Old GMC trucks are often used as parked advertising for antique shops and the like. There, they rust in peace. This one, however, is a work in progress, with a lot already done. It’s a rare 1942 Canada-built half-ton GMC pickup with a clear South Carolina title. The current owner had it running for a few years (when it looked like the photo above), but then dismantled it for an upgrade. And life got in the way. The project is here on Craigslist in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with a $9,000 asking price. It now looks like the photo below.

When the owner bought the truck it had a 1971 Chevy Nova six-cylinder engine installed, along with a Powerglide transmission, a 1960s GM truck rear end, and a 12-volt upgrade. A new radiator and brakes made it drivable. When the upgrade bug bit, the front sheet metal was taken off, along with the suspension, and the engine/transmission were removed and sold. A bunch of new parts were purchased.

“That’s as far as I got,” we’re told. “Other projects, moving (twice) and health concerns got in the way.” The bones are certainly there. “The frame is solid. The body, doors, bed, rear fenders, grille, etc. are not in perfect condition, but good considering the age of the truck. The front fenders and hood are in very good shape.”

A caveat with this sale is that many of the parts that turned the truck into a runner are excluded. For the $9,000, you don’t get the Nova engine, the transmission, alternator, pedal assembly, front axle, wheels, tires, and suspension—which have been removed. The vendor says he will negotiate with a purchaser on the 2007 GMC Envoy crate engine and transmission he acquired for the project.

But many of the other parts needed to upgrade this charming old truck are included. Bring a trailer, because you’ll be carting away: a new Fat Man Fabrications Mustang II IFS suspension, with a manual steering rack; an ECI front disc brake kit with GM rotors and calipers; an American Autowire “Highway 15” wiring kit; and pallets of doors, fenders, hoods, headlight buckets, dashboards, parking lights, and windshield frames. There are three 1930s tailgates with GMC logos (1942 was plain). There’s a big pile of hard-to-find literature, too, including a shop manual and parts book.

Civilian 1942 GM trucks were, obviously, thin on the ground. The shift to military haulage was abrupt, and during World War II GMC produced 600,000 trucks for battlefield and logistics use.

When new, this truck would have had a 216-cubic-inch inline-six and a column-shifted three-speed manual. The Chevrolet AK Series was similar, built on the GM A platform. The big difference was vertical grille bars on the Chevy version, and horizontal on the GMC. Thanks to Chuck Foster for this find.