If you’re fortunate, you have, at some point in your life, had friends-of-friends-of-friends morph into those you consider part of your inner circle. It’s a life-affirming thing when you realize that origins of some of your closest friendships began once- or twice-removed from another, original friend you may not see quite as often anymore. My friend, Christina, is one of the former – a once friend-of-a-friend with whom I am now very close. It’s been said that making friends in Chicago isn’t easy and takes time, and that was my initial experience when I moved here almost fifteen years ago. It was on a night of one of Christina’s parties that I spotted our featured El Camino.
Today, for whatever reason, I almost can’t bring myself to refer to the El Camino as a “truck”, reminding me as it always has of a two-door station wagon with the rear section of the roof lopped off. I’ll concede that it is technically a truck (also known as a “coupe utility” or “ute” in other parts of the globe), but it has always seemed to me to be caught between two worlds. Most times when I have heard someone describe the El Camino as being “business up front, party in the back”, it has made me smile, reminding me of a similar description of a certain haircut. Yes, the El Camino may be the visual, automotive equivalent of a mullet, but I say that not like it’s a bad thing. (Hey, if that haircut was good enough for MacGyver and Lionel Richie, it’s good enough for the rest of us.) The ‘Camino is, unmistakably, what it is, and quite a bold statement. Much like black licorice, either you like it, or you don’t. I dig it.
Back to Christina’s, our group of friends (of maybe fifteen to twenty of us) tries to get together at least twice a month – sometimes more often in the summer months. There seems to be a bit of friendly competition among us to see who gets to host the next, informal gathering. On this balmy, September night last summer, Christina hosted, and she doesn’t not do anything fancy. (Caviar, anyone?) You know how it is when the night is still young, everybody has been hanging out for a while and all are acquainted, and it’s time for the next activity? After we were all feeling ready for the next thing, we decided to head a few blocks west to Beauty Bar for some dancing. This El Camino was parked outside of a nearby establishment.
It can be a tricky thing to take pictures of a vehicle at night in an area with a lot of bars. With the escalation in crime in some areas, I know I’m a little more vigilant these days whenever walking at night. I can imagine that if I had parked my classic El Camino on the street near the bar, I’d have one eye out the window pretty much at all times. Depending on how good one’s eyesight is, too, I could see how it wouldn’t necessarily be immediately apparent that the person crouched down on the ground near the front of a vehicle had a camera and was taking pictures, versus attempting something dodgy. Also, when I think of the stereotypical owner / driver of an El Camino, I imagine it would be someone who has little time for foolishness or explanations, however clearly or eloquently expressed.
That’s just a generalization, though, and the air and mood of this area felt just celebratory enough to where I felt comfortable snapping a few frames and getting on my way. Given the great apparent condition of this survivor, I’d like to think it’s powered by a 155-hp Chevy 305 V8, mated to the three-speed Turbo Hydramatic. So equipped, it would have weighed about 3,200 pounds and had a cargo hauling capacity of about a half-ton. I like the restyled grille of the ’80 El Camino (and Malibu), and I like that from the first year of this downsized generation for ’78, through ’82, there actually were minor detail changes with each successive model year. In general, researching yearly changes becomes a colossal pain after the early ’80s. This example is one of just under 41,000 sold for 1980.
Back at Beauty Bar, knowing my train ride home would take a while and wanting to make the most of my Saturday the next day, I bid an early farewell to Christina and our group after some busting of moves on the dance floor. She responded with a big hug and her trademark “Filakia!“(“kisses” in Greek). Spotting this El Camino on the way to the northbound train back to my neighborhood was the perfect coda to a Friday that had started with “business up front” at the office, and had ended with a “party in the back” of the evening. Opa!
West Town, Chicago, Illinois.
Friday, September 16, 2016.
Related reading:
- From J.P. Cavanaugh: Curbside Classic: 1982 Chevrolet El Camino – Every day is Satyr-day;
- From Robert Kim: CC Capsule: 1983-87 Chevy El Camino SS – El Caminos De La Costa Este; and
- From me: Curbside Capsule: 1982 Chevrolet El Camino – The Road Ahead.
Just love these elkies. I personally prefer the quadlight face, but all of this gen are nicer-looking than the 73+ models. Caviar styling on a bread-and-butter platform.
I don’t like Camino’s in general, but I do like the older versions a bit more. They have a more “classic” look to them.
The more I think about it, the more I like this gen the most of all the El Caminos. There’s a certain exoticness to the batwing, and a friend has recently bought a very nice 60, but I’m just not enamoured of how the shape handled the switch to intermediate.
Ranchero – I have a hard time choosing between the lithe 68/69 and the snorting 72. The others… well there’s no accounting for taste, so take my preferences with a pinch of salt.
Don, agreed on the preference of these to the Colonnade ‘Caminos, though those do also have their merits.
(Great song, too – takes me back to being a carefree teenager in the summer of 1990. Shockingly, this is one song for which I do *not* own the cassette single! Got a lot of other ones, though. 😉 )
Never cared for the ’78-’79 nose. ’80-’81 are my favorite. I could enjoy this one.
Some folks had created some phantoms El Caminos, some folks imagined what if they still offered a full-size El Camino for 1961-62. http://www.hotrod.com/articles/0503cct-the-missing-el-camino/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/351843789619568190/
Or using the Monte Carlo frond end. https://gbodyforum.com/threads/monte-carlo-clip-on-an-el-camino.25429/
And I don’t mention the various phantoms “B-O-P” “Elkys”. 😉
I always thought GMC should’ve used the Buick front and dash on theirs (it’d be easier to brand than the Olds or Pontiac since there wouldn’t be a grille split in the way of the GMC lettering).
Joe, I love your urban nighttime photographs. They bring out a car or truck’s aura of mystery that regular daylight photography cannot capture.
Since writing one of these up several years ago I have become a fan. I still cannot think of a Chevy from the 80s that I would rather have over one of these, so long as it came with the right powertrain and right color combo.
I found myself behind one of these in traffic several weeks ago and got off a single through-the-windshield shot – a Conquista!
Complete with trailer hitch! What an excellent find.
Like you stated, I am definitely a convert. When I was younger, I didn’t care much for El Caminos, which my friends and I would goof on frequently. Within the past several years, though, I have come to genuinely like them, especially after having seen some really nice examples.
The styling is so clean… Between these and the concurrent 2-door, hardtop-look Malibu coupes, I think these were great-looking efforts.
I am waiting for one of the Big 3 to get adventurous and re-introduce this body style. The world will be their oyster!
I remember GM had floated the idea of bringing the ute to North America before it went bad.
It will be FWD like the Caddy and Rampage. The Malibu would be a good starting point, so would the 300. Not sure about Ford. Remember the SSR?
Thanks for inviting us along to the party. I had a great time!
The more, the merrier!
Nicely done from social and motorhead perspectives, alike.
What’s not to like about these trucks? I agree with J.P.; these took the Squarerolets to their best place. I’ve always hankered after one in another life (every time I think of owning a pickup, the daydream grows a top, and becomes a station wagon). They are boxy in a workaday way while still carrying a stylish air. Make mine a small block with doggie dish hubcaps and no white letters.
Thank you, Barry.
What I find most interesting about these El Caminos (and Malibus) was that while I used to find their styling boxy and somewhat bland when they were more common, I can really appreciate their clean styling in 2017 – especially in a sea of new cars many of which I consider to be overstyled.
I had seen a black, ’78 El Camino about seven years back with dog dishes, and it looked the part of a serious machine.
“… researching [GM car’s] yearly changes becomes a colossal pain after the early ’80s.
Agree. I know up to 1979-80 easily, but after ’81 is a cloudy haze. Although, the 82-87 Elky’s kept the same 4 headlight fronts.
An ElCaMullett. Thanks Joe, I’ll never look at these the same now. 🙂
These have grown on me tremendously the last few years. Just like your prose allows me to see you busting a move on the dance floor.
Haha! Jason, I may not be able to tear it up on the dance floor quite like I used to, but I still find it fun from time to time. Joints may be popping, but… you know, that’s why there’s Advil. 🙂
Hey, you weren’t too far from my neck of the woods- if you’re in the area frequently you might have seen my old neighbor’s Mullet Machine. He was a body guy by trade and customized it with the Monte aero-nose, primer gray paint job, and Monte-style SS decals. Unfortunately no pics since he moved out of the neighborhood before I could get some. Best El Camino ever though IMHO.
I really like West Town a lot. I imagine that El Camino “SS” looked great – I can completely envision what that looked like. I spotted an early- / mid-80’s Monte SS just last weekend, and I had forgotten just how much that aero front nose cone transformed the looks of those cars.
I’m up on Division and there’s a Shell station that’s one of the last with the attached three-bay service stations, right near the Kennedy. It’s a mini-CC lot all to itself. For years there was a beaut of an aero SS in burgundy, want to say an ’87, in the lot. Sadly it disappeared a few years ago before I could ask about it.
I was the proud owner of a ’79 GMC Cabalerro in 1986 that had been was my parents, I bought it for $1500 after my dad and I had to go and repossess it.
It was a 305 4bbl THM, had AC, PS, and AM radio. At the time I had a 21 ft trailer that I needed a towing vehicle for, the tall around 2.60 rear axle struggled to launch the car/truck even empty, I loved it, drove great on the highway and got it decent MPG on long trips but didn’t think it would be up to the towing needs, so I sold it after a few months and kept my old ’70 C10. It was the right decision for my needs at the time, but I sure would like to have the old GMC today!
It was in great shape except for paint, started peeling when it was about a year old, roof was repainted under warranty but by the time it was 7 years old it was badly faded and peeling everywhere except where it was repainted. Sold it for a good profit, always thought the early twin headlamp front end the best on this generation.
67Conti, that sounds like it was a great ride. Ah, necessity… I hope you at least have some good pictures of your ’79 Caballero. I have also forgotten just how quickly paint on some GM products of that era had delaminated or started to peel. I can imagine yours looked like a million bucks after that respray.
Bill Clinton once owned an El Camino, complete with astro turf in the back… draw your own conclusions…
Thank you for the beautifully told story, and thank you for these wonderful pictures capturing a great car and a great summer evening out, I just love your night time photography.
Thank you so much! I normally don’t bring my camera with me on nightly outings, but seeing that I had gone straight to Christina’s after work, I had it on me. When I saw this El Camino, I was so glad that I did. 🙂
Great mood photos as always James. Enjoy your view selections too. I wonder if Chicago is planning any time soon to start switching to LED street lighting? As I think so many nighttime pics will benefit from the blue light LED will add. Making everything appear whiter and brighter. With more accurate colors.
My city (Ottawa) has committed to switching all 58,000 street lights in the city to LED lighting in the next couple of years. And I’m looking forward to it. I’ve never really been a fan of the orange sodium lighting.
You can see a street below that has already been retrofitted. Quite an improvement…
Apologies ‘Joseph’, I was chatting with a coworker earlier named ‘James’. 🙂
No worries, friend! I just figured “J” names – I knew you were talking to me. I still have business associates who refer to me by my last name, “Dennis”, as if that comma separating my first name from my last means nothing.
I do, actually, like the amber glow of the old-school street lamps, though as you’ve illustrated, the LED lights provide a much clearer, cleaner view of everything.
Dennis, I mean Daniel ;),
Chicago is also moving to LED for street lights as well. I do know just from experience that about ten or fifteen years ago they moved to some other lighting technology- it wasn’t LED, way too early for that, but way less yellow than the street lights of my childhood.
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/03/28/city-picks-firm-to-install-new-smart-led-street-lights/
Am I the only one who thinks the best part of going out at night is the CCs you might spot?
Pete, more than just a few times, it has been!
I rescued this from a salvage yard in 2013. In fact, it’s the first CC I ever wrote here…
After growing up with a 78 Malibu wagon, with the 305 and an honest-to-goodness 4-speed (my dad refused to get an automatic in any of his vehicles) I was with when he tried getting an Olds wagon, and they told him there was no way to get a stick, which is why he ended up with his first (and last) Chevy. So I’ve wondered what other G-bodies could be had with 3 pedals.
Oh, and this generation of ElCos are my favorite, too.