Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

I found a fully loaded 1981 GMC Sierra Grand which looks to have a factory conversion of some kind. It looks like it has the same treatment that the 70s and 80s vans use to get with some decals and more comfortable captain's chairs. They seats look like super comfy bucket seats. Do you guys think this is a factory mod and is a super rare truck is it worth buying? It will need some body panels and cab corners. It runs and drives. Attachment 2195351

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Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Its a ChooChoo Custom. It wasn't per say Factory. Its more a Dealer option, but done when it was new most of the time.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Looks more like the ‘Indy Edition’ graphics to me.
But there are others that look the same.
Check this out for more info.


https://autowise.com/all-of-73-87-ch...trucks-part-i/

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Thanks for the help so would you say it’s rare? The guy wants almost nothing for it 3000 Canadian dollars. It seems like a unicorn and worth buying and restoring. I was looking for something to turn into a race truck but if this is a rare truck I would have to restore it

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Well, I'm assuming you're posting on here because you really want to know the scoop. It's an interesting article that was posted, but I would make a distinction between factory special editions and aftermarket packages and the article doesn't. There are definitely cases where the factory will commission an aftermarket group to modify vehicles and those vehicles are considered factory. The conversion vehicles like the one you're looking at are more similar to the conversion vans that you see on the road. Still sold through the dealership, but modified after the factory and not a factory design. That doesn't mean that you can't make something out of a truck like this if you really like it. But it's not like finding an Indy Hauler like was mentioned earlier, or one of the factory modified trucks or special editions. Honestly, uncomfortably honest, I wouldn't pay any more for that than a run of the mill truck. In fact, I have a set of seats similar to that in one of my trucks and I would prefer having the bench. 3000 CDN sounds like a lot to me, but I'm thinking you guys probably deal with more rust than I'm used to. Bottom line, from what I've seen, buy it and restore it if you really like it. But don't expect it to be worth more than a stock truck, in fact it may not be worth as much, even in restored condition. I'd hate to discourage a guy from doing something he's excited about. So by all means, make your own decision. but those conversion trucks are a bit polarizing, and the general consensus is that the conversion packages are dated and most prefer a stock looking restoration. I took a bit of time to write this out because it seemed that you felt you may have found a rare special edition. It's more of a conversion package that didn't sell enough to be well known. All good if you like it, but it's not something that's sought after. Sorry, I feel like a jerk, but it didn't seem right leaving you thinking that you might have found the ZL-1 of trucks. Good luck.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Not really rare. More like unique.
There were a bunch of different ones as the link shows.
After all it’s only an 81 gmc.
The price is good though.

When I first saw your pics I thought it was my brothers old truck. He won an 81 at the stampede in similar graphics.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Wow you are in Calgary as well? Nice

Hum ok so it isn’t rare maybe not worth saving I can turn it into a race truck then . I hadn’t ever seen one so didn’t know if someone put van seats in a truck or if it was a real factory or dealer option. I know more about the 58 and 59 trucks and 67-72 Chevy and GMC trucks and blazers.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Back when newish I knew guys would buy those trucks mainly for the options on them and repaint they way they liked them.
A lot of buyers didn’t like the graphics. A lot were hard to sell.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Oh wow ok then so it really isn’t the find I thought it was 😂. Thanks for the scoop and I am glad I asked.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

I live on Vancouver Island now. Google map Bowser BC to see where.
However lived in Alberta for the first 55 years.
If I had the chance I’d buy it.
You wouldn’t loose any money on it.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Lol wow that’s funny actually. I’ll stick to working on my 1959 Chevy Apache lol

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Again thanks for the help and I did look at the arrival you posted it was informative but I wasn’t sure if that truck was an Indi truck or not

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

There’s a member in red deer who might know some stuff.
His handle is 80SPORT.
You could pm him.

Just an fyi. That type of truck would be closer to 5000 out here.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Oh so maybe buy and resell it then? I got a 1985 Toyota truck as my daily driver for the summer, I know mentioning Toyota on a GM forum it’s bad form. She is getting a custom 2JZ turbo engine. That’s a fairly rare truck in Canada because it’s a short bed and they didn’t import short bed Toyota trucks into Canada at the time. I will pm the other member thanks you 😊

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Wow you are in Calgary as well? Nice

Hum ok so it isn’t rare maybe not worth saving I can turn it into a race truck then . I hadn’t ever seen one so didn’t know if someone put van seats in a truck or if it was a real factory or dealer option. I know more about the 58 and 59 trucks and 67-72 Chevy and GMC trucks and blazers.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Yup you could flip it if you got spare cash and a place to keep it.
I had a 59 once. Had a caved in roof. Was free so used it for a frame to put a rust free 56 chev cab onto. Gave the perfect front sheet metal from the 59 to a needy young guy for his graduation project.
This was back 30 years ago.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Dang you are a very nice person 😊. I paid $300 for my 59 Apache short bed fleetside, big back window. Only made something like 14k and most were abused and done now. So hard to find. The old farmer I got it from would talk to me every day for six months and we talked about trucks, guns, history, you name it. When I saw the truck in his barn I told him the 59 was my dream car and he laughed asked so not a muscle car or something European? I said nope a hot rodded 59 with tubular frame ready to race is my dream car 😂. He asked me how much I had on me and I was working in a remote place in northern Alberta so i had some cash on me because there wasn’t a bank near by (yes that remote). So he said he would take $300 for it. I told him the truck was well worth $5000-6000 and now I seen them on Kijiji for 10k plus. But he said he wanted to go t a good home so was ok with the price. So I ended up with my dream car for dirt cheap.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

Very cool story on your 59. The one thing I didn't mention on the squarebody is that it appears it's a short bed. That's definitely something that's worthwhile. From what I saw, it looks like rust through in the rear fenders and we don't usually see that here, so I would be concerned about the condition of the frame and other key areas beyond the usual rockers and cab corners. It would be a viable candidate for doing a race truck and you wouldn't be massacring something special if you did it. Not that a stock short bed isn't special in some ways, but if I was buying it and restoring it, I would restore it to factory, pre-conversion, rather than to the conversion specs.I had no idea what trucks were going for in BC, means there's one I know of down here that I could probably flip to Canada, but not going to try to get tangled up and all that. I'm guessing that more snow and coastal must put the rust hurting on trucks up there more than here.

Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

I am just working in BC for the summer, I live in Calgary which is in Alberta Canada. I found a 76 stepside in way better shape but more money of course lol Attachment 2195512

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Re: Please Help with this 1981 GMC
 

I was hoping that the first GMC the 81 was something special with the decal and all the custom work lol but not quite.