Miss the Simplicity: Miss my 87'
 

Have had a bad experience on a truck I purchased less than a year ago. 2001 GMC Sierra 4x4 4.8 extended cab. 120,000 miles. Well kept with very mimimal rust which is rare in New England.

Recent homeowner. Sold my 87 R10 many years ago. Needed a truck to do homeowner things. Not a vehicle I drive everyday but I figured having 4x4 to boot would be another great plus to have.

I had considered getting another square body... this time a K series but they are either rotted out junk or upwards of $10k around here. I figured it would be great to have some modern features and technology. I know the GMT800 series trucks have generally a decent reputation. I looked at some Fords at the time too but this Sierra caught my eye.

Bought it last March. Since then:

- Power window regulator quit in the down position
- E brake cable snapped
- AC leak which I can't for the life of me find..... I believe it has to be in the evap deep under the dash
- Fuel supply and return lines rusted and started leaking
- First snow storm of the season yesterday, 4wd quit workin (push button system).
- Alternator quit
- A brake line popped

Now, i realize that pretty much all the problems listed with the exception of the electronic 4x4 issue can/will also plague older pre-90s truck but geeze... I drive this vehicle once a week. Never had a used vehicle with this many issues so quickly.

Got my thinking; these trucks and their creature comforts are great but post 100,000 miles all that crap is eventually gonna start to fail. Can't afford a new truck and I realize what a 120,000 mile used truck post 90s now entails.

I miss the crank windows, no abs, manual floor shift 4x4 with MANUAL locking hubs, and dead reliable TBI or even carb setup.

I feel like with the older trucks it's easier to keep them rolling after 100,000 miles with simple repairs compared to these newer post 90s trucks.

What ya'll think? Should I continue moving along with the times or go back in time?

Re: Miss the Simplicity: Miss my 87'
 

The majority of issues you listed are all northeast/road salt problems (I grew up in NY, hated it).

Newer vehicles are "jump in and go" and hardly anyone actually services them properly anymore.

It sounds like someone was probably aware they were about to have to spend $ to keep that one going and decided to dump it.

The 4x4 dash switch is a "known issue." Mine went out around the same mileage, at the time I picked an OEM one up on ebay for $40. Takes all of 5 minutes to swap.

I owned my GMT 800 (2000 Z71) for 11 years. It was the best vehicle I've ever owned. Bought it used in 2004 and traded it in 2015 with 185K almost completely trouble free miles. I remember replacing the 4x4 dash switch and fuel pump around 130K, that was about it. I did have to replace a couple window regulators as well. Pretty simple swap. The motors go bad on them and one thing I learned is to NEVER EVER try to open a window with ice on it. That's what broke mine both times... cables snapped.

Also check your fuel straps. They have a rubberized coating but have been known to rot from the inside out and "look" ok, but not be.


I say if you like it, fix it and keep rolling.

Re: Miss the Simplicity: Miss my 87'
 

Definitely a rust belt related issue on the brake line and fuel lines and also that e-brake cable.

I fluid filmed the undercarriage prior to our first snow storm yesterday. Truck decided to thank me with the 4x4 issue :banghead:

Re: Miss the Simplicity: Miss my 87'
 

Most of these sound like pretty standard issues. You will run into these issues on a square body as much as you do on a newer truck. All of the truck me and my father owned (around 8 ranging from 1970-1999) have had issues with brake lines, fuel lines, and even a couple gas tanks rusting away. All of those trucks still lasted well over 200k miles on the original engine, transmission.

That said, I'm not crazy about how difficult it is to bleed the ABS system, and I do like the old school 4wd shifter, but it is nice to be able to go into 4wd while moving without having to worry about hubs.

Re: Miss the Simplicity: Miss my 87'
 

Dorman makes a pre-bent SS kit for the brakes and now the fuel lines of those trucks, it's like 100 bucks for the brakes, haven't priced the fuel. Regulators are easy peasy to swap out as well. Like Jesse mentioned the push button issue is well known, swap it out and keep on rollin. My 03 duramax has 167 on it, squirrels got into the main harness and caused almost 7 grand in damage to it this summer, but it's all buttoned up now.