I agree with you as the cars being to complicated ...I found a nice 1971 International 1210 3/4 ton pick-up...no bells or whistles just a tractor with a cab and a bed.. I may not be fastest but the simplicity and logical design along with steel from an American foundry outweighs any of the 30-50 thousand dollar rolling computers they call trucks. The thing I love most about this old truck is the metal compounds International used in making the blocks (high nickel content) seems to heal the cylinder walls somewhat if scarred . As far as mileage I have a place up here in Maine that sells leaded fuel, quite exspensive but I get more miles per tankful with it..the nice thing is it only has 93k ...
I can remember gapping the new spark plugs, gapping the points, replacing the condenser, replacing the distributor cap, wires, retarding/advancing the ignition, using a timing gun, adjusting the carb, changing oil & filter... those days are long over with these new units. Dealers plug them into a computer, it reads all systems, finds ‘glitches’, and indicates modules to be replaced. Meh.
International made some good trucks for normal people years ago. Tough and reliable but none would win a beauty contest.
I have seen a few good looking dressed up Scout IIs here and there.