Fargo Trucks

Not to be confused with Wells Fargo or Isuzu Fargo.

Fargo was a brand of trucks originally produced in the United States in 1913 by the Fargo Motor Car Company. Dropped in 1922, the name was reintroduced for a line of trucks manufactured by the Chrysler Corporation after purchasing Fargo Motors in 1928. Later, Chrysler absorbed Dodge and started producing its truck line, so over time, Fargo trucks became rebadged Dodges, similar to the parallel sale by General Motors of its GMC and Chevrolet truck lines, as well as the Mercury truck brand used by Ford in Canada.^[1][2]

Fargo Trucks

Formerly	Fargo Motor Car Company of Chicago (1913–22)
Company type	Private (1913–22) Division (1928–78)
Industry	Automotive
Founded	1913
Defunct	1978; 47 years ago (1978)
Fate	Acquired by Chrysler Corporation in 1928, became a brand. Sold to Askam Trucks in 1978, which ceased operations in 2015
Successor	Askam Ram Trucks
Headquarters	Pilsen, Chicago (1913–22) Detroit (1928–78) , U.S.
Products	Trucks

The modern-day descendant of Chrysler's truck division is now known as Ram Trucks.

History

Fargo Clipper ^[3] Six-cylinder engine, Displacement 3205 cc, 55 HP (1929-1930).

Fargo Freighter (1929-1931).

The 1942 Fargo trucks ranged from light- to heavy-duty, in 68 variants on 12 wheelbase lengths (Canada)

1946 Fargo FK2-33 badged version of the Dodge T-, V-, W-Series

Australian Fargo De Luxe Utility

Fargo Power Wagon truck in Batey ha-Osef Museum, Israel

The first Fargo trucks were built in Pilsen, Chicago, by the Fargo Motor Car Company from 1913 until 1922. In 1928, Chrysler bought the business and created their own line of Fargo trucks.^[4] Shortly after its creation, Chrysler also bought the Dodge Brothers Company, adding Dodge- and Graham Brothers-badged trucks to its product line. From then on, Fargo trucks were almost identical to Dodge models, save for trim and name, and were sold by Chrysler-Plymouth dealers.^{[citation needed]}

U.S. sales of Fargo trucks ^[5][6] were discontinued in the 1930s and replaced in the US by Plymouth-badged trucks in 1937,^[7] In Canada, the name Fargo was used until 1972 for marketing reasons to differentiate the trucks as Chrysler-Plymouth dealer offerings apart from the Dodge trucks sold at Dodge dealers.^{[citation needed]} Fargo trucks were sold worldwide. In 1953, 194 new trucks were registered in Morocco. The total number of Fargo trucks in Morocco in 1953 was 1422.^[8]

In 1935, a new designation for vehicles began. The FC3 was the first vehicle with the new name. The F stood for Fargo, the C for the year 1935, and the 3 for the size of the vehicle. The following year was designated with the letter D for 1936.^{[citation needed]}

Listing of Fargo trucks:^{[citation needed]}

• KF32 before new designation (1935) ^[9]
• FC3 (1935)
• FC4 (1935)
• FD1 (1936) ^[10]
• FD3 (1936)
• FD4 (1936)
• FE1 (1937) ^[11] Six-cylinder engine with 3574 cc. Bore 85.73 mm, Stroke 103.2 mm. 75 HP at 3000 RPM.
• FE2 (1937) Six-cylinder engine with 3574 cc. Bore 85.73 mm, Stroke 103.2 mm. 75 HP at 3000 RPM.
• FE3 (1937) Six-cylinder engine with 3574 cc. Bore 85.73 mm, Stroke 103.2 mm. 75 HP at 3000 RPM.
• FE4 (1937) Six-cylinder engine with 3740 cc. Bore 85.75 mm, Stroke 107,95 mm. 78 HP at 3000 RPM.^[12]
• FE6 (1937) Six-cylinder engine with 3959 cc. Bore 85.73 mm, Stroke 114,3 mm. 85 HP at 3000 RPM.^[13]
• FG1 (1938) ^[14]
• FG2 (1938)
• FGZ6 (1938)
• FH2 (1939)
• FH3 (1939)
• FH4 (1939)
• FHD4 (1939)
• FL4 (1946-1947) ^[15]

Chrysler's badge engineering

The Fargo brand lived longer in a variety of countries under the Chrysler Corporation's badge engineering marketing approach.^{[citation needed]}

Manufactured in Detroit at the Lynch Road facility, Dodge trucks were also offered under the Fargo (or DeSoto) names in most of Latin America, while in Europe and Asia, they were mainly built in Chrysler's Kew (UK) plant and sold under either the Fargo or DeSoto badge names.^{[citation needed]}

In Argentina, the make Fargo was used for the pickup D-100 and the D-400,^[16] and DP-400^[17] diesel truck from 1960 to 1967.

In Australia, both American and British Dodge models, along with locally assembled units, were marketed by Chrysler Australia with Dodge, Fargo, or De Soto badges.^{[citation needed]}

Additionally, heavy trucks made in Spain by Barreiros, Chrysler's Spanish subsidiary, including a 38-tonne tractor and rigid four-, six- and eight-wheelers, which were sold in the UK as the Dodge 300 Series, were exported to several countries as Fargo vehicles.^{[citation needed]}

The use of the Fargo trademark came to an end in the US when Dodge pulled out of the American heavy truck business in 1976, and finally in 1978, when Chrysler Europe was sold to PSA Peugeot Citroën.^{[citation needed]}

In Turkey

The Fargo brand existed in Turkey for years, and well into the 21st century because Fargo and De Soto light and heavy trucks were made by Turkish manufacturer Askam, with no technical or business connection with Chrysler in its final years.^[18] However, Askam was the descendant of Chrysler Kamyon Montaj Fabrikası, founded in Istanbul in 1964, with Chrysler Corp. holding a majority interest. Askam went out of business in 2015, meaning that the LDV Maxus van was the last Fargo-badged (as the "Fargo Fora") vehicle offered in the world.^{[citation needed]}

• 
  A 1956 Fargo pickup
• 
  Fargo-badged version of the Dodge A100 van
• 
  Fargo pumper fire truck from Témiscaming, Quebec
• 
  Fargo fire truck in Saint Petersburg, Russia

See also

• Dodge A100, which was marketed in Canada as a Fargo
• DeSoto (automobile)#Trucks, a rebadging of the Fargo trucks
• Dodge Ram