Ford E83W

The Fordson E83W, also sold later under the Thames brand, was a 10 cwt light commercial vehicle from Ford built at the Dagenham plant in the United Kingdom between 1938 and 1957. The van was sold in Australia as the Ten-Ten, and the E83W was available in various forms around much of the world as Britain strove to export after WW 2. In some countries, the 'cowl and chassis' only was imported and local bodies built. The E83W was aimed at the small haulage, trade and merchant market, with many a local Fordson butcher's or grocer's delivery van being fondly recalled by the baby boom generation. A 'Utilicon' estate wagon conversion was available in the UK. Vans are the most common today, along with builders' pickups, which were flatbeds. Many rusty vans have been cut down to make a wooden back pickup, flatbed in other words. The rarest by far are the steel back step-side pickups, with only 10 or 20 known to exist in the UK. During and after the second world war, many specialist variations such as mobile canteens, ice cream vans and even fire pumps were built on the E83W chassis.