It’s one thing for a vintage vehicle to be a true survivor; it’s quite another for it to be a survivor and incredibly well optioned. This 1975 Chevrolet Suburban has a lot going for it, from the robust equipment list to the one-owner history until 2016. It’s even wearing great colors not often seen on the conservative Suburban, with the listing referring to it as Yuba Gold with a saddle plaid interior. The mileage is below 100,000 and the seller reports it has no faults of any significance, and the body and frame remain rust-free with original chalk and stencil marks still visible underneath. Find it here on eBay with a Buy-It-Now of $39,950 and the option to submit a best offer.
While I love the color, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that it reminds me of the school bus I’d occasionally take when the Bluebird wasn’t running out to my rural address at the time. You don’t have to look too hard to see how this could easily become the coolest school bus in town with some black lettering down the sides and a set of lights on top. Regardless, this bright color surely helped the longtime owner avoid being hit in traffic, as who’s going to miss this thing? It is unrestored and had one senior owner until 2016, who apparently kept it garaged most of its life, an assessment that is backed up by its incredible condition. The Suburban is equipped with a powered tailgate window.
Speaking of optional equipment, this Suburban is loaded to the hilt. The list includes the Scottsdale package; numerous “Heavy Duty” upgrades, including the brakes, alternator, front stabilizer bar, 40 gallon fuel tank, Turbo 400 automatic transmission, and more. There’s also a tow package and 8400 GVW package to round out the list of heavy duty upgrades. The interior remains in outstanding condition, with the seller noting the Suburban is equipped with a tinted windshield and crystal clear glass all the way around, along with a push-button AM radio that is currently one of the few items not working on this survivor SUV.
Now, there’s one detail that needs more clarification, and it’s a big deal. The seller is correct to point out the numerous original details that remain extraordinarily well preserved on this truck, including the engine bay that’s been carefully restored. However, it seems to indicate that the original engine may have been replaced. The listing states, “…350 V-8 GM Good Wrench Engine Replaced the 400,” which I can only assume to mean the numbers matching mill was yanked and replaced with a turnkey crate engine. No explanation is offered, but it sure is an odd feature to find in a truck that looks like it was babied from Day 1.
At 100K the original 400 could have been a bit tired. Considering the condition of the rest of the vehicle, especially “no rust”, the crate 350 was a reasonable option. I’m sure it cost less than rebuilding the 400. All in all, pretty nice! Did I mention, “No Rust”?
I imagine this was used to pull a camper for most of it’s life so at 100K the original 400 could have been a bit tired. The condition of the rest of the vehicle, especially “no rust”, the crate 350 was a reasonable option. I’m sure it cost less than rebuilding the 400. All in all, pretty nice! Did I mention, “No Rust”?
I imagine this was used to pull a camper for most of it’s life so at 100K the original 400 could have been a bit tired. Considering the condition of the rest of the vehicle, [especially “no rust”], the crate 350 was a reasonable option. I’m sure it cost less than rebuilding the 400. All in all, pretty nice! Did I mention, “No Rust”?
We sold a lot of Burbs back in the day. Although we sold some that were similar to this most were Sierra Classics. I actually preferred the Scottsdale/Sierra Grande because the color-keyed floormats were easier to clean and looked OK for a truck. The 400 SBC had a questionable service record in a 4×4 simply because it required a lot of lugging. We had a lot of bottom-end failures in 4x4s but almost Zero in vans and cars. Some soldiered on and lasted quite well although the 400 SBC also had a reputation for being an oil burner. My own ’79 GMC K-1500 used a quart of oil every 1000 miles and never varied for the 330K miles that I ran it before taking it out of service. It seems to me that if you got the 8600 GVW package you automatically got the THM 400 transmission. That was a good idea because there were some transmission cases that cracked from the weight and stress of the Full-Time transfer case. That problem was finally addressed in ’78 when GM introduced major bracing between the transfer case and the engine. The NP 203 transfercase had some chain problems back in the day but could be fixed. Overall this truck would fill the bill for me but I sure couldn’t justify it with my budget. I hope that the new owner can continue to give it a great home…
I always wondered why GM could build these for 50+ decades, and Ford got hell for building the Excursion. The Sierra Club, and every other treehugging affiliation gave Ford so much grief. I like Suburbans, but the Excursion was a much better vehicle, and they sold quite well. If you had a large family, you didn’t have much choice, or you drove 2 cars. The 7.3 diesel was the only way to go, the 5.4 was under powered, and the V10 too thirsty. It cut into their Super Duty production,so it was canceled. But people loved them and it was a shame to see them go away.
Probably because the Excursion was even bigger, weighed 7300 pounds, and was seen as an escalation of the Size War.
5+ decades not 50, I don’t think the Egyptians drove Suburbans.
Survivor?
“Mom’s Taxi”
Nice. I’d have to name it “Big Mustard”, I just don’t see any other choice…
Colonel Mustard?
real suburbans have 3 doors. just sayin’
Item location:
Portland, Oregon
I am horny for this one…just not 40k horny.
The transmission in this Suburban is clearly a TH350, not a TH400 as the seller states. Beautiful Suburban, the only addition I would wish for it to have would be factory A/C.