It’s the height of our country’s Great Depression! GMC dealers, the big truck branch of General Motors, were experiencing very slow sales. Many went out of business, while others were surviving by also selling used cars, trucks, farm machinery, and offering to do mechanical work on most any vehicle.

Thus, in an attempt to survive, GMC developed a new product line that was not part of their image. They introduced a line of pickup trucks! These smaller less expensive trucks were usually bought by individuals, not by larger companies.

To do this as fast as possible they used most parts from other General Motors vehicles. There was no time to lose to save many more dying GMC dealers!

The hope was that creating a more deluxe pickup than the competition and with the proven GMC logo it would boost sales. Their big truck dealers needed help to stay in business! (Of course, the hope was that the depression would come to an end in the near future.)

Chevrolet, General Motor’s small truck line, is where most of the new GMC pickups would obtain their parts. This established branch of General Motors had a proven record for quality, and would save so much time to give the new truck some changes and stand out as GMC only.

Who Wouldn’t Love this 1936?

Here are some of the most visual changes that made it a GMC pickup:

Until 1936 GMC’s were all big trucks. The engines they used were too large for a pickup truck. There was no time to create a smaller light weight engine to fit in a pickup! (These became available in 1939 and were pure GMC)

The solution was to use the proven six cylinder from Oldsmobile. By changing the front cross member on the Chevrolet frame from the engine mounting position, it fit just right. To give an extra on their new ½ ton, GMC provided a 9” longer bed than the Chevy ½ ton. (About the length of the Chevrolet ¾ ton pickup but with only two stake pockets per side)

  • Thus, the grille, a vehicle’s focal point, must be a new design. (GMC only) Because it was a new creation, the Oldsmobile engine had a lower emergency hand cranking position, the front bumper required a dip in the middle. This also gave GMC a more stand-alone front appearance.
  • The headlight buckets on the more deluxe 1936 were usually chrome plated to give this new pickup that little extra above the other trucks.
  • The front fender wheel-well for the spare tire was changed from the right side (like the Chevrolet pickup) to the left side. Most parts on the Chevy could be used.
  • The 1936 Chevrolet tailgate did not have their script stamped in place! This was certainly acceptable for the new GMC pickup to use. (The GMC tailgate was given their three tailgate letters in 1937.) Once again, there was no time to wait to create their pickup for the dealers.
  • The hood sides received an optional attractive appearance extra not seen by other pickups. Not only was there a long “General Motors Truck” logo at the top, (actually borrowed from the 1935 GMC big truck the year before)  but 5 polished horizontal stainless steel strips below were added to tell the buyers that this pickup is a step above the competition!
  • Chrome hubcaps, a totally new design for the GMC, were attached to a six bolt Chevy wheel and were carried through 1946.
  • The oil pressure gauge reaches 80# with the full oil pressure engine and were the same shape as Chevrolet’s 30# low oil pressure 216 cubic inch engine.
  • GMC speedometer reaches 80 mph. Chevy’s (though they could not go this fast) reaches 100 mph.
  • There were two trim levels: The standard with or without deluxe trim extras added with a full dress Deluxe Cab. The Deluxe Trim was chrome headlight buckets, stainless steel vertical side hood trim, GMC radiator cap and chrome hood latch handles.  The Deluxe cab also had all of the Trim plus a dome light, two wipers instead of one, a chrome windshield frame and an arm rest on the driver door.

Therefore, our Feature truck is a standard cab with some of the deluxe items added that the first owner wanted from the Deluxe Cab.

(As today’s world, a new vehicle is very basic at first but you can special order a few of the items you want the most.)

  • Food For Thought: The new 1936 GMC was the first! It has continued to grow in popularity. Today, it is one of our countries most popular light trucks. It is often combined with other stand-alone GM car dealerships to make both grow!