THIS VEHICLE WAS DAMAGED BY AN UNINSURED INCOMPETENT MOTORIST

So many stories in the junkyard. This one is told by a 1972 Ford Econoline.

Feb 17, 2026

The heartfelt yet ineffective “Please don’t tow my car, Mr. Tow Truck Man” notes that I find in discarded cars never fail to pluck the heartstrings. Today, I will share a different sort of junkyard-found message, spotted on a 1972 Ford Econoline van at the Aurora U-Pull-&-Pay last week.

The second generation of the Ford E-Series van was sold for the 1969 through 1974 model years. The passenger versions were called Club Wagons and the cargo/commercial versions were badged as Econolines. I’ve documented quite a few of these vans in junkyards since I started doing this job in 2007.

In fact, I see so many discarded second-gen Econolines and Club Wagons, more than a half-century after the last ones were built, that I don’t photograph most of them. This one didn’t look special at first glance.

Then… what’s this? Yes, the owner of this van blamed the State of Colorado for “licensing and approving” an “uninsured and incompetent” motorist who caused body damage.

There’s a story here. Was the owner a perpetually aggrieved Walter Sobchak and this was his work van? We can’t know.

The Sobchak Security van was a much newer Chevy, in case you’re interested.

Thanks to the build tag, we can know that this is a ¾-ton long-wheelbase cargo SuperVan, built at Lorain Assembly in Ohio with a 302-cubic-inch Windsor V8, three-on-the-tree manual transmission, and Diamond Blue paint.

The base engine in the ‘72 E-200 was a 240-cubic-inch straight-six, so the original purchaser spent extra for the V8. Someone installed tube headers at some point during this van’s life.