It is no secret the Chevrolet brand is number one with a bullet in the vintage domestic vehicle hobby.
Chevy’s high level of popularity does not weaken in the world of old pickups and will draw serious interest whenever an opportunity to own a vintage Chevy truck arises in the hobby.
Jim Sutherland
A solid argument could be put forth about the most popular vintage Chevy pickups in 2023. One could throw late 1940s, 1950s, and 1960-66 Chevy trucks into the mix, but we at MyStarCollectorCar believe the real popularity debate winner boils down to the late 1960s Chevy pickups in a dustup with the legendary 1973 Square Bodies.
For the record, the earlier Chevy trucks (late 1940s to 1966) will get plenty of interest and big bucks if they are resto-modded and given every creature comfort from the aftermarket, along with an LS engine and modern handling-mainly because they needed major upgrades to handle modern driving conditions.
We chose to narrow our focus to the 1972 and 1973 Chevy C-10 models because they are able to compete with modern traffic conditions if they came with factory V-8 engines and automatic transmissions. But, more importantly, because the two Chevy trucks represent a huge change in style in just one short year and are strong examples of the striking differences between the two model years.
MyStarCollectorCar also picked the ½ ton versions of the two pickups because these models were the most popular light trucks sold by the General over the years.
The most popular C-10 pickups in today’s vintage vehicle hobby are the short box models because they offer a sporty look to the trucks and are rarer versions of the Chevy trucks. Most pickups were sold to customers who wanted them for hard work and required longer truck beds for practical reasons, so a short box was not in their work plans for their pickups.
The direct result was the 1972 Chevy truck looked better with a long box than its 1973 successor in our opinion here at MyStarCollectorCar. The 1972 Chevy truck’s overall style lent itself to a longer box better than a ’73 Chevy truck because the ‘72 had a more rounded body, along with stylish trim packages to accentuate the curves, so the ’72 Chevy truck’s longer box was a better fit with its overall style and bling.
By contrast, a 1973 Chevy truck looked better in short box form because of its squarer lines, once again in our opinion here at MyStarCollectorCar. We also believe the 1973 Chevy truck looked better in both Fleetside (fully enclosed rear sheet metal sides with no exposed rear fenders) and Stepside (exposed rear fenders with small steps behind the cab) due to its straight edge style.
Both trucks could be ordered with a long list of options like power steering, power brakes, power windows and air conditioning among others, so they made a seamless transition to the 21st century because they were closer to modern trucks for overall creature comforts.
However, the 1972 and ’73 Chevy trucks are also solid platforms for resto mods, although a ’72 Chevy pickup likely has an edge in this department because it has a more retro style than its Square Body successor.
In the final analysis, it boils down to a choice between two pickup legends from the Bowtie people. The recent rise of the Square Body Chevy trucks in terms of value makes them a good investment for the short term, but we believe the 1972 Chevy truck will continue to hold its own (and then some) in the Chevy truck popularity contest.
Jim Sutherland
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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