Totally Groovy Throwback C10 Camper Truck Has Us Dreaming of the ’70s
Unlike bell bottoms and disco, earth tones and squarebody pickups never go out of style.
Look, we can understand if you think that the retro thing is getting out of hand, but we don’t want to hear it. This ex-SEMA show truck has us drooling, and it’s dripping in ’70s style. In fact, if it was any more ’70s, it would have a mustache and a Dr. Hook 8-track in the glovebox.
This truck was originally built for the 2019 SEMA show by River City Rods in Davenport, Iowa. It’s been appropriately dubbed “Brown Sugar.”
We were turned on to this truck by our pals over at Barn Finds. It’s actually a 1983 Chevy C10 all dolled up to look like a custom camper. We’ll forgive the fact that it’s “too new” since the squarebody is, after all, timeless.
Of course, Air Ride didn’t exist back in the ’70s, either (we got disco instead). Neither did the 5.3 liter LS that lives under the hood, or the 4L80E that sits behind it.
We’ll forgive all of those anachronisms, though, because this truck is simply breathtaking. From the awesome gradient stripes to the wicked plaid interior, this truck looks like it came straight out of our dreams — or straight out of “Boogie Nights.” We often get the two confused.
Let’s Go Camping
The fun continues inside the camper shell, which, like the rest of the truck, is loaded with custom touches. Aged whiskey barrels hide subwoofers, while an old Coca-Cola cooler has been transformed into a sink. All in all, it looks like a groovy place to spend some time.
A custom build like this doesn’t come cheap, of course, The selling dealer has it listed for sale for nearly $180,000. On eBay, over two dozen bids got it up just barely over $100,000.
It’s clear that this truck’s ’70s vibe attracted a lot of attention, but $180,000 is a lot to pay for a time machine back to the days of bell-bottoms and polyester suits.
Still, we’d love to build something like this ourselves. Even without the trick air suspension and LS power, we’d still be drooling over this retro pickup.
Photos: Barn Finds via eBay