Chevrolet launched its Sixth Generation Suburban in 1967, with the latest model significantly larger than its predecessor. It remained on sale until the end of 1972, with our feature vehicle rolling off the line during the final production year. Its paint combination makes a bold statement, but the engine bay houses a V8 that backs its looks with some welcome horsepower. It appears to need nothing but a new home, and I must say a big thank you to Barn Finder Matt H. for spotting this gem.
The Sixth Generation Suburban isn’t a small or subtle vehicle, and this one makes a bold statement courtesy of its Orange Flame and Antique White color combination. The seller describes it as an older paint job that looks okay, and there are no significant flaws visible in the supplied photos. It holds a pleasant shine, with no patchiness or matte areas. The panels are straight, and the consistent panel gaps suggest that the person who painted this classic had a close eye for fine details. There is no visible rust, and the seller doesn’t mention hidden problems in their listing. The trim and glass are in good order, and the seller’s decision to fit Rally wheels adds a sense of attitude to a vehicle that already makes its presence felt.
This Suburban’s interior presents beautifully for a very good reason. The seller indicates they hold receipts confirming it received a complete retrim. This is not a cheap undertaking, but it means the buyer won’t spend much to achieve perfection. The parchment vinyl is flawless, as are the painted surfaces in the passenger area. The paint in the cargo area sports a typical selection of scratches and scrapes, but addressing these shouldn’t cost a fortune. The floor mat is free from wear, and the gauges feature crystal-clear lenses. It isn’t loaded with luxury touches by modern standards, but the radio/cassette player will be welcomed by bored occupants on long journeys.
Everything we have seen so far leads us to what some might consider as the highlight of this Suburban. Chevrolet offered buyers a 350ci V8 that produced 175hp and 290 ft/lbs of torque, allowing it to perform surprisingly well for a vehicle of this size and weight. However, this classic takes that to a higher level, having only clocked around 2,000 miles since the seller installed a shiny new 350 Crate engine. Forget 175hp, because that’s child’s play. This small-block places 300hp under the driver’s right foot, which feeds to the rear wheels via a three-speed automatic transmission. That isn’t the end of the story, with the seller also replacing the master cylinder, and booster, and upgrading the brakes to front discs. The Suburban sports new front shocks, upper control arms, sway bars, a radiator, a transmission cooler, Cooper tires, and a dual Flowmaster exhaust. That list is comprehensive, leaving the buyer to spend nothing beyond the purchase price. The Suburban runs and drives exceptionally well, and is ready to tackle whatever the new owner throws at it.
The seller listed this 1972 Chevrolet C10 Suburban here on Craigslist in beautiful Sandy, Oregon. They set their price at $19,000 OBO, which looks quite competitive when compared to recent successful sales. Values have dropped marginally over the past year, although the situation has stabilized. A Wagon of this size won’t suit everyone, but if you have large loads to carry, a growing family, or crave a classic with a few ponies under your right foot, it could be worth serious consideration.
Americas biggest station wagon. I always wondered , with the popularity, why the Suburban was basically unchallenged, well, except for IH. Funny, the old man had 2 to pull our campers. 1st one, ironically replaced the Travelall, was a ’67 ex-police wagon with rear barn doors. A tired ex-police wagon. See, in Milwaukee, there were no paramedics then, and the police got you to the hospital in Sububans. Survival was iffy. While the ’67 did a much better job than the IH, it gave us a lot of problems. He then got a ’71 or ’72 like this, and was a much nicer truck. Not sure what powered them, V8s, as dad never liked a 6, and we saw a lot of country thanks to that truck. Great find. Many of these were used until they rotted out.
Great real life observations. Our fire department in Portage, IN had a late ’60’s Cadillac ambulance in the fleet. One of my uncle’s sold IH product in suburban Chicago…he had a “round” Travelall with barn doors then graduated to a square Travelall with a conventional tailgate. Our scoutmaster had a 3 door suburban that was the “mule” for camping trips. Finally, another uncle had a “74 Suburban…on one trip we had 3 adults, 7 kids, 2 dogs and luggage packed in for a 6 hour trip from Door County Wisconsin to Northwest Indiana. Nice find at a fair price.
Hi Sam, actually, the Milwaukee police Suburbans replaced IH Travelalls they used before.
“…the radio/cassette player will be welcomed by bored occupants on long journeys.” Only if those journeys include stops at antique stores to buy cassettes.
Ha! Good one. I want a simple portable radio, like a Walkman or equivalent. Heck, I’d take dads old Zenith. Go to any retailer, they have everything but. My brother said, check an antique store.
I’ve got plenty of cassettes to listen too!!
You really can’t go wrong with this one for the price. The extra horsepower is great, and you could drive this forever… The only thing I would change is the wheels, never liked these.
Is that the correct steering wheel ?
No, it’s from a later Monza.
Had this guy’s shorter brother, a ’72 Blazer with the 350, 4 speed, 4 wheel drive and it did everything right. The way we used it we could have used something like this rig. Either way, we solved the rust problem right away and after that had a durable rig that went years without any problems. This is certainly a beautiful sample of the breed. Love the wheels.
Decent looking Suburban. I like it.
Couple things- it may have new rotors but was “upgrades to disk brakes” as they all had them from the factory.
Flame Orange and Antique White sound nice as descriptors, but neither of these are the names that Chevrolet called the colors. For some reason that orange was called “Medium Red” on trucks (Hugger Orange otherwise) and white was called “White”
I love these old Suburbans. Never had a large enough family to justify one. My parents had a ’72 C20 purchased new in the same colors only double two tone. The tag on the glove box door called it red-orange and frost white. Had the 400 BB and lots of gear in the axle for hauling the camper. Haul was the operative word. The Monza steering wheel is a nice touch.
My folks had a 75 bought new to haul 5 kids, Irish setter, luggage, etc & tow tandem axle Corsair/Starcraft travel trailer at vacation time. This truck is nice no doubt for the asking price. I’ll be 68 next month & could see myself touring the USA in my Chevrolet along with my 🐶. Enuff said.