with this truck. When I first got it I put new tires on it, and I put a new battery and front brake shoes on it. It never cost me one more cent except for oil changes and gasoline. I had it for 12 years. It consistently got 20 MPG highway loaded or not, with stock single exhaust.
Guess which engine I saved for my Slick? 