Very advanced. Very grumpy.

VERY ADVANCED. VERY GRUMPY.

Look at this sad old mug.
I was walking around my future neighborhood of Bay Ridge a couple weeks ago when this city improbability presented itself:

Such an expression! If you put a huge cigar in the grill of this truck it would look like Al Capone.
What we have here is a 1954 Chevrolet 3100 truck in Seacrest Green.

This is one of the Advanced Design series of Chevy trucks first introduced in 1947. After WWII most vehicles were hastily assembled leftovers from the early '40s. When these A.D. trucks hit the scene they were a great improvement on just about every level.

The 3100 was the half ton model.
1954 was the only year for major changes in the A.D. series. This is the first year for a single pane windshield as opposed to split down the middle. That sneering bull nose grill is new for '54 too replacing 5 horizontal bars. The original style hubcaps are brand spanking new just made to look correct. *Those turn signals on top of the fenders are aftermarket by the way.

This is a handsome truck! I love the separate fenders and the overall classic look of these rides. The round taillights were new for '54 as well replacing rectangular ones from earlier.

Who knows what sort of homemade bed extension we're looking at here? Plywood raises the sides in a very specific way with it angled up a bit near the cab. The tarp has been altered to fit this shape perfectly with snaps all around. It took a lot of work for sure right down to painting the plywood to match. Whatever it is it seems this is still a working truck earning its keep.

This has the venerable three-on-the-tree manual transmission. An automatic transmission was an option for the first time in '54 but we would see a gear selector window on top of the steering column if this were so equipped.

Even beautiful classics sometimes get a taste of tape! At least they got a shade of green.

And that's where I'll leave this hardy beast. These trucks are timeless and remain as popular as ever. Despite its age just about every part is available for the Advanced Design series. They sold in huge numbers throughout their run and changes were few. The front end was the same whether you ordered a pickup, suburban, or panel van.
I love the fact that this old Chevy is still waiting faithfully for its owner to come along and turn the key. With basic maintenance these will keep on fulfilling their duties forever. To see one in Brooklyn at age 63 made me happy enough to take some pics while standing in the cold rain.