This C-10 is pretty cool! It’s a basic 1/2 ton short-bed truck, but it’s fitted with just about every option you could get in ’72. It was supposedly purchased by a certified Chevrolet dealer for his own use. This truck has some rust that needs to be dealt with, but the fuel and brake systems have already been gone through. The seller claims that it drives and stops perfectly now. I knew these C-10s were hot, but I had no idea they could be worth so much! This one is a little crusty in appearance, but the more you look at it, the more you will want it. Find this one here on eBay where bidding is over $11k with less than a day left.
It may run and stop well, but this truck still needs some work. The seller was honest enough to include photos of the problem areas though. You should always look at the bottom edge of the doors on any car you buy because the drain holes can become clogged with debris and the resulting rust can be a pain to repair. Besides this area and a few spots in the bed, I can’t find any cancer that appears to be too serious though.
The seller claims that this truck is fitted with every option available in 1972. That may be the case, but I thought you could get the 402 in ’72? Either way, this was very well outfitted rig. The Cheyenne Super package was the top of the line package available on the C-10. It added a lot of trim and comfort items. This thing even has dealer installed air conditioning so it was pretty cushy for a truck.
The Cheyenne Super added extra foam and hounds tooth patterned fabric to the bench seat. You can also see the wood grain accents that were part of the package. These items didn’t really make the truck all that much better when new, but apparently they make it much more valuable today. I’d love to have one of these for the occasional Home Depot run, but that’s probably not an option in this price range. This one will most likely go to a bowtie collector who will either restore or preserve it. Looks like a Super Cheyenne to me!
Never underestimate the lack of common sense of most people. Nice truck, but as usual a frenzy of bidding has overshadowed reality.
I’m a Ford truck guy but have owned a 68 Chevy K10 and I like the 67 to 72 GMs but this one is over priced already as a 2 wheel drive.
Not nearly every option you could order, but face it people this is what an original paint short bed 67-72 goes for now a days. Especially a super
I love old cars and trucks I really do but all I can afford to do anymore is look at them, it has almost become impossible to have a classic anymore without having a six figure income. I remember when I was 16 and bought my first car for $1200, a 72 Cutlass in 1986, it was in great shape and I could go to the local junk yards and get about anything I needed. I bet this truck in 1986 would be $500-$1000 bucks.
I totally agree with you here. The same with a private pilot’s license. Flying has become too expensive to consider it fun in the sun anymore.
Agreed! My first car was 2 triumphs one TR250 and a TR4 for parts unbeknownst to us the 4 and 250 only had limited in common. Purchased both for $1200 in 1987. Traded a set of knock offs and hubs for a complete TR250. Cost me $35 to have it toed home. THISE DAYS ARE LONG GONE!!
A short box and 2 wheel drive, and $11,000. Strike 1,2 and 3. That’s how I see it.
Every option??………hardly! As already mentioned, NO 402 big block…….and NO tachometer, NO tilt wheel, NO bucket seats, NO center console, NO am/fm radio and I’m sure there’s other options I’m missing for a 1972 C10 pickup………feel free to chime in.
Hi Mike. You pretty well nailed it for the missing options. I also don’t see the limited slip diff which got popular in the 70’s. Just the same, it is a nice truck compared to what was usually sitting on the car lots back in ’72.
Thanks! Yep, I missed the limited slip diff option. Also you could get rear coil or leaf spings too! I had a 69 C10 shortbed with rear leaf springs, most seemed to be coil rear.
As “loaded” with options that mattered . . . ps, pb, a/c, 350 V-8, wheel covers. Certainly no cruise control, either. FM radio was generally only in the metro areas, not as it is today. G80 PosiTraction is nice to have (as our ’69 CST-10 does, plus buckets/console), but not needed by everyone. KUDOS for the front stabilizer bar (which our ’69 also has)!! Takes a huge bunch of lean out of the corners!!
Yep, I had a friend with a short wheel base Cheyenne Super, 402, tach, gauges, tilt, a/c, center console and am/fm. Blue and white. I remember him selling it for $5k and was in great shape. This seller is smoking crack.
Elec Windows, elec locks
They didn’t offer electric windows or locks on a 67-72 Chevy/GMC truck.
Yeah, every option! LOL. You covered a lot but also NO, slider rear window, cargo light, roof clearance lights, wood bed, cruise control, speed warning, sport wheel, vacuum gauge, shoulder belts, bumper guards, door edge guards and two tone paint.
It is a shame that even entry level cars and trucks are out of reach of the average person any more due to investor greed or stupidity. I think that Mecum and other auctions are responsible for driving prices out of reach for the normal person. Its less about fun and more about geed for the big bucks. I have gave up all hope of owning a Shelby or a RT 440 charger or a number of cars I really like due to investor greed. Some people will say your just jealous , maybe so. One thing I can say I was lucky enough to have grown up in the 70s and got to enjoy a few of these cars. I feel bad for a lot of young people that never will. Is that a rant , I guess.
I hear ya loud and clear………and completely agree! I blame Barrett Jackson, Mecum and all these goofy car shows on tv.
FORGOT TO MENTION
EVERYTHING WORKS
ON THIS TRUCK LIGHTS, WIPERS, HORN, FAN MOTOR FOR A/C AND HEAT ETC..
(IT WILL NEED FREON FOR A/C)
ya not so much then,lol……………..works,but not?
I take the ‘will need freon’ with a grain of salt. I’ve been a mechanic for many years and ‘Needs Freon’ sometimes means just that but usually translates into: First, needs an expansion valve and a receiver-dryer; needs leak patched in condenser or evaporator, or both; needs new temperature control switch; needs new compressor clutch or compressor, or both; needs ALL of the above, then 3.5 lbs of R-12 (Freon) and it will blow as cold as the ex-wife’s side of the bed…
Coming from the automotive HVAC field, those receiver-driers are a consumable & should be replaced anytime the AC system is broken open. An R-12 recharge alone can really damage your wallet. Best to replace all the o-rings, at every joint with HNBR.
That is factory installed AC. Even noted on the build sheet. Dealer install was usually under dash. I have owned many of these and really like them. The short box, loaded like this one is a rare beast. And this one does look pretty clean and original. Most of the problem areas look to be in good condition. Unmolested trucks are always worth more. I see the $11-12k price being about right. With body work, paint and some other tweaks, this is close to a $20k truck.
Few were 4wd. And 4wd equipment at that time was heavy and not the easiest to use – not like today’s vehicles. I personally think the 2wd are worth more. But that’s just me! Another option was the two tone paint!
Yep, factory A/C. NOT dealer installed (underdash).
Why do so many people think they should be able to buy this truck for what it was worth in 1982?
Collector-quality vintage vehicles cost money. Real money.
They aren’t rare. Hundreds of thousands of them were produced. Rough examples sell for $700 all day long on Craigslist. They don’t have anywhere near the nice attributes this truck has. If you’re able to find a nice one for less than it’s really worth, in today’s dollars, more power to you.
Investor greed? Please! If this truck were yours, would you be willing to sell it for $1200 if there are people willing to pay $12,000? Just so you don’t come across as being greedy and all…
I think the point trying to be made is that it is no longer possible for the average working man or woman to be able to afford a project vehicle anymore without going into serious debt, it’s not an average Joe hobby anymore. It’s also not possible for an average working person to be able to go out and buy a brand new muscle car like you could in the 60s and 70s, sure I could go buy a brand new Challenger R/T or a new Camaro or mustang but the problem there is I better get used to living on ramen noodles. If others can afford classics and new rides that’s great, more power to them but average Joe can’t anymore. That means many that love the automotive hobby can no longer partake in the hobby, and to me that’s a shame.
Hi Dave. I can agree with you in some ways but in others I tend to disagree. I got my start in the hobby back in the 60s (’67) when I bought my ’47 Ford pickup for $90.00. That might seem awfully cheap but considering my net worth being barely over $100.00 back then it was ALL the money I had in the world. I was a pimply-faced 8th grader back then. I worked on the farm after school and on weekends, then, in my spare time, I set pins at the local bowling alley for $2.00 a game; I cleaned out the annexes of one of the local grain elevators and helped the agent for $1.25/hr.; I worked for a painter for $1.15/hr. When I entered the repair trade in ’71, I made $2.00/hr. Rent was $80.00/mo. I have eight vehicles in my collection today; three of them run and a 4th is nearing that stage. But I don’t have much invested in the whole lot. Other than my ’79 GMC which I’ve had since new, I’ve picked up my treasures by being at the right place at the right time. My ’49 Chevy is a barn find; my wife’s ’57 Poncho came from an estate; my ’38 International came from someone needing his scrap iron pile cleaned up; my ’42 Ford was the sign at the local race track where I was the resident photographer; the ’54 Ford car and ’35 pickup came from another estate. Too many people have this illusion of what they want for their dream car. Unfortunately many others aspire toward the same car thus forcing the price out of reach. If you alter your dreams just a bit, you’ll find a lot of cars well within your budget. Seek out a LWB pickup instead of an SWB; opt for the 4-door sedan instead of a 2-door; settle for a ’34 Plymouth instead of a ’34 Ford. To this day I aspire to (2) dream vehicles: a ’69 Chevelle 300 2-door (the only 2-door I’m passionate about) with a six cylinder/3spd. and a ’38 Ford pickup. I’m closing in on 63 years of age and it looks kind of dubious that I might realize that dream. However I’ve sure had a lot of fun with the second choices.
There are still a good bit of project vehicles out there, just have to stay away from the popular stuff. The ’69-’72 C-trucks are the more popular ones, but the ’68s are very similar and generally not as sought after, for example. The ’67s were almost a ’66 truck with a ’67 body on them, mechanically.
The key to participating in “the hobby” is to NOT chase the same vehicles others are chasing! A collector worth their salt will only by 2-door vehicles (making them more desirable, allegedly) and drive up the price as the same car in a 4-door hardtop is priced more reasonable with the same attributes. Kind of like not chasing after an Impala, but go for a nice BelAir instead (if both are available) that costs less with FEWER options (and related problem areas). IF you think you’ve got to have what everybody else has, rather than something similar but different, you’ll pay the price . . . which has always been the case.
Yep. If everyone on Earth who wanted a Hemi Cuda convertible could afford a perfect one, owning one would have no meaning.
I agree with you as well, there are still good vehicles out there for reasonable prices, I guess what I’m trying to say is it’s a lot harder than it used to be. When I bought my Cutlass in 86 I was 16 making $3.35 an hour part time, also cutting grass and other odd jobs. I paid my dad $100 a month for 12 months and my monthly insurance payment which didn’t leave much left but I scrounged junk yards and had a ball with the car, it’s just not way anymore, people horde parts and want big bucks for them. I’ll find something again sometime I’m only 45 still have time lol.
Ebay auction ended at $14,100, reserve NOT met. Seller is local to me and wants $25,000!!!! I personally think it’s an $8 to $10k truck TOPS!
Yeah, $25K might do for a trailer queen. A truck that’s been driven and well used would be considerably less. I agree at the $8-10K. If I saw this truck up close and personal I might consider a tad more. Still tempting.
$25,000.00??? LOL My son just bought a 1 owner 80k miles 72 short bed like this, but with 402/400, buckets & console and full gauge dash for $16,500.00. His truck has 0 rust and a fairly good shine on the factory paint.
Neat thing about these trucks is that everything needed to fix this one IS available from the aftermarket. The “Old Cars Price Guide” I got the other day shows them to be about $20K-range for a good one. But that price level has tended to be stagnant for a good while now.
This one needs more than what you might normally see in a truck that age. Some might like the factory back chrome bumper (which generally means it was ordered “east of the Mississippi”) as on the other side of the river, buyers usually pulled trailers and needed aftermarket rear bumpers for that.
Would be a nice truck when done, but it needs to sell for about $6K to be price-viable for the top value in the price guide, even if the buyer does his own parts changing and such.
Looks like the seat has been recovered at some point in time. That upper seam is too far back on the cushion for a factory cover. Probably more rust that’s not been seen, too, as in the lower rocker panels, too. It might be “original”, but not THAT original.
Yes my 72 big block GMC Siera has the missing options mentioned by most – it also has the kinda rare side storage door in the bed – that Ford also offered – maybe not available in a swb….what was odd was that late cassette – for 1972 – player is in plain site ! My GMC was ordered by a friend and parked in 1978 with about 115,000 on it….
Other options not yet mentioned include speed warning, auxiliary fuel tank, auxiliary battery, wooden bed, in bed spare tire, helper springs, two-tone paint, & I’m sure a few I’m forgetting. Nice truck, but far from 25k. He’s been watching too much Barrett-Jackson & Mecum.
Reserve not yet met! Bet there’s no really money on this truck its a mess for that kind of money