The 1950 Chevrolet 3600 Three-Quarter Ton Pickup featured here is a great classic. A heavy duty pickup truck with all the new upgrades and redesigns of the Advance Design Series. This classic truck was part of Chevy’s new Advance Design series which was introduced in 1947 and had a run through the 1955 model year.
As a tribute to Chevy’s Advance Design series, Chevrolet was the number one truck manufacturer during all of the those years. This was a great achievement when you consider that Ford introduced their new F-Series trucks after 1948.
As a side note, for the GMC truck line General Motors named their new post war design the “GMC New Design”.
After the end of World War Two all major automakers placed much more attention on building light trucks that offered more passenger car comfort while still offering work truck utility. Light trucks would be built that attracted both families and commercial truck buyers. Suspensions as well as other chassis features would be getting closer to passenger car specifications.
Advance Design Improvements and Upgrades
There were a lot of changes made in the Advance Design compared to the pre World War Two models.
The Advance Design years introduced many significant changes and upgrades. Some of these changes and upgrades included…heater and defroster both as standard equipment and the cab was designed wider and taller offering much more comfort. Also made larger was the windshield which improved visibility and safety. Larger side and rear window glass and the grille now had a horizontal design and recessed headlamps. In dash radios were offered as an option. The fenders became rounder which made for a smoother looking body and overall better aerodynamics.
A few changes for 1950 included modern tubular shock absorbers in place of lever action shocks and 1950 was the last year for the driver side vent.
1950 Chevy 3600 Specifications
Standard engine for the Chevy 3600 was a 216 cubic inch straight six-cylinder engine that produced 92 horsepower. Also offered was a 226 cubic inch straight six with 105 HP.
Gearbox was a four speed manual.
Brakes were four wheel hydraulic drums.
There were three pickup truck types among the Advance Design Series. These were in the sizes one-half ton-, 3/4 ton, and one-ton models. Designation was 3100, 3600 and 3800. The cargo box length was 78 inches, 87 inches and 108 inches long respectively.
Dimensions for the Chevy 3600 included a 125.25 inch wheelbase and an outside overall length of 206.3 inches.
Total 1950 Chevrolet truck production totaled 422,000 units. Ford truck production for 1950 totaled 234,000 units.
Related Auto Museum Online articles are found on the links below…
Reference material for this article incudes…Chevy Trucks: 100 Years of Building the Future by authors Larry Edsall and Alan Batey..Collectors’ Cars: A Generation of Post-War Classics by Julian Brown..National Chevrolet Assoc..CHEVROLET ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT – FACTORY PRODUCTION REPORT
1950 Chevrolet 3600 Collector Popularity
Currently, light trucks from the 1950’s and 1960’s are very popular with collectors. They are realizing values not seen before and many examples seen today are meticulously restored.
For the automobile and truck restorer, the Advance Design Chevy trucks are considered good vehicles restore. Parts are readily available and prices on fully restored Advance Design Chevy Trucks have been rising quite well recently.
Currently the average asking prices for these same model range from about $30,000 to $75,000 and some even higher. Collector values are based on many things including originality, restoration degree and age and mileage.
(Article and photos copyright Auto Museum Online)