1981 GMC Sierra 1/2 ton long bed base model -- no reserve auction

1981 GMC Sierra 1500 base model Description

I am the third owner of this 1981 GMC Sierra base model.

This is a work truck – not a cream puff, not a show truck, and far from perfect. It has been used regularly to haul all manner of stuff from motorbikes to building supplies. It has scratches, chips, a bit of rust, and is a classic “20-footer.” It currently as 102,000 miles, which I believe is the correct mileage but cannot verify.

The truck was built in November 1980 in Janesville, WI and was originally finished in Chestnut Brown metallic paint with a plain, brown vinyl bench seat and AM radio.

It is powered by its original 250 cubic inch (4.1L) straight six, coupled to a Turbo Hydramatic 350 transmission with vacuum operated torque convertor lock up.

It is a pure working truck – no air conditioning, no power locks, no power windows, and no power brakes, but it does have power steering and an automatic transmission.

I purchased the truck in June 2009 from the second owner. They had bought the truck a few weeks earlier to tow their boat – discovering quickly that a 2wd straight six is not a good choice for slick boat ramps.

At that time, the truck had 36,000 miles on the odometer and showed all the typical rust found on 73-87 GMC/Chevy trucks.

From June 2009 until May 2016 the truck was my daily driver and I put a little over 60,000 miles on the truck during that time. Since then, the truck has mainly sat on the street and was used only on snowy days in 2017 and 2018.

During the first two years I owned the truck, it received a mild refurbishment including:

New inner and outer rocker panels

New doors

New bedsides

New front fenders

New front inner fenders

New floors

New cab corners

New rear slider window

New front bumper

New carpet

New window seals (windshield, slider, and side windows)

Used bucket seats and center console out of a mid-80s suburban

A coat of Sunburst Orange Acrylic Enamel paint

Duplicolor Bed Armor

New Bed hold down bolts

New rear taillights

New stainless steel mirrors

New stainless steel window visors

New turn signal and transmission stalks

Unfortunately, driving the truck daily through Midwestern winters and being parked outside all the time took a toll on the new body panels over the past 8 years. The following areas currently show rust:

The drivers side outer rocker is rusted through under the door sill

The passenger side outer rocker is showing signs of rust

Both cab corners have some rust in them

Both fuel filler doors have rust

The passenger bedside is showing rust around the wheel well

The rear most passenger side bed bolt rusted out and there’s a 2 inch diameter hole

The tail gate has rust poking through

The drivers side inner wheel well is showing rust

Please see the pictures for more detail.

In looking at the pictures, you will see the passenger bed side has a fuel door. This is a false door. The truck is a single tank truck. At the time the bedsides were replaced, smooth passenger side panels were back ordered and so we went with the dual fuel tank bedside.

The paint is dull; but should shine up with some care. Included with the truck is about 1/3rd of a gallon of the sunburst orange paint. There are lots of rock chips and road rash around the wheel wells and bed sides -- and a few runs from painting the truck under a tree.

The door lock doesn't work on the drivers side and the passenger side vent window does not open.

At 55,000 miles, the front suspension was shot. Rather than just replace stock components, the truck was lowered using DJM suspension components. We did this to make it easier to load items into the bed and to get in/out of the truck. The front end received new GM upper control arms, DJM lower control arms, new standard springs, new inner and outer tie rods, new bushings, and new hardware. The rear received a DJM axle flip kit and shock relocation kit. The shocks were replaced at 55,000 and 90,000 miles. At 98,000 miles the tie rods were replaced (again) and the truck aligned. At 99,000 miles the right rear leaf spring was replaced. Included with the truck are several new suspension service parts, including:

2 new lower ball joints

Pitman arm

Left rear leaf spring

Mechanically, the truck has been well maintained and is in OK condition for its age and the fact it is a work truck. The oil was changed every 2-3,000 miles. It does drip oil from the rear main seal – again, not an uncommon problem. The transmission fluid was changed every 30,000 miles. The differential was drained and refilled at 60,000 miles. In the last 2 years/4,000 miles the following were replaced:

New water pump

New upper and lower radiator hoses

New heater core

New radiator

New vacuum lines

New fuel pump

Reman carburetor

New alternator

New starter

New battery

New battery cables

New thermostat

New heater hoses

New fuel tank

New fuel tank straps

New fuel sending unit

New muffler and tail pipe

New U joints

New distributor cap and rotor

New spark plugs

New plug wires

New ignition module

New ignition coil

Please be advised the truck no longer has its catalytic convertor. It was removed before I bought the truck. The convertor heat shield is in place.

The truck does not have a jack or lug wrench; but the original spare tire is in the bed of the truck.

The tires were replaced with Kumho passenger tires at 89,000 miles. They show no unusual wear. The brakes are coming up for replacement. The parking brake cables rusted out before I got the truck and I have not replaced them.

All lights work except the passenger side front turn signal and one of the license plate lamps. The hi/lo beam floor mounted switch needs to be replaced as it can be difficult to switch between the beams.

The radio is next to worthless. The tuner only works going down the scale. I mostly used a cassette adapter with an MP3 player – or just listened to the road hum.

The gauges are a mixed bag. The voltmeter is accurate, but temperature, oil pressure and fuel gauges are not. The temperature gauge never reaches the ½ way mark and the oil pressure gauge never reads more than 15psi. Both have been that way since I bought the truck. I changed the sensors, which didn’t do anything. I put a mechanical oil pressure gauge on the truck back in 2010 and it showed good pressure – so I stopped worrying and just drove. I have not checked it since. I also plumbed in an aftermarket temperature gauge and it showed normal operations. That gauge failed in 2011/2012 but is still in the dashboard. I converted back to the original gauge. The fuel gauge shows an empty tank when there are still 3-4 gallons left. A new gauge, new ground wire, and a new sending unit didn’t solve the problem. The lockable gas cap died years ago; it now just screws on and off without the key.

Currently, the truck is running but takes a very long time to warm up. Until it reaches operating temperature, it has a hesitation. We chased the problem for about a month, going through a full tune up, fuel tank replacement, new vacuum lines, and a carb replacement. It all helped and we were able to drive the truck all winter so long as we let it warm up fully before setting off. But, the hesitation never went away and we were unable to figure it out. The hesitation should be further investigated before putting the truck back into daily service.

Overall, it’s a solid truck that needs a new owner willing to invest some time and money to get her back into shape. It is a prime candidate for pulling out the straight six and fitting a 305 or 350.

No warranty is implied or given. I have tried to share the truck’s history as best I can, but I’m sure there is something I have overlooked. This is a nearly 40 year old work truck that has sat outside it's whole life.

The truck runs, but should be towed or shipped until the hesitation is fully sorted out.

$500 deposit via pay pal due within 48 hours of the auction ending. The balance may be paid by USPS money order, cash on pick up, or cashier check from a major bank.

Buyer is responsible for picking up the truck or arranging shipping within 10 days of the auction ending.