There’s lots to take in from the classic film The Terminator. There’s Arnold Schwarzenegger murdering dudes when he’s naked. There are also several explosions. But also: this wonderful Chevy pickup.
In the pantheon of famous vehicles attached to Terminators of all kinds, this is not The Truck. That role would go to the tow truck that the liquid metal cyborg drives off a bridge into the LA river in Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
After that, it would go to the Jeep that Sarah Connor drives into the distance at the end of the very first Terminator. And after that, it would probably go to the motorcycle that Arnold rides at any given time, or the semi truck that Arnold drives in The Terminator also after crashing the motorcycle (the Honda CB 750 in the first one).
Deep down on the list—enough that I completely forgot about it—is this squarebody C/K Chevy.
IMCDB lists it as a ‘73 C-10, though what exactly is not super important, as you can swap around grilles on these things and no great difference is made. The truck is only in one main scene, when Connor and the guy who is not the Terminator but is good and from the future get chased out of a motel and throw pipe bombs at Arnold. That scene is ripped here, but I will include some screenshots that are less likely to get taken down.
Note the owner of the truck, ripped from its cab:
Quality ‘stache. Also note that some of the roof lights point backwards:
Dig the double bar rear bumper, very budget chic.
And note that, as one IMCDB commenter going by Truck Man notes that “When the truck is flipped over, you will see the engine, transmission, driveshaft, fuel tank and exhaust have been removed and only the rear axle and front suspention [sic] remain.”
Another commenter notes “Funny thing is it’s a c-10 done up to look like a 4wd truck haha.” That is period-correct to its core.
In any case, now you can appreciate this C/K as I did and do, a perfectly period-modified pickup for the early Reagan years. (The Terminator came out in 1984.) The lights, the tube bumpers, the other lights.
Good shit.