WHAT IS IT?
Again, here we have a rare surviving example of a work vehicle typically used hard and put away wet. Regular-cab short-bed Chevy pickups with a base inline six-cylinder engine of this vintage usually have hundreds of thousands of miles, were modified into something different, or were long ago relegated to a scrap yard.
WHY THIS ONE HAS BEST ONE ON THE PLANET CHOPS
This is reportedly a survivor from a dry climate with only about 16,000 miles from new in original and unmodified condition. This would have been a base 2WD work truck in its day with a vinyl bench seat, no air conditioning, and not even any overly flashy faux wood interior trim. It was equipped by the selling dealer with extra tie-down hooks, larger outside mirrors, and a heavy rear bumper. Yet, its stylish red-over-red color with cool white steel rims with original hubcaps gives it a lot of street cred and appeal for truck lovers. Located in Southern Indiana but with a long history in California, this truck looks incredibly clean up top and underneath. The asking price would buy a pretty nice new vehicle so the value is in the eye of the beholder here, but it’s still one of the best we’ve seen in a very long time.
This would have been a base 2WD work truck in its day
THE VERDICT
(Delivered by Judge Alan Galbraith)
It is amazing to see one of these that didn’t have a long life of hard use. There are very few people who would take the time and effort to restore one to this level, so seeing one untouched is rare indeed.
Best on the Planet April 20, 2025 – Present
Wow… this thing has SIDE TRIM. Thanks JC Whitney!
Once you get past that, this truck looks remarkably untouched and unused. Squarebody trucks all rust in the same places: in the bedsides above the rear wheels, the body seam behind the distributor (you can see how GM tried to solve that with undercoating here), lower front fenders, etc. This one has none of that.
Steve’s right that most of these got used and abused, or modded into something different. It’s a small miracle that this isn’t currently LS swapped and slammed. But as an example of how these things really were in the Reagan era, it’ll be a hard one to beat.
Aftermarket goodies aside, this one’s got the chops for sure. Someone teach the new owner how to properly shut the hood without bending it at the crumple zones — push DOWN and BACK from the top, never pull from underneath!
Jim, you are truly God when it comes to Squarebody trucks. I’m in awe.
Are those grease pencil marks on the firewall original?
Yeah, that’s the way the factory did it. The firewall sticker is neat, too. All of it points to very light use. It doesn’t look like the bed has ever hauled anything!
I love seeing the inline-6 engine under the hood!
I’m searching for the ever-present rust and there is none. Love this example. I can’t imagine we could find a better one.
For me, its the mint condition dealer sticker on the bumper that brings the whole ensemble together. Bravo!
It is amazing to see one of these that didnt have a long life of hard use. There are very few that would take the time and effort to restore one to this level, so seeing one untouched is rare indeed.
I LOVE short bed, regular cab, base model trucks.. Back when a truck was not a “car” but a basic work tool. I can envision the original owner of this truck: WW2 vet (infantry, not an officer), married, 3 daughters, 9 grandchildren, owned his home outright, his wife owned the “nice car” (1987 Buick Lesabre), took his lunch to work (in a lunchpail, made by his wife) at the tool and die factory… He added the bed tie downs as he used the truck to haul his newspapers to the recycling place (remember that?). The bed looks nice as he had an old carpet remnant he used as a “bedliner”. I would bet you could find a hand scrawled note letting you know when he greased the fittings on the truck, right next to his handwritten note about the “ill fitting” fuel filter than he won’t purchase again from NAPA. I would own it and name the truck “Harold” in honor of the original owner.
Nice one of these I have seen in literally decades. Factory marks on firewall unless they are phony, which I doubt.