if you were in the market for a 4 door 4x4 truck...

Grumpy

The Grumpy Grease Monkey mechanical engineer.
Staff member
if you were in the market for a 4 door 4x4 truck ,built in the last 5 -6 years ,
what brand and year, truck, would you be looking at?
what options like engine and transmission would be on your list?
what options would tend to make you pass on the truck?
how much mileage would you consider excessive?
what factors would you be sure to look into?
would you bother doing a ,
test drive?

would you insist on a professional evaluation?
do you put much faith in the BLUE BOOKS value assessment, as a price guide?
VIN CHECK?
CAR FAX ?
and WHY!
 
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i would be looking for a silverado, crew cab, with a 4l80e. which would mean its either a 2500 or 3500 series... i dont personally a truck with a 4x4 feature grumpy, but you may have reasons for wanting that. i would avoid a truck with more than 120,000 miles not for the drivetrains sake but because everything else on the truck, inerior and exterior would bebeat up pretty well and proper by then. i would absolutely want to ensure that proper maintenance had been done at the proper interval and i wouldnt buy a dually since i dont think civilians towing less than 10,000 lbs ever require one for other than mental masturbation. i use kelly blue book as a bargaining tool when it speaks in my favor, carfax definitely helps but somepeople can do things off the books to avoid carfax so thats no substitute for a careful inspection.

for us here in florida, pay particular attnetion to the bed and the rear frame of the truck, some boat owners will submerge their back bumper in salt water when deploying their sea craft, but all of them at least dip their tires in the water and throw salt water everywhere underneath. unbeknownst to him from a lack of proper inspection, i have a friend whos truck bed has some serious cancer from this exact practice. hes saving up the money to get a new bed and LINE-X the bottom and interior of the bed before he throws it on the truck.
 
Ford F250 with diesel engine and auto trans from an individual person or known to have come from one in a high salaried part of the state because most take great care of their vehicles. My brother had one that he kept up with meticulous records and had over 250.000 miles on it and the Dealer he bought it from called him to trade it in for a new truck. They gave him more for it than he payed for it on his trade in and had no payments on the new truck. Dealer said that diesel trucks used are like hens teeth because they last so long before they wear out. With the turbo diesel you have plenty of power to pull anything you want. As the old saying goes, it would pull the world around if the tires wouldn't spin. JMTCW
 
The Dodge Cummins Turbo Diesel is by far the most reliable diesel engine and easy to work on.
I have worked on them all.
The worst ever built is that Ford 6.0 LV8 and and present varients.
Just about put Ford out of business that crap engine.

Current LS 6.0 Have a habit of knocking out main bearings with lots of towing.
Its not a Big Block Chevy.
No where near as tough and durable.
 
yea for diesels the cummins is hard to beat... i wish they made a cummins truck with an allison trans ....
 
yea for diesels the cummins is hard to beat... i wish they made a cummins truck with an allison trans ....
Somebody probably has done it.
Installed a Cummins Turbo Diesel behind a GM Allison Transmission .
Used a custom adapter plate.
They sell kits to get Rid of that International V8 in Fords and install A Real Diesel Engine. The Cummins Turbo 6.
 
yea my buddy has a 5.9 cummins hes gonna swap into his 03 excursion... looks like fun
 
I just went out looking over inventory, at local dealerships, with a buddy,
whos looking to buy a new 4x4 crew cab truck,NON-DUAL REAR WHEEL,
we went to NISSAN, FORD,GMC,CHEVY,DODGE, and TOYOTA
he wants a small V8 gas engine,
(something in the 327-390 cubic inch displacement range)
automatic transmission, heavy towing package,
a back-up camera, air conditioning ,
and everything else is pretty much negotiable
I don,t know about him but I sure got
STICKER SHOCK
anything that looks really nice is well north of
$50K

I paid less than $25 K for my first HOUSE ,
and while I'm fully aware that prices have changed,
I still can,t swallow the idea of $800 plus,
a month car payments for 6 years,
and the car salesmen act like thats not only NORMAL,
but they act as if , your a....
STUPID AND CHEAP BASTARD,
if you don,t think that,s a BARGAIN.....obviously
there must be a whole lot of people who make far more money,
than I've ever seen in a weekly pay check
 
I'm just a bit curious, after driving around rather non-productively
and seeing what BOTH my buddy and I see as absurd prices on both new and used trucks,
what used, 4 x 4 , gas engine crew cab truck,
thats at least as new as a 2010, or newer
would you guys buy and WHY ?
would you buy that particular year and brand?
I would love to buy a similar truck, but thats obviously not going to happen,
any time soon with my cash flow issues
(I'm still supporting my family and my older sons wife and family on my fixed income)
 
If I could? And my wife allowed it: 1981 Chevy Suburban 4x4. Why? No frills. Easy to fix. Easy to work on.Lasts forever. LOTS of space. And I like the look.

1981_Chevrolet_Suburban_W81HV-CT001MXb.jpg
 
while ID love to find something similar with a big block engine and over drive transmission,
(or if found at a decent price I'd have zero problem installing both or either component from my collection of parts)
I don,t think finding a mostly rust free version of a similar truck would be very likely.. in a 35 year old 4x4 wheel drive truck at least here in florida... but maybe a 2005- or newer, avalanche??
 
Oddly, there's on in my neighborhood. I'll take a picture of it the next time I see it.

I'd love to restore one. Cut out all the rust and maintain. A labor of love.

The paint on the one in my neighborhood looks original and slightly weathered.
 
Getting hot here about ready to shave the head again,the beard is stayen tho. My son in law has 4- F150's now in various years if I need 1. A friend of his bought mine.Im finally getting around to doing the vibe's rear brake pads,hope to get 1 side done b4 the sun hits me ! 1 side today 1 side tomorrow. I want to paint the rims also,Im in no rush.
 
Getting hot here about ready to shave the head again,the beard is stayen tho. My son in law has 4- F150's now in various years if I need 1. A friend of his bought mine.Im finally getting around to doing the vibe's rear brake pads,hope to get 1 side done b4 the sun hits me ! 1 side today 1 side tomorrow. I want to paint the rims also,Im in no rush.
Driving to Rockford now.
Found a correct mint fan shroud for the 1970 TA.
I damaged the Original.
Have another with broken mounting tabs.
Repros incorrect.
Like 1 in a trillion to find mint today.
Gotta have it !

Working with Crazy Ed later tonight again on his racecar.
Running allover IL today again.
 
Kewl ya found that shroud. I finished up the brakes etc on the Vibe. Drove the Vette into work the last 2 nights,Vibe 2night.
Things kida dead over at DC.
 
Kewl ya found that shroud. I finished up the brakes etc on the Vibe. Drove the Vette into work the last 2 nights,Vibe 2night.
Things kida dead over at DC.
It's got a crack in it.
Facebook marketplace is much like Craigslist.
Bought a real nice clean rear bumper for the TA.
Chrome not bad.

Only so much I can do on DC.
Waiting for that C8.
Jump start again .
Maybe.
 
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