Lawrence Street Sighting: Chevrolet C-10

Today as I round out my lineup of GM trucks from my hometown, I'd like to present, what I think is one of the better-looking bodystyles out there. Yes, it's cliche, and yes, anyone who's at all into cars will likely have a strong opinion about this, but I think the late 1960s and early 1970s trucks are very nice looking, and the Chevrolet version is a bit better-looking than the GMC; its all in the grille and front fascia.

This generation of truck was introduced as a 1967 model and lasted through the middle of the 1972 model year; as with all GM trucks, a whole variety of bed lengths and engines were offered, as well as different grades of interior trim. The idea of multiple cab configurations hadn't been thought of yet, so there was one cab for all models, though, some companies did perform four-door conversions on these, which honestly don't look too bad.

Though the stepside is my favorite bed choice, not everyone agrees. A vast majority of the trucks saved are not the stepsides, but rather the fleetside, shown here. While I don't think it's a bad choice, the stepsides definitely are the cooler variation--and that goes with any truck, as far as I'm concerned.

Looking like a decent project truck, or restoration candidate, this is white the typical forty-five year old pickup truck looks like in Kansas, believe it or not. Minor rust here and there, but overall, presentable.

As it stands, the truck could use a major refreshening; the paint is in decent shape, but there are signs of rust, which could indicate even more severe problems on the undercarriage. All the trim is intact, though, so finding peices necessary for a full restoration shouldn't be an issue. Even the bog-standard hubcaps are in place. Really, all it needs is a good going over, bodywise.

I don't recall much about the interior, but if this example is like others of this vitange, the interior is likely worn out, and could use a standard restoration. I would bet that this truck would make a great restoration, and I would say this one has enough original parts that restoring it would be a better choice than customizing it.

I am glad I found this, because while I do think this bodystyle is quite cliche now, they are starting to disappear--even in Kansas. I say this is a well-spotted classic C-10 that definitely deserves another chance.