Light Duty Dually: 1979 Plymouth Arrow
Fancy a dually but can’t stand the poor gas mileage? Well, my friend, your ship has come in. However, while this Plymouth Arrow dually edition may promise efficient wheeling, it is currently lacking an engine. But all that means is that the possibilities are endless for sourcing a unique four-cylinder powerplant that preserves the spirit of this miserly pickup without the penalty of 1970s-era Japanese truck horsepower. Find it here on eBay with an opening bid of $1,200.
There’s no reserve and no bidding action at the moment. The Arrow shares its heritage with Mitsubishi (OK, it’s mostly a Mitsubishi wearing a Plymouth badge) and as such, any number of Mitsubishi diesel engines would make an interesting pairing with this burly econobox pickup. Big questions on my mind are how well was the dually conversion carried out; does it need any suspension refreshing or chassis reinforcements; and just what the hell is it like to drive a custom dually creation like this? The fender flares definitely originated with a domestic pickup truck.
What a disappointment that there aren’t doors for the rear passengers! I’m half-kidding, but I’m genuinely curious how the conversion unfolded. It retains an Arrow-correct bed, as the taillights are the right ones, but the rear cab section clearly originated on another truck as the paint color is different and there’s an obvious break in the body line. My guess is the rear may be from a Toyota camper of the same era, as those were available with the dually rear axle option (though those also went through a factory-mandated recall a few years back).
Inside, I’m a bit shocked at the vibrant blue door panels and carpets – where did that come from, as it doesn’t appear to be factory. The automatic is a bummer, but given this custom cab Arrow may have some super spooky handling and next to no power (well, literally no power in its current form), I doubt a stick-shift would add that much enjoyment to the drive. The seller hasn’t listed a reserve and the Arrow can be found in Dale, Texas; is this oddball project worth rescuing?
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Comments
Aftermarket crew cabs like this were common in the seventies and early eighties. There was a whole industry making them and they were seldom unique to any truck model, meaning that fit and finish almost always looked like this.
Too bad they didn’t put the full floating rear axles in the rear. Some of the early Toyota conversions would have them. Some not Would love to see a pic of the frame work to extend this two + feet. Great turning radius
I like it just for the uniqueness, put aV6 at least, in it and motor on!
I recall speaking with a guy who commuted an hour in a Ram50 with the wee diesel, he seemed pretty happy with it. Good fuel economy, plenty of oomph for the size of the vehicle. If you could track one down, and were inclined to put the effort in, the little Mitsu diesel would be quite suitable in this setup, I think.
I think with the dual wheels and the automatic, you would have to get out and push to get it moving.
WHEN YOU SEE A TIRE IN CAB you just know the owner took good care of this one……….
Does anybody think that putting just whatever engine and transmission you could get cheap and still fit it in would be alright?
That would create a smog problem in most states.
I’m afraid I didn’t take the smoggingbto pass an inspection. I’m so glad I live in the backwoods.
Would anybody pay even the opening bid of $1200.00 for this shell?
It looks like it needs everything to be gone over.
Better yet, just gone…
Rust in peace ….seller is dreaming good project at a third the price!
It looks like hes was doing a conversion on it.the shifter looks like its a ford and theres 3 pedels hanging down.my guess is it was a 4 speed.
There is 3 pedals but a ford auto shift in it.
Looks like this has been pieced together more than a few times.
Thought the Arrow was a car, and the D-50 (half ton?) the pickup?
The D-50 was the Dodge- As was common in the era, every division wanted to have a chunk of the market, rather than each having their own niche. Plymouth
got their version later than Dodge, and called it the Arrow – basically “badge engineering”, main differences were trim packages – kind of like the N.O.V.A.S.
from GM ( Nova,Omega, Ventura, Apollo,Seville ) – all basically the same car,
the one that differed most was the Seville.
These little Mitsu pickups were pretty good when fitted with the 2.6 liter 4, which had a balance shaft to make them smoother running. Several friends had them for years, and I don’t recall any negative comments – most eventually moved up to larger trucks or sold them to better meet family needs.
On this one, I’d definitely look into either a small diseasel or a V6 – maybe a GM 4.3 if I could get an overdrive trans to keep the revs down. Many parts interchange with the 350 V8, so less cost to work on and easier to find parts for than the 3.8.
Crazy how you could take off the cab extension, shorten the frame, find a regular rear end, and cut off the fender flares to make a regular plymouth arrow pickup. Sure nobody in their right mind would ever do this. It would quite a waste. Not to bad of a dually example.