1980 Chevrolet El Camino

Conquista Standard Cab Pickup

229 V6 GAS

Automatic

1W80KAK488004

Clear

GAS

For the most part this is an unmolested, garden-variety 1980 El Camino with the Conquista appearance package (two-tone paint and trim). It does have AC (which worked the last time I drove it), and tilt steering. It came with the original AM radio, which I replaced with an era-appropriate AM/FM unit (though it still plays out of the single dash speaker). I'm the third owner of this El Camino; I acquired it from my wife's aunt and uncle 5-6 years ago. They bought it from the original owner @ 1981, so for the most part it belonged to my wife's relatives for most of its existence. My wife's aunt drove the vehicle for many years, but eventually they moved to the country, and other than using the El Camino as a field vehicle for feeding cows it didn't get a lot of use. Eventually they parked it in a barn, remembering I'd told them at one point that if they ever wanted to get rid of it to let me know. I acquired it, and did my best to get it roadworthy, but realistically I couldn't drive it frequently enough to keep things up. I put new tires on it, as well as an alternator, shocks, muffler, etc., and had a mechanic go through it several years ago; but the last time I drove it (several years back) the brakes went out, so it has been parked since. I don't have the assistance I'd need to get the brakes back into working shape, and living on a steep hill I can't do much to get it out of the garage safely to tinker with it, so I put it on a set of rollers (which transfer with the vehicle), moved it to the far edge of the garage, and as you can see if has become a storage rack for the most part. Having been used as a field car the vehicle does have some dents here and there, but in general it's in solid shape. The only rust of any real consequence that I'm aware of is around the rear glass (pictured), which seems to be contained to that one single piece of sheet metal at the front of the bed. I suspect someone with better body shop skills than myself could either fill those in, or replace that one panel and be set. The vehicle does leak rain water around the front glass (and through the rust spots in the rear), which has been the case since well before I acquired the vehicle. As a result my wife's family kept the car covered once the leaks began (either in a carport or barn, and I've kept it in the garage since I've had it), which has helped preserve the interior, especially the dash which as you can see from the photos has no cracks. As best I remember all the glass is good. Interior-wise other than the seat cover needing replacing, the carpet on the doors and the headliner have lost most of their color and would eventually need to be replaced. As it sits currently I'd say it isn't driveable and would need to be trailered. The brake problem may simply be a master cylinder, or there could be a leak in a line somewhere. Neither would be an expensive fix by any means, but as a result of sitting for several years the vehicle also leaks oil and transmission fluid, so while I suspect I could charge the battery and top off the oil and get it started with no problems, I would not advise trying to move it under its own power until it were moved to a level lot somewhere. If you wanted to make it a daily driver, it would need attention to the brakes, and to the various seals that would need to be replaced to stop the oil/transmission leaks. But realistically with those items repaired the vehicle would be operable. My ultimate goal was to get the mechanicals sorted out and then move on to body work and paint, but realistically with my day-to-day routine I couldn't drive a vehicle of this vintage as my daily driver (plus it really doesn't provide me enough leg room to get comfortable), so I never got beyond some of the primarily mechanical stuff. I could tackle the brakes, but realistically I have too many other home projects that are taking priority, and in a house with no attic or basement storage, garage space is at a premium, and we honestly need the space more than we need the wheels. I'd rather see this vehicle sell to someone who plans to fix it up and drive it, as I think it's well above being just a parts vehicle. That's the primary reason I'm listing it here versus simply calling a charity to come haul it off, since I'd like to give someone a chance at it who would want to get it back on the road. I'm not in an immediate rush to get rid of it, but I think I've put things off about as long as I can. It could definitely use some body work and paint, but if you're looking for a work vehicle and are mechanically inclined this could be a good option. Parts for the 229 V-6 are cheap and plentiful from what I've encountered, and I've gotten as good as 18 MPG on the highway, so compared to full-sized trucks of this vintage this El Camino can get decent mileage. I should probably clarify in the photos where there are two El Caminos, the one in the foreground (with beauty rings and center caps) is mine that is for sale. The one in the background belonged to a guy who happened to park in my same lot at work one summer, so we got together one day and parked them side-by-side just to take some photos since they were so similar. So just to be clear, this auction is for only one El Camino; those were the only fairly recent pictures I could find of it outside to post.