With a great look and a surprise hidden under that faded hood, this 1965 Chevrolet C-10 Stepside has an 8-foot bed. That isn’t super rare to see, but if it were a 9-foot stepside bed, that would be rare. I’m betting most buyers would prefer the 6.5-foot short bed for a stepside. This one is listed here on eBay in Midlothian, Texas, and they’re asking $16,000. Thanks to Curvette for the tip!
The seller refers to this as a farm truck, and there are a few little dings here and there, but there is said to be no “rust-through,” so that’s great news. They have included fantastic photos, including several underside photos showing how solid it is. Those underside shots also give a few glimpses of the upgraded parts and pieces on this patina-heavy former farm truck.
Chevrolet offered three bed lengths for the Stepside in 1965: 6.5 feet, 8 feet, and 9 feet. This is the mama bear size, not too small, not too big, just right. As with a lot of things in life, the middle option is often the best. Just ask Goldilocks. Here’s what the bed looks like inside. The first-generation C-Series rear-wheel drive Chevy pickups (and K-Series 4x4s) were made for model years 1960 through 1966. Check out this 1965 Chevrolet pickup PDF from GM Heritage, but don’t blame me if you spend too much time on it when you have better things to do. The C-series starts on page 24. Here’s an actual brochure, and another one that also shows heavy-duty trucks, vans, and El Caminos.
The steering wheel and AC vents are the first real giveaways that this C-10 Stepside is a bit of a restomod. This one has power steering and power disc brakes, very nice upgrades. The seller mentions the air-conditioning system as being “Antique Aire,” and maybe some of you have heard of that? I can’t find anything at all listing Antique Aire, Vintage Air is the company I know about. The rest of the interior looks bone-stock to me, other than the carpet and blanket seat cover. They say “Dash is functional but needs new gauge cluster and wiring connected but Speedo and triple gauges work.” I love the added console; that’s a nice touch, but I’d rather have a 4-speed sitting there.
This truck originally came with a straight-six, but it now has a big-block 396-cu.in. OHV V8. The biggest V8 available for this truck in ’65 would have been a 327 with 220 horsepower, and I’m guessing this 396 has much more than that. The second-gen Chevrolet pickups offered a 396-cubic-inch V8 producing 325 horsepower and 410 lb-ft of torque. Maybe it’s from that era? With an automatic transmission and a column selector in place of the original 3-on-the-tree, power is sent to the rear wheels. They say it still has the original rear-end, so it’s geared pretty low, but that could be changed. Any thoughts on this ’65 “farm truck” with a 396? Would you have kept it original, or do you think these were nice changes?
Nice truck and nice upgrades too. Although I’d have no problems with the original six and a stick though. Looking through the links Scotty posted ( thanks Scotty I always enjoy that) it’s quite funny how the 292 six had more Net HP and Torque than the 283. Probably why we see so many old Chevy trucks with the 292 in them. Looks pretty solid overall.
I always prefer stock, but I also like the upgrades in this case. I have never seen a 60/66 that the lower front fenders in front of the doors was not rotted out, that says a lot about the rest of the truck. I like it!
( 9′ bed was ton only)