67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

hewittca · 09-22-2016, 10:05 AM

Hi everyone. If you happen to be like myself, you mainly stick to the board that most suits your truck and you don't wander over to the other boards very often. If so, you may have missed the thread I started on the 67-72 pickups board sharing a chronological pictorial summary of the development of the 67-72 GM pickups (linked here for reference). I have also been working on filling in photos for all the pickup variants, which brings me to my first post here on the Suburban/Panels board. I have decided to post these photos here to remain consistent with the board indexing. These photos are actually Part 5 in the series of photos I am sharing on the 67-72 development, which explains the title. I hope you enjoy these photos showing a glimpse into the development of these trucks!

Part 5, Suburbans and Panels

The development of the Suburbans and Panels did not reach the clay stage until the overall shape of the pickup was decided upon, clearly because they were to be based on the pickup platform. The Suburbans/Panels were developed in tandem with the GMC during a one year period after the overall design of the Chevrolet pickup was decided upon. About one week before the presentation of this preproduction ready design of the '67 C10 in November '64, GM had the first proposed Suburban shape in clay and on display in the auditorium. This is where we start off in the photo collection for the Suburbans/Panels.

-October 1964
As you can see, the overall shape of the Suburban is basically completed in this first clay model and very little refinement would be done to the overall design. Note that this proposal had 4 doors. Also note that this clay model doesn't even have a fully completed nose as the focus here was the shape of the Suburban. If you looked through the GMC photos, you already know that this Suburban would be the full scale clay model used to experiment with GMC grill proposals.

-January 1965
As mentioned above, the Suburban clay model also doubled as the full scale GMC nose proposal model. Here is the completed Suburban proposal with initial GMC grill design.

-October 1965
By October, they had the clay model out on the patio for outdoor presentation. Note that not much has changed on the model since the beginning of the year.

-November 1965
The final production ready design is complete. Note that the rear window has a removable center divider to illustrate the difference between the suburban and panel rearend. They were also using the panel buck to experiment with seating arrangements, as seen in the last two photos. Note that it also appears to have a cloth top, but I'm not sure if this was a proposed option or just used for easier rearrangement of the interior.

-February 1966
By early '66 the overall design of the Suburban was finalized, but as you can see here they were still experimenting with a few trim options. Note the revised taillight design compared to the Nov '65 design.

-January 1969
Flash forward three years to early '69. No significant changes were made to the Suburban/Panel specific features of these designs leading to the gap in photos between initial development and now. At this point, GM experimented with this "Custom" trim package for the '70 Suburban, but ultimately abandoned it.

-February 1969
These last two photos show more detailed views of the proposed "Custom" trim package for the Suburban.

After opting to not put into production this proposed Custom trim package, GM chose not to do any further development on the Suburbans. From this point on, yearly updates come directly from the grill updates used on the pickups.

So.Cal.Chevy · 09-22-2016, 10:24 AM

Wow! Those pics are amazing....thanks for sharing!

Bigdav160 · 09-22-2016, 10:54 AM

Agreed, great story also.

bchamb3 · 09-22-2016, 12:02 PM

Good Stuff! Thanks

**Advanced Design** · 09-22-2016, 10:47 PM

Thank you for taking the time to organize, comment on and share these pictures. Interesting the initial development was for a four door.

68panelman · 09-23-2016, 10:12 AM

Me too, that was the first thing I noticed. Would of been nice if they stuck with the four doors. I'm digging the large taillight bezel also.Very cool thread

hewittca · 09-23-2016, 02:06 PM

I'm glad you all enjoyed these!

Quote:

Originally Posted by 68panelman

Me too, that was the first thing I noticed. Would of been nice if they stuck with the four doors. I'm digging the large taillight bezel also.Very cool thread

That taillight bezel is nice, I didn't notice it until you pointed it out. I'm surprised by how many neat ideas show up in these concept photos that never made it to production.

**HO455** · 09-23-2016, 03:40 PM

I really dig that first mock up of the GMC grille. Much more substantial looking. I do like the bow tie bezels but the larger size of the later ones have better proportions. Thanks for posting these. I will have to check out the rest of your threads.

RoadDawg · 09-25-2016, 12:53 PM

Awesome photos and information. Thanks very much for posting!

**Dieselwrencher** · 09-26-2016, 07:19 PM

Thanks for sharing these pictures. That 4th door would have been nice.

The split window rear hatch would have been different too.

**Hart_Rod** · 09-27-2016, 08:34 AM

Very cool thread!

CG · 09-27-2016, 11:13 PM

All these threads you did with the factory photos are super cool. Thanks for taking the time to put this all together.

67swb72klb · 10-01-2016, 09:53 PM

I like the black out around the glass on the 69
Thanks for posting!!

goldenburb · 10-02-2016, 10:47 PM

W��W ...thanks for the hard work to show the best model gm did
lol

**HO455** · 08-20-2023, 05:59 PM

Bringing this back to the top as it is so cool.

Thank you to member Hewittca.

kev2809 · 08-21-2023, 06:23 PM

damn those clay models are amazing

**57NAPCO** · 08-22-2023, 01:34 PM

First time seeing this, thank you !

**HO455** · 08-23-2023, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 57NAPCO

First time seeing this, thank you !

You're welcome and I think you might enjoy this thread too.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...92&postcount=1

**HO455** · 08-23-2023, 05:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 57NAPCO

First time seeing this, thank you !

You're welcome and I think you might enjoy this thread too.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=716696

09-22-2016, 10:05 AM	#1
hewittca Registered User Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Mocksville, NC Posts: 1,765	67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Hi everyone. If you happen to be like myself, you mainly stick to the board that most suits your truck and you don't wander over to the other boards very often. If so, you may have missed the thread I started on the 67-72 pickups board sharing a chronological pictorial summary of the development of the 67-72 GM pickups (linked here for reference). I have also been working on filling in photos for all the pickup variants, which brings me to my first post here on the Suburban/Panels board. I have decided to post these photos here to remain consistent with the board indexing. These photos are actually Part 5 in the series of photos I am sharing on the 67-72 development, which explains the title. I hope you enjoy these photos showing a glimpse into the development of these trucks! Part 5, Suburbans and Panels The development of the Suburbans and Panels did not reach the clay stage until the overall shape of the pickup was decided upon, clearly because they were to be based on the pickup platform. The Suburbans/Panels were developed in tandem with the GMC during a one year period after the overall design of the Chevrolet pickup was decided upon. About one week before the presentation of this preproduction ready design of the '67 C10 in November '64, GM had the first proposed Suburban shape in clay and on display in the auditorium. This is where we start off in the photo collection for the Suburbans/Panels. -October 1964 As you can see, the overall shape of the Suburban is basically completed in this first clay model and very little refinement would be done to the overall design. Note that this proposal had 4 doors. Also note that this clay model doesn't even have a fully completed nose as the focus here was the shape of the Suburban. If you looked through the GMC photos, you already know that this Suburban would be the full scale clay model used to experiment with GMC grill proposals. -January 1965 As mentioned above, the Suburban clay model also doubled as the full scale GMC nose proposal model. Here is the completed Suburban proposal with initial GMC grill design. -October 1965 By October, they had the clay model out on the patio for outdoor presentation. Note that not much has changed on the model since the beginning of the year. -November 1965 The final production ready design is complete. Note that the rear window has a removable center divider to illustrate the difference between the suburban and panel rearend. They were also using the panel buck to experiment with seating arrangements, as seen in the last two photos. Note that it also appears to have a cloth top, but I'm not sure if this was a proposed option or just used for easier rearrangement of the interior. -February 1966 By early '66 the overall design of the Suburban was finalized, but as you can see here they were still experimenting with a few trim options. Note the revised taillight design compared to the Nov '65 design. -January 1969 Flash forward three years to early '69. No significant changes were made to the Suburban/Panel specific features of these designs leading to the gap in photos between initial development and now. At this point, GM experimented with this "Custom" trim package for the '70 Suburban, but ultimately abandoned it. -February 1969 These last two photos show more detailed views of the proposed "Custom" trim package for the Suburban. After opting to not put into production this proposed Custom trim package, GM chose not to do any further development on the Suburbans. From this point on, yearly updates come directly from the grill updates used on the pickups. __________________ Builds: Green Gus the 68 C10 \| Bluey the 72 1500 \| Lowly the 70 C10 - Instagram: @dr.hewitt - C10 Concept/Development Photos: Master Thread

09-22-2016, 10:24 AM	#2
So.Cal.Chevy Registered User Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Southern California Posts: 48	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Wow! Those pics are amazing....thanks for sharing! __________________ Jonathan: 1972 GMC 3/4ton Suburban 1972 Chevy K2500 Suburban 4x4(sold) 1972 Chevy Beauville Sports Van(sold)

09-22-2016, 10:54 AM	#3
Bigdav160 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Klein Texas Posts: 3,852	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Agreed, great story also. __________________ My Classics: '72 K20 Suburban + '65 Dodge Town Wagon '72 Corvette Roadster +'67 Corvette Roadster '73 Z-28 Camaro '63 Ford SWB Uni Pickup '50 Ford Coupe

09-22-2016, 12:02 PM	#4
bchamb3 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: Riverview, FL Posts: 14	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Good Stuff! Thanks

09-22-2016, 10:47 PM	#5
Advanced Design Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Oblong, Illinois Posts: 7,028	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Thank you for taking the time to organize, comment on and share these pictures. Interesting the initial development was for a four door. __________________ Doug Advanced Design’s 1977 Blazer Build Advanced Design's '48 'Burb Build Mrs Advanced Design's '72 Suburban Advanced Design's 56 BelAir LS swap

09-23-2016, 10:12 AM	#6
68panelman Registered User Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Delaware and Long Island, New York Posts: 3,456	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Me too, that was the first thing I noticed. Would of been nice if they stuck with the four doors. I'm digging the large taillight bezel also.Very cool thread

09-23-2016, 03:40 PM	#8
HO455 Post Whore Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Portland Oregon Posts: 11,382	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos I really dig that first mock up of the GMC grille. Much more substantial looking. I do like the bow tie bezels but the larger size of the later ones have better proportions. Thanks for posting these. I will have to check out the rest of your threads. __________________ Thanks to Bob and Jeanie and everyone else at Superior Performance for all their great help. RIP Bob Parks. 1967 Burban (the WMB),1988 S10 Blazer (the Stink10 II),1969 GTO (the Goat), 1970 Javelin, 1952 F2 Ford OHC six 4X4, 29 Model A, 72 Firebird (the DBP Bird). 85 Alfa Romeo If it breaks I didn't want it in the first place The WMB repair thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=698377

09-25-2016, 12:53 PM	#9
RoadDawg Registered User Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Sebastopol, CA Posts: 68	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Awesome photos and information. Thanks very much for posting! __________________ - Mike 1971 GMC 2500 Stoner Ambulance (sold) http://public.fotki.com/Classicchp/1971-gmc-ambulance/

09-26-2016, 07:19 PM	#10
Dieselwrencher 6>8 Plugless........ Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Prairie City, Ia Posts: 17,142	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Thanks for sharing these pictures. That 4th door would have been nice. The split window rear hatch would have been different too. __________________ Ryan 1972 Chevy Longhorn K30 Cheyenne Super, 359 Inline 6 cylinder, Auto Trans, Tilt, Diesel Tach/Vach, Buckets, Rare Rear 4-link and air ride option Build Thread 1972 GMC Sierra Grande Longhorn 4x4 1972 Chevy Cheyenne Super K20 Long Step side tilt, tach, tow hooks, AC, 350 4 speed 1972 C10 Suburban Custom Deluxe 1969 Chevy milk truck 1971 Camaro RS 5.3 BTR STG3 Cam Super T10 1940 Ford 354 Hemi 46RH Ford 9" on air ride huge project *Tired of spark plugs? Check this out.*

09-27-2016, 08:34 AM	#11
Hart_Rod ************* Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Pensacola, FL Posts: 17,858	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Very cool thread! __________________ Rob - https://www.instagram.com/hart_rod_c10 As Iron Sharpens Iron, So One Man Sharpens Another. Proverbs 27:17 FOR SALE: DBW pedal bracket - http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=651123 FOR SALE: Hood Brackets http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=679945 1987 Silverado SWB - 34.5K original miles http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=801834 1969 SuperBurb - http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=200387 1968 Farm truck - http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=358692 1968 SWB - http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=551258 1948 Chevy - http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...=122164&page=3

09-27-2016, 11:13 PM	#12
CG BlahBlahBlah Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Wa. Posts: 20,033	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos All these threads you did with the factory photos are super cool. Thanks for taking the time to put this all together. __________________ … … … … … … … … ... … … … … … … … … … … …

10-01-2016, 09:53 PM	#13
67swb72klb Registered User Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: livingston co.mi Posts: 2,471	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos I like the black out around the glass on the 69 Thanks for posting!! __________________ California 65 GTO---Texas 64 burb 283 ---Oklahoma 67 CST SWB BBW wood bed 327 2004r---New Mexico 72 k10 350 350 auto---Georga 72 short step project

10-02-2016, 10:47 PM	#14
goldenburb Registered User Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: aurora colo Posts: 211	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos W��W ...thanks for the hard work to show the best model gm did lol __________________ 70 c10 2wd crashed Suburban 67 c10 2wd sb truck 67 c10 4wd lb truck

08-20-2023, 05:59 PM	#15
HO455 Post Whore Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Portland Oregon Posts: 11,382	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos Bringing this back to the top as it is so cool. Thank you to member Hewittca. __________________ Thanks to Bob and Jeanie and everyone else at Superior Performance for all their great help. RIP Bob Parks. 1967 Burban (the WMB),1988 S10 Blazer (the Stink10 II),1969 GTO (the Goat), 1970 Javelin, 1952 F2 Ford OHC six 4X4, 29 Model A, 72 Firebird (the DBP Bird). 85 Alfa Romeo If it breaks I didn't want it in the first place The WMB repair thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=698377

08-21-2023, 06:23 PM	#16
kev2809 low n' slo Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: rosenberg, texas Posts: 5,178	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos damn those clay models are amazing __________________ 67 1/2 ton Suburban - Project DRGNWGN. Build thread -_--_--_ _________ _--_-_ -/____\|__\|__\__ ,.,,,.,.,,.,\|_O _______ O_]



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08-22-2023, 01:34 PM	#17
57NAPCO F’B’D guy Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Texas/Maine Posts: 2,234	Re: 67-72 Suburban Development/Concept Photos First time seeing this, thank you !

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