1978 Chevrolet K5 Blazer Cheyenne 2WD Rare Completely restored GMC Jimmy

1978 Chevrolet K5 Blazer Cheyenne FOR SALE

I encourage you to read the entire ad as well as click on the links below to over 200 additional photos and a walk around video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRZpff1qv9s

https://www.flickr.com/photos/182493991@N03/albums/72157714689050798

This is one of the nicest Blazers you will ever come across. It has been a labor of love for me to restore this Blazer one piece at a time for the last 5 years. Being the owner of a small restoration shop one rarely has the time to do a project for himself. I have restored this blazer and done it exactly the way I have always wanted one. No expense spared on my end and I have given all my attention to each piece. It was not my intension to sell it, but I have an expanding family and we are in need of a larger home and I am going to sell it to try and fund some of that effort for my family.

THE STORY

5 years ago on mother’s day I was travelling home to Richmond from my parent’s home in New Bern, NC and on the drive back, while driving through the small town of Williamston I was scanning the landscape as any car guy would do. Out of the corner of my eye I thought I spotted something sitting way back behind a house under a pole shed. I immediately hit the brakes, performed a u-turn and slowly drove back past the house to see if what I saw was really what I thought it was, a 2WD squarebody blazer. I again turned around and went back by again to confirm my inclinations. I knew I had to stop, but I thought, its mother’s day Sunday. I knew I had to stop so I pulled in the driveway, took notice of the beware of dogs sign and no trespassing signs posted on the tree and got out and nervously went up to the front door to see if anyone was home. I knocked and a man came to the door with a bewildered look on his face and I started my spill. I quickly said, sir, I am so sorry for bothering you today but is that a 2wd blazer in your back yard? His look of confusion was then turned into a smile as he said, yes it is. I said by chance have you ever thought about selling it? He said well a matter of fact I have given it some thought lately and he said I will meet you out back and we can take a look. After inspecting the blazer and realizing it was in pretty solid shape he said you know it’s only got 56,000 original miles on it. I had to have it and we struck a deal right there and I told him I would be back there tomorrow to pick it up.

Fast forward through the last 5 years, I knew right then this was one I was going to build and keep for myself. So over that time I started collecting parts. It is easier to spend money then turn wrenches and me being a restoration guy I became engulfed in purchasing as many NOS parts as I could to restore it. It almost became a fascination of what I could find and buy to try and put it back with as many NOS parts as I could find. What you see in these pictures is a culmination of my efforts to build my dream blazer just like I had always dreamed I could do.

BODY

The body was a very nice starting point as was the completeness of the truck from the start. It retains it’s original quarters, floor, rockers and cargo area. I found from various parts of the country the sheet metal, the doors, fenders, inner wheel houses. It was not really rusty but after soda blasting it I had found some previous repairs and wanted the best for my project. The best is GM, new parts still in the boxes. The body and paint on the Blazer is nothing short of spectacular. Covered in its original color blue I blocked and blocked it until I was satisfied. I spayed it with PPG single stage blue and then cut it back down with 600 grit sandpaper and cleared over it with 4 more coats of PPG clear and cut and buffed that out. It is as deep and glossy as any paint you will ever see. There is nothing like the effect you get when you spray clear over a single stage solid color. The depth is incredible.

I sprayed the cab roof in the original white color as well as the rear roof. The roof has been sanded, blocked and sprayed in the original matching white with a satin clear sprayed over that. It looks incredible. All of trim is new as are the bumpers and everything on the outside of the truck. I was able to source NOS wheel well moldings, headlight buckets, K5 blazer emblems. The side trim is new from LMC as is the rear tailgate panel and trim. The grill is original and restored and the grill trim has been polished. All of the marker lights and tail light are new. I installed High intensity headlights with the halo ring, comes on when the parking lights are turned on. I purchased a headlight relay kit from American Autowire to provide ample power to the headlights for maximum brightness. All of the glass is brand new, even the rear roof glasses. Everything is new fresh and crisp and it shows.

DRIVETRAIN

I wanted the drivetrain to be effortless and comfortable. The original matching numbers drivetrain was still in place, but I opted to pull the engine and replace it with a new GM crate engine, purchased from Jegs. I do still have the original engine if someone is interested in that. I installed a CompCams 270 Magnum cam in the engine to give it a little sound but wanted to retain the vacuum so I didn’t go big on the cam. I had the original TH350 transmission rebuilt and I rebuilt the original 12 bolt rear with 3.08 gears. I wanted effortless driving so I installed a Holley Sniper Quadrajet style fuel injection kit.

All of the suspension has been rebuilt of course. All the a-arms have been blasted and painted as well as the frame. All new bushings in the front and I chromed the sway bar to give it a little bling. I added 2.5 inch dropped spindles to the front with 2 inch dropped springs with new shocks. New calipers and drilled and slotted front rotors. In the rear I de-arched the springs 2 inches and added dropped shackles and air shocks. I added rear disc brakes as well for maximum effortless stopping.

The air conditioning and the cooling system have all been rebuilt. The original 4 core radiator has been re-cored and painted gloss black. The A/C system is something that I wanted to make special. The truck had been converted to R134 before I got it and it blew cold. But… I wanted colder. So I took the evaporator core out when I replaced the heater core and flushed it out with mineral spirits and did the same with the condenser. I installed all new lines, seals and dryer and the recharged it with the original R12. Because we all know there is NOTHING colder than R12, nothing. I pulled a vacuum on it and it is blowing as cold as any a/c on the planet. Part of that process also involved pulling the entire HVAC system from under the dash and rebuilding that back to perfect working order.

To sum up the drivetrain, it is completely brand new and ready for many more comfortable miles.

INTERIOR

The interior of the Blazer is as nice as the rest of the truck. You spend most of your time inside the vehicle so I wanted it to be as nice and comfortable as the rest of the truck. When you get inside the truck, the word of the day is CRISP. It all looks brand new and crisp because it is brand new. New seat covers and carpet, all new dash bezels and a/c bezels. New door panels and trim. All of the trim on the inside of the truck has been re-dyed. You really don’t realize just how much trim there is inside one of these trucks. I wanted it all to be the exact shade of medium blue and off white. The ash trays and floor bezels have been re-chromed, the seat brackets have all been blasted and painted. It is a work of art inside there. I added a factory tilt column, which I sent off and had completely rebuilt. It has a factory tachometer and CRUISE CONTROL and it works. How cool is that sir? I have also always loved the rosewood steering wheels found on the 69 Camaro’s so I installed one of those as well. The entire floor and all cargo area has been covered in Mega-mat sound deadening mat and on top of that I added as extra noise and heat deadening protection an overlay of NOICO OEM ¼ inch foam that really makes it quiet. It also has a factory rear power glass, which I love.

Now I had gone this far so there was no turning back and I wanted a sound system that made me think I was in a concert hall. Not to be confused with a widow rattling woofer set up, no I wanted a full complete sound. I accomplished this goal with the addition of a Retrosound radio that features Bluetooth and Sirrus radio as a starting point. From there I installed an Alpine 5-channel PDX-75 amplifier with two 6.5 inch infinity Kappa speakers in the kick panels and two 6x9 Infinity Kappa speakers in rear seating area. To get the full sound I was looking for I sunk a JL Audio enclosed subwoofer into the rear panel. I remade the rear cargo panels and sunk that woofer as far in as I could behind the left rear wheel well so it looks factory after I carpeted it with the same carpet and dyed the cover to match. It truly delivers a very full sound inside the cabin. The interior courtesy light bezels and lenses are all NOS as well as the optional pulse wiper system switch and fan blower speed switch are all NOS. The last and final touch was the underdash LED lighting that I added.

To sum it up the inside of this blazer WILL NOT DISSAPOINT.

WHEELS AND TIRES

I have always wanted a custom set of wheels but have never spent the money to have a set. After months of deliberation I settled on a set of INTRO wheels. They are the piece de resistance. 20 inch all the way around with the fronts being 20x8.5 and the rear being 20x10.5. Wrapped in Nitto 555 extremes they look spectacular.

SUMMARY

This is a spectacular vehicle. As nice as any you will find out there. It has been my labor or love and I did the truck not with a budget in mind or how much I would spend but I did it with the thought of having everything I ever wanted in the ultimate cruising machine. This will make someone a great car. It is in great shape and I believe to be one of the most solid examples you will find anywhere. I encourage anyone who is interested in the car to come and see the car in person or send someone to inspect it for you. I can be reached at 804-240-6164.The car is available for inspection by appointment here in Richmond, VA. I have described this car to the best of my ability and am not responsible for any mistakes or inaccuracies in the listing. This car is sold as is where is NO warranty expressed or implied. Please have your finances ready before you bid on this car. A $1000.00 non-refundable security deposit will be required 24 hours after the winning bid, with the balance to be paid in full 7 days after auction end. Cash in hand is the preferred method of payment but wire transfer is accepted as well. If you would like to pay with a bank draft, the car will be held for 10 days after receipt of check, to allow for check to clear, no ifs ands or butts about it. Shipping is the responsibility of the purchaser.