GMC General

1977 General

1977 was a big year for GMC. Not only was it at the top of the Heavy Truck Market, but it had two new Class 8 trucks introduced. First, was the 9500 series based Brigadier, and the other was an all-new, long BBC conventional-the General. Yes, it's name is playing off the military term, like the Brigadier and the Topkick. This also explains the 5-Star logos( a 5-Star General, get it?). Anyway, the General was launched in 1977, and sales took off, in Class 8 truck terms.

General Interior

1982 Five-Star General

The General had two BBC lengths-and not because of the addition of a sleeper! There was a 108" BBC, and a 116" BBC. The hoods were different lengths. The General was standard with a standard leaf spring setup in rear, although the famed GMC Astro-Aire air suspension could be ordered. A Detroit Diesel 92 series 8 cyinder. was standard, while Cummins were available. Spicer, Allison, and Fuller transmissions were available. Like the Astro, the General was basically custom built to your desires and requirements. You could have a custom paint job, custom radios, custom trim, etc. GMC had it's own Custom Shop department to handle these requests. Normal options included the powertrain options above, and axle ratings and suspension setup. The General's interior was pretty popular for ease of maintence. You could easily replace toggle switches or gauges with just a screwdriver, and a panel above the steering column contained all of the circuit breakers. The General was fairly comfortable for both driver and passenger, with options ranging from air suspension bucket seats, AM/FM Radios, A/C, etc.

1982 Base General

The first major changes to the General didn't happen untill the early 80's. Then, there were 2 trim levels: the 5 Star General, which the previous Generals were, and the base General, which was a more basic work truck trim. The 5-Star had the 5-Star hood ornament, 5 stars on the sides of the hood, and a nicer interior. The General didn't have any 5 Stars, and it only had single headlights in it's bezels(see at left). The base General was popular in the construction industry, and around this time the Construction Fender option was introduced-it was made of heavy treadplate steel instead of fiberglass-giving it more strength for heavy-vocations. I belive it was for the base General only.

1987 General Set Back Axle

The General in Smokey and the Bandit II

The General at GM's Test Track Ride

Disney/EPCOT, Orlando FL

And so the General was phased out at the end of that year, when the GMC Heavy Duty Trucks were sold to Volvo. However, many Generals are still on the road today, due in part to a fiberglass hood and an aluminum cab.. There's one at EPCOT at the GM Test Track Ride during the brake/collision avoidance test part. There's even one in Smokey and The Bandit 2. GMC Generals will live on, no matter what.