Investment Vehicle? 1972 Chevrolet K5 Blazer
Great photos in a snowy setting can be pretty powerful as is the case with this 1972 Chevrolet K5 Blazer. We don’t often see photos of old vehicles in the snow as a lot of us are paranoid about rust more than anything. The seller has this 4×4 listed here on eBay in Lander, Wyoming and the current bid price is a mind-blowing $30,100. I kid you not. This almost seems more like an investment than a truck, or maybe it’s both?
I photographed a casino and hotel in Lander, Wyoming a few years ago and I haven’t thought about that area since, but this setting is a perfect backdrop for this patina-heavy Blazer. It’s a beautiful area so get out there if you haven’t visited that region. Just to get some of the housekeeping issues out of the way, Hagerty is at $26,100 for a #3 good condition Blazer, is this one nicer than that?! It must be, that price is really something and there are still two full days left on the auction.
Hagerty is at $44,800 for a #2 excellent condition Blazer so maybe the next owner is planning on at least a cosmetic restoration and then hitting the auction circuit? Who knows, maybe they just want a blazing hot Blazer because they had one back when they were $2,500 for a decent used one. 1969 through 1972 are considered the first-generation K5 Blazers and you already know that they’re popular with collectors right now. Big shocker, what isn’t.
With some rust to deal with on the exterior and obvious paint issues, the interior looks good for the most part so maybe the next owner can save a few bucks inside. Early Blazers aren’t fancy SUVs as most of us want and some of us need (insert fake drama here) now, with vinyl seats front and rear and you even have to crank your own windows on this one! The humanity! It does look good inside which is a bonus after seeing a lot of visible rust on the exterior panels. Did I mention that only the headlights work and none of the other lights work?
The seller says that this engine is a 350 that has been cleaned and painted (Why?) with a rebuilt carb and has all new belts, hoses, wires, gaskets, etc. Given the high bid price, I’m very surprised to read that it “smokes a little initially after sitting. Runs ok in town but bogs under throttle off and on, worse on the highway. I did not disassemble the motor and it will need to be rebuilt or replaced to run perfectly.” I don’t understand the high bid prices on this one at all, what am I missing here? It sounds and looks like it needs a lot of work, an incredible amount of work. Would any of you pay $30,000+ for this Blazer?
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Comments
to some people cleaning and painting motor almost as good as rebuilt…..
Great write up! Much more skeptical, and in a good way, than we often see here!
Well done!
I can understand the high price. Half-rusted out K5 Blazers with tired motors don’t come along every day.
I could find a nice impala or GTO for that. Hard pass
Is the Jeepster still available?
This truck has the Custom Sport Truck (CST) option RPO-Z84. Hagerty’s valuation on this truck in fair condition is ~$21k. Maybe more given the hardtop was an option as well. This truck may be in better condition than most but with all its needs ~$30k seems excessive when Hagerty values good at $47k. I don’t know if it’s possible to get there for $17k.
I hardly think those in this bidding war have ever owned one and I’m thinking they must have way more $ than sense. There’s a lot going on in the lower body so the seller has started in the wrong direction with his new upholstery and carpets. He’s probably realized just how complex the necessary body work will be…
Thing is with these K5s is the whole rocker area is a disaster waiting to happen and – sadly- it’s obvious they weren’t intended to last very long… The outer/inner rocker + outboard sections of the torque boxes unite in a complex sandwich meaning moisture, dirt and rust flakes clog up. Consequently it leads to these trucks rusting from the inside out. This body will need extensive panel replacement to prevent it from breaking in half sooner or later. And we still haven’t seen close up pics of its windshield frame….
These are extremely fun summer backroad trucks once the top comes off but one have to be able to appreciate their simplicity and agricultural nature. For the kind of $ involved here there are MANY better ways to have automotive fun. 5K would be my top bid and that’s solely due to its new upholstery. It’s about time people come to their senses
Our new ’72 off the showroom floor started rusting out 8 months after we bought it. Caught it and fixed it but had to tear the whole thing apart to rust proof it. After that, great fun. Agree… little off on the asking price for what isn’t there.
I own and restore 67-72 GMC/CHEVY C10 models I currently own 4 of the trucks, 3 suburban and 2 of the blazers . In Indiana they all are completely rusted out and bring $5000.00 complete! But will part out for well over 3 times that. The prices in California show Blazers like mine going for $30,000.00 and with Barret Jackson selling professionally done up ones last year for $150,000.00 and one this year at $400,000.00 everyone thinks they own blazer size gold nuggets now. I wonder how many of these people Have clue what it takes and cost to build a $400,000.00 dollar auction vehicle. Its definitely alot more than having a buddy putting a respray on your truck in the driveway! People have lost their minds !
Most Blazers of this year and body style have much more rust than this one. If there is someone who knows how to paint and patch metal and is looking for a keeper this one could fill the bill.
Nope !!
$30K??? Not for me!
Closer to $31K now with about 45 minutes left. Someone is getting this truck at 30+. Am I surprised that a vehicle like this that needs a bunch more money thrown to make it as nice as I’d want can sell for this much? Yes indeed. Would I bid this kind of money for this Blazer? Not a chance. But what I think matters not. The market dictates what’s hot and what’s not. The first generation Ford Bronco is in this crazy money category. I don’t get it but more power to both the seller and buyer on this one.
Not to keep rambling on,but these keep popping up, Brother had 69 Jimmy 3in. Suspension lift,3 on tree,6cyl.,35 in gumbo monster mudders, late 70s,6 of us big cooler,Ted Nugent concert.
I saw an orange ’71 or ’72 with a white top in town today. It was being daily driven by a young man and it was full of car seats and little kids. The paint looked original and nice and the rockers were solid. It was awesome to see it being used as a family hauler. I wondered if he knew he was sitting in a truck that could pull the same money as the used late model Silverado I was driving.
Sold for $30,700! Nuts! Must be inflation.
Thanks, trav66!
3 decades ago I was the shop grunt at a local Chevy dealer body shop. The manager of the body shop had one of these as his personal vehicle, he had bought it new. It was orange with a black top & black upholstery.
He used to park it in the shop for the winter. It was solid as a rock! I thought at the time that it was stupid to save this old 4×4 beater from salt. Turns out I was the stupid one lol.
My company truck I drove for work there was a new base model K5 Blazer. The shop manager drove that home at night. I loved that truck! I assume by now it rusted away to oblivion, but I bet his old orange truck is still out there somewhere.