GMT 800 Thoughts? aka 2006 Sierra

[ed1948]

I looked at a 2006 Sierra SLE K1500, 90K miles, non smoker, orig paint, 5.3(driven in a salty winter area) prices just higher than average
The frame has surface rust(little scaling), fender lips and rockers (except one small area)are solid, rear brake lines and parking brake cables newer, bumper rebars are scaly but solid
Anything I should be aware of during the test drive?

The other truck I'm considering is a 96 K1500, 350 Vortec, repaint 10 years ago, no winters since, driveline original, 200K miles, looks new. This costs 2/3 of what the 2006 is going for.

It's tough to find a clean, solid truck around southern Ontario that does not require body work.

 

[online170]

Ed;

I was truck shopping last year for my brother. We basically went from Montreal to London to see what we could find. My advice is to stay away from anything in the toronto/GTA area. They have what i like to call "dealer rust". The first thing i always did was walk up to the truck, and look underneath. If you dont want to get dirty, bring a point and shoot camera with flash, stick it under there and snap a pic. The flash will expose anything thats hiding. Dealers like to take horrible flakey rust, and put rubberized undercoat over it to hide it. It makes it worse and its dishonest.

The GMC's were lower ride height than the fords due to their suspension style, and so tend to be worse for body corrosion. If theres any corrosion you can see when you walk up to it, its 10 times worse in real, its just the tip of the ice berg.

The reason is, our dollar is so poor right now, that anything good gets sold to the states, and we dont have anything nice around here. We noticed once we got out of the GTA this wasnt the case. You could usually find a nice cared for truck from a private sale. Not sure whats happening there economically, but i think with the population in the GTA its hard to snag a good deal. It takes longer for the deal to clear when you go to smaller populus. I would not advise getting anything with even a little bit of rust, unless you only plan to have it short term and can live with it losing value.

That being said, im happy to buy anything with up to 250,000kms. The engine and body will last atleast another 100,000kms without issue. You want to make sure all the wear parts were replaced recently. Ball joints, tie rods, control arm bushings, and shocks are not expensive but they add up. Tires should be new, but if not, you can get them for $400 to $1000 depending on quality level desired. Other than that, test the 4x4 system and make sure its good to go, and listen for regular engine/trans/axle noises and you are good to go. The rest of the stuff is same as cars. You may want to make sure alternator, starter and battery were changed or are very serviceable atleast. Same for coil packs.


The nice thing about trucks is they are built heavy, and will last. 96 or 2006 is a preference thing. I would personally lean towards the 96, because you will get more for your money. I tend to shy away from things that were sold during the "bankrupt" era. Too many cut corners. Save up for something younger than 8yrs old, or go older and pay for good maintenance. Each truck era has its own quirks and advantages.

 

[fleming442]

Don't forget the brake, oil and trans cooler lines! They have been the first to go on our mid-Atlantic trucks.

 

[ed1948]

I took flash pics of the ugly bits - no dealership coverup. The frame has surface rust but nothing flaking off, the fender lips and liners are solid but paint is loose under the factory fender flares). The underbody has rust at seams but the metal is all there. The aluminum rims will need refinishing. the rear brake lines are new.
It appears there is nothing that a pressure wash, wire brushing, phosphoric acid treatment and a good anti rust oil grease application will preserve the chassis. Other than 2 sq inches of one rocker panel nothing else will need paint.

 

[online170]

Here are pics of what i would consider a fairly solid truck for Ontario, that's been well used. This is a 2006, construction truck. Was actually quite well cared for, but also used judging by the gravel and dents on the inside of the bed. He was asking $6500, and that was a fair price. The metal is just a bit pitted with an even orange haze. Flakes are bad.

Going by how clean your monte is, you probably have a good idea of what to look for. My point is just don't settle for rust if you don't have to.There are still some really nice trucks in Ontario if you can find them

 

[online170]

Also, take the trans dip stick, wipe off onto your fingers and give it a sniff test. If it smells burnt, walk away. Thats a really expensive repair.

 

[ed1948]

 

[online170]

Thats a bit on the crusty side for my liking, but you're right theres no flakes, and i've certainly seen much worse.

I dont like the look of those steel lines on the first pic (far left).

 

[ed1948]

Good eye on those steel lines.
There is a big question on buying a low mileage truck - at this stage none of the front end susp. components have been renewed. Wonder if it makes more sense to buy a higher mileage truck that already had wear items replaced?
Caution flags on this truck are possibly ball joints, tie rods, idler bearings are still original.

 

[Turbolq4]

Those trucks are very similar aside from the engine. Same trans, t case, axles, etc. Close enough to be the same.

The engine is where the real difference lies. 5.7 vortec was a good truck engine in it's day but is the red headed step child of the small block engine family. Only put in trucks from 96-98. They suffer from the typical intake gasket issues all small blocks have and the bottom end is decidedly less robust than the LS based engines that replaced it plus they have a distributor that isn't great and make about 50 horsepower less than the 5.3.

They are actually more expensive to replace or find used than the newer engine design as well.

Having said all that I prefer the way they tow over the LS as they have more low end grunt. If you are working either one close to it's maximum capacity they will be strung out and the advantage goes right back to the 5.3.