1953 GMC ¾ Ton

Our Feature Truck for December was discovered in front of our local shop decorated for Christmas! It was perfect for the season. No doubt this restored 1953 GMC ¾ Ton is an “attention getter” not just in local traffic, but with the decorations even the pedestrians stop and smile.

The owners are Jack and Lana Williams of Independence, Missouri. It is driven locally on a regular basis. Lana is a very talented person and really likes their GMC. She has decorated five different pairs of bedside boards and adds them for the major annual seasons!

Note the non-chrome bumpers, grille, and hubcaps even though it is a 5 window deluxe cab. This may seem unusual but not in 1953. The Korean War was underway! Thus, due to the increased demand for copper, nickel and chrome in the U.S. the price had raised significantly. General Motors decided rather than raise the price of their pickups (normally used for work), it would be best to substitute the chrome for White paint. It was said most buyers were very understanding when their retail GM dealers gave this true explanation.

This GMC had been occasionally used as a prop for a movie and it was mostly restored over 2 years by Jack’s brother John in Sherman, Texas. It was found for sale in Dallas almost forgotten after 8 years behind some commercial buildings. All was removed from the frame except for the cab and it was completely restored in place. The color was changed from Red to the original Brewster Green.

Jack’s pickup has its original 270 cubic inch inline six cylinder engine and the 4 speed transmission that came from the factory 70 years ago. The rear differential ratio is 4.56 as ¾ tons have originally. In today’s world, it is often considered almost too low geared for pleasure driving on the open road and they are now seldom used for heavy hauling (the reason most bought a ¾ ton new).

Jack is aware that a higher 4.11 ratio differential was once made by GM. This is from a 1967-72 ¾ ton pickup with a V-8 engine and an automatic transmission. This complete assembly perfectly fits the ¾ ton of the mid 1950’s and gives about 20% increase in speed at lower engine RPM. Of course, Jack is watching to find this higher ratio gearing!

News Flash: During a discussion with Jack, we learned he recently found a great price on a 1950 Chevy ½ ton. Good the William’s have a 3 car garage! This may possibly be a future project.