Nolan R. Anderson
963 Ford F100 Truck · Ford 292 Y Block V8
Visalia Pharoahs
1963 F100 Wrongbed (Pepsi truck) story. My name is Nolan R. Andersen. I'm 23 years old, and I've been a part of the Pharaohs of Visalia car club for 3 years. Ever since I was a little kid, I've always had a connection and interest in cars/trucks. Mostly trucks. My father, Donny C. Andersen, who is also a member, always told me about the pickups he had growing up. The one he always reminisced about, missed, and talked about the most was a 1963 Ford F-100 unibody he owned before I was around. My father" s grandpa Willy, gave it to his step dad, which then he gave it to my father when he was 16-17 years old. He owned it for years, loved it, and drove it from the Bay Area to Visalia in 1998 when they moved down to the Central Valley. It had a 223 straight-6 engine with a 3-speed transmission. 3 on the tree column shift. It was a bare bones, basic farm/work truck. No radio, no A/C, and no heat. It was far from having any bells and or whistles. Back then, my mom and dad were young, starting to have kids, and he did not have the time for it. He ended up having to sell it and always told me he regretted it. He always said that too-bad patina wasn't popular yet back then. Over the years, we talked about maybe one day, when I'm older, we should find it or find one to restore and work on. That became a reality 3 years ago. One day, we went out to a car show that our cousin Albert had us attend and check out. It was such a great time that by the end of that faithful, influential night/show, we both knew, talked, and agreed that it was time to find that truck to restore and wrench on. We looked at other brands we were interested in, but nothing was catching our eye. Until one day I found it, the perfect fixer-upper 1963 f100 "wrongbed" with a 3-speed column shift with an overdrive transmission. Still no A/C, but it does have heat, a radio, and the factory original engine to the truck, a 292 y-block V8. We wished it were a unibody, but this was a deal on Facebook Marketplace we couldn't pass up. We picked it up in Patterson, about 2-3 hours away, and brought her home. Since then, the rest is history. The truck brought my father and me even closer together, and to this day, I will never forget the smile on my father's face when it was in our driveway, and he was so excited to see a 1963 f100 back in his garage. Over the years with the truck, it brought my father and me together with new friends, relationships, adventures, good times, heart-to-hearts, learning together how to work on and improve the truck, and overall bonding/making memories that I'll never forget. Bonus side story: I'm sure most people wonder how the infamous Pepsi truck came to life. Well, one day at a car show, a club member, Ben Lickey, and I were chatting and saying that the color-matching made us think of Pepsi Cola. Pepsi, being my favorite soda pop, just seemed fitting. So he and others suggested I give the truck that theme for future shows. Since that day, the Pepsi truck has been growing and growing in details, ideas for shows, people donating old Pepsi memorabilia, being infamous around town, and being an easily recognizable/fun to see truck at shows. When the Pepsi truck is at a show, it comes alive and always reminds everyone to have a Pepsi day! Written by, Nolan Ryan Andersen
