Often times, a simple night out having dinner with friends is a perfect opportunity for a CC photo op, as these two vintage beauties demonstrate.
I took these pictures on a chilly evening in February 2015, when I was joining my buddy Chris and several of his family members at Fuddruckers in Lakewood, Ca. It was Friday night and the place was packed, despite the nippy weather. While everyone else was shivering outside the door waiting to get in, I wandered over to the Goodyear Tires And Service next door to snap some pictures of this gorgeous restomodded 1957 Chevy pickup.
The freshly chromed badges denote this as the “3600” model, which was the heavy-duty 3/4 tonner of its day. Engine options included the ubiquitous and bulletproof 235 cubic inch “stovebolt” six and the high-revving 283 cubic-inch small block V8 for a little more zip. The bigger, torquier Pontiac V8 was only available in this truck’s GMC cousin.
I have no idea what was done to this truck engine or chassis-wise, other than the owner doing a dualie conversion on it and installing heavy-duty Alcoa wheels. It sure is nice though.
The detail work on this thing is first-rate, from the glass-smooth paint, the shiny hardware, and the Line-Xed cargo bed. Sad to say, these trucks are off my wish list due to the fact that the cramped cabs don’t gel with my 6’4″ height, my 35″ inseam, or my bad back. That still doesn’t take away my admiration of them.
A few months back, I was at Hometown Buffet with my pal Don when I spotted this unusual sight- this Triumph TR3 in racing trim.
The fresh racing decals and competition-style windscreens indicate that this car may be currently used for some sort of vintage racing. If that is indeed the case, the apparent lack of rollover protection is rather worrisome.
The deleted bumpers do offer some weight savings, but if you do such a modification you’d better be good at doing bodywork 🙂 .
The cute little butt, complete with chrome bumperettes and tiny pin-point taillights. I’d love to zip this thing around a track, along with other buzzy little beasts like it. On the 405 freeway dicing with 80-ton semis, not so much.
Given the DRW and the 8-lug setup, I wonder if that’s a ’57 body on a modern frame. Still cool if so. The dually conversion looks quite clean–I wonder if he widened the middle section of the bed rather than extending the fenders?
That TR3 looks fun indeed, but like you, I think it’d make me a little nervous on the interstate!
Look at the shot where you can see inside the bed and you’ll see the tubs for clearance for the inner tires. So it looks like he either used a axle from a Cab and Chassis DRW truck or a SRW axle with the duals. DRW pickups use a wider axle which is why they get fenders added to the outside of the bed. Cab and Chassis trucks don’t have to worry about clearing a bed so they are set up so the resulting location of the outside tire is about the same width as the front tires.
like the Chevy ute, its probably an old cab on a late chassis which would improve it all round but retain the ‘look’.
The little TR is cute and they go ok too my exs dad had one with a Judson supercharger fitted, very rapid, Our roadworthy laws require bumpers these days but you might find old english body work will make a mess of anything modern that hits it rather than get damaged in the process, I’d quite happily drive it anywhere.
The little Triumph would be a lot of fun. In traffic the biggest problem is that other drivers might not see you. (Of course they might be too busy texting) The car is so small and low and the tail lights are tiny. I had that problem when I was driving a lowered little Acura, the SUV drivers would look right over it when I was alongside them.
Older and smaller cars are not as safe in a collision as a modern vehicle. I think that long time motorcycle riders are willing to accept a higher level of “hazard” because they are used to being more active in their driving safety. I mean that a motorcycle offers you no safety in a collision. You have to be constantly aware of hazards around you and looking for avoidance and escape routes. It does tend to be a bit stressful.
Love that Chevy truck!
In the early 70s I drove a 72 Spitfire from northern Pa. to north Florida, my biggest “problem” was windburn touched with sunburn. In the mid 70s I drove a TR3 from north Florida to northern Pa. No big deal, as I remember, but I was younger and stupider then. I would make the same trip in a TR3 today, but would avoid interstates as much as possible….for several reasons, with safety being a big one.
BTW, the only motorcycle crash I ever had was a few miles from home, on in town streets.
I’d be more than happy to buzz around in that TR3. The safety issue, while a concern, is probably not as big a deal to me in reality as it is if I “Think too much about it”.
I never felt particularly unsafe driving Midgets back in the late 80’s, although it was common knowledge that tail light lenses were in short supply at salvage yards simply because they were constantly getting crushed by bigger vehicles with inattentive drivers.
As much as the automotive landscape has changed since then, and as much as the skill of the average driver may have been reduced, I don’t think I’d feel too unnerved to drive something like that today. The biggest concern I’d have would be keeping up with interstate speeds. When 55 was still the law of the land, and the car basically topped out at 75 for practical purposes it was no big deal. I wouldn’t want to try to sustain typical 75+ speeds in the interstate in a car powered and geared for back road driving. Overdrive would be a help, but I can’t imagine even with O/D that it’d be a pleasant experience, nor a healthy one for vintage running gear.
That blue would look good on my ’57 Chevy Handyman!
Evidently the ’57 was part of the “Task Force” generation of trucks. I guess they had to come up with some other name than, perhaps, “Really Advanced-Design.”☺
In the mid to late ’70’s a friend of mine drove a very similar looking 1\2 ton in black. It had a 375hp 327 with an M-21 4 spd. It was very fast and he never lost a stoplight drag race. We drove it in downtown Portland the night the Blazers won the championship with a keg of beer in the bed passing out refreshments. Aw, the good old days, I often wonder how I made it through them.
I got overtaken today by someone in a open top MG Midget he did not seem concerned about the 44 tonne combination behind him and I could see him clearly.
The truck isn’t a ’57 , it’s a ’55 or ’56 . ’57s had a different grille .
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It’s a nice rig , I’m fond of the Task Force series having had a ’55 3600 tow truck in the 1970’s , a slow but easy to drive serious work horse , 235 engine and Muncie SM420 transmission of course…
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A ‘ Murphy Plate ‘ instead of slings .
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The TR3 looks very nice , my buddy has one also in road race trim , he recently installed a five speed transmission and shipped it to The Isle Of Man the Scotland for a lifetime vacation with his Wife .
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These Trumpets had a Massey-Fergusun tractor engine of all things .
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-Nate