Chevrolet C10 1967-1972: The Action Line's History and Specs

From Glamour Pickup to Action Line

Chevrolet's second-generation C/K trucks arrived for the 1967 model year, replacing the taller, boxier first generation that had run since 1960. The new body sat closer to the frame, with a redesigned cab, a double-walled steel pickup bed for extra rust resistance, and clean, uncluttered sheet metal that Chevrolet marketed as the Action Line. Collectors later nicknamed the whole 1967-1972 run the "Glamour Pickups," a name that's stuck around car shows and swap meets ever since. Underneath the new skin, the C10 (Chevrolet's half-ton badge) kept doing what GM half-tons had always done: hauling lumber and hay bales by day, while slowly, by the early 1970s, becoming something people wanted to drive for fun.

Engines and the Arrival of the Big-Block

The C10 launched in 1967 with a familiar lineup: 250 and 292 cubic-inch inline-sixes for buyers who wanted simplicity, and 283 and 327 cubic-inch V8s for those who wanted more push. 1968 brought two changes that mattered. Side-marker lights arrived to meet a new federal safety mandate, and the 396 cubic-inch V8 became optional, the first time Chevrolet had offered a big-block engine in a light-duty pickup. In 1969, the 327 grew into the 350, which Chevrolet made the standard V8 across the line by 1970. The 396 grew too: starting in 1970, Chevrolet enlarged the Mark IV big-block's bore across its entire lineup, pushing true displacement to 402 cubic inches. Muscle cars like the Chevelle and Camaro kept wearing "396" badges regardless, but Chevrolet's trucks, C10 included, got the honest "402" callout. By 1971, front disc brakes were standard equipment, and by 1972, the Action Line's final year, GM had cut compression ratios across the board for lower-octane fuel and switched to more realistic net horsepower ratings, so engines that year were actually rated lower than they had been just a couple of years earlier.

Custom, CST, and the Arrival of Cheyenne

Trim strategy in this era started simple and got more layered as the years went on. Custom was the base appearance package throughout the run, adding chrome trim and better floor mats over a bare-bones work truck. In 1967, Chevrolet introduced the CST (Custom Sport Truck) package, blending comfort and dress-up items, nicer upholstery, more carpet and insulation, into one option, and CST stayed the top trim through 1970. In 1971, Chevrolet replaced it with the flashier Cheyenne, and partway through that same model year added an even more loaded Cheyenne Super above it, complete with woodgrain dash trim and extra chrome. By 1972, Custom, Custom Deluxe, Cheyenne, and Cheyenne Super rounded out the lineup, giving buyers a real range from stripped work truck to something closer to a personal pickup.

Spotting a 67-72 by the Front End

Because the Action Line ran six years without a full redesign, the grille is the fastest way to narrow down which era a truck belongs to. On 1967-68 trucks, the parking and turn-signal lamps sit low, under the bumper, with a Chevrolet bowtie centered on the grille. In 1969, the hood was reshaped with a steeper front angle, the parking and turn signals moved up into the grille's corners, and the grille bar itself picked up raised block "CHEVROLET" lettering in place of the bowtie; 1970 carried that same look with only minor changes. The biggest shift came in 1971, when Chevrolet gave the C10 a mid-cycle facelift: a new eggcrate-pattern grille, with the bowtie emblem back at its center. 1972 kept that eggcrate face but dropped a black trim strip that had run across the grille the year before. Because renders, restorations, and parts swaps can mix eras, the surest way to date a real truck is still the VIN tag rather than the grille alone, but knowing these three windows, 67-68, 69-70, and 71-72, gets you most of the way there at a glance.

Why the Action Line Still Sells

Six decades on, the 67-72 C10 remains one of the most heavily supported trucks in the restoration aftermarket, with reproduction sheet metal, interiors, and drivetrain parts available for nearly every part of the truck. That support, paired with the small-block V8s that power most surviving examples, is a big part of why the Action Line shows up so often as a resto-mod platform and as a first classic truck for new collectors. Whether it's still running its original inline-six or carrying a swapped-in 350, a clean C10 still looks like exactly what it was built to be: a truck that did the work and looked good doing it.