You say you want a Chevelle, but you need a pickup? Well search no more, because the GMC Sprint is the answer to your dilemma. Sharing bodywork with the Chevy El Camino, the light-duty GMC Sprint debuted for the 1971 model year. Utilizing the same chassis and wheelbase as the Chevelle sedan and wagon, the GMC Sprint was identical to the El Camino, save for badging.
The GMC Sprint Custom could be ordered with the Sprint SP option (RPO YE7), the GMC equivalent of Chevrolet’s SS package. Available engines included the 250 cubic-inch inline six-cylinder, the 307 cubic-inch V8, the L48 350, the LS3 402 Big Block, and the LS5 454 Big Block that produced an impressive 365 horsepower.
Our subject GMC Sprint is finished in glossy bright red with black stripes on the hood. Panel gaps appear consistent throughout. The bed looks to have been lined in a matching shade of bright red. The inner fenders in the bed wear the same glossy red paint as the rest of the exterior. All the external badging has been removed, resulting in a somewhat cleaner look. The chrome bumpers appear to have been re-plated, and all stainless trim looks to be well polished. The Sprint rolls on 15″ steel Rally wheels with beauty rings and short caps. The wheels wear raised white letter BFGoodrich Radial T/As.
Under the hood, the GMC Sprint’s engine bay is clean and tidy. The 454 Big Block appears to have been freshly rebuilt, and has been the recipient of a chrome dress-up kit and a highly polished intake manifold. There is a polished modern A/C compressor fitted. The power brake booster looks to be new or freshly refinished. The balance of the engine is largely stock.
The interior of this GMC Sprint features a black vinyl bench seat for three-abreast seating, important in a car with no back seat. The bench shows very little indication of wear. The carpets are clean with minimal fading. The door panels appear to be original, but are in good nick. The black wrapped steering wheel looks like it may have originally been from an early 1970s Oldsmobile 442, but is now fitted with a Chevy horn button. An under-dash A/C unit has been mounted, but may have been a dealer-installed component when the Sprint was new. There is also a modern stereo head unit installed in the dash, and some auxiliary gauges just to the left of the A/C.
The undercarriage appears to be reasonably clean, with no indication of corrosion, leaks, or damage. The true dual exhaust looks to be somewhat recent.
This GMC Sprint is equipped with power steering, power brakes with front discs, A/C, and modern stereo. It is available from Streetside Classics in Fort Worth, TX, for $27,995.
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Comments
This is a Sprint trying hard to be a Sprint SP.
They are missing emblems, it has a 72 style grill, steering wheel and dash is wrong. The SP had a SS and Monte Carlo dash.
This car I would guess was just a Sprint with a 350 originally.
I owned a real SP at one time and it was pure SS. Stirrup shifter and other SS trim. Only a few hundred were built with big blocks. They were not fast stock but they were ok.
I miss mine.
Very nice why can’t you apprecIate it for what it is the creator obviously was going for an individual build you say that SS and SP are in limited numbers but you can’t get any more limited than a one off you say that you miss your old SP so why don’t you stop picking some one else’s build to pieces get off your ass a build your own SS