Diego’s AutoHunter Picks

I’m starting to figure out this pickup truck thing. If you caught the ClassicCars.com Journal coverage of the 2024 Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction, you would have noticed many of the most popular vehicles were trucks along with evergreen pony cars.

Those also are the vehicles in this week’s AutoHunter Picks. I’m still more of a car guy, but trucks seem to be almost as plentiful as pony cars plus there’s less purist involvement with them. Do any of these trucks make you want to go to the Dark Side?

1965 Ford Mustang Convertible
Ever get the feeling Mustangs are like roaches? They’re like an infestation upon our roads, with so many of them that when one’s gone, you know there’s another one around the corner. Don’t get me wrong – I don’t dislike Mustangs – but it’s amazing to see how popular they were and how many continue to survive. Few automobiles are afforded that luxury.

This 1965 Mustang convertible features several GT touches such as fog lights, badges, and rear exhaust pipes poking out from the valence panel. However, the seat of your pants possibly would be more pleased about the V8 underneath the hood that features several upgrades including an Edelbrock four-barrel and intake. Let the purists fight about another Mustang while you drive this one all over town.

1969 Chevrolet Camaro
Ever get the feeling Camaros are like Mustangs? They’re like an infestation upon our roads, with so many of them that when one’s gone, you know there’s another one around the corner. Don’t get me wrong – I don’t dislike Camaros – but it’s amazing to see how popular they were and how many continue to survive. Perhaps only the Mustang is afforded that luxury, though on a larger scale.

This 1969 Camaro is the year that everyone wants. Aside of the hood, this pony car looks like a stock Super Sport though, honestly, didn’t the wheels give it away already? They’re huge 18-/20-inchers, which may hint that something is brewing underneath the hood. How does a 383 stroker grab ya? With 430 horsepower, probably by the neck.

1966 GMC 1000 Wideside Pickup
So, what did GMC offer that Chevrolet did not? In the case of this 1966 1000 Wideside pickup, it could be spec’d with a huge 5.0-liter V6 (with a 5.8-liter V6 also available) that was not offered by Chevrolet. Additionally, GMC often distinguished itself with quad headlights and a different dashboard. I believe a small-block Chevy was also available for ‘66, which is sacrilegious considering GMCs used to rely on Pontiac engines.

This 1966 GMC 1000 Wideside half-ton looks to have had a Chevrolet grille put in place, though the unusual grille lighting invokes much more modern machinery. If you like 383s and aren’t a Mopar guy/gal, would you take this over the above Camaro with the same cid? Take a peek in the interior – do you dig the gator insert? Even the wheels don’t veer into absolute ridiculousness. Tastefully done!

1986 Chevrolet K10 Pickup
I’ve figured out I have an affinity for short-bed pickups with fat wheels because they remind me of the Stomper battery-powered toys I had when I was a kid. They used to be able to tackle anything thrown at them … at least until the battery was weak, and then I was overwhelmed with the feeling that Stompers were lame. Improved knobby tires almost changed things for me until it became a classic “fool me twice” moment.

This 1986 Chevrolet K10 Pickup doesn’t appear to have the same issues. It’s powered by a 406 with dual quads atop a tunnel ram intake. Cool! Did I mention the four-speed manual too? A dual-range transfer case, aluminum American Racing mags with 38-inch tires, and ix-inch suspension lift kit complete the picture. This looks like one fun truck, maybe the most fun of the bunch here.

1972 Chevrolet C10 Pickup
The styling of this pickup is solid, almost reminding me of a car, though it seems the front clip is from a ‘68. The chrome-trimmed features certainly feel more car-like, though the dual parking lights come off as if some bean counter thought one in each orifice and side was unnecessary. As another short-boxed truck with big wheels for that muscle stance, could there be 400 horsepower under the hood of this pickup?

I guess it’s easy to have been led astray because this 1972 Chevrolet C10 pickup is powered by a 235cid inline-six. A cosmetic super truck, the utilitarian version of a Plymouth Duster Twister? With those 20-inchers aluminum wheels and lowered suspension, it sure looks like it, but much of the rest comes off as being relatively stock and honest.