Truckin’ again!
A lifelong love of GMC trucks comes full circle with a restored 1971 GMC Special Custom powered by a 396 V-8 and built as a modern daily driver.
Old Cars reader, Dave Jewett tells the story of his 1972 GMC truck.
When I was 15 years old in 1977, I bought a 1972 GMC truck that became my first daily driver. It cost me $1,500 and had 52,000 miles, a 307-cid V-8, automatic transmission, disc brakes and a cap on the bed under which I built two bunks for sleeping when camping. It was the first vehicle I drove to high school and to my first “real” job at a local Shell station in Brockton, Mass. It ran great, and I always wished that I had kept it longer, but I sold it in my senior year to buy a 1973 Monte Carlo to attract the girls....
Fast forward to 2018 when I turned in my company vehicle and was in the market for a truck. I thought about getting a nice General Motors truck from the 1967-’72 generation to use as a daily driver, so I started looking online. I found a beautiful example of a ’71 GMC Special Custom at GR Auto Gallery in Grand Rapids Mich. It was completely restored with an original 396-cid V-8, factory air conditioning, power disc brakes, unbelievably straight body panels and an awesome paint job. The interior was also completely updated with all new upholstery and trim. It was a father-and-son project that appeared to be professionally done. They had the engine and transmission sent out to a race shop where it was bored over and fitted with an Isky cam, Edelbrock carburetor and intake and headers — a real sleeper! I watched endless videos of the truck and looked at dozens of photos and e-mailed lots of questions, but I felt I needed to see it with my own eyes. After much procrastination, and talking it over with my wife, we decided to buy it without an on-site inspection.
After issues with the title and the money exchange, it finally arrived in an enclosed trailer one night in late winter 2018. I ran out to see it with a strong flashlight and I was pleasantly surprised to find it was better than I expected! After replacing the tires, ball joints and addressing a few minor maintenance issues, I was back to driving a truck just like the one I regrettably let go almost 40 years before.
I reached out to the father of the project to ask questions regarding its rebuild, and he told me his son traded in the truck for a Camaro after they were done with the project. It turns out the father (I believe a cabinetmaker by trade) did all of the fantastic bodywork himself, and the son handled the mechanical rebuilding. It drives like a dream, and my wife and I take it to shows and meets anytime we get the chance.
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