The first thing people notice about a Fargo pickup truck is it looks exactly like a Dodge pickup and that is not an accident.
Chrysler of Canada was essentially a separate entity from its American parent company prior to the 1965 Auto Pact agreement that brought Canada and the US closer together in automotive trade.
Jim Sutherland
There were heavy tariffs on any vehicle sent from one country to the other prior to the Auto Pact and they were eliminated 50 years ago by the agreement. Consequently, some vehicles were only sold in the Canadian market and not the American market.
The Fargo truck is a good example of a vehicle sold in Canada by Plymouth dealers, and it was offered until 1971 when the full weight of the Auto Pact agreement retired the Fargo brand in the Canadian market.
Cliff Guinard is the proud owner of a 1970 Fargo pickup–but not just any ’70 Fargo because Cliff’s truck is a Fargo Dude.
Car guys may recall the Dude name from its short-lived production in 1970-71. Only about 1500 to 2000 Dodge Dudes were built over that two-year span and few of them survived the next five decades.
Cliff added Fargo trucks were not sold in abundance compared to Dodge trucks, even in Canada, and figured the ratio was roughly 1.75 Fargos for every 10 Dodges. He concluded only 20 to 29 Fargo Dude models were sold during their production run and even fewer Fargo Dudes survived the ensuing decades.
The net result is Cliff’s 1970 Fargo Dude is an incredibly rare Canuck truck; a fact not lost on him. He found the truck in 2018 and rescued it from a rough retirement in a rural location where it was forgotten and destined to rust in peace.
Cliff told MyStarCollectorCar his ‘70 Fargo Dude was originally sold in Calgary, Alberta Canada to a young guy who was an apprentice electrician and a student at a trade school in that city.
The Fargo Dude clearly appealed to him, perhaps because of its unique decal package and rarity, but the thrill was clearly gone when he pushed the truck out to pasture because it was used up by him.
Fortunately, Cliff was able to save the truck from its inevitable fate when he bought it. Initially, Cliff stored the truck at his parents’ ranch while he formulated his game plant for his unusual Canuck truck.
His ‘70 Fargo Dude had a 318 coupled to a 3-speed automatic transmission, but Cliff decided to replace the 318 with a 360 small block, Cliff kept the truck’s original engine because he did not want to stray too far from its originality, but felt another engine was better suited for his plan to drive the truck.
Cliff kept the truck’s original exterior, including its unique Dude decal package, because he wanted to preserve the truck’s history as much as possible.
The net result is a vintage truck that wears its 56-year history like a badge of honor–and that is exactly why Cliff wanted to honor its legacy as a uniquely rare survivor.
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.
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