Making a Better 67 - 72

[LongBox]

Before I go into this too far, just want to make sure that everyone knows that I love the 67 - 72 GM pickups. The styling, the interiors, and the simple but rugged build make these a great hobby vehicle, and recent market prices show that they have become quite collectible, with some high-option or survivor trucks going for $50,000 or thereabouts.

I enjoy driving my 69, but I often find myself wishing that it had better steering (mine is non-power), better gas mileage, more relaxed cruising rpms, and some more creature comforts, all things that my 98 Silverado has.

So, I find myself building a better 67 - 72 in my mind. First, I did not buy this truck for good gas mileage, but really, 11 mpg is pretty crappy these days. So, the first thing I change is substituting a 700 R4 with its overdrive gear, for my perfectly good TH 350. I figure that I have a 3.73 rear gear now, and the OD would drop my revs at cruising speeds, and up the gas mileage. I guess this would pretty much bolt up, but crossmember relocation and driveshaft surgery might me needed, I'm not knowledgeable enough to be sure.

Changing to power steering seems like a no-brainer, and apparently pretty well anything from a GM truck from 67 - 88 will pretty much bolt in.

Carburators are definitely entertaining devices, and it's possible to fix it yourself on the kitchen table if you have to, but the fuel injection on my 98 gives easier starts, better drivability, better mileage, etc. There must be a good aftermarket intake manifold and FI kit that can be bolted up, and that self-tunes. Anyone out there got some recommendations on this?

The cowl vents on the 67 - 72s provide a great blast of outdoor air to your ankles and knees, but AC is a much better way to go, in my opinion. Since my truck does not have factory AC, an aftermarket kit looks like the only real alternative, and I have heard that Vintage Air make systems with a reasonable compressor, and I guess some sort of fix for the fact that the firewall holes would not be right. Wondering if anybody on this site has some opinions on fitting AC to these old trucks.

In the end, I'm thinking we'd have the kind of truck that would have been acceptable in the 90s, with the look we all like. Not sure what all this would cost, but my gut feeling is that the trans change and FI would not pay for themselves in terms of fuel savings, so if I did this, it would just be to make the truck the way I like it.

I'm not sure that the steering column on my 69 telescopes for accident protection, anyone out there know for sure? Seems like a good idea, as these trucks have no other safety features, such as airbags, shoulder belts, ABS, etc., a lot of which is not something I really want anyway.

Hoping this long post (apologies) starts some sort of discussion around the whole notion of restomodding these trucks to bring them up to current standards.