vintage pickup rat rod unrestored hydramatic

For your consideration is this 1954 GMC Hydramatic half ton long bed pickup.
     Since its mechanical resurrection about eight  months ago . It has been my daily driver .   ( well . one of them )
 And has served me well .   I've had a ton of fun with it and driving it . but life goes on and it now needs a new loving home.
      This little pickup was a very well optioned truck in its heyday . nbsp; Some of the unique features and options it has are as follows .
    Deluxe 5 window cab which included chrome grille and bumpers .  Long wheelbase .    ( This was an option for a GMC chevy didnt offer a long bed half ton ) . hydramatic transmission . AM radio.
two tone paint . nbsp; ( there is a little bit left lol )  Deluxe striped door panels and seat cushions .   ( these are not reproduced that i am aware of at this time . But i do have samples of the original material)  . side mount spare tire. hood ornament . bed roll reflectors . nbsp; Factory installed turn signals and more.  
       The truck has had almost every mechanical component rebuilt . repaired or replaced during its mechanical resurrection.
 This included a total rebuild of the 270 CID straight six engine . The hydramatic transmission was also rebuilt . Front and rear suspension . Brake system and rear Differential .   
  The engine has lots of new parts in it such as. nbsp;  New pistons and rings. new valves with hardened exhaust seats . valve springs. valve guides. camshaft bushings . and new gaskets and seals . NOS vacuum advance.   New fuel pump and water pump . spark plugs. coil . Rebuilt starter and  Generator .  
 The  carburetor was also rebuilt . nbsp;And it is the correct style  for a hydramatic truck .
 These are usually very hard to find .   The hydramatic trucks all came with a special carburetor that has a electric choke on it .   Very unusual for a 50's truck .   Unfortunately . This choke coil is bad and I haven't been able to locate a replacement yet. But. It runs great otherwise !

I also installed a modern full-flow oil filter on the engine .   I still have the original bypass filter housing if someone wants it.
     The  4 speed hydramatic transmission recieved new clutches and seals. Gaskets . a new reverse cone clutch . Stationary cone clutch. rebuilt front pump .
  Both front and rear spring and suspension assemblies were removed from the truck and rebuilt using new king pins. leaf spring bushings . Four new shocks . new rear U-bolts. nbsp; the front wheel bearings were upgraded to a more modern tapered wheel bearing instead of the old style ball bearings .
   The rear differential was rebuilt using new grease seals and new axle bearings with new u-joints in the driveshaft as well .
 This truck is a " late "54  . so it has a open driveline as opposed to some other 54's that had a very odd half torque tube - half open driveshaft system.     
    The truck also has a new 6 volt dry cell optima battery that cranks the truck over beautifully .
 The truck has a rebuilt wiper motor . a NOS voltage regulator . NOS horn relay . and  an all new exhaust system .
 It also has an all new brake system including new drums. shoes . nbsp;wheel cylinders . hardware kits . Master cylinder. new steel lines and rubber lines too.
  
   The truck starts easily . Runs like a top and it drives very nicely down the road.   It uses no oil .
   It likes a cruising speed of about 45-50 MPH . It will in fact . nbsp;go quite a bit  faster . However it  purrs so nicely at the relaxed  lower speeds that I  usually keep it there and I  dont get in a hurry .
The transmission shifts very nicely  . It  Has that  classic hydramatic "purr" at idle and it doesnt leak any oil.     
 The brakes stop  it very well for a truck of this vintage and it always stops straight and true .  
 The wipers work well . even at road speed.   The radio works well for radio of this vintage . Sometimes its loud and clear . Sometimes it is faint . Just depends on the temperature  and weather .   It also has the correct 54 style speaker grille in the headliner.
   All of the lights work as they should .   The headlights work well at night and the factory turn signals work as they should .   ( this was the first year to get factory turn signals in the steering collum ) 
  
  The bad .
 The truck needs a windshield and windshield gasket.   The current one is cracked in the middle in my line of sight and it is bothersome.
 It needs a heater core repaired or replaced.   Heater blower works . But the switch is bad i think.
 The temperature gauge does not work.    The wood in the bed is mostly all rotted and gone .   I have plywood just laying in the bed.   I believe all the bedstrips are there and usable condition.     The passenger side front fender has been damaged and is a bit rough at the bottom.  
 The right rear fender is cracked on the bottom where it connects to the running board.   The hood does not line up on the fenders as I think it should.   Shuts ok . But could use some adjusting .   The cab corners have some minor rust through and so do the inner kick panels.  
 The floorboards themselves are very good condition.   The passenger side bed panel has a couple of small torn places where something was attached and torn off.    The passenger side window is kinda sticky when you roll it down . But its manageable.  
 The speedometer works very smoothly . But it seems as though it is probably about 10 mph off  from being accurate.
   
  Overall . this is a great running and driving vintage pickup with lots of fun and enjoyment ready to give to somebody.  
I have done my best to describe it here . But please understand it is a 60 year old vehicle and well . it's  really old lol.
I also have some extra parts . some  weatherstripping. extra transmission . nbsp; Service Manuals. ect. to go with the truck.   
    I am confident that you could  drive it home to  anywhere as long as you arent  in a real big hurry to get there.
  Any questions . Please ask and I will do the best I can to answer them.  
Thank You .
   
   
 

 

Also published at eBay.com

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