Half-ton pickup redux

[Ashful]

Just buy used.

He already says he does, which really makes the whole statement more entertaining.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

[

I think it is possible but not likely with most people driving normally

From the article:
"Overall the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado LT with the really nice 4.3L V6 has provided a darn decent 30.0 mpg (29.0 mpgUS actual) over the course of 350 miles of Interstate and 230 miles of city travel. That is pretty hot for a truck of this size.Our drive of the 2014 Silverado with the 4.3L V6 proved that it was not only powerful but very fuel efficient putting a lot of distance between its predecessor despite having the same displacement."


Thats a pretty long drive. Looks like typical all day highway trip From Gurnee, IL to Fort Wayne, IN.
I have a very soft driving style, but i do drive the speed limit plus 5. Article does not give the avgt speed ,im assuming its at the speed limit.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

On the GM MPG forums about the best MPG iv seen with a 4.3 is 27 but with a 4WD which is usually lower than a 2WD

Still way more than im used to. My 93 V6 gets about 10 around town, im sure it wont top 20 on the Hwy. OF course its only 160 HP back then.

 

[duramaxman05]

On a related note i just took my f250hd to pick something up about an hour away and i checked the mpg for the first time i was amazed i got almost 12 mpg i assumed i would have been in single digits with the gearing i have

We have a 2018 f250 4x4 with the 6.2 and 4.30 gears. We are a 12mpg

 

[bholler]

We have a 2018 f250 4x4 with the 6.2 and 4.30 gears. We are a 12mpg

Wow is that empty? I would have expected better. Mine is a 1990 with a 351 c6 3 speed auto and 4.10 gears

 

[Dobish]

Wow is that empty? I would have expected better. Mine is a 1990 with a 351 c6 3 speed auto and 4.10 gears

i fill my tank about once a month in ole rusty. i'm roughly 13mpg

 

[duramaxman05]

Wow is that empty? I would have expected better. Mine is a 1990 with a 351 c6 3 speed auto and 4.10 gears

Yes that is empty. It's only got a couple hundred miles on it. That's also city driving and a little hwy. It's a big truck so I didn't expect it to get too good. It's just our garage queen and is gonna pull the camper. Definitely not our daily driver

 

[bholler]

Yes that is empty. It's only got a couple hundred miles on it. That's also city driving and a little hwy. It's a big truck so I didn't expect it to get too good. It's just our garage queen and is gonna pull the camper. Definitely not our daily driver

Yeah mine was highway i am sure it is less around town or in the hills.

 

[duramaxman05]

Yeah mine was highway i am sure it is less around town or in the hills.

I know the lower 4.30 gears will suffer fuel mileage on the interstate, but they sure make the truck feel more powerful than the 3.73 gears.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

i fill my tank about once a month in ole rusty. i'm roughly 13mpg

95 Must have been when they started using better steel, painfully little rust after 23 salty PA winters.

 

[Dobish]

95 Must have been when they started using better steel, painfully little rust after 23 salty PA winters.

it came from wisconsin, was a work truck for a landscaping company for a lot of years, and i'm pretty sure it never saw a car wash... **(i washed the hood once, but i'm afraid it will fall apart if i wash the sides or under carriage)

 

[Seasoned Oak]

it came from wisconsin, was a work truck for a landscaping company for a lot of years, and i'm pretty sure it never saw a car wash... **(i washed the hood once, but i'm afraid it will fall apart if i wash the sides or under carriage)

Had a 1999 toyota i felt the same way about and it was only 7 yrs old at the time. Only thing coming off My 95 is the clear coat on the paint.

 

[Stelcom66]

For the first time since I bought the 2002 Silverado in March I filled it and calculated the MPGs at 14.6. As suspected, about the same as the Honda Pilot. In 340 miles about 27% highway, it's the 5.3 V8 so no complaints. I know the new trucks can do better.

 

[Stelcom66]

We have a 2018 f250 4x4 with the 6.2 and 4.30 gears. We are a 12mpg

It'll probably improve a bit over time.

 

[Ashful]

Had a 1999 toyota i felt the same way about and it was only 7 yrs old at the time. Only thing coming off My 95 is the clear coat on the paint.

The body on my 1995 Silverado held up pretty well, at least as of when I sold it in 2005. But the brake lines and exhaust all fell apart at 6 - 8 years of age. It seemed to happen to each of my buddies with Chevy pickups, within a year or three of my own. Pathetic.

 

[bholler]

The body on my 1995 Silverado held up pretty well, at least as of when I sold it in 2005. But the brake lines and exhaust all fell apart at 6 - 8 years of age. It seemed to happen to each of my buddies with Chevy pickups, within a year or three of my own. Pathetic.

The same as our newer ones.

I bought a new project today and agreed to sell the j10 to a freind. I picked up a 1990 bronco really cheap almost rust free with really nothing wrong with it other than needing paint and it has a fuel issue. Once i get it running i am getting rid of my pos trailblazer.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

The body on my 1995 Silverado held up pretty well, at least as of when I sold it in 2005. But the brake lines and exhaust all fell apart at 6 - 8 years of age. It seemed to happen to each of my buddies with Chevy pickups, within a year or three of my own. Pathetic.

Have never changed any brake lines in the 15 yrs or so i have the truck. Probably washing the salt off in the spring helps. Exhaust is a very corrosive item on any vehicle,6 to 8 yrs is a long time for exhaust pipes.My toyota went thru exhaust parts much faster,and they were a lot more expensive to replace.

 

[bholler]

Have never changed any brake lines in the 15 yrs or so i have the truck. Probably washing the salt off in the spring helps. Exhaust is a very corrosive item on any vehicle,6 to 8 yrs is a long time for exhaust pipes.My toyota went thru exhaust parts much faster,and they were a lot more expensive to replace.

They had probably rusted and been replaced with coated lines already if that is the case

 

[WiscWoody]

Thanks for posting the photos - was curious when you said it's a local legend in your town! (I'd like to live in a small town like that) Although it's a truck thread your post is significant since some have (and I hope to at some point) an economical, older (for me preferably manual trans.) car when a truck isn't necessary. I'd probably just have collision on one vehicle to keep insurance costs down. That's cool you've had a vehicle that long, and may for a few more years to come.

That’s what I figured, I’d have a small economical car that didn’t cost much to buy and fuel up and then I’d have a truck too for when I’d need it. The ECHO only costs me $22 a month to insure it for liability and it gets around 38-42 mpg nowadays. It’s a manual also. You can still find these cars for sale with not a lot of miles on them for just a few thousand dollars. I will likely be looking for another one when this one finally goes into the ground.

 

[BrotherBart]

The brake lines on my Suburban rotted. On a winding back road one day I came up behind a guy on a bicycle and decided to pass him rather than slam on the brakes. Almost head on'ed a car coming the opposite direction around a curve. When I got home and went to stop at the mailbox I pressed the brake peddle and just keep going. Glad I didn't try to stop behind the guy on the bike or 7,100 pounds of truck would have squashed him like a bug.

Replaced the brake lines with stainless steel ones.

 

[WiscWoody]

i get around just fine up here with my little Toyota with just a pair of Cooper snow tires on the front. This winter we got 96 inches of snow. I think I was stuck maybe 3 or 4 times this last winter and I got myself out of them all myself with just a little shoveling and rocking. But yes, a 4wd would be nice to have in the winters up here.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

I did replace some brake lines on the 93. A very small inexpensive repair for an otherwise good dependable truck.

 

[bholler]

I did replace some brake lines on the 93. A very small inexpensive repair for an otherwise good dependable truck.

Unless they blow out on the road then it can be kind of a big deal

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Unless they blow out on the road then it can be kind of a big deal

Which is why one of the the two things commonly made in stainless steel are brake lines along with exhaust pipes an mufflers,also prone to excessive corrosion. SS brake lines should be standard equipment on every vehicle for a part so inexpensive and so vital to safety.

 

[Ashful]

I did replace some brake lines on the 93. A very small inexpensive repair for an otherwise good dependable truck.

Not small or inexpensive, when their failure causes an accident. I had my fronts go out on the 95 Silverado when stopping from 55mph into a very busy intersection. Could have easily killed me. Sadly, I think most car companies are still not using stainless here, but somehow I see more failures of brake lines in GM trucks and vans, than any other.

Exhaust is a very corrosive item on any vehicle,6 to 8 yrs is a long time for exhaust pipes.

That was true for decades, but not since 1990. Example, my 2005 Dodge still had the original pipes when I sold it in 2017, and they still even looked almost new, despite it being used mostly in bad weather. On that truck, it was the body that started showing rust after 12 years, not the exhaust or brake lines. I replaced it for purely cosmetic reasons, it was just starting to look a little trashy.

Stainless exhaust is no longer the realm of exotic super cars, I can’t believe Chevy is one of the few still not using it. All of my current cars have stainless exhaust, from the factory.