There was a truck fanatic (Brian Williams) who seems to have spent a lot of time over a number of years at a truck stop/rest area near Lebec, CA. shooting what stopped. Here’s a couple of very similar GMCs, with loads of late model cars.
Car Haulers of the Day: GMCs Hauling Late Model Used Cars
– Posted on October 1, 2020
I want that one!
And that one!
OOOH – and THAT one!
Holy crap! Drop them all off at my house, please!
Looks like Walt Disney is going to shoot another drive-in scene! All that is needed are the imports lined up in the back, because the smaller cars will make the shots look deeper.
These GMCs look so much like an N series. I hope this has a DD in it.
Nice pix. I remember Lebec, right at the foot of the Grapevine, if heading South the perfect place to either pass by at whatever full speed your car would do in order to try to get a run on the hill although you’d inevitably be foiled by a VW Bus in the fast lane less than a quarter of the way up or a great place to stop and make sure the coolant level and everything else is good before attempting it. And if heading North once over the hill a good spot to celebrate a successful climb and descent without a breakdown.
Lebec is actually near the top of the Grapevine. Northbound, its the last spot for a brake check before the steep down grade. At least today there are two runaway escape gravel traps near the bottom. I have seen trucks with brakes on fire multiple times.
Gorman at the top, Lebec at the bottom.
I’m thinking of the offramp right at the bottom of the grade. I thought it was marked Lebec but perhaps it’s just an access to it and the town is higher up. Up above are Gorman and Fraser Park as I recall. There’s a truck bypass and I think a large scales facility too but all on the northern flat part where the big long boring run to NorCal starts.
The 1960-1963 Thunderbird makes those square birds look like krap that they were. Then they went backwards with the 1964.
Great finds. It must have been a glorious time in the late 60s and early 70s, when many of these earlier classics and luxury cars were still plentiful, and gas was cheap. While now, also more financially accessible for new drivers, or those on tight budgets. During the lock down in March I watched some classic detective series from the 70s, and the proliferation of high end cars from this era in great condition in working class neighbourhoods, was impressive. Kennedy Lincolns and convertibles, were common on the streets. In one episode of Cannon from ’72 or ’73, Frank Cannon is given a ’64 Buick Riviera (in outstanding condition), as a loaner car by a small town body shop. What a wonderful time to be alive as car nuts.
Interesting mix of cars. 3 Convertibles on the one and 2 T-birds and a GP on the other one.
Technically the Ford ‘N’ series looked like the pictured GMC ‘B’ series trucks, the GMC’s were out a year earlier than the Fords. The similarities are not surprising as the concept of using a pickup truck cab on a heavy duty cab forward truck is the same in both cases. The GMC’s were likely powered by Detroit 6V-71 diesels.
Landau bars or not…yup that Thunderbird would look just FINE in my garage!!
I actually was allowed to drive a Bird of similar vintage, way back when, with its kind owner sitting in the RH bucket while I carefully piloted that beautiful new Bird around Watertown, WI. A dramatic and VA$T improvement over my dad’s stripper 3-on-the-tree 6 banger ’60 Biscayne 4 door eyesore!
I’ve always remembered that lil jaunt in that fantastic, stylish T-bird. 390 cubic inches of Ford POWER!! Way beyond anything I had driven at my young age of 16! It would be years before I ever drove anything similar to that Thunderbird. DFO
Those cars were a regular sight on the roads when I was a young kid in the late Sixties. I never cared much for the early Sixties T-birds, but I’d be happy to give that ‘63 GP at the top a home.
That ’63 T-Bird on the top shelf looks an awful lot like mine except for the vinyl top. The ’64 Grand Prix would be just fine in my garage, as would the ’63 Galaxies in picture number two. Honestly, there’s nothing on the truck that would be a hard pass.
I “think” that the trucks are gassers. They have the gas V6/8/12 emblem on the side of the nose. Probably not V12s in those. 351 or 478 V6 would be my guess. Really cool pics.
Possibly, but if they had 6V-71’s they would have had the ‘V6’ emblem on their hoods too.
I’m 99% certain that those emblems were only used on the gas engines.
I seem to remember seeing a GMC B series with the 6V-71 and V-6 emblems, maybe the owner installed them. The B series got the in-line 6-71 as an option in 1963 or so, naturally those trucks would not have had V6 emblems. The trucks pictured have clean fuel tanks, maybe they are indeed gas powered. Love the hood mounted air horns!
Looking at the lower picture, the truck with the “old” windshield, I wonder if the truck is LP fueled?
The fuel tank has a pressure vessel look to it. At least on my device’s low resolution cracked screen, it looks like more of a step/guard at the top of the tank, rather than a threaded filler cap.
Very cool, really time-machine photos, all the cars looking nearly new.
The ’65 Ford is the newest car there, yes?
Also, is the ’63 Galaxie the same color as Jason Shafer’s, or have I forgotten?
I can’t decide if it’s the same color or that really uncommon Desert Rose that was on the pink-ish side.
I’m surprised no one called dibs on the beige 63 grand Prix in picture two.
Ugly colour but I’ll happily have it dropped in my driveway.
To me 63 is the ultimate Grand Prix.
Is that a Rambler at the back of the top row of the first picture? And a red Dodge pickup in that same spot in the second? There is something here for everyone.
I’m thinking you’re right with respect to both the Rambler and the Dodge pickup.
Since no one has yet called dibs on that 61 Impala bubbletop, I’ll take it!
Believe the first is a 1963 Ford Country Sedan (wagon) check side trim with ’63 convertibles in other photo, the pickup, a rare 1961-1963 Ford Unibody pickup. (the bulge in the tailgate by the tail light is distinctive, (I had a ’61 F-100, red with WWW tires).