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Why This 1956 Ford F-100 Is A Genuine Dream Truck

In a way, the work on this truck began when Ric Longo was a little kid, sitting in his room playing with Hot Wheels or drawing cars and trucks on paper—imagining they were real. “Since I am a terrible artist, my ideas and creativity would be trapped in my head,” Ric says. “I would go to car shows with my brother, Chad, every chance I got. I loved looking at the cars and trucks and tried to find the unique customizations that other people dreamed up.” Ric’s dreams and their dreams were the same. The difference was that they had already turned dreams into reality. Ric’s dreams were still in his imagination.

Ric and Chad’s uncle owned a 1956 Ford F-100 that he used to haul debris from his house. As kids, the brothers loved to play in the old truck. It was full of rust and had engine problems, but that’s not what Ric saw. He saw classic bodylines and dreamed about how he would customize it if it were his. The brothers imagined the truck being handed down to them someday. When their uncle sold it, they were disappointed, but agreed that, sooner or later, they would build one of their own.

“Sooner or later” rolled around about 10 years ago when, Ric says, “the fire was re-ignited.” He turned to the Internet to search for the 1956 F-100 to fulfill his longtime dream. The truck was what Ric calls “the typical barn find,” owned since 1982 and not driven since the engine was seized up in 1983. “It took two hours and two flatbed tow trucks to move it out of the weeds,” he told us.

Diving into the rebuild, Ric stuck with the factory frame as the platform for the 1956, but boxed the ’rails to firm them up. Suspension components have all been upgraded, starting with a Mustang II–style frontend from No Limit Engineering. The front components include drop spindles, tubular A-arms, an antiroll bar, and power rack-and-pinion steering. Airbags and shocks are mounted in the front and rear. HRS in Yucaipa, California, shortened the 3.50:1 geared Ford 9-inch in order to fit the wide wheels and tires. The V-Rod billet aluminum five-spokes from Intro Custom Wheels measure 20×10 and 20×8. Nitto low-profile meats, sized 275/35R20 and 245/35R20, provide a wide footprint for traction and handling. Stopping in time is assured with Wilwood disc brakes, combining 12.95-inch vented, slotted rotors, and four-piston calipers.

The body sits low over the chassis. The factory lines have been mildly modified by stretching the rear fenders 3 inches to fit the tires and wheels, and installing custom running boards. Body and bed seams have been filled, and the bed floor was raised 3 inches to accommodate the hidden gas fill and the 20-gallon tank relocated behind the rearend. Ric maintained the small rear window because he prefers that look for this truck. The flamed birch floor wood came from Bed Wood & Parts in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Mid Fifty F-100 Parts in Golden Valley, Arizona, supplied the billet taillight holders and the front and rear stainless bumpers.

The F-100’s original paint had been black, but was well patina’d after a few decades in the barn and the weeds. Ric decided to restore it to its factory shade. When Johnson Custom Classics in Riverside, California, had completed the bodywork, Rocky Johnson finished the 1956 using House Of Kolor products. Outside trim was eliminated to let the perfect black paint get all the attention.

The 1956 is just as impressive on the inside where the style of the 1956 F-100 was preserved but contemporized. The Glide Engineering seat frame was cut and lowered for a perfect fit in the cab, and upholstered in rich brown leather by the Miguel Rosales at Riverside Custom and Classic Auto Interior. Take a look at the dash; the factory gauge cove had been redone with a pair of Classic Instruments gauges. The blackface Speedtachular speedo and tach on the left and the quad combination on the right are housed in a billet gauge panel fabricated specifically for this setup by J&J Engineering. Controls and vents for the Vintage Air A/C system are mounted in the custom center console. The shifter is mounted on the ididit column, which is crowned with a Budnik Famosa steering wheel.

Ric’s plans called for powering his F-100 with an LS2, and found this 2007 6.0L aluminum head version on Craigslist. It came from a vehicle that had been sold minus the engine. The seller told Ric it was a low-mileage engine—and produced the previous vehicle’s dash with the odometer in place as proof. Air is drawn in through a K&N air cleaner and exhaust is sent out through a pair of Edelbrock headers, custom exhaust pipes, and Flowmaster mufflers. The engine is distinguished and disguised by a painted carbon-fiber cover from Turn Key Engine Supply. Moving torque from the engine to the 9-inch is handled by a 4L70E transmission backed up with a driveshaft from Inland Empire Driveline Service.

It took close to five years for Ric to finish the 1956 F-100 he’d been dreaming about his whole life. In addition to Chad and the shops listed above, Ric credits his mother and the rest of his family for their patience and support. The work is over now and the fun is beginning. Classic car culture is huge in Temecula, California, where Ric lives, so there is no shortage of opportunities to drive his truck and participate in events.

Public approval has come in a variety of ways. In addition to the awards he’s won at a few shows, and the compliments he gets wherever he goes, there was the impression he made on another driver on the road one day. The other guy was so distracted by Ric’s black F-100 as it passed that he drove up on the curb and into a sign. As Ric said, “I knew I had built something special.”

Tech Notes

1956 Ford F-100 | Ric Longo

CHASSIS Frame: 1956 Ford, boxed Rearend / Ratio: Ford 9-inch, shortened / 3.50:1 / limited slip Rear suspension: Four-bar, Panhard bar, Firestone airbags, No Limit Engineering shocks Rear axles: Currie 28-spline Front suspension: No Limit Engineering Mustang II–style IFS, Firestone airbags, No Limit Engineering shocks, No Limit dropped spindles, antiroll bar Steering: Power rack-and-pinion Brakes: Wilwood 12.95-inch disc brakes and six-piston calipers, CPP master cylinder, booster, proportioning valve, Billet Specialties pedal assembly Fuel tank: 20-gallon aluminum Front wheels: Intro Custom Wheels V-Rod 20×8 Rear wheels: Intro Custom Wheels V-Rod 20×10 Front tires: Nitto NT555 Michelin Pilot Sport 245/35ZR20 Rear tires: Nitto NT555 275/35R20

DRIVETRAIN Engine: 2007 Chevrolet 6.02L LS2 Heads: stock aluminum Coil covers: stock Air cleaner: K&N Ignition: stock Headers: Edelbrock Exhaust / Mufflers: custom / Flowmaster Radiator: C&R Racing aluminum Transmission: Chevrolet 4L70E Driveshaft: Inline Empire Driveline

BODY Style: 1956 Ford F-100 Stepside Modifications: Trim removed, raised bed floor, body seams filled, bed seams filled and molded, hidden gas filler Fenders: stock, rear fenders widened, custom running boards Hood: stock Grille: stock Door handles: stock Headlights / Taillights: stock / stock with billet holders from Mid Fifty F-100 Parts Bumpers: stainless from Mid Fifty F-100 Parts Glass: stock Bed: flamed birch from Bed Wood & Parts, custom aluminum strips Body prep and Paint: Johnson Custom Classics, Rocky Johnson Paint: House Of Kolor, black

INTERIOR Dashboard: stock Gauges: Classic Instruments All American Tradition Series, J&J Engineering insert Steering wheel: Budnik Famosa Steering column: ididit tilt shifter Seats: Glide Engineering frame, reupholstered Upholstery: Miguel Rosales, Riverside Custom, and Classic Auto Interior Material / color: leather / brown Carpet / color: Mercedes-Benz / brown Air conditioning: Vintage Air Wiring: Ron Francis wiring installed by Chad Longo

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