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Buyers remorse

thealien

thealien

1/2 ton status
Joined
Jun 9, 2007
Posts
395
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1
Location
East Coast
About ten years ago I owned a 1972 GMC Jimmy and loved that truck but eventually sold it. I had been looking for a 1972 Blazer/Jimmy for quite a while. They were either too far away, rusty, or too expensive. I recently found a local 1972 GMC Jimmy that has been owned by the same guy for 16 years. It appeared to be rust free (After buying I found a little rot on the passenger fllor/kick panel) It is originally an AC (everything there not working, controls move and all the vacuum actuators appear functional)and posi rear end. It is my fault I missed some things on this truck but I am feeling buyers remorse. I just wanted a convertible truck to enjoy in the summer. I expected to do a full tune up and change all fluids. Upon closer inspection I have found.........

The passenger floor/kick panel rot.

Overcharge condition (not running battery puts out 17.5 volts)

Truck has been hit and front fenders grill and radiator support all need to be aligned/adjusted to fit right. (noticed before buying but it is worse than originally thought)

Flex plate missing teeth

U bolts loose on rear axle

Needs tie rod end

Wrong 1971 door panels in a 1972 (new this when buying)

Front driveshaft needs rebuilding.

Leaking out of transfer case. (new this when buying)

Now I find a kink in the frame, not too bad could be from accident or someone using a tow cable attached to frame to pull it??


I paid $9500 (knowing GMC's are worth a little more)


I don't have a garage so until it is running right and I can drive it and work on some of the interior and alignment issues. I'll have to pay my mechanic to fix a few things I want him to take care of a full tune up, change all fluids, and fix the leaks. I guess I'll have him do the flex plate also.

So did I pay too much?

Here are a couple of pictures. You can see the unrestored bottom edge of the doors, I was surprised to find the floor rot, the rest of the body looked great except for the alignment issues.

A couple of pics.........

IMG_0032.JPG copy.jpg

IMG_0036.JPG copy.jpg
 
So.....to summarize:

"I bought a 35 year-old truck and it's not perfect, what should I do?"


C'mon really... you bought a classic truck at a decent price, but clearly not a "restored" vehicle. You would have paid closer to $30,000 for something that was truly perfect in every way.

If this is going to be your "driver", then you can probably live with the rust for the time being....fix some of the minor leaks and mechanical problems and just ENJOY it.

Later on, have the rust repaired, and maybe have the front end damage straightened out.... owning a truck this old is an ongoing project. I can't think of a single person on this site who simply bought a perfect truck and didn't have to make a single change or repair. Honestly, being able to spend some quality time in the garage with one of these old trucks is a big part of the attraction.....for me, anyway.


:usaflag:
 
That truck looks like it's in nice condition and the rust on the door looks quite minimal. Like Greg, I wouldn't call it "restored" but it's still a nice find for that price.

I would have happily paid extra to get a truck as nice as that.
 
The door represents 90% of the truck. The rot I found after buying is about the size of a dollar bill on the passenger floor/kick panel.

Truck is nice, all guages except battery work, all lights including door switches and interior lights work. AC does not work but I knew that.

I like the truck, I just thought I would have to put $1,000 in it to get it pretty straight, now it looks like it will be 3 times that and it will be a real nice truck. Will it be worth $13,000 then?? It doesn't matter, I plan on keeping it a while.
 
The rust you describe seems minimal and to most people, rust is the most difficult thing to have to repair. That Jimmy looks darn nice. I don't know if it is worth $9,500, but from here sure looks like alot of people would happily pay that much or more for that Jimmy.

About the only thing I see that needs immediate attention is the battery and if that is just a battery problem, $75 to $100 gets you a good battery.

Enjoy the Jimmy and watch how many people notice it and compliment you on your owning a fine truck!
 
Yukon Jack said:
The rust you describe seems minimal and to most people, rust is the most difficult thing to have to repair. That Jimmy looks darn nice. I don't know if it is worth $9,500.

Enjoy the Jimmy and watch how many people notice it and compliment you on your owning a fine truck!
Click to expand...

I agree with YJ. Not sure on the $9500, but now that it's a done deal just enjoy everything about this fine old rig. My wife complains a lot about the relatively small amount I put into maintenance, until I remind her how much a new Yukon payment would be
 
Take the top off and drive it around. Your satisfaction quota will increase 200%. You'll get offers on a daily basis, just don't give in to temptation.

What you paid seems to be on the high end, but they aren't making any more of these trucks. With every rig you see being parted out, rusted away or wrecked, the value of the suvivors increases. The amount of rust you describe is repairable. The mechanical issues are easy fixes. You didn't buy it for the mechanics, you bought it for the body style.

I paid $9100 for mine 4 years ago and never looked back. I've had guys offer (but nobody has actually shown me any green) $20,000 for my truck. Here's some pics of my rig - Bouncytruck
 
Nice blazer.

Don't forget it is a GMC Jimmy which is a little rarer. I would like to see a couple of similar GMC Jimmy's For less? I've been on Ebay, Craigslist, and collector car trader for quite a while and I can find some nice blazers for even a little less I don't see many GMC Jimmy's for less than 13-15,000 in a little nicer shape than mine. I would love to see some ads for comparison if anyone has some?

I've seen a couple 4 speeds but not too many auto AC
 
I would have sold you mine for that price.:D Seriously, I agree with what you are saying as far as GMC Jimmys go. I have not seen another one on the road since I bought mine. If it makes you feel better, the original asking price for mine was 9500 also, of course I didn't pay that much though. This is what mine looked like when I bought it (I removed the grill to slow down the rust) and the floorboards before I repaired them.

jimmy frontal before teardown feb 05 1.jpg

driver interior.JPG

floor and rocker panel area.jpg
 
thealien said:
I like the truck, I just thought I would have to put $1,000 in it to get it pretty straight, now it looks like it will be 3 times that and it will be a real nice truck. Will it be worth $13,000 then?? It doesn't matter, I plan on keeping it a while.
Click to expand...

What I meant was not that you have to spend another $18K on your truck to make it perfect.... I meant that if you wanted a truck where someone had completely removed every part, painted, cleaned and re-painted and reassembled everything and brought every mechanical system back to 100% new condition for you, the price would be $30,000.

You've got a nice truck there...."value" is a relative thing. Some people will tell you that $9500 is way too high, while others (with a better understanding of the costs of restoration) will say that it's a fair price. You have paid a premium for the privilege of NOT having to do a lot of the rust repair and sheetmetal work that the rest of us are stuck with. Take a look at the "Before and After" Thread in this forum to see what most 1st Gen owners deal with relative to rust (and heartbreak).

If it makes you feel any better.....here's another rare vehicle. It's a 1969 K5 Blazer (1 of only 4935)....I paid $2500 for this:

IMAG0009sm.jpg


That's right.....no frame, no engine, no axles, no doors, no top, no interior... I did get the front fenders, hood and core support.

Some people would say that I'M crazy, but I now have a 100% rust free tub (and a rare one at that!). When you calculate the cost of bodywork and replacement panels....I figure I'm way ahead.



Take the advice already suggested......pull that top off and go for a drive. I guarantee your whole perspective will change. There is nothing like 1st Gen ownership.....at any price!



:usaflag:
 
Greg72 said:
Take the advice already suggested......pull that top off and go for a drive. I guarantee your whole perspective will change. There is nothing like 1st Gen ownership.....at any price! :usaflag:
Click to expand...

So true, there is nothing that compares to the look of a 1st gen, topless, and knowing you have the keys.:D :wink1:
 
If it makes you feel any better.....here's another rare vehicle. It's a 1969 K5 Blazer (1 of only 4935)....I paid $2500 for this:
Click to expand...
If that is rust free, thats a STEAL! By the way, diggin on the front tires, are they Swampers. lol
 
GotLabs said:
So true, there is nothing that compares to the look of a 1st gen, topless, and knowing you have the keys.:D :wink1:
Click to expand...

I agree 100% , nothing can come close to top less blazer, maybe a custom street rod or a tricked out motor cycle. 99% of the time you will be the only first gen blazer in any one spot EVERY!

the under side of your doors look great and also it good thing the holes are in the bottom of the door to let out the rain water out.

I think you did well in your purchase.



Richard
 
Welcome to the 1st gen club from VT.

If you want body work, bring it on up. :D
We specialize in these year chevy trucks.
 
vtblazer said:
Welcome to the 1st gen club from VT.

If you want body work, bring it on up. :D
We specialize in these year chevy trucks.
Click to expand...

Thanks, been reading a bunch of your posts, quite a truck you got there!! I just may get up in your neck of the woods this summer.
 
it is not in my driveway so??? Doesn't matter anyway, I wanted one and now I have one. It will just cost a little more than I thought. I can't wait to take the top off!!

I hadn't seen that one, looks nice. What lift and tires are you running on thatb one?
 
bouncytruck said:
VT, I thought you had 3. Did you give up on one?
Click to expand...

Four actually. :o

One more under construction and one for parts.

Can't count em till their running the roads ya know. :p:
 
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