Vintage Baja Chevy Truck Formerly Owned By Steve McQueen And Raced By Mickey Thompson Heading For Auction


Vintage Baja Chevy Truck Formerly Owned By Steve McQueen And Raced By Mickey Thompson Heading For Auction

Well if this isn’t the coolest Chevy 4×4 of all time, I’m not quite sure what is. This 1969 Chevy truck was the first ever factory built Baja competition truck that the company built. According to the listing, a half ton truck frame was used and coupled with a C30 cab (which we don’t really understand as we thought cabs were virtually the same from the cowl to the back glass), and was powered by a 350 and a Turbo 400 transmission. Part of us wonders if there was a cross up in creating the copy for the auction listing and a half ton frame was paired with one ton springs and other heavy duty suspension components. That would make more sense to us because of the ride height and the need for the most robust components possible underpinning the truck as it smashed through the desert as trucks did back then. There was no gliding over stuff trophy truck style, this was all about blunt force trauma. The ad claims that the truck has only accrued about 14,000 miles in its life since 1969 and it rolls on the original (and custom made) 16-inch steel wheels wrapped in Goodyear R3 off road tires.

The truck has a cage in it that was spec’d out by the guy responsible for this truck at GM, the well known engineer/designer Vic Hickey. Hickey was the father of stuff like the Chevy Blazer, the Baja Boot, the HUMVEE, and even the damned lunar rover. Like we said, the man was a genius and he basically designed every inch of this truck to be the most advanced and well equipped off road racer of its day. There are apparently plaques from different races in the cab, including the 1969 MINT 400.

Outside of the mechanical end of things this truck’s real coolness lies in its previous owners and drivers. After the factory was done with it and men like Mickey Thompson, Bud Ekins, John Dias, Cliff Coleman, and Chuck Coye had spent time at the wheel it was sold to Steve McQueen. While there is no evidence that McQueen raced it, we’re sure he hauled some ass around the trails on his property and in the California hills before having to sell it as part of a divorce deal. After McQueen unloaded it, the truck was used by a farmer around his property for many years! In the 1990s someone who was into off road racing found the truck, bought it, and apparently spruced it back into running condition, leaving all of the other scrapes, dings, and battle scars alone. Damn it, this thing is perfect!  It will be sold at the upcoming Mecum auction in Santa Monica this July. We bet it brings a pile of cash. We’d be bidding if we had any!

Thanks to Justin for the tip!

SCROLL DOWN TO SEE MORE PHOTOS AND THE LINK TO THE MECUM AUCTION PAGE

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE TRUCK AND THE AUCTION CATALOG PAGE


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5 thoughts on “Vintage Baja Chevy Truck Formerly Owned By Steve McQueen And Raced By Mickey Thompson Heading For Auction

  1. Turbo Regal

    Sweet truck with an interesting history! I dig the Hurst Dual Gate!

    BTW, a C30 cab had the holes for the roof lights a C10-20 doesn’t.

  2. NewEnglandRacFan

    The c30 cab has a bolt in trans hump, that also is taller than the standard welded,part of the floor pan .

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