Most car guys acquire their pathological fixation on old iron early in life.
It usually starts with plastic model kits of cars they’d “really like to own when they grow up”.
After that it migrates to a project car or truck – often before they’re old enough to drive legally. Serious buy-in from a father is a prerequisite to this stage.
Kevin Hermary took a different direction when he bought this 1952 Fargo pickup because although he a reasonably young guy, he’s well past both stages in life.
Fargos are the Canadian cousin in the Dodge truck lineup and they are comparatively rare vehicles so Kevin made a good choice based on that fact alone.
There were other key factors in the Fargo purchase as Kevin explained, “I wanted an old truck but I didn’t want to pay a lot for it”. He added another key condition to the list, “I didn’t want a fixer-upper”.
Veteran car guys often assign the same criteria to a search but their experience tells them that “good price” and “non-fixer upper” are two concepts that are often diametrically opposed in a search for affordable old iron.
Kevin had beginners luck.
He found this old Fargo after a relatively short and painless search so clearly he was peace with the car gods in his rookie adventure. He is the fourth owner of this rugged Fargo farm truck and he struck gold with this purchase.
This is an original 95,000 mile 60 year old truck and it is a very solid piece of Chrysler Canada automotive history. The Fargo is a basic flathead 6-cylinder, 3-on-the-tree manual transmission, standard brakes, manual steering radio delete farm truck. Essentially this old truck is tank-like indestructible.
Farm trucks were exactly like this one back in the day because the duty of a pickup back in 1952 was function over form…so no climate control and no heated leather seats.
Kevin is more than okay with the basic, stripped down power train in his Fargo. He explained, “ I’m not mechanical and I’m just learning about motors so this truck is a great start plus guys are always willing to help out”. He put that theory to the test at his first car show when he solicited advice about why the old Fargo pops out of first gear. There was no shortage of solid insight and advice for the diagnosis and cure for the jumpy shifter.
His game plan is refreshingly simple and honest as he pointed out, “ I aim to keep it a long time and I don’t want to soup it up and wreck the old beast”.
The 1952 Fargo has been an educational tool for Kevin plus he has the world’s most effective anti-theft system riding in the back of the old farm truck. He travels with his buddy, a wolf dog and that seems to keep people at bay until they discover how friendly his four legged pal is to human beings.
Kevin knows how lucky he was in this purchase because he’s already come under pressure to sell the old Fargo, “ I had a guy call me after I bought it and he told me he’d give me whatever I wanted for the truck. I told him it wasn’t for sale but he pretty persistent so the last thing he heard was the click as I hung up on him”.
That sums up Kevin’s commitment to the hobby in general and the Fargo in particular, because he knew what he wanted and he found it.
He just skipped the model-building phase.
Jerry Sutherland
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