Chevy Veraneio: Brazil's Suburban
Since we’re doing vintage Chevy trucks, let’s not forget that they didn’t look the same in other countries. Brazil had a long tradition of making Chevrolets and other GM vehicles going back to the thirties. And trucks played a big role. The Veraneio was a very popular utility truck built for almost forever. I’m guessing it was probably built on an obsolete chassis that tooling was sent south, as was typical for the era. Similar pickups were obviously on offer too.
Doesn’t this look just like an ad in the US from the same vintage. Well, the colonial effect also applied to advertising agencies, which all had oversees branches wherever big American companies were plying their wares.
So is this a photochop or a genuine Veraneio? Google Images turns up some strange things, and sometimes without any explanation.
This Barzilian C10 truck was the starting point for the Veraneio.
The current Brazilian S-10 is also a cast-off from the US, and although it’s been tarted up a bit, it still has US sheet metal. The days of unique Brazilian trucks is over.
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In 1968 my grandfather bought a Veraneio. My uncle and a few friends had to pick it up in Rio (there was no dealership in our then remote hometown in the Northeast coast). It took them 5 days to get home with the car!!! This vehicle played a major role during the 50's and 60's, as the Brazilian economy boomed and development reached new frontiers. The Ford Rural was the other SUV common in the streets and poor roads of those times. After 1988 it got a new body style (as the C-10 pick-up truck was updated to the D-20 and furthermore Silverado). The models between 1989 and 1998 looked very alike with the Suburban model produced in the late 80's and early 90's in North America. There was also a model called Bonanza that would be the equivalent of the Tahoe, with only 2 doors. On its latest days, the model name was renamed Grand Blazer and was actually imported from Argentina (some photos and text in Portuguese here: http://www.picapesgm.com.br/reportagens/reportagem_grandblazer.htm). There were also a few shops that would transform D-20/Silverado pick-up trucks into Suburban-like SUVs, under special order. They were particularly popular as luxury vehicles until 1990, when imported cars were forbidden in the Country.
the current Brazilian S10 may not be a unique model, but it does have a more handsome & mellow look than the dopey, awkward US truck.