First Ever K-10 Build, What’s It Worth??

[80BrownK10]

Hi guys, doing my first ever K-10 build. Found a super solid truck and am going all out on it. But I’m not familiar with truck resale, and old truck markets. Wanted to get lots of opinions on what my truck may be worth as it sits now, or when it gets painted. So here’s what I got. And I’ll post pics, would love to hear everyone’s opinions of what I should do etc.
1985 K-10 original 305 truck swapped to a
350 Mild Built Small block just finished
2 bolt Main, decked block, 4x4 comp cam, headman hedders, 2” dual exhaust w/ flow masters, fresh paint on all engine components. All new chrome, valve covers etc.
edelbrock carb
GM aluminum intake

6” all suspension lift kit, didnt cheap out, has all new brake lines, stainless extended brake hoses, new calipers, brakes, all new suspension bolts
Dual steering stabilizer
Fresh alignment
3.42 gears
35” Goodyear wrangler tires and Mickey thompson rims

interior has already been painted and redone with new seat cover and floor carpet. Dash has small 2” crack started. Radio head unit and new speakers in cab. Ac truck. Blows ice cold. Just recharged

all it needs to be finished is sent to paint the exterior. Body is rust free free free, just needs sanded and painted.

give me your thoughts guys! I want to learn more and see what it’s worth.

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That is a clean truck! A full restore will never be worth what you put into it unless you literally find a survivor that has like low double digit miles in it that has sat in a garage it's while life.

 

[80BrownK10]

Other than just saying whatever someone will pay for it, what’s it worth?
What makes one of these the 15k truck rather than the 8k truck?

are there upgrades I haven’t done that I should be doing?

For one....it being original, original paint, not redone interior, NO HEADERS. You have most of the stuff that keeps the truck from being a $13,000-15,000 truck.

 

[Rusty Nail]

Push play, keep readin!

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I went all out on mine too!

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Didnt cheap **** either. ALL THE BEST PARTS I spent my LIFE collecting and hoarding-forever, the best of everything!! Everything was EXACTLY how I wanted it, VERY recent - by my hands. She was perfect.
And fast...
I wanted that since I was fourteen.
I had it too.

Drove it "finished" for a week and a half, ? Paid $4k for it under a tree the year prior? It took a year and a half to recover from the wreck in perspective.
I saved my entire life unknowingly to build that truk and sold her in duress - promise I didn't want that.

Asking what the truck is worth isn't really the right question in your situation. Allow me to illustrate! Yes, I speak with recent experience AND my username used to be YELLOW.


What's it worth?

$1000.

They all are.
Every one.
Omg with working AC? You can Start at $1000!
New Wheels+tires? $2000.
New 6"lift?$3000.
Straight-ish (enough), no exterior rust holes?$4000.
New engine?$5000. It's worth 5k lookin at it. Starts and drives and stops and goes AND steers?!PLUS shifts all the gears?$6000.
Interior complete? No cement at the feet?$7000.
New exhaust? We'll call it $8000 since you got Flowmasters. Word up!

We can bolt-on $8,000 pretty easy..but that's just parts. Whats left is all that gets most of the value and it's not worth hardly anything to the insurance company outside there. Scrap is LOW. It's worth more in parts and now they are used.
They all are, the trucks,the parts, almost every one still fighting is worth more in parts.
So?

Market value + no interior pix?
**More correctly, What could you SELL IT FOR?
All put together like that?!

MAYBE 8-10 in OKLAHOMA, too much depends on location..10-12.5 in Ohio? More farther NE.

Thanks @HotRodPC -
Almost 10.5 months to be exact!
Credit to my insurance Agent - that cannot! be overstated.
Neither can - keeping a box of receipts.

The smashed truck I built for a year wasn't worth barely $1200 after a jealous woman driver killed it., thus I was FORCED. to PROVE . the value but that is is how we also got reimbursed for SHOP RECIEPTS.
Play smart!

Protect your parts! Not insuring a truck so much as the memories with your father's collection of parts that drive. That is what you want to insure...
They hold your truck's worth IRL.
A bunch of used parts..
The need to keep receipts simply can.not. be overstated. Ebay and Paypal both worked with me , to their credit.

The difference was inital offer of $700. $1200 after two weeks.
or $19,419.56, ten and a half months later after we finished fighting for it.
She was even spray-painted lol. Rare truk. Was a mostly Original, very.nice.truk full of spanky new Delco parts.

I know a man that has $28k+ in a 75Jimmy and it's not finished but it smells like leather...

My 1975K5 was insured at 25k MAX for $115/mo. I think - was the intended Daily AND work truk. 6,000 miles a year.

This was ONE of 276 ever built in '75 with a 400, it was valuable before I touched it but I only dream now of doing that again.
What I learned from the experience was to - shop an agreed value policy .
Simple Full coverage/Un-insured motorist/ Max Value is NOT SUFFICIENT for a really nice 40 year old driver, trust me.

If some woman drives into your truk tomorrow, your insurance company will offer $1000 to steal your dream for scrap value, which is worded correctly.

So what do ya do?
Shop an Agreed Value Policy, did I say that already? you probably wont like the rates..buy your Agent lunch..plus, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and those people only do numbers. An '80 with a 305 will provide way better numbers I think, the value of the truck is what you are doing to it..
A 1988 K5 costs more to insure than a 1988 IROC Camaro. go figure..
an 11 year old Civic costs more than either to insure!.

KEEP RECEIPTS.
Did I say that already?

In the end?
I got my money back out of it, not one cent for "worth", nothing for the tears, sweat, blood nor effort, and much,much, less the 4.5 yrs it took to find her.


Best to see it that way.
You would do well to get your money back...talk to YOUR agent about how he can best do it and take action to aide him, should you need him to.

*Pro-Tip*
Make sure you have enough of the correct type coverages. Ended up more then $25k in Doctor bills after I walked home. The $$ difference came right from the top, lowering my pain and suffering?, albeit disproportionately...that means my check got smaller.
lol
Had to. stop seeing the doctor because I had maxed the coverage limit of 25/50/25 or whatever the minimum ***** is.
It's not enough to get hurt anymore, I left considerable -8k? pain and suffering money on the table because I bought only the minimum a mount of coverage.

I dont do that anymore.

I have enough insurance to drive with complete impunity which is worth an absolute SHITTON need I mention boundless fun?

The Insurance Agent is a terribly valuable asset. Maybe you need to shop for one of those too? He has got. to. be. on board.
You should not insure it like it's a new truck..you MUST think of it differently.
This is very important to consider.
Did i say that already?
Dont ask us, talk to your Agent.

Seriously.

I like the color ,the gm intake, and the wheels, the exhaust, the truck over all is coolAF but 3.42s and 35s? It would look good with a primered tailgate and factory grille if you paint it tan. sand?

But I bet it's sllloooowww!!!!!
Your Dad was right to want two inch pipe.
Aint gonna matter what color u paint it ,its all the same in the rearview. hahaha!!
now about that grille....

A woman driver turned in front of us and we would have driven over that Lincoln except the rear axle broke and the front axle was on the firewall.Spent her entire life to find our Destiny - as my $20,000 parts truk.Totalled. FOUR second opinions. One. guy. offered to fix it - for $10k.
This is what can happen to your perfect boyhood dream...even on Sunday morning under perfect sky.I was so happy that day..

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What can ya do?
Work harder.
Buy more insurance.
Or get a Honda..

Other drivers are not getting smarter/better and not many companies will offer what you want for what you want it for...but some do. I fought with Progressive and Mutual someshit..Omaha?

All that In aside,
Aint nobody gonna break my stride!

See I bought another Blazer already. Told you I aim to drive one everyday..

The new '88

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**** em!

Clear Choice Insurance

3209 N MacArthur Blvd, Oklahoma City, OK 73122
(405) 789-2500
https://maps.app.goo.gl/ERsdAGXMaoUidjGj8

*The time with your father is PRICELESS.
Take lots of pics or video because audio.

I sold all that stuff I spent my life collecting to the insurance company. It makes me cry.
*see signature

Don't look back. Dig deeper. You can have anything you want if you can pay the bill.

Hope this helps!

Send me a bumper sticker i'll mail another $25.

 

[idahovette]

Leave it to Rusty to provide some of the BEST insight on Insurance you could find. Just too bad you had to go thru all the BS , Rusty. Thanks for some great helpful thoughts!!

 

[Rusty Nail]

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Thank you Sir.

Leave it to Rusty to provide some of the BEST insight on Insurance you could find. Just too bad you had to go thru all the BS , Rusty. Thanks for some great helpful thoughts!!

Tonight in conclusion we can say that I ended up with a check for $12,437 whatever and all the bills were paid.


Negotiations were frozen around 10k while they did homework about the truck.
"SCREW YOU.
Sheeet. I've got more than that 10k invested!"
Nobody believed it.
Total ignorance.
100%

Then it was MY TURN see..and I had the real paperwork
You dont know what that truck is!
She was special.
Ever heard of comparables?
I proved the history,the build,the production numbers...provided ten different comparables for sale - twice.
$1500-$45000
I eventually produced damned near $11,000 worth of RECIEPTS , including my bill of sale for the truk and was repaid for every dime represented in that box full of tickets.

The new lawyer #3 look $7k + He was worth not any more. My insurance Agent and I tripled lawyer's offer he got for the truk....1400.3700....he hit a high of 7800 or somethin and said I wouldn't get more. He was USELESS for anything truk value. 100% stick with what ya know lol. Im sure it was a time thing.and care thing likely lol. I get it. Not mad. I told him to lawyer flex after the insulting $10k offer 5 months in, and he did good. They dug deeper too lol.
My insurance Agent was already on the payroll though...good insurance Agent is invaluable in these matters, im tellin ya. Lawyer #3 was new to me, hired just for this matter from recommendation of my boss. The Agent and I handled ALL of the truck value part of the claim. PROVING. the truck's inherent.worth ,,,, after all the fancy used parts of value were gone.


Lawyer did the doctor bill / pain part only
Agent did the truck value part only
*Which was discussed openly among all parties..we had phone conferences at Agent's office and everything. Clear boundaries and expectations. at the Clear Choice.

I spend time and effort nurturing the relationship with my automobile insurance Agent. I pay the bill in person see? I'm a car guy. Long story from highschool car audio days! I dont expect others share that trait.

After ten and a half months we stopped fighting finally getting a $19,*** offer!
Wow.
Sounds like a lot for a truk I gave 4k for...?
Right?

All that time no money for another car, okay? Understand the gravity of that situation.

I had actually spent that other money see, those reciepts werent ******** one bit. It was in the truck.
Hell it wasn't enough...times were tough.

There were other monies unable to be claimed, other funds spent that had been lost...it forces a different plan for the new BonnieK5 fer sure! One could keep much better records ...

Pay the lawyer..subtract the insured monies spent...12+7=19 - out of 25.

Thought we settled and STILL ended up in arbitration despite best efforts. Could have kept fighting all the way to $25k but it was a wash already see?
The music was over.
They wanted back to the truk and I aimed to keep that fresh 408..
And I have that.


but ****!
Aint that a bitch?

Shovelled every dime I could stand into that truck everyday for a year!
Every.Day.turning wrenches.
In.Love!

1 of 267 and I broke even.

That's what happened.
Not worth it..not close.No contest.
Not even a good story.

I cant believe that happened to me.
Wonder what I did and glad I dont know what that was for though.

Needed more insurance in hindsight.

The new truck? Not fancy like a '75...I like it more though. it's not near as delicate and seems more...useful. Not 'uptight' over it the same way..


It's not fluff to say that you'd do well to get your money back...I hope you all read it close.

I did well to get my money back

with a full coverage/max value policy and under-insured motorist +tow+******** rental at $115 a month - for the minimum amount of coverage allowed by law.
25/50/25 is NOT enough.
I erroneously thought the useless add-ons would save me. Tow insurance is good for 40 year old trucks though.
Get the tow add-on.

Doctor wanted to run another $5k of therapy on my neck after I shot their surgery idea down..they wanted to keep runnin up the bill but i hit limit.Laywer says "if you quit goin (to the therapist) now we can finish clean".he explained it, broke the digits down...and so it was.
Arbitration ended six months later after I got repaid out of pocket rental expense.


The music is finally over.

A regretful conclusion but I believe the true story of the 75 Blazer Destiny will live on, live on to help other squarebody trucks and their owners enjoy our hobby responsibly - well into the future!

Seems like I still lost a "little bit" of money and the truck is gone. I still have the 400 though..and the back seat and a pain in the neck.

What can ya do?

Work harder and buy more insurance..
Or drive a Honda ...and buy more insurance.

**If admin wants to uncover the build thread you may. ? I asked that it be hidden while the case was pending..a wise move.
If you don't want to, that's okay.
I've washed my hands either way.


Thank you to all involved parties.


The heart of 75 Blazer Destiny lives on the stand!

ALSO! Too bad about what your thread there @Mason Hughes , I hadn't ever felt like tellin that story...

 

[MikeB]

Probably won't be worth as much as you put into it, unless you do all the work yourself. Body, paint, and interior can get expensive in a hurry when you're paying pros to do it.

I'd guess that I have $9K total in mine, and did all the work myself except for front end alignment and machining the engine block. It's probably worth no more that 2/3 that much to the right buyer. But hey, any loss would be cheaper than playing golf 1-2 times per week for the past 6 years! And I didn't have to buy a white belt!

***Edit: For insurance value, thanks for reminding me that I to get that done! Had an 55 Chevy for several years that had an "agreed value" policy with State Farm. All I had to do was give them a price and send them some pictures. Also had a 69 C10 before that where they wanted to see an appraisal, which I had done by a local restoration shop.

 

[Bennyt]

I built a very nice "89 Jimmy (K5). Spent roughly $27k with Supercharged 350, Built 700r4, shortened 241, woods shafts, everything powdercoated, power late model seats, caged, line-x, tons of suspension, 4w disc, swing away tire carrier, winch bumper, etc. Everyone loved it, but when time came to sell it, I got $8500. Was disappointed but enjoyed while I had it.

Sold a cool '76 C10 Short bed in November for $3050. Had probably $5500 in it. Literally had a 100 calls and probably 10 people come by and look at it. Nobody had cash, everyone wanted to trade or finance.

 

[Tonyg123]

Dont expect any where close to what you have in it. 84 and 85 are not hard to find. Its worth more to you than you could get out of it. I have a 79 sq body restored completely. I have 10000 hard cash in it a d i would be lucky to get 6000 in my part of the country. I have a 72 k5 blazer. I have 15000 in it and it should bring 28000. Thats the difference between early models and late models. Good luck. Your truck looks very nice.

 

[clendon1]

Definitely get " agreed value policy ", my insurance on my 76c10 is $304 per year,agreed value of $ 30,000 . It is insured as a classic not an every day driver, I carry limits of $ 250,000/ $ 500,000 .