The Travelette was a crew-cab version of International Harvester’s light pickups, built from 1957 to 1975. It was the first factory-production, six-passenger, crew-cab pickup made by any American manufacturer, and it came with three doors at first and four from 1961.
International Travelette at a glance
| Maker | International Harvester |
|---|---|
| Production | 1957–1975 |
| Class | crew-cab light pickup |
| First | factory six-passenger crew-cab pickup from a US maker |
| Doors | three from 1957, four from 1961 |
| Drive | two- or four-wheel drive |
| Wheelbase, A series | 126 in (3,200 mm) |
| Body source | cab structure of the Travelall wagon |
| Light Line versions | 149 in (3,800 mm) and 164 in (4,200 mm) |
| Four-wheel drive dropped | 1974 |
| End of production | after the 1975 model year |
Written from the English Wikipedia article on the Travelette, a single source. No free photographs of the model were found, so the previous cover image is kept.
History of the International Travelette
International Harvester introduced the Travelette for 1957 on the newly launched A series pickup. Adding a rear seat meant borrowing the body structure of the Travelall wagon, including its second door on the passenger side, and extending the wheelbase to 126 inches so that a full-size pickup bed would still fit. The result was a vehicle with two rows of seats — what would later be called a crew cab — available with either rear-wheel or four-wheel drive. The idea was aimed at work crews, but it also created the first factory-produced pickup with two rows of seating in the United States.
The Travelette followed the light truck line as it developed: the lightly updated B-series pickups appeared for 1959, and for 1961 the redesigned C series brought the biggest change. Although the cab kept the A and B series structure, a rear door was added on the driver’s side, giving the Travelette four sedan-style doors. The model name stayed the same, but the official designation changed several times through the mid-1960s as International renamed its light trucks.
For 1969 the Travelette moved to the new Light Line pickups and received its first completely new cab since 1957. It was offered only on the two longest wheelbases, 149 and 164 inches depending on bed length. For 1974 four-wheel drive was discontinued and the front suspension was redesigned. The Travelette was marketed primarily as a work vehicle, and by the early 1970s it was struggling against the far more widely available pickups from Dodge, Ford and General Motors. After the 1973 fuel crisis sales of International’s light-duty vehicles collapsed, because the Light Line trucks were heavier and thirstier than their Big Three rivals.
International Harvester ended sales of the Travelette, the Travelall and the Light Line pickups after the 1975 model year, shifting its light-duty effort entirely to the Scout. The Scout II Terra pickup of 1976 to 1980 was offered only as a two-door, so the company left crew-cab pickups behind. Its influence lasted, though: Dodge and Ford brought out their own crew cabs in 1963 and 1965, General Motors followed in 1973, and the 1957–1960 three-door Travelette also foreshadowed the extended-cab pickups that appeared in the 1970s.
Design and features
- First crew cab: six seats in a factory pickup, years before the Big Three.
- Travelall cab: the wagon’s body structure provided the second row and the extra door.
- Long wheelbase: 126 inches on the A series, to keep a full-size bed.
- Four doors from 1961: a door added on the driver’s side.
- Work vehicle: sold mainly to crews and businesses rather than families.
International Travelette versions
- Three-door Travelette (1957–1960): A and B series, one rear door on the passenger side.
- Four-door Travelette (1961 onward): C and D series.
- Light Line Travelette (1969–1975): new cab, 149 and 164-inch wheelbases.
- Four-wheel drive: offered until 1974.
- Scout II Terra (1976–1980): the two-door pickup that followed.
The Travelette was built from the body of the Travelall and based on the A series pickup, later moving to the Light Line. More trucks are in the collection.
Video: 1973 International Harvester 1210 Travelette 4WD
Video by MrDan33d on YouTube.
Sources
- International Travelette, English Wikipedia: origins, doors, Light Line versions, end of production, legacy
