Who's got a new truck ?

[DiffEQ]

Food for thought.....

 

[jds holler]

Those heated seat have kept me warm at nite more than once.

Back in the day, we just had to use the "share the dog" method of staying warm.
A couple of times I actually froze to death. -- but when the coyotes started howling in the morning, I snapped out of it. jd

 

[sw282]

Completely new frame

We had a 2002 GMC Envoy bought used in 2004 after coming back from lraq. l got in a little bad weather at around 10mph. Ran off the road hitting a culvert, breaking off the right front wheel and bending the frame. The lns company elected to fix the ENVOY with a completely new frame from GMC. Took awhile to get all the bugs worked out, but l drove it almost 20 yrs before passing it on to my son last summer!

 

[sw282]

I keep kicking this around in my head. I would most likely go Chevy/Gmc. If I suffered a traumatic brain injury that impaired my mental faculties even more, maybe, jus maybe Dodge/Ram...

Daddy always said he'd rather have a sister in a ''brothel'' than a damn Dodge

 

[JFrank]

Exactly my train of thought, I bought this 2019 a couple weeks ago with 57K on the clock.

Blew my wad on new tires & wheels too:

That’s a good truck, mine hauls ass and gets good mileage . I bought mine a couple years ago for a bit over 30k with about the same miles on it.

 

[Gman]

Funny, I look at it as not where company profits go but where all the wages and jobs go.
Alabama has become an automobile manufacturing powerhouse with the likes of Mercedes, Honda, Toyota and Hyundai to make a few. Thousands upon thousands of Americans go to work in those plants everyday and the economy is strong here. Every one of those plants has grown in both size and manpower over the years. Merrcedes (only one example) has spent billions in the USA on manufacturing facilities, infrastructure and donating much more to the future of the State. All these auto manufacturers also use vendors for parts here in the state. Those companies come here too, bringing more jobs and more investment in the State and the Country.
Are you starting to see my point?

Totally agree with what is written here!

GM has 15 manufacturing facilities in the USA.

GM has 88 manufacturing facilities overseas.

 

[PhilC]

The FE went to Lemans in the Shelby car if I am not mistaken.

The 427ci FE beat Ferrari at Lemans.

 

[Dave M.]

That is because their export costs are greater than the inefficiency cost of US labor. And now x 5 when Trump gets into action.

Precisely, you’d be surprised how many I talk that simply don’t understand this fact. They think these foreign auto companies come and build plants in the US out of the kindness of their hearts. lol

 

[Steve Donlon]

I am in sticker shock as my 2005 Duramax K2500 has bit the dust at 280000 miles. I had just put new exhaust manifolds on it because my ego said get it to 300,000 and had the drill out every bolt.
It was running great and was pulling my camper down the highway when an injector ran amok and hydro locked the engine. I started to tear it down and was breaking every head bolt too and gave up and sold it for practically nothing to a guy with more patience and time than I have.

I paid $45,000 for that truck new in 2005 and am looking at about the same cost for a 2017-2018 with 100,000 miles on it to replace it.

My 2005 4x4 3500 single cab duelly with a 8.1 big block 6 speed manual, was $25000 out the door. I ordered it as a WT work truck. I had a diesel once and swore never again. If you don't drive them a lot, they will nickel and dime you to death but with 100 dollar bills instead of nickels and dimes. I have been offered close to what I paid for it. 80,000 miles on it. If I'm driving down off the mountain, I'll drive our turbo Subaru.

 

[perazziguy]

So, I paid 6k for the Blazer. Figure if I went totally crazy and dropped a 6.2 liter LS engine on with a trans, and aftermarket AC I might have $15k in it if I went whole hog.

But I would rather have a 454 with a carb. People bad mouth carbs, but other than letting the engine warm up a bit when it's 10 degrees outside, my carbed trucks always got me there. And I could drop a new one on in an hour if I needed.

How about the 6.2 with a big ole carb on there?!?

 

[urbanrifleman]

How about the 6.2 with a big ole carb on there?!?

Exactly what I plan to do when I do an LS.

 

[G Liles]

I heard that the new Fords have heated tailgates!!

 

[Kracken McGraw]

I heard that the new Fords have heated tailgates!!

Is that the Mother in Law option?

 

[perazziguy]

I heard that the new Fords have heated tailgates!!

Gm tailgates are about 6 grand. Way too fancy for this cat!

 

[Tesoro]

My 2005 4x4 3500 single cab duelly with a 8.1 big block 6 speed manual, was $25000 out the door. I ordered it as a WT work truck. I had a diesel once and swore never again. If you don't drive them a lot, they will nickel and dime you to death but with 100 dollar bills instead of nickels and dimes. I have been offered close to what I paid for it. 80,000 miles on it. If I'm driving down off the mountain, I'll drive our turbo Subaru.

I didnt really know much about the 8.1L ( stroked 454 = 496 cu in) until I bought a little motorhome this year that had one. This engine was designed to be GM's alternative to a diesel and , as you know, it has crazy torque for a gasser at 450 ft lbs stock with a long flat curve. It is very strong with all heavy cast, ss headers and single cam with 2 valves per. It is the 12v Cummins of the gasoline engine world imo. It is also marine racing engine of choice designed for continuos. duty. The std factory 'dock test' was to take a boat powered with 8.1 and tie it to a dock and then run full throttle for 55 min/ 5 min idle/55 full throttle/5min idle FOR 12 CONTINUOUS DAYS!! (300hrs). If more people had really known about this engine they wouldnt have bought duramaxes. Oh and the 8.1L pickups also had allisons trans!
I am going to find one of these with lo miles and comfy package in 3.4 ton 4x4 and call it my last truck. They are hard to find and command prices in 25-30k range, as you know!
ps: the most experienced heavy and light truck diesel mechanic I know drives a 2006 8.1L 4x4!

 

[butchlambert]

How about the 6.2 with a big ole carb on there?!?

I don't want a carb on anything!

 

[butchlambert]

I didnt really know much about the 8.1L ( stroked 454 = 496 cu in) until I bought a little motorhome this year that had one. This engine was designed to be GM's alternative to a diesel and , as you know, it has crazy torque for a gasser at 450 ft lbs stock with a long flat curve. It is very strong with all heavy cast, ss headers and single cam with 2 valves per. It is the 12v Cummins of the gasoline engine world imo. It is also marine racing engine of choice designed for continuos. duty. The std factory 'dock test' was to take a boat powered with 8.1 and tie it to a dock and then run full throttle for 55 min/ 5 min idle/55 full throttle/5min idle FOR 12 CONTINUOUS DAYS!! (300hrs). If more people had really known about this engine they wouldnt have bought duramaxes. Oh and the 8.1L pickups also had allisons trans!
I am going to find one of these with lo miles and comfy package in 3.4 ton 4x4 and call it my last truck. They are hard to find and command prices in 25-30k range, as you know!
ps: the most experienced heavy and light truck diesel mechanic I know drives a 2006 8.1L 4x4!

Does your 502 have 335,000 trouble free miles? My Duramax does.

 

[G Liles]

Is that the Mother in Law option?

It’s to keep your hands warm while you push it!!

 

[Tesoro]

Does your 502 have 335,000 trouble free miles? My Duramax does.

You are lucky! The gasser I mentioned is an alternative for towing and not a challenge to a diesel. My septic guy has a 2001 Dodge with 420k trouble free miles. But that dont mean every one of duramax or cummins power will last that long without having some costly repairs. Diesels cost alot to repair and parts are expensive. You can get about all parts aftermarket for the 8.1L at any napa store and any shade tree mechanic can do the work for you. You can also run it on cheap gasoline. Where I am camping in South Arizona right now, I have seen gas for 2.75 and the diesel I am buying is 3.90. Makes the gas vs diesel mpg comparison interesting if you can figure out the math!

Modern emissions have killed new light truck efficiency and reliability imo, unless you live is a place like I do where it is legal to strip off all that stuff so you are not feeding it its own excrement.

 

[Steve Donlon]

I didnt really know much about the 8.1L ( stroked 454 = 496 cu in) until I bought a little motorhome this year that had one. This engine was designed to be GM's alternative to a diesel and , as you know, it has crazy torque for a gasser at 450 ft lbs stock with a long flat curve. It is very strong with all heavy cast, ss headers and single cam with 2 valves per. It is the 12v Cummins of the gasoline engine world imo. It is also marine racing engine of choice designed for continuos. duty. The std factory 'dock test' was to take a boat powered with 8.1 and tie it to a dock and then run full throttle for 55 min/ 5 min idle/55 full throttle/5min idle FOR 12 CONTINUOUS DAYS!! (300hrs). If more people had really known about this engine they wouldnt have bought duramaxes. Oh and the 8.1L pickups also had allisons trans!
I am going to find one of these with lo miles and comfy package in 3.4 ton 4x4 and call it my last truck. They are hard to find and command prices in 25-30k range, as you know!
ps: the most experienced heavy and light truck diesel mechanic I know drives a 2006 8.1L 4x4!

One of those tests said they ran the engine at redline for 72 hours. I think by 2005 they had all the bugs out and had done all they could and still keep in compliant. It is easy to get way more power out of one. Living at altitude, I've thought about the supercharger upgrade. 2006 was the last year. Good luck finding one. Most people shy away because of the gas milage, but that's because of the gearing. If I keep it down to less than 2000 rpms, it's more like a small blocks' mpg. The 6 speed manual is the same trans in the heavy duty Dodge and Fords during those years from what I have read. Yes the Allison auto is bomb proof and really a better trans in most ways. Shifting the 6 speed manual is not for everyone. You have to pause in between shifts. Takes awhile to get used to. No speed shifts.