As I mentioned last week there was an auction at Tracey Road Equipment that contained a variety of interesting lots. One of them was this 1978 Autocar Construcktor that has been featured on this site before. After seeing it lurking around the used truck lot for a few years I was finally able to get up close and personal with this great piece of classic American steel.
I never seem to pay close enough attention to the auction listings so I was pleasantly surprised to see this truck idling away in the line up. Playing it cool, I didn’t run directly over to the truck but instead acted liked I could care less which seemed to be the general attitude shared by many regarding this beast. Powered but a Cummins NTC 290 that produced a very satisfying turbo whistle the Autocar was struggling to build air in the 2o(F) degree weather. After some throttle persuasion the pressure climb and the low air buzzer finally turned off. The interior of this truck was slightly mangled with the dash receiving some abuse from the addition/subtraction of switches and radios over the years. All major gauges were intact including a tachometer that bounced around like a sugar fueld child at Chuck-E-Cheese. A very nice and crack free pearl white Autocar emblazoned steering wheel was the nicest part of the rust free cab.
I stopped by Tracey Road just the other day and found most of the auction items already cleared out with the exception of this truck and a few others. It’s possible it didn’t sell or its future owners have yet to claim it. Back in 2012 the asking price was near 30,000 dollars. No idea what it did or didn’t go for the day of the sale. Regardless, I’m glad I was able to see it one final (maybe) and grab some documentation about it. Best of luck to you Autocar Construcktor!
