1979 Chevrolet G20 Van

Sport Van Minivan/Van

8 - Cyl.

Automatic

CGL1597149396

Gasoline

Up for auction is my 1979 Chevrolet G10 cargo Sportvan with ultra rare factory stripe package, 5.7/350 V8 4bbl engine, TH350 automatic transmission, A/C, PS, PB, PW, PL, tilt, and cruise control. Let me start by saying this van has 2700 original documented miles (yes, not a misprint two thousand seven hundred miles!) I have owned 11 different G series Chevy and GMC vans over the years, and this is by far the nicest, most solid, clean, original, and rust free of all of them. I purchased this van 4 months ago to replace my 88 Beauville with half a million miles on it, but once my wife saw it she said that without windows (which is one reason I think it is so cool) it was not practical for hauling my kids around. She said to cut some windows in it and put seats in, or stick with what I have. Since I cannot bring myself to cut windows in such a beautiful, pristine van, and because I put close to 350k on my Beauville over the last 10 years, I just can’t bring myself to part with it. I will try and describe everything I know about this van, history, repairs I have done, and anything I feel should be done in the future. If you have any questions, need to see additional pictures, or would like to come see it please don’t hesitate to call, email, or text and I will get back to you. (954-914-8866) A Brief History…. Van was purchased brand new on June 13, 1979 at Roger Dean Chevrolet in West Palm Beach, Florida by Mr. Modesto T. He purchased the van for recreational use to "shag" out the interior and travel the country with his wife. Modesto worked building houses, and had a work truck he used during the day so this really was his "toy", and was garage kept since day one. He started working on the interior almost immediately and put in the carpet, insulation, paneling, and some speakers, but never got around to putting a stereo in it. Not long after his wife became pregnant, life took over and he never ended up finishing the van. He let the registration lapse in 1982, and it sat unmoved in his garage until 2003. The story that was told to me was that he started it up every few weeks and that it has never "not ran". In 2003, he sold his house and moved to a different home in West Palm Beach that did not have a garage, so the van was parked up next to the house with the driver side up against the house. In 2009 his wife became ill, and she passed away in 2010. He decided to sell the van because he realized he would never get to travel the country in it with his wife, so he decided to let it go. The van was purchased by Modesto’s friend David B. on June 14, 2010, it had 2194 miles on it. He had been begging Modesto to sell him the van for about 8 years. He registered it, put in a new battery, 2 new front tires, changed the oil, and drove it about 20 miles to his house in Jupiter, Florida and parked it in his driveway. Dave unfortunately did not have the time, means, or finances to get the van road worthy so it sat in his driveway until he listed it on Craigslist in May 2011. I purchased the van from Dave on May 8, 2011 with 2217 miles on it and had it towed to my shop in Margate, Florida. What’s been done..... Upon getting it to my shop, I first concentrated on getting it road worthy. I replaced the master cylinder, both front and rear brake hoses, adjusted and cleaned out rear brakes and flushed the entire system. Next I replaced the 2 rear tires because they were old, dry, and flat spotted. I changed the oil, flushed the cooling system, and replaced the wiper blades. I then took the van to a local body shop to have the roof painted. From sitting outside for those 8 years, the paint on the roof had been "sunburned" off, and had surface rust on about half the roof. The body shop sanded the entire roof down to bare metal, osphoed the roof, put down heavy duty primer, seam sealed the gutter, and finally sprayed it with 4 coats of base, and 4 coats of clear. I do have pics of the roof before, during, and after the repair so that you can see it was only surface rust and not rot. I painted it because at the time I was keeping the van and did not want it to get any worse, all the other paint on the van is original. The bill for the body work was $1000, and I do have about ¼ gallon of the silver base left that will go with the van. Next I started working on the A/C, and was surprised when I hooked up the gauges that it still had about a pound of freon left in it after all those years. I charged the air up with about 2 more pounds of R12, and it is ice cold! The factory clutch fan was a little weak, so I put in a brand new non thermostatic clutch with 7 blade fan. The windows were a little slow, so I rebuilt both power window switches and they are fast and smooth now. I also did some light cleaning on the interior, and then clay barred the entire outside of the van and put 2 coats of high quality wax on it. What’s left to do? Most of the things left to address are minor, but I want the potential buyers to be fully aware of what they are getting, I have had both good and bad experiences buying cars on ebay and I want to make sure whoever gets this van is happy. After clay barring and waxing, the paint looks pretty good, (especially for 32 year old lacquer paint) but the silver is a little thin and chaulky in some spots, and would probably benefit from some high speed buffing from a professional. The silver paint on the hood was touched up by the previous owner as seen in the pics, but does not match perfectly. There is one small rust spot in the bottom center of the driver’s door, it is minor, but I sanded the spot and hit it with rust prevention to keep it from getting worse. It may need an alignment, the van drives straight as an arrow even with my hands off the wheel, but the steering wheel is tilted very slightly to the right. The shocks are all the original GM "spirol" shocks and the front have started leaking some hydraulic fluid, although they still ride smooth and nice. I did not attempt to clean the back cargo carpet, but I think it would come clean with a steam cleaner or you could update it with new carpet. To Sum it Up! This is an extremely nice, rare, and low mileage van! It runs and drives like a new van, has ice cold A/C, all power options work (yes, even the cruise control), and has all the right options. This thing would be SO SWEET with the interior "shagged" out, maybe a mini bar and a couch or bed, or use van to haul a motorcycle around, or could be great for advertising with a business logo on the side. The back is fully insulated and has 2 layers of carpet padding over a plywood floor. In the four months I have owned it, I have put about 500 miles on it driving back and forth to work in the south Florida heat with the A/C blasting and the temp gauge has never gotten over 180 and it has never skipped a beat. I’ve had it on the highway at 80 mph and it doesn’t rattle, shake, or do anything you would expect from a 32 year old van. I would not hesitate to get in this van and drive it to California or anywhere else with no problems. This van truly is amazing and the pics just don’t do it justice! I would encourage anyone interested to come and look at it, you will not be disappointed. Ebay only lets you list 24 pics, but I have over 100 pics of this van and every inch of it. If you cannot come to see it, just let me know what you would like to see, and I will provide additional pics for you. This van is also listed locally and in other national advertising, so I do reserve the right to end the auction at any time. Please check my feedback and feel confident that you are buying from someone with 100% feedback that has bought and sold many vehicles through the ebay system. If you have less than 10 positive feedback then please contact me before bidding or your bid will be cancelled. REMEMBER, you are not bidding on the right to see the van, you are bidding on the van! Please ask all questions before the auction is up, (954-914-8866) and if you have to ask your wife, girlfriend, mother, or even the dog if you can buy it, do it before placing a legally binding bid, in other words "if you can’t pay, DON’T BID! Dreamers and Schemers, I know your tricks, so please don’t waste my time or yours! I require a $500 deposit via paypal within 3 days of auction ending with the balance paid within 10 days prior to or upon pickup. I live close to Ft. Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Miami airports and can arrange to pick you up if you would like to fly in and drive it home. I will also assist with arranging shipping at the buyer’s expense in any way that I can, but will not release the van until it is paid for in full. Thanks for your interest! Good Luck and Happy Bidding!!