The new grille was rectangular with the single headlights being placed very near the far ends of the grille. The new buses were taller and wider with a large grille utilizing much of the space of the front fascia. Sharing the engines with the F-5 and F6, a 95 hp 226 inline 6 was standard, with a 100 hp Flathead V8 and a 110 hp 254 inline-six as options.įifth generation (1967–1979) Early 1970s Ford B series located in Hong Kongįord completely redesigned both the B series and medium-duty F series and departed from using the same grilles as the lighter duty F-series trucks. In 1951, the grille trim was redesigned, with the horizontal grille bars replaced by wider-spread vertical ones. Based on the medium-duty F-5 and F-6 (1½ and 2-ton), the B series was slotted between the pickup trucks and the 'Big Job' conventionals. One further generation was produced, introduced in 1980 (with a minor update in 1995).įirst generation (1948–1952) 1948–1951 B series located in Israelįor 1948, as Ford introduced the Ford F-series as its first dedicated truck platform, the B-series made its debut. Before 1967, the medium-duty F series shared its front bodywork with F-series pickup trucks from 1967, medium-duty trucks were given wider front axles and their own front bodywork, with the B-Series cowl shared entirely from medium-duty trucks. Subsequently, Ford sold the B-600, B-700, and B-800 (prior to 1991, diesel-powered versions were badged with an extra '0').įor its entire 50-year production run, the B series paralleled the medium-duty F series in its development. For 1953, the B series shifted to a 3-digit model nomenclature that remains in use by Ford today. In the cowled-chassis segment, the role and market share of the B series was largely superseded by the Blue Bird Vision (introduced in late 2000's).įor 1948, the B series (B=bus) was introduced as a variant of the all-new Ford F-series truck line, designed as a cowled chassis variant of the F-5 and F-6 (1 ½ and 2-ton) medium-duty conventional. As of the 2019 model year, Ford has not developed a cowled-chassis derivative of the F series, instead concentrating on cutaway chassis vehicles. For 2000, Ford re-entered the medium-duty segment with the F-650/F-750 Super Duty. At the time, rural Canadian communities were serviced by either a Ford or a Lincoln-Mercury dealer network, but not both networks concurrently.Ĭoinciding with the late 1996 sale of the Louisville/AeroMax heavy-truck line to Sterling Trucks, Ford phased out the medium-duty F series and the B series following the 1998 model year.

Prior to 1969, Lincoln-Mercury dealers in Canada marketed the B series as part of the Mercury M-series truck line. While primarily used for school bus applications in the United States and Canada, the chassis was exported worldwide to manufacturers to construct bus bodies for various uses. As a cowled-chassis design, the B series was a bare chassis aft of the firewall, intended for bodywork from a second-stage manufacturer. Produced across six generations from 1948 to 1998, the B series was a variant of the medium-duty Ford F series. The Ford B series is a bus chassis that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company.

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