In 2003 I just built a new house and was looking for a beat up old truck to use for hauling rock/dirt/landscaping stuff. On my way to work I saw a black/grey very rusty 84 C10 with a sign in the back window $300 or best offer. My first thought was, if it starts I'm buying it. After work I stopped by and took a look at it. Coolant was low, tranny fluid was low (bottle of trans fluid in fender well and 2 behind the seat), oil leaking out of the right valve cover. But it started right up, drove pretty well. The girl that owned it drove 40 miles one way daily to work with it. Paid her cash and took it home.
I replaced leaking heater/radiator hoses which took care of the low coolant issue. The motor had been replaced with a GM Goodwrench 350. When it was put in, the tranny cooler lines at the radiator were mis-threaded. After cleaning the threads, no more leakage. The valve cover leak had me laughing. There was no GASKET! Simple fix.
It did a great job of hauling the stuff including monthly trips to the dump with garbage. While picking rocks out of the yard, one of my daughters threw one a little high and took out the back window. For $25 we upgraded to a rear slider from a local junk yard.
At times it would sit for months, but it would usually start up right away.
My four daughters all learned to drive in it. An two of them drove it to school on a daily basis.
Unfortunately, by 2011 the rust was getting so bad the cab began to sag. The driver door sometimes wouldn't close and it wouldn't stay in park. The bed floor had rusted through and the back bolts pulled through. Not safe to drive anymore.
It did win an Ugly Truck Contest for $100.
In September of 2011, I found an 85 C10 for $600 to replace the 84. Thus begins the real adventure.
I'll cover that truck in the next article.
Till then, feel free to leave a comment and share this post. Thanks!
