My 71 Jimmy

[My3Sons!]

Well, I finally did it. I've been on the hunt for a while now, and really had my heart set on the Jimmy, love the quad headlight and my daily driver is a GMC Denali. I live in Redmond (Seattle area) and wanted to find one somewhat local, within the Pacific Northwest. I'd seen a few candidates come and go and started to rethink my strategy. I didn't want a project truck, but something that I could work on and get at least some sense of accomplishment on it. So, I finally landed on one in Idaho, but couldn't make it down to see it in person as I was going on a quick Nappa trip with my wife (without our 3 young boys), so as soon as I got back I called the guy, guess what.....SOLD! Well, as luck would have it, he tells me about another one he had read about in the paper......In the PAPER? Who advertises in the paper anymore? Nothing in Craiglsist even......anyway, called the owner and got some crappy cell phone pics, mechanically sound, but needed body work and paint. Not a ton though, all the rust had been removed and the truck was stripped and primered. As luck would have it the owner was moving to Hawaii so I was able to get a pretty screaming deal, and after 12 hour road trip (round trip) I had it back in my driveway! Since then, I've had some basic maintenance done, replaced ball joints, tie rods etc. bought about every conceivable replacement part for it, had the body straightened out and painted Audi red. Interior is from a 2011 Escalade, 2nd row buckets and 3rd row bench in perforated black leather, with a Tuffy box as a center console so I have somewhere to keep things secure. I still have a lot to do, still need to install rear bumper, heat shield and carpet kit, connect the new heater, replace the choke cable, it came with a dual wall top that needs some work, but for now it's strictly a sunny day ride! I have 3 boys (oldest just turned 7, and twins that are 5 1/2) so they are in heaven with this thing. They just light up whenever they get to ride in it. It gets quite the celebrity attention, I have people stop and take pictures when it's parked, and lots of gawking wherever I go. It's such a rare truck, I've really enjoyed driving it the last week or so since getting it out of the shop. Thanks to everyone on this forum that has helped with some of my projects thus far. Like, removing the instrument panel, I would have never figured out that headlight switch, although like a dummy I broke my choke cable thinking that the knob unscrewed, rather than simply removing it from the carb and pulling it through the firewall and the dash. Lesson learned.....Anyway, love to hear your feedback and look forward to being part of this community!

[Tom Vogel]

Sweet!

[fear_nothing]

Sweet ride!

That bondo job is a crime against all of humanity..... dang!

[My3Sons!]

Isn't that the truth. Thankfully the shop was able to rid most of it, the shot above is the after, they did an amazing job, it looks pristine now. I was able to work all day on it today and got the front bumper on, and interior in. Rear bumper will not let go, picked up a bolt splitter at Sears so hopefully have that off tomorrow. I'll try to get some more pics up, anybody know how to upload pics from iPad?
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[jaros44sr]

Originally Posted by My3Sons!

Isn't that the truth. Thankfully the shop was able to rid most of it, the shot above is the after, they did an amazing job, it looks pristine now. I was able to work all day on it today and got the front bumper on, and interior in. Rear bumper will not let go, picked up a bolt splitter at Sears so hopefully have that off tomorrow. I'll try to get some more pics up, anybody know how to upload pics from iPad?
Posted via Mobile Device

I just google photobucket on my tablet, then hit download, takes to my gallery, and i select which picture i want. Mine is a samsung, but it should operate the same...

Bumperbolts are a son of a gun, try tighening till they snap. Make sure your knuckles are clear of everything on the breaker bar

Welcome to the boards

[My3Sons!]

@My71Jimmy, the seats were easy, but took some blood, sweat and thankfully no tears. They are 2nd and 3rd row out of a 2011 Escalade (really the same in any Tahoe, Sub, Yukon, Denali etc. from 2007+). You can pick up aftermarket brackets for the rear set up so they still come in and out easily. The toughest part is getting all the holes lined up properly, because the fit has to be almost exact. Not a lot to work with so just taking your time to measure twice and drill once. Just start with the rear support bracket and drill completely through it, it takes a lot of muscle but once your through easy to bolt up. The front seats are a little unique and may not work for most. There is a natural incline in the rear brackets so they will not fill below the truck bed. They do though, fit almost perfectly up on the truck bed. It just may be too far back for most. I'm 6'6" so having the extra leg room is great. I sit a little high but I do in any car and since the top will almost always be off, it's no problem. So same thing on the front seats, I just drilled right through the floor and bolted them down. Had to use aftermarket seat belts in the front, the rear have 3 built in which is great.

[fear_nothing]

The seats look great! I've got the same rear seat, just haven't mounted mine yet. Did you get the mounts for the rear seat off ebay or another source?

thanks!

[MrGraySay]

Originally Posted by My3Sons!

@My71Jimmy,I'm 6'6" so having the extra leg room is great. I sit a little high but I do in any car and since the top will almost always be off, it's no problem. So same thing on the front seats, I just drilled right through the floor and bolted them down. Had to use aftermarket seat belts in the front, the rear have 3 built in which is great.

I really have enjoyed your thread. I started searching for a Jimmy/Blazer about a month ago, & have been really concerned with the leg room being 6'6" myself. It sounds like you found a good solution. How bad is the headroom issue with the top on? What seatbelts did you instal in the front?

[OLD K5]

I am in the same boat as you are with having young kids, we both need to get a roll bar to protect them. Looks amazing, keep the pictures coming.

[My3Sons!]

Roll cage is on the list, hard to find a place that still makes them. I got a lead on a place locally, just need to get it in there. Here are some shots of the interior, one of the quick project to thread the front wheel. Got a set of stock Rally wheels and one of them was never threaded for the center cap. Didn't realize it until they were mounted, so had to remove it to thread the holes. Replaced the instrument panel today, and got it completely buttoned back up, and then realized I missed the inner black plate that backs to the gauges,,,,,ugggh basically had to do it again. Nailed down some loose ends, like hood bumpers, cig lighter, glove box emblem, and latch. The carpet kit made a huge difference on the interior, it's really starting to look finished. Made a quick trip with the boys to Home D to get some random parts and had a crowd of people standing around it when we came out! All this hard work is paying off, now just time to enjoy it!

[My3Sons!]

couple more interior shots

[bouncytruck]

Wow, very nice looking Jimmy. I'm surprised I haven't seen you around. I'm just over the hill in Bothell/Kirkland area. Come to the carshow in Kirkland tomorrow (Sunday July 29th).

[my71gmc]

Wow - great Jimmy. I really like the seats. Did they install easy?

[bouncytruck]

Good to see you as we passed. Sorry you couldn't make it down earlier for the show. Then again, your rig would have totally upstaged mine!

[My3Sons!]

Yeah, perfect timing. My Jimmy does not like long stop and go and we had spent about 30 min putting around the main drag and was idling rough. I had wanted to get in and see the show but it was packed, we stopped for ice cream and bailed. Any other Blazer/Jimmy's in the show?
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[My3Sons!]

Finally got the bumpers on, about killed myself on one of the center bolts in the back, finally snapped like a carrot. Also, something humiliating to share, I had the Jimmy backed into my garage and when I hopped in the truck I literally head butted the garage door track, nice J shaped gash in my forehead......Everybody is like "OMG, what happened..." I just hang my head, wishing I had some elaborate story to tell.

[Firebirdjones]

Great find. Funny you mentioned the paper. I've found 3 of my vehicles in recent years through the paper. I never find anything on Craigs list and quite frankly don't even browse it much. I'd much rather look at the paper and even get online and read the paper in other states looking for cars and parts, auctions etc...

Looks like you made some headway, turned out great. I like the GMC's. Just different enough to stand out.

[fear_nothing]

Quite the story, I'd have to start the story out with You should see the other guy

Again killer truck!

[bouncytruck]

Originally Posted by My3Sons!

Yeah, perfect timing. My Jimmy does not like long stop and go and we had spent about 30 min putting around the main drag and was idling rough. I had wanted to get in and see the show but it was packed, we stopped for ice cream and bailed. Any other Blazer/Jimmy's in the show?
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No others. You should plan a head for next year. I think it's always the last weekend of July. I won the "car show survival kit" in the raffle which includes free entry to the 2013 shows.

[Wasted Income]

I've been looking for seats like those, but in the light gray titanium....they are hard to find in that color, but the black are everywhere. My main concern with the black is that I'm worried that with the top off in the sun, I won't have any skin on my legs after coming out of a store or something....

How hot do they really get?
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[My3Sons!]

It can be bad, but all I do is fold them down on hot days. The rear seats are perfect, they lay flat and have cloth back so you fold them up and they are not hot at all. The drivers seat on my setup hits the steering wheel when folding it down, but keeps the majority of the leather out of the direct sun.

[blue 72 gmc 4x4]

Nice Jimmy! I'm wondering about one thing though, how come the front bumper is sitting so low?

[orange72blazer]

Originally Posted by blue 72 gmc 4x4

Nice Jimmy! I'm wondering about one thing though, how come the front bumper is sitting so low?

Body lift?

[My3Sons!]

exactly, 3 inch body lift

[ch0psv1lle]

great looking truck man....... i love those seats. does the rear bench fold down?