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Junkyard Gem: 1973 GMC Sierra Grande Camper Special

Starting in the 1973 model year, General Motors introduced the "Rounded Line" family of C/K-series Chevrolet and GMC trucks, and sales of the pickup versions continued all the way through 1987. Nice examples of these trucks can sell for large money, but the junkyard teaches us that not all collectible vehicles are worth rescuing and fixing up. Here's a reinforcement of that lesson, courtesy of a first-year GMC C2500 Camper Special with the high-zoot Sierra Grande trim level, found in a self-service yard just outside of Denver, Colorado. I'm no GM truck expert, but I know enough to stay clear of the battles over what to call this pickup. Let's just say it's a three-quarter-ton, rear-wheel-drive third-gen C-Series with really cool badges. Yes, I bought this badge for my garage wall, and it was totally worth the $4.23. GM came up with the Camper Special package during the late 1960s, when removable pickup campers became popular, and for 1973 it included heavy-duty springs and a wiring harness made to plug into the connectors on slide-in truck campers. It also included woodsy-looking badges, but someone pried the ones off this truck before I could buy them. This may well have been a one-owner truck, because it still had original warranty paperwork inside. Here we see that it was purchased new on August 2, 1973 (which happens to be the day that George Brett got his very first hit in the big leagues) by a resident of Compton, California. Yes, that Compton. The build tag tells us that this Camper Special was born at the Fremont Assembly plant in California, which became the GM-Toyota NUMMI venture in 1984 and is now the Tesla Factory. I think most 1973 C/K pickups sold new in Colorado would have come from Pontiac Assembly in Michigan. There was a time, not many years ago, when a genuine 454-cubic-inch (that's 7.4 liters to those of you sweating under the oppressive weight of the French Empire's Measurement System) big-block Chevrolet engine would have been yanked out and purchased within hours of hitting the rows of a yard like this. These days, engine-swappers can get more power with less weight from any number of donor vehicles. If this engine is the original 454, it was rated at 240 horsepower and 355 pound-feet (down from 270 hp in 1972 due to emissions-related changes). This truck had a three-speed automatic transmission, like most optioned-up Detroit pickups of its era.

GMC considers adding more vehicles to broaden product line

GMC is considering expanding its product portfolio in the next 10 years to allow it to reach more potential buyers and grow sales, a top executive said Monday. The small and midsize sport-utility-vehicle segments are two possibilities, said Duncan Aldred, GMC sales and marketing vice president. He also said GMC won't make a car, preferring to reinforce its reputation as a maker of trucks and SUVs. "There's plenty of opportunities even if we define ourselves as a we do as a truck and crossover brand," he said. He wouldn't comment on the possibility of adding a Jeep Wrangler-fighter, though rumors have swirled for months that GMC is considering a product to compete with the iconic off-roader. "I can't confirm that ... everything's on the table," he said. He also said that it's possible GMC could get a unique set of underpinnings – all of its vehicles share platforms that are also used by Chevrolet – but it's not needed to differentiate his brand. "I'm very happy sharing underpinnings and everything else," he said. "All of the good-performing automakers do that." Speaking to journalists at a roundtable at General Motors headquarters in Detroit, Aldred said GMC received an investment from GM that is double what the brand has historically spent to fund its growth plans. Advertising spending alone will increase 50 percent this year compared with 2014. The brand rolled out a new ad campaign on Monday, called "Precision," that will underscore attention-to-detail and the premium features of GMC vehicles. Two of the commercials have a sporting theme, and the third focuses on modern menswear. GMC called it a "contemporary interpretation" of the brand's traditional positioning, and it will also continue to use its long-running "Professional Grade" tagline. The premium positioning of the ads come as buyers are increasingly outfitting their trucks as near-luxury vehicles. The percentage of buyers opting for the top-end Denali trim has increased from 17 percent in the middle of 2014 to 21 percent now. The goal is to get Denali to make up 25 percent of GMC sales by the end of 2017, Aldred said. Spurred by the higher Denali take-rate, the brand's transaction prices leapt by $3,000 last year. "It's [Denali] really kind of this jewel in the crown," Aldred said. GMC sales increased 11.3 percent in 2014 to 501,853 units, making it GM's-second-best-selling brand behind Chevrolet.

The GMC Hummer EV could spawn a smaller electric truck

Over 90,000 motorists have reserved a GMC Hummer EV, and the truck's relative popularity has convinced executives to consider launching a smaller and presumably more affordable model. While nothing is official yet, the Hummer EV's smaller sibling could be a midsize pickup. Citing "people familiar with the matter," Automotive News reported a smaller Hummer EV exists in the design studio that General Motors operates in California. There's no word on what it looks like yet, though it presumably borrows at least some of the rugged-looking styling cues that characterize the controversial, 9,200-pound truck. Interestingly, the smaller model could bring the Hummer name to Europe. It's too early to provide technical specifications. The model hasn't received the proverbial green light for production but Automotive News added that it's a "priority project" and that it has "a good chance of going into production." If and when it does, it's reasonable to assume the truck will use the Ultium battery technology found under the full-size Hummer EV, among other electric models from General Motors. GMC hasn't commented on the report, and it hasn't announced plans to launch a second Hummer-branded electric pickup. If the report is accurate, the baby Hummer is at least a couple of years away from hitting showrooms. First, the Hummer EV SUV will enter production. We've been here before: a downward expansion is exactly how the now-defunct Hummer brand was born. The military-bred H1 spawned the H2 for 2002 and the H3 for 2006. An even smaller off-roader previewed by the 2008 HX concept was planned but ultimately canned. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.