1969 Chevrolet C10, CST, shortbed, airbags, LS Engine

Chevrolet C-10 1969 Description

This truck has been my project for the past year and I have gotten it to the point where the next step is body/paint/interior and finessing the details. I think I'd rather sell it as is, let someone else take it to the finish and I'll just move on to the next project. Listed below are the major things done to the truck so a large portion of the hard and expensive work has already been done. If finished out correctly this could be a really nice truck. I do have all of the trim for the front fenders as well s the CST logo for the RS fender. The body is in very good shape, a little rust in the usual places for these trucks but much better than most. Panel fit/gaps need work and this truck was painted over the factory red-orange color so a top notch paint job would have to remove two layers, or maybe would be a good candidate for a faux patina look with the red under the black. I tried to get pics that showed the condition of the panels, pretty straight overall but in need of work to be show quality. It runs and drives great. Plenty of power with a great lopey idle, transmission upshifts positively and downshifts are predictable and easily ordered with some throttle. Overall this truck is just easy and fun to drive as it is, could be a daily driver. Makes good noise, goes fast. It could also be a quite expensive truck if finished out properly with additional work and money. Contact me with any questions.
Body
1969 CST (Custom Sport Truck) Short Bed
New front fenders and inner fenderwells
Engine
2005 L33 option engine (yes an LS) from a Silverado. The L33 was a High Output option for 2005, with more compression (9.9:1 vs 9.5:1), a different cam, better heads (#799 castings) and most notably, an aluminum block. Yes, an all aluminum truck engine, about 100lbs lighter than the cast iron version according to GM. The engine had 90k on it when pulled (pulled engine/trans/fly by wire pedal/ECU and harness all together) and was super-clean inside when I dropped the pan and pulled the covers to inspect. Installed a Comp Cams Thumpr camshaft, PSI 1509 valvesprings, new pushrods of different length to correct valvetrain geometry, valvestem seals and timing set. All electronic controls are retained on this engine!
Wiring Harness
Factory harness was modified by Current Performance Wiring, eliminating what was unnecessary. No issues at all.
ECU
Factory ECU reprogrammed by PCM in Mooresville, NC. Started on the first try.
Air Inlet
A 4" diameter cold-air intake with conical filter is fitted to the stock throttle body.
Fuel System
In-cab fuel tank was removed and a Tanks Inc. steel tank with internal pump installed between the frame rails in the rear. All fuel, transmission and power steering lines are braided steel with AN fittings (black). No leaks! Pressure regulation and filtration is handled by a frame-mounted Corvette style unit from Tanks Inc.
Cooling System
Twin electric fans are controlled by the ECU, there is no mechanical fan.
Exhaust
A set of coated Street and Performance headers with O2 bungs lead to 2.50 diameter exhaust pipes with Flowmaster high-flow catalytic converters and Flowmaster mufflers with turndowns just ahead of the rear axle.
Transmission
The 4L60E was rebuilt with updated components including heavy duty friction surfaces, hardened Sun-shell and Corvette servos.
Driveshaft
These trucks use a two-piece driveshaft with a center bearing that is notorious for failure. I replaced the center bearing with a billet unit but most importantly had the driveshaft modified with a second slip-joint between the center bearing and the rear axle. This allows the axle to move up and down and not push on that center bearing. A good feature for a truck on bags!
Rear Axle
Factory open diff with 3.07 gears. A combination of lowering blocks and a notched rear frame rail allow the rear to drop really low. Stock track/panhard bar removed and an adjustable unit (threaded w/ big rod ends) installed. The length and location of the track bar keep side to side movement of the rear axle to a minimum. It is tight inside those inner fenders on the rear when it's all the way down! This truck sits really low but it does NOT lay frame.
Air Ride
The system is complete Ride-Tech package using two compressors and two tanks, for fast recovery. The tanks are located under the bed, ahead of the rear wheels, on each side. The controller has individual controls for each corner of the truck (LF,RF,LR,RR) so you can jack it around anyway you want. It also has three programmable presets. These presets allow you to get the stance like you want it and then assign that stance to a preset button. I have all the way down as #1, all the way up as #3 and something in between as #2. You cant drive it in #1 because it's on the stops and too rough but it's always cool to drop when you park it. I've not had any trouble at all out of this system, it works great.
Wheels and Tires
20" American Racing wheels (VN805 BLVD) with Continental 245/40 ZR20 on front and 275/40 ZR20 on rear. All are new.
Brakes
Installed 2" drop spindles and disc brakes (GM metric calipers) on the front along with new master cylinder and power brake booster. *IMPORTANT NOTE: Because the camshaft has so much overlap there is weak vacuum signal to the brake booster even though I opted for the largest one. I installed a vacuum cannister to help but the improvement was negligable. Braking when coming down from cruising speed is ok but the low speed takes more pedal effort than it should. I think a vacuum pump might be necessary to get more effective braking. It's not scary or dangerous but certainly needs improvement. The rear brakes are stock drum.
Interior
Installed a set of Intellitronix digital gauges (#DP6003) in red that work great and really look good. Carpet is new. Seat cover and door panels/headliner are not though they are in good condition. Steering wheel is 15" version of '58 Chevy. There is a receiver in the dash but no speakers installed.
External
LED Halo headlights (red) are wired to be on with key so red halo is on whenever truck is running.
LED silver tail/brake lights in the rear.