Classic GM Trucks - Would you drive one daily?
 

As much as I love my 24' Silverado HD for all of the comforts and technologies, I'm seriously thinking of ditching it, and settle for a classic 71 Chev K20 that I just purchased. Still waiting for it to arrive, but once I've gone through it...I'm thinking of making it my #1 driver from spring to fall. Life is short, and I'd rather drive a cool old truck when I'm not banging gears in the car on nice days, and this cool little Chevy is going to become my go to. I figure I can always drive my wifes Tahoe in the winter months. :-)

Any of you guys drive a cool old Classic over something modern in the summer months, or have a main stay classic truck in your fleet?

https://i.ibb.co/MRMNmdD/K20-Cheyenne-12.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/HKrvp4k/K20-Cheyenne-21.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/j8S6DCD/K20-Cheyenne-29.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/MBFCqxY/K20-Cheyenne-2.jpg

Yep.

Drove this one for 30 years and 200,000 miles.

K

You can never go wrong with a Squarebody.

I'm working on a '98 Sierra Shortbox OBS

I drove a 77 daily when I was a kid. At that time they were everywhere. Rust will be an issue.

I would love to drive my ‘96 dually everyday, but I have a company car. So the only time I take the truck is to move the boat around. But, I always look forward to driving it.
I’ve owned this pile for 23 years.

77 chev scottsdale
 

This is my daily driver

I agree 100%. I don't have a 24 Silverado but I can appreciate the comments.

My crappy little beater ride is this 77 K10 short box with approx. 70% original paint and 100% original scratches/dings and dents from Oregon. It still has its original driveline..... a slow 350, a 4 spd tranny with the "Hortons drive through crazy low first gear" and a posi to boot.

I am that wizard out there slamming gears in an old beat up pick up truck and truly loving it. I have had a bucket full of nice cars come and go but this is the vehicle I will never sell. It is just too much fun.

I know I posted these pics before buy just saying......

Paul

I daily drove this truck for 5 years then moved and it sat in the back of the new shop for 10 years then this past summer I came home one day and the wife had it dug out took it and put new tires on it and had the windows retinted. She had me redo the brakes and put new shocks on it and now she drives it daily as long as the weather is good!

Now this brings back some big memories....

‘

Not a show truck or daily driver but my ‘87 is on the road/used every week or few for family tasks or as last chance wheels if another vehicle down.
Canadian Wrangler pkg. but US built w/ 305 TBI + Turbo 400, it has rust but always ready/works great whenever called upon.
Snow here this week so pic below as it sits this morning, I’ll clean it off and go gas up likely later today/tomorrow.
:beers:
~ Pete

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:haha::haha::haha: Now I'm craving a Tim Horton's doughnut...

You guys have some really cool old trucks!! :biggthumpup: Jane would say "I would drive that!"

This is one of my summer daily drivers. It never sees rain, because the bottom is nicer than the top.

I have daily driven GM trucks for 15 years. Last year I bought a 2024 Tahoe which I considered an embarrassment to GM in terms of reliability, quality and design. I made it 7K miles before trading it with great scorn and contempt. I trust my 1980 more than I could ever trust my 2024.

(Sorry, Tim, for posting more photos of this beater).

Cool trucks for sure, and love those aluminum slots on your 80 square body. I just got a call from my TFX driver who's bringing my new truck up from the states. Truck arrives here in the AM. Yes, in -24C weather no doubt.

When looking for a truck I looked into like 69-70 vintage and was blown away of what they were costing.Saw a ad from a local Chevy dealer with a one owner 2006 Silverado with 78M miles on it.Knowing dealer dont put that old of units on their lot I beat my butt down there.It was bought new there,trade in on a new at that time 2023.Bought it for 10K.Best buy I ever got on a car or truck from a dealer.Have 125M miles on it now.FWIW,

I had a blue/blue '72 Cheyenne Super years ago and it was a great truck.

Looks like a great truck ! I have been trying to get back into a '69-70 C10 for years. The only thing you will really miss about the '24 is the fuel mileage, those K20's love gulping gasoline.

Great looking truck!

That truck is just sick on the bottom. Only something the southwest can produce

Yup...I saw that little truck when Tim had it and immediate realized how clean it was. I actually had an 80 shortbox back in 92-93 that I drove summer and winter in those years.

A funny story of that one, we were hanging out in a friends bodyshop on a Friday night (drinking heavily I might add) when I said to my buddy Ken (shop owner and painter), we should paint my truck one of these days and two tone the sides. He asked me what color, and I said change it from solid maroon to a red with black cove. He disappeared for a bit then came back and said for me to pull my truck into the shop so he could look it over.

I obliged, then he pulled out a few quarts of paint he had just mixed up in the back. Next words from Ken were "lets get on it". I said now, he answered right now. I mean, we were all shit faced and it was about midnight when this all went down. So vision this...there were 5-6 of us barely able to walk straight (2 of those being 30 year body men and 1 being a painter). We all started stripping the trim, sanded down the surfaces, masked it up and spot putty'd the hell out of any imperfections. I asked Ken's bodyman if he could spray when he was sauced, and he said...that's when he works the best.

Needless to say, the drinking countinued all night until the truck was sprayed out. By the time it was finished up with a couple coats of clear, a few of us had passed out around the shop (myself included). Ken stayed up, finished the paint while most of us snored away. A few hours later I stumbled to my feet to see a nicely painted black and red finish on my little 80' short box sitting outside the booth. In the days that followed, I picked up some new moldings for it, and was proud to have a Friday night paint job with a story I would remember for life. :flag:

Now, time to mix another coffee here as TFX is rolling up here early this morning to drop off this K20. I can hardly wait to see this one and jump inside.

My brother drives a '71 K20 also, 396 now, but he's building a 496 for it at the moment. Me, I've got a '73 Super Cheyenne loaded with 454, ac, cruise, at, dual tanks and camper special. It's a 2wd, but I've got all the goodies to turn it into a 4x4 after shop space is available. When my 01 silverado dies, that'll be my daily.

I have spend a couple years inside this rabbit hole!!!

I am super fixated on chassis swaps!!

Ryan W31

I just took mine out for its monthly drive. It is a 76 that I bought used in 1977. I wore out 2 350 motors. I took a 454 out of a 77 Suburban bored it .020 and put it all under the hood so it looks bone stock. It has 373 posi front and rear, T350 , and a 203 transfer case. The ac blows cold still on R12. Larry

Let’s see it!!

Ryan W31

This is a true, old-school car guy story. I love it.

Tim's 80 K10
 

Tim's pictures under-sell his cleanup and detail work--

----I do love square bodies, but I'm partial to the 1988 on up series as I spent so much time building 3/4 dually Suburban's. I built one 93 right off the delivery and it gained so much attention that I ended up building anther 18. I remember those days in my shop on Cape Cod fondly as every day was fun. I still have a 93 3/4 now, but the dually part was sort of worn out. A lot of you have seen it at MCACN because it's been beside my swap space for a couple of years. Other than trips to MCACN I mostly only use it to haul boats to the launch ramp. I do baby it as I have no use for all the newer stuff....Bill S

My wife and I both daily drove our 72 4x4 blazer and our 79 1 ton 454 pickup for many many years. I had the 79 for about 20 years and it did double duty as also being the tow vehicle when needed. I did an LS/4L60E swap in the blazer back before LS swaps became the norm and that ended up being the family vehicle for several years after.

The problem was the pickup only seating 3 people and everyone got tired of climbing in and out of the blazer from one side of the vehicle.

They both got sold but we are still adamant about driving old cars, we just have no interest in new cars. So now I drive the 70 Formula and my wife loves driving the 69Z, which became the favorite for using most of the time.

Back around that time when we made the switch I needed another tow vehicle so bought a new 05 duramax. No interest in daily driving that, it sits in the garage for months at a time, lol.

So if an old truck fits your needs I say go for it. They made great dailys for us. My wife especially liked the blazer because it was relatively small (compared to a pickup) and would make tight turns and easy to park.

https://youtu.be/rocjPxBKSRQ?si=Jes7YX9Of32VTa_M

These guys sell the most complete swap I have seen on the market.

Ryan W31

Old vs New

Having done business with these guys, their product is really ironed out. Of course it comes at a price.

I have an original paint 71 F250 from California on deck that is slated to get one of their RS4 chassis'. You could say a modern highboy with a 7.3 Godzilla and a 10 speed auto. Be a good ride for getting mulch and beer.

Here you go Ryan.

The truck arrived today in -27C (-16F) weather, and remarkably, it did start coming off the truck. Quickly ran it home and into the heated garage. A few little leaks and drips which I will start chasing this week, and then it was time to start checking out the mechanical. All I was told is that it used to have a Weiand 150 blower on it and that the guy I bought it from had it removed last year with a new Edelbrock intake and carb then installed. He said it was a 400 cubic inch but knew very little other than it had aluminum heads.

Well it idled up real nice while warming up this AM and didn't sound half bad. I ran the suffix codes on the block to see it was a run of the mill 400 smog block and figured it was nothing special. Then I peaked between the header flange to see DART markings. So I pulled one of the covers to confirm the heads, and they are Pro-1 series 200 cc heads and they're setup with Comp pushrods, guides and roller rockers (nice). The prior owner is now trying to source the previous owners contact info as he built the motor and restored the truck. Lots to learn but the body is impeccable so now hoping to find out what the bottom end is and what camshaft is in it. Hoping it's a well built 406 or something along those lines.

Still lots of stuff to go through and make it mine. :burnout:

https://i.ibb.co/bMPKWSGL/IMG-2647.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/hJDmmCMr/IMG-6709.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/JjWnJ8t8/IMG-6711.jpg

A little video with the truck coming off the hauler today. It was super cold out. Dash in the Tahoe said -24 but the regional forecast said it was -27. So what's 3 degrees right. (lol)

Nice in about 1998 I owned a 1997 GMC SLE extended cab short box, black grey interior 2WD.

Ryan W31

Beauty truck!!!

I love the 71/72’s best!!!

Ryan W31

That one looks like something my dad would drive.

Dad's truck:

[He widened those wheels for the truck and his fifth wheel travel trailer. Somewhere in the world there are 8 of those wheels that are 15x8 instead of 15x7]

Ain't that the truth!

I picked up this 2015 back in May. It's completely stock but still a lot of rubbing on it it make it my own (fixing scratches, different bed cover, etc).

Owned by an older gentleman who apparently did not have any black touch up paint!

K

drive it -- sold my loaded 2018 and just drive my 68 Camper Special

Norcam, love your new truck!

Love this truck.
Only down side is a carb in your climate. If it were in MY climate the only down side would be no AC. But, for you, pretty much a non factor.

What a beautiful truck. I searched forever for a decent 1967 - 1972 C20 to use as a tow vehicle. Kept thinking there had to be one in a barn here in OK or down in TX that had been sitting a while, retired from light farm duty.

Never did find what i wanted at a decent price (was shocked at prices, especially rust free examples) so I "settled" for my 2002 2500HD with the 8.1 and the Allison trans. Not a lot of options, but only 87k miles and drove perfectly. After new tires, and catching up on deferred maintenance, and i could not be more happy with it. I love the fuel injection, and it is so comfortable. Being an extended cab with a full 8 foot bed, i doubt I would daily drive it. But for towing, it is great.

I used a modified 68 El Camino for about 7 years for towing. It always performed flawlessly, even though I did not go fuel injection. 1968 vintage Qjet and cast iron intake worked great. My only complaint with the El Camino was that it just wasn't big and heavy enough to tow a really large load (12k pounds) if the need arose. It would do it, but I was on the edge of safety.... probably the wrong edge!

I think the only way you will know is dive in and drive it awhile, after addressing the maintenance issues. Looks like a well done engine. I would be proud to drive it anywhere. Besides, you already have it. Work out the bugs and drive the snot out of it. Enjoy.

As stated, I really like the 67 - 70 trucks. After the newer body style came out in 88 (?), I thougt they were fantastic. Very sleek and clean. For years I detested the square bodies, especially when the newer style came out. Just thought they were too big and clunky looking. They did, however perform well (for that time period) and held up very well, being easy to work on. Almost bullet proof.

Maybe it is just because ALL the full size pickups seem SOOOOO large now (little guys like me and Mitch can't get in the bed without a step ladder), that the square bodies have kind of grown on me.

But.... 67 -72 and the 88 - 98 (or 99... I don't keep up with when the body style changed) are still the best looking trucks GM ever made.