33,309 ORIGINAL miles, ORIGINAL paint, 1983 chevy c10 Silverado

1983 Chevy Silverado History

On May 5, 1983 Wayne Tienhaara woke up in his small town of about 400 people in remote Eastern Oregon (dry part of the state) and drove the 20 miles to the locally owned Chevy dealership to pick up his new 1983 Chevy Silverado.

He’d drive the truck for an average of about a thousand miles per year for the next 33 years until his passing at 88 in 2015. The truck has about 33,331 total, ORIGINAL, documented miles now.

“Wayne” as the Silverado is now named in Mr. Tienhaara’s honor was clearly always given the best of care and never spent a night or even very many days sitting outside ashishouse was only a few doors down from the bank he owned.

As a result, the dash is flawless, the bench seat is perfect, the carpet is just about as immaculate as can be. Even the glove box is as the day the truck came out of the GM factory. Tilt the seat forward and the storage area behind it is unreal clean as well. Just amazing.

The paint is all COMPLETELY original and glossy. NO RUST. There are a few scuffs and chips here and there but it really is phenomenal overall.The bed is in fantastic condition. After I hauled some leaves wrapped in blankets in it, the inside bed was waxed again. See pic.

All the window rubber and moldings are like new. The roll up windows are so tight, just as from the factory.

Everyone who sees Wayne is stunned by the original, fantastic condition.

The original sales contract which shows Mr. Tienhaara opted to pay an additional $98 for undercoating and another $115 for a rear bumper (they were an option back then) is included in the paperwork. These papers are in the original Chevrolet/Sunset Motors Company envelope as put together by and signed off by salesman Bob Caldwell.

The original service contract application, service contract and new Chevrolet truck warranty card comes with and is in Mr. Tienhaara’s name as well.

Also included in the original paperwork: The General Motors Maintenance schedule, the limited GoodYear highway tire policy, the dealer vehicle inspection procedure report, the owner’s manual, the Chevrolet Owners oil and filter change interval information pamphlet, the Protect Your Investment service contract info, the original 1983 Chevy truck brochure (in which a truck these colors is highlighted in it) and the Fuel Economy Rating window sticker showing annual fuel cost estimated on gas costing $1.65 per gallon.

Also in the file is the original, old school, small note pad in which Mr. Tienhaara kept track of oil changes along with a National Bank of Oregon pen (try to find one of these anywhere) he used for entries.

The note pad starts with his first hand written entry at the mileage of 1,366 and goes to 9-29-93 and a mileage of 25,839 in which he did an oil change using Valvoline 10-30 and a PH13 Fram oil filter.

Mr. Tienhaara was 66 during this last entry and began driving even less after this.

There are also various receipts and warranty cards from Les Schwab over the years for oil changes, tires and batteries. At age 84, Mr. Tienhaara got a flat tire in the truck on 7-13-11 and had what appears to be his last visit to Les Schwab when the Silverado odometer read 31,774.

The all original condition of Wayne was so nice, I opted to pay a premium to have him picked up in an enclosed semi rig and transported to Los Angeles to my trusted mechanic.

Strict instructions were given to use only AC Delco parts from spark plugs on, unless not possible due to lack of availability. And, to keep any part or gasket replaced.

I’ve restored and owned 1963 to 1967 Corvettes for years and am a NUT about things being original and EXACTLY as they should be with any car/truck…especially a Chevy with all its matching numbers and date codes.

By the way, Wayne started right up and drove great from the start, but I wanted to make sure everything was up to speed so I can drive from the beach house to the 6000 feet altitude home in the same day without any problems or worrying an original belt may snap from age. That said, I had the following done:

Complete tune up with plugs, wires, air filter etc. Carb removed and rebuilt, belts changed, brakes checked (they were good and the mechanic says the rear are original with the factory seal still with them) and the muffler replaced.

The AC system on the truck is all original yet now internally converted to the modern R134 fluid. It’s nice and cold.

I also replaced the fuel pump only due to age. Again, I want all my cars to be as original as possible and be drivable at any time.

5 new Uniroyal Laredo (same as original tires on the truck) were added plus alignment.These are the raised letter tires inthe pics when I recently hauled some leaves in the bed.

I also had a new AC Delco battery put in, the radiator core replaced (on the side of caution due to age) and had the instrument cluster gauges, which are known for failing, rebuilt with VDO mechanics. The front of the gauges are exactly as from factory. VDO gauge mechanics are what high end cars such as Porsche use. This includes the gas gauge, the oil pressure gauge, the temp gauge.A few thousand spent. Again, I want it right or not done at all.

After obsessively searching for months for a specific car or truck on my radar, Ithen have fun fine tuning them for a year or so and then am ready for the next one. Thus

why I'm posting this great truck now and seeing whowill appreciate it as much as I have and the original owner Wayne did.

I’ve got copies of the original title and all the paperwork. I have a legal Oregon title, with current registration in my name.The truck is currently garaged at a home I have about 45 miles from Palm Springs, CA.

This is a 1983 C10 Chevy Silverado long bed pick up with the original 305 engine, p/s, p/brakes, ac, automatic, dual tanks, tilt, 33,309 total original miles. Depending on where you live, you may need to add the singlecatalytic converter back into the exhaust system pipe. It was left off when a new muffler was installed. I'm told with labor that would be about $250. Everything in the enginecompartment is as factory original.

Feel free to email any questions you may have. Happy to talk on the phone as well.

Thanks.