Anybody still tow with an old GM?

[BurbMan]

The old GMT-900, when the Duramax and 8.1L were the kings of the hill for diesel and gas, model years 00-07....used to see a zillion of them on the road, and now none....Maybe because all the brake lines rotted here in the northeast? Or did everybody upgrade to ventilated seats with bluetooth and back up camera?

[gtnsmlr]

Bionic Man wrote:
I had a 2003 Burb, 2500 with the 8.1. Did a good job of towing the boat, but I must say, I don't understand what all the fuss is about. I think that engine is WAY over rated, especially if you compare it to the more modern engines. The 6.2 in the Yukon Denali that replaced it was a more powerful tow engine, and got better MPG towing than the 8.1 ever did solo.

Make no mistake. We are living in "the good ole days".

Well, my car payment for the last 12 years has been 0. How bout you?

[gtnsmlr]

Just finished putting a coat of wax on my 05 CC long bed 2500HD 8.1 Allison with 120K on the clock. Not a scratch on if.

[Grit_dog]

blofgren wrote:


Young buck! You got me beat by almost 10 years; still looking forward to the borders opening and we can meet up for a beer, bud! :B

I know...Going to be no spring hockey in Canada again this year...I'm done with this sh_t!
Some of the best youth hockey in the country is 2 hours away from here and we're playing in Texas...
In the meantime, stay safe and have a few Kokanees for me!

[hornet28]

j3ff9ack wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
^Unicorn truck. Nice!

Thanks - I really like the color combination on your squarebody - I wish they would come up with a good two-tone combo on new GM trucks.

Just take your truck to a body shop you trust and have them spray whatever color combo you want. That's what I did with my 07 it was solid blue/gray when I bought it.

[blofgren]

We have a 2001 GMC Yukon SLT with 272k kms on it that we use to tow our 18' bowrider boat with. We bought it from the original owner about 2 1/2 years ago, and he had it serviced religiously at GM since new.

The 5.3L runs like new and we love the truck; we find we end up taking it more than our other vehicles at times because it is so nice to drive. I had to replace the hard brake lines because they were absolutely rotten. Unfortunately, I'm fighting some surface rust starting on the body near the rear doors and also some quite severe rusting on the frame ahead of the rear wheels. The truck was undercoated when it was new and I think it actually worked to hold moisture against the frame in this area and make it corrode to the point where there are some holes forming. Although it is a box frame and I'm not overly worried about it, I am going to get some plates cut and welded on the frame and it should be good then.

It's our first GM and overall we are quite happy with it. We love the room in it and it pulls the boat very well.

[blofgren]

Grit dog wrote:

ksss wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
@hornet28
Now if that squarebody had the LBZ and Alli in it......Ha
Nice haulers!

I had found an 84 1 Ton SRW that I almost bought to put a D/A in. I had a similar truck years ago and missed it. Took it for a spin and realized while I missed those trucks, it wasn't enough to dump that kind of money into. It would be a cool truck though.

Yeah, a truck that originated when I was 1 year old is not something I want for towing or road trips. I don’t own a type writer, a reel mower, movie projector or telephone with a dial either. Lol

Young buck! You got me beat by almost 10 years; still looking forward to the borders opening and we can meet up for a beer, bud! :B

[Grit_dog]

ksss wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
@hornet28
Now if that squarebody had the LBZ and Alli in it......Ha
Nice haulers!

I had found an 84 1 Ton SRW that I almost bought to put a D/A in. I had a similar truck years ago and missed it. Took it for a spin and realized while I missed those trucks, it wasn't enough to dump that kind of money into. It would be a cool truck though.

Yeah, a truck that originated when I was 1 year old is not something I want for towing or road trips. I don’t own a type writer, a reel mower, movie projector or telephone with a dial either. Lol

[ksss]

Grit dog wrote:
@hornet28
Now if that squarebody had the LBZ and Alli in it......Ha
Nice haulers!

I had found an 84 1 Ton SRW that I almost bought to put a D/A in. I had a similar truck years ago and missed it. Took it for a spin and realized while I missed those trucks, it wasn't enough to dump that kind of money into. It would be a cool truck though.

[j3ff9ack]

Grit dog wrote:
^Unicorn truck. Nice!

Thanks - I really like the color combination on your squarebody - I wish they would come up with a good two-tone combo on new GM trucks.

[Grit_dog]

@hornet28
Now if that squarebody had the LBZ and Alli in it......Ha
Nice haulers!

[Grit_dog]

^Unicorn truck. Nice!

[j3ff9ack]

I had been searching a couple summers ago for a low mileage LBZ and I finally found this one - 76,000 miles and just a few scratches that I could find.


I don't tow our 5er with it, but it tows ATVs and the boat well.

[ls1mike]

Up until last year I had been towing with a 2002 2500HD 6.0/4L80E. I had it for 12 years. Was a solid truck never any issues. I upgraded to a 2017 3500HD gasser. The old truck got the job done, but this one does it much better.

[hornet28]

Grit dog wrote:
That truck is AwESOME! And mean too! That’s a lot of engine for that long ago. Did you build the engine?

It wasn't really that long ago. I bought the truck in late 09 out in Phoenix. Motor was done by a friend who was an engine builder, he'd built NASCAR and off shore racing boat motors. He'd even work with Smokey Yunick on a Indy 500 project. The motor was built for low end grunt. I pulled one year with 4.56 gears and the next year bought a bigger trailer and changed to 3.73 gear. That was a big mistake as the mileage went down the tubes. Pulled through Mt. Id. Wy and the mileage dropped into the 5's. The problem with the 3.73 gear was that I was unable to run OD many times while with the 4.56 I'd have been able too and at lower RPMs I bought my 07 diesel that fall and more than doubled the mileage.
Here's my 07