What old half ton to seek out
- Thread starter Orangepeel
- Start date
If that's the benchmark, Ford would be the answer in my area. Even if fenders are flapping in the wind and boxe sides are missing, I see more 8th gen f150 driving around than squarebody Chevy or 1st Gen Ram.
But that's not necessarily a reliable indicator. Vehicle popularity, sales volume, survival rates are all region dependent. I'd guess that you'll get many different answers to that question.
But that's not necessarily a reliable indicator. Vehicle popularity, sales volume, survival rates are all region dependent. I'd guess that you'll get many different answers to that question.
Absolutely. The 330k OE rear end inckuding g80 on my Tahoe are proof of this. Never is it hammered from a stop
The answer for old 1/2 ton is always GMT800.
Interesting point on looking around at what's out there. Around here there's way more GMT400 and 800 than '87-97 Fords or bubble bodies '97-03.
I'm honestly surprised at how many '04-08 F150 are still on the road here given the high mortality rate of the 3V. Although the majority look like grandpa cream puffs that see very low miles.
I'm also surprised at how many 2nd Gen Rams still roll around. If you're not in the rust belt they're hard to kill.
I'm honestly surprised at how many '04-08 F150 are still on the road here given the high mortality rate of the 3V. Although the majority look like grandpa cream puffs that see very low miles.
I'm also surprised at how many 2nd Gen Rams still roll around. If you're not in the rust belt they're hard to kill.
For every 8th gen ford out there, there is 10 gmt 400's, and in great shape aswell BTW. Ill bet those ford you speak of never left a farm.
Sure, maybe where you are at. A great example of how it varies by area.
Not that it means much, but here's what the first hits on my area's marketplace bring up for each name:
Scrolling down the list, there are about 6 GMT400's in the first 50 trucks. No squarebody. Not sure OP was looking to go any newer.
But, again, this is a great example of how perceived popularity is meaningless, isn't it?
Not that it means much, but here's what the first hits on my area's marketplace bring up for each name:
Scrolling down the list, there are about 6 GMT400's in the first 50 trucks. No squarebody. Not sure OP was looking to go any newer.
But, again, this is a great example of how perceived popularity is meaningless, isn't it?
I had several, from a '71 GMC C1500 350/Turbo 350, a '78 F100 302 (swapped with 351W 3 on the tree), an '02 Dodge Ram 2500 (HO Cu,mins 6 speed 4X4 Quad cab), and an '06 Dodge Ram 3500 SRW (Cummins 48RE 4X4 Mega Cab)... The Express 3500 in my sig (6.0 LS 4L90E) with studded snows in winter if needed, does everything the others could do for a LOT less money & headaches.
I have 263k on my Silverado and I thought the rear end was gone because of some noises at low speed over uneven terrain and some play in the rear end when we were checking it out...
Spent $300 on a used rear end with much lower miles and took it to a trans shop where I know the manager...they looked at it and said they didn't know what the noises I was hearing were from but the rear end was fine. They also said they don't see many of the gmt800 rear ends fail, mostly Rams in this era apparently.
This truck has been hammered on from time to time (though usually I'm trying to be easy on it). I've experienced where the g80 locker would get stuck locked after I spun the tires and then changing the gear oil would prevent it from happening for a couple of years.
My friend in highschool had a 71 Chevy c10 Cheyenne with the same powertrain....it was an amazing truck. He knew nothing about vehicles and replaced it with a 1999 cavalier but that truck never stranded him.
I had a 78 f100 302 that I sold when I was in hard times. Paid $200 and sold for $600.
What year is your express? My father in law has 3 of those and doesn't understand why anyone would want to work out of anything else lol but they are a pain in the nuts to work on some stuff, so there are some headaches.
Everything I’ve heard locally is that the 400s and 800s are best-of-breed, but the 800 was the pinnacle.
That said, if you’re ok with lots of hose under the hood, the mid-80s fords with the I6 and a 5MT were really nice trucks to spend some time in. I borrowed one for a few weeks, commuted 3 hours/day in it and moved our house with it in about 27 trips, on top of the commute. I would choose the straight six over the 8.
That said, if you’re ok with lots of hose under the hood, the mid-80s fords with the I6 and a 5MT were really nice trucks to spend some time in. I borrowed one for a few weeks, commuted 3 hours/day in it and moved our house with it in about 27 trips, on top of the commute. I would choose the straight six over the 8.
The older GM;s are worth a mint it seems.
Find a non rusted 2005 thru 2008 ford F150 with the underpowered 4.6L V8. Higher mileage is not a problem as the engines go 300k with basic dino oil. These drivelines are near bulletproof and these body styles do not hold their value. People look at the body style and just think cam phasers due to the poor reliability of the 5.4L 3V. The 4.6L 2V does not have any of these issues.
These body styles have issues with rust, integrated wheel ends, fuel pump driver modules, and they will need the instrument cluster soldered so the cold solder joints dont cause the cluster to go in and out. These are pretty cheap and the driveline is near bulletproof. Address those simple things and these are excellent trucks. The fuel pump driver module is not optional, you must replace as this part will leave you on the road dead when it rains.
Find a non rusted 2005 thru 2008 ford F150 with the underpowered 4.6L V8. Higher mileage is not a problem as the engines go 300k with basic dino oil. These drivelines are near bulletproof and these body styles do not hold their value. People look at the body style and just think cam phasers due to the poor reliability of the 5.4L 3V. The 4.6L 2V does not have any of these issues.
These body styles have issues with rust, integrated wheel ends, fuel pump driver modules, and they will need the instrument cluster soldered so the cold solder joints dont cause the cluster to go in and out. These are pretty cheap and the driveline is near bulletproof. Address those simple things and these are excellent trucks. The fuel pump driver module is not optional, you must replace as this part will leave you on the road dead when it rains.
The 300, 351 and 460 didn't get EFI until '88. The 302 got it in '85 and Ford did push the 302 pretty hard as a result from '85-87. Plenty of F250s in those years with the 302EFI, and of course F150 and Bronco.
With Ford's EEC-IV you could eliminate A LOT of the spaghetti under the hood with near zero consequence. I always tore out the air pumps and the tubes running down the heads obstructing the spark plugs. People say it'll "burn up the cat" but I never saw that happen.
That said, I'm not real familiar with the 300EFI engine bay layout. It was kind of a rare motor option unless fleets or municipalities wanted it to save $. However, as I said I did learn to drive in an '88 300EFI/M5OD. It was a Bronco Custom (Custom = stripper and later became just XL). Custom was quite a misnomer I thought
and probably why they dropped it in favor of "XL"I think this is spot on.
When I worked at a Goodyear garage we kept one of those busted fuel pump driver modules on a window will to show people what the problem was (when it happened to them). We had multiple Ford trucks come in with that problem. They would literally fall apart under the truck.
In my area (Ontario Canada) it's GM I see a lot more of older ones. I think it's a similar ratio of rusty ones to nice ones but there are just mods 99-07 gm trucks in general. I think there are more 07-13 models too but newer than that probably I see more f150s.
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Looking at an 06 sierra tonight single cab long bed 4.3 with the nv3500 and a 95 f150 300 i6 with the manual transmission. Both 2nd both similar in mileage. GMC is 151,000 ford is 180,000.
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The Chevy had a 3.23 rear end and was a dog! But surprisingly clean underneath. The ford was rusty underneath the rear shackles needs replaced interior was rougher etc but the drivetrain was great some minor seepage but ran good! A lot more enjoyable to drive. Both had some issues to address though. Didn’t pull the trigger on either.
