Vehicle Description
Regular readers of the Streetside Classics website already know
that a lot of handsome Advance Design pickups run through our
showroom, but very, very few of them are as nice as this 1949
Chevrolet 3100 5-Window Restomod. With incredible Candy Apple Red
Metallic paint, a freshly built 5.7L LT1 V8 motor, and a lot of
tricks up its sleeve, this might just the one you've been waiting
to own.
We've said it many times before: if you're going to paint a classic
vehicle a modern, vivid color, you need to invest the extra time to
make the bodywork as nice as possible, because you're going to get
A LOT of attention and scrutiny on your rig. Well, the guys who
built this truck did exactly that, spending countless hours in the
body shop sanding and smoothing the sheetmetal until it was laser
straight and ready for paint. Then they sprayed several coats of
the most brilliant Candy Apple Red Metallic paint you've ever seen,
and spent another few late nights wet sanding and buffing it to
bring up a brilliant shine. And my goodness is it nice. The other
thing it is, is incredibly slick. No graphics, no flames, no
distractions from the clean 3100 5-Window shape that looks flat-out
awesome. All of the trim was restored or replaced as well
(including the iconic horizontal grille and the 1-piece bumpers
fore and aft), and the final result is a bright, dynamic contrast
to the dark red paint that leaves all onlookers highly impressed.
This one just looks right. The bed is beautifully restored with
light oak wood and stainless slats, along with a cool built-in fuel
filler that fits flush so it stays out of the way, relocated out
from its dangerous factory location behind the seat. There's just
nothing on this truck that wasn't finished to a very high level
before being bolted back on a scant 37 miles since the truck was
built.
It's also a very comfortable truck to spend some time in, thanks to
a luxuriously finished yet elegantly simple interior. A comfortably
padded, split-bench seat has been covered with high-end two-tone
leather upholstery, and with matching door panels that follow the
same pattern, it's easy to forget this is actually a vintage pickup
truck. Plush tan carpet ties it together in a rather handsome way,
and the brightly polished tilt steering column is fitted with a
custom woodgrain banjo-style steering wheel that really punches up
the '50s theme. Elegant digital/analog Vintage Classic gauges were
installed in the painted dash and look period-perfect despite their
modern capabilities, and the long-handled Lokar shifter that
manages the 4L60E automatic transmission below has an old-school
vibe that works extremely well. Tunes come via a retro-style
AM/FM/AUX stereo installed in the center of the painted dash, and
the entire cab stays nice and cool thanks to a neatly installed
aftermarket A/C system that's blowing ice cold thanks to R134a
refrigerant. Bottom line, if you're looking for a long-haul driver,
this truck is definitely the right pick.
As you'd expect, this Chevy still carries Chevy power, by way of a
freshly installed 5.7L LT1 V8 swapped in from a Corvette that
produces an asphalt devouring amount of horsepower and great
torque. With just 37 miles on the neatly installed engine, it runs
superbly and looks fantastic inside the custom finished engine bay.
It's very functional, with modern fuel-injection, HEI distributor
and electronic ignition, a performance intake manifold flanked with
Corvette valve covers, and a ton of polished and detailed parts to
make it glitter inside the engine bay that itself was finished with
a smoothed and painted firewall and inner fenders. The independent
front suspension has been upgraded with modern components and with
power front disc brakes and power steering you get a great ride
every time out. A sturdy 4L60E 4-speed automatic transmission with
overdrive and a 10-bolt rear end filled with 3.55 gears round out
the powertrain, leaving you with no worries about reliability and
transforming it into an easy high-speed cruiser. And boy is it
clean underneath, because when the truck was taken off the frame
during the restoration, everything was sandblasted and the
powder-coated black, so it can be shown off with pride. The
soundtrack is killer too, with a stainless steel duals exhaust
running through chambered mufflers that exits well before the rear
axle. Finally, polished American Racing Torque Thrust wheels put a
modern spin on an old favorite and wear staggered 235/60/15 front
and 275/60/15 rear Cooper Cobra white-letter radials.
So yes, we sell a lot of these 3100s, but not many of them measure
up to the standard set by this absolute gem. So, if you've been
looking for a great vintage truck, your search is finally over.
Call now!
