Vehicle Description
You see a lot of restored trucks these days, vehicles that have
ostensibly been upgraded to make them more functional, but that
ultimately fail in keeping up the spirit of the original. And
that's okay in some instances, but so many of them just go too far
and erase all that's wonderful about an old vehicle. We would
submit that this 1966 Chevrolet C10 pickup is a bit of a throwback
to the past, when a restoration of a vehicle meant exactly that:
restoring the former glory of a time gone past, by simply repeating
history and putting everything back together as it was. The
frame-off restoration of this beauty did exactly that, and man are
we glad, because even though it looks better than it did
originally, it still looks, well, original.
1966 was the final year of the 1st generation C-10, and we think it
was very apropos to embark on such a high-quality restoration for
this specific year, as it honors the legacy of all the C-10s that
came before it. First and foremost, the restorers picked a great
platform to start with in 2014 when the work began, choosing a
straight and very solid truck with less than 90,000 miles on the
clock. Turquoise Metallic and White is how it came out of the
factory, although the repaint is of a high quality not yet seen in
1966. With a great shine and smooth finish, it shows only very
minor imperfections, and is dressed and ready to dominate the local
car show scene. It looks like an old truck should look and even
though the turquoise is somewhat of an unusual color for a pickup,
it suits this old workhorse just fine. The mid-60s Chevy trucks are
stylish enough to make folks stop and stare as they drive by, with
the white top and white accents providing great contrast that
complements the look perfectly. It's definitely no-frills, with
minimalist detailing, a painted front bumper, heavy-duty rear
bumper (engraved with this truck's hometown dealership, just like
it would've looked in '66) and a stepside bed complete with a
mounted matching spare, but that's all part of the appeal and
reinforces the old truck feeling that we were talking about
earlier. The wood in the bed is so darn nice you'll think twice
before filling it with dirt, but it certainly capable, further
strengthened with beautiful paint-matched slats and interior walls,
and bright chains on the tailgate.
The interior was fully redone back to stock as well, with a very
comfortable Saddle Tan bench seat wrapped in durable vinyl. A vinyl
mat the floor helps with noise and heat and sprays right off with a
hose, and along with the metal door panels and oversized steering
wheel, everything inside reminds you that this is a working-class
vehicle from the past. Factory gauges are clearly original and
perfectly restored with the odometer accurately reflecting the
current, original mileage on the truck: 90,026. We also note with
some interest that even in 1966, turn signals were not standard
equipment in Chevy pickup trucks, but thankfully there is an
optional factory stalk installed inside the original column.
There's a later-model AM/FM/Cassette stereo system in the dash and
it sounds quite good thanks to the neatly sealed surroundings
inside the cabin, and along with the seatbelts, this seems to be
the only deviation from stock. But please don't mistaken that as a
demerit, the cab of this truck is still a very comfortable place to
be.
No, there's no small block V8 under the hood, that's the original,
numbers matching 250 cubic inch Inline 6 which has been there from
day one. Technically classified as the 3rd generation Stovebolt
motor, it's factory-rated at 155 horsepower, and because this
particular motor only has approximately 1,000 miles on its rebuild
(as does the entire restoration), it's shockingly smooth and
torquey with a great six-cylinder soundtrack that's quite different
than what you'd expect. It has an old-fashioned feel, which is
exactly what we're talking about when we say we want to preserve
that original integrity, and the 3-speed manual transmission
manages the gears with ease and is extremely pleasurable to shift.
Underneath, it's just as clean as it was on the original showroom
floor, with a chassis and suspension components that are
practically clean enough to eat off of. A factory exhaust system
with a correct muffler sounds wonderful and it sits on painted
white steel wheels with chrome Bowtie center caps for a truly
old-school look. Recent 235/75/15 Goodyear blackwall radials have
been fitted and they're definitely tall enough to fill those big
fenders.
This is an exquisite, fully-restored C-10 that preserves everything
we love about old pickups. And with only 1,000 miles on the build
and a complete restoration book full of build receipts and photos,
you can confidently know it's going to be on the road for decades
to come. Call today!
