Some of our MyStarCollectorCar readers may ask this question: What is a 1970 Fargo Dude?
Many of our readers may already know Fargo trucks were a part of the Canadian market and principally built for Chrysler’s Plymouth dealerships in that country.
The Fargo nameplate was largely unknown in the US and eventually headed into the history books in 1972 as part of the 1965 Auto Pact free trade agreement that opened the automotive border between Canada and the States.
Jim Sutherland
The history of the Fargo truck undoubtedly took second place for Kelley Prymych because he was more interested in a 1970 Fargo Dude once owned by his grandfather Earl Kelley.

Mopar truck fans will already know a Dude was a limited-edition pickup sold for only two years (1970-71) by Dodge. At most, there were only about 2000 Dude models sold by Dodge during that time frame, but there were only a handful of Fargo Dude pickups sold because Fargo trucks were not common-let alone Fargo Dude pickups.

Kelley was just a kid when his granddad owned the ’70 Fargo Dude, but the stylish pickup left a big impression upon him because of the unique cowboy hat image on the rear deck of the truck box.

Unfortunately, his grandfather sold the truck to a scrap dealer when Kelley was still just a kid who presumed he would never see the truck again. The typical fate for a scrap vehicle is a grim date with a crusher so Kelley had to accept the fact he had seen the last of Grandpa Earl’s Fargo ½ ton, the one with the very cool cowboy decal on the side of its box.

However, good luck was on Kelley’s side when a random conversation with a guy revealed his granddad’s truck was still around 25 years later, so Kelley was hot on its trail.
The history of the truck with the scrap dealer is unclear, but maybe he realized the rare Canuck truck was worth more in its current form than as a metal pancake. Whatever the circumstances, the 1970 Fargo Dude went into long term storage and suffered some abuse during its lengthy timeout.

Some of the glass was broken out of the truck, there was body damage, and it developed rust issues over the years, but it was still Grandpa Earl’s truck and Kelley knew he had to buy it as part of his family legacy.
The 1970 Fargo Dude has its original 318 cubic-inch engine coupled to the truck’s factory 3-speed automatic transmission, along with its original bucket seats that helped define the truck’s sporty image during the early Seventies.

Buying back the Fargo family heirloom was the first step for Kelley and now he is formulating his game plan for the truck. He wants to revive the Fargo so it’s ready for the road, but Kelly also wants to preserve the pickup’s history as much as possible during the process.

“It’s going to be a sacred truck…there’s no dollar value that could buy that truck”, in Kelley’s words. The 1970 Fargo Dude is a big part of Kelley’s family history-and who could really argue with him?
Jim Sutherland
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
- CLICK HERE to Sign Up for the Newsletter
- CLICK HERE to Like us on Facebook
- CLICK HERE to Follow us on Twitter
- CLICK HERE to Follow us on Pinterest