moral support required!

[Robyn]

Well now
I would look over the list of issues and start fixing them one at a time.
Brakes are defiantely high on the list of things to have working well.

Most of what the mechanic has told you about can be fixed in the driveway/garage.
The only thing you will really need the shop for is a line up on the front end after you replace the worn out parts.
I have been through the entire front end on one of these beasts and its not all that bad. I will say I would much rather work on the old straight axle but the IFS is no biggy.

Fix the safety issues first and then move on. Find out why you have the code and get on top of that so you dont cause undo harm to the engine from running so much fuel and no boost.

The little crap will just come as you get to it.

My rule on a used truck/ car is this.
What sort of shape is the Interior in?? a ratty interior is expensive to fix.
Whats the body and paint like?? this too can get spendy to fix.
mechanical stuff is easy and cheap compared to the other two.

Age and mileage mean nothing, condition is everything.

I recently bought a 91 GMC Burb 1/2 ton 4X4 $3500
The truck is MINT inside. the front right fender is nerfed a tad but overall the truck is really nice.
All the electrical accessories work and the upholstery is like new.
I can spend a load of bucks on the engine and tranny and still come out fine.

Sounds like you did not do all that bad though.

Keep us posted and we will help you get this old girl back to health.

Good luck, Oh and remember, OLD Trucks have a soul. New ones are just iron.

Best to ya
Robyn

[derekja]

body and paint are excellent. Interior is pretty good. Font seats are a bit ratty, but comfortable and covered with nice seat covers. Funny, those are the things that I was willing to give on some figuring that mechanical condition was more important!

I'm going to let the shop do the boost and coolant leak, and probably mess with the airbags. I'll certainly give updates and ask questions as I struggle with the rest! Thanks.

[Robyn]

Good deal.
Let us know how it all shakes out.

Robyn

[96ccdd]

Just my .02 but if you don't intend on towing why waste the money to fix the air bags. For what they will charge you to fix them you could most likley install a completely new system yourself. As far as the boost issue you could have posted the code and got the need feed back to repair it yourself. But over all the deal you got does not seem bad.

[arveetek]

Just my .02 but if you don't intend on towing why waste the money to fix the air bags. For what they will charge you to fix them you could most likley install a completely new system yourself.

I agree, assuming these airbags are the aftermarket type that allow for hauling heavy loads, and are not a crucial part of the 6" lift system. The aftermarket air bags are only necessary when hauling something heavy, like a large trailer or slide-in truck camper.

A complete air bag setup from Firestone should cost you around $300 for the rear of the truck, and they're actually very easy to install.

If that's the kind of air bags you have, I'd forget about them until a later date. Perhaps you'll find you don't need them at all.

Casey

[trbankii]

Here I was thinking he meant the air bags in the dash...

[billschall]

Derek,

I know EXACTLY how you feel! I acquired my 'beauty" last March off eBay and thought I'd gotten a pretty good deal at $6200. After enjoying the truck for about three weeks, the cheap black paint that the former owner (dealer) had painted on the hitch & frame began to wear off. The rusty scale on the underside is SOOOOOO bad, that I'm seriously considering buying another frame from a yard and swapping everything over. The Engine Room isn't (wasn't) much better.

Things started going bad about 5 or 6 weeks after owning it. It would stall intermittently and threw codes (I don't remember 'em right now) indicating PMD failure. So, I got me-self a new PMD with remote & mounted the heat sync on the intake.

The stalling improved, but did not go away completely.

Then my fuel mileage went to the dogs (see signature).

I found this website shortly after the stalling issue surfaced and also bought the Troubleshooting & Repair Guide, which I now affectionately refer to as my Diesel Bible. Get it. You won't be sorry.

On Christmas Eve, I pulled the thing into the garage for a planned R&R of injectors, glow plugs, injection lines and moving the PMD farther away from the engine. A buddy at work convinced me to check the compression and after doing so, discovered that #2 was down about 150 pounds. Huh-oh. Pulled the heads expecting to see blown head gaskets, but they didn't look so bad - nothing obvious anyway. Sent the heads to the machine shop.

Junk.

All eight exhaust valves cracked and bad cracks in between the valves on three jugs.

Another $700, plus the necessary extras (head bolts, gaskets).

Both manifolds were junk with holes in 'em. Add $200 more.

My down pipe was pretty, but the four bolts/nuts in the rectangular flange that bolted to the cat were completely wore down to a point. Had to cut it off. Muffler had something loose inside, and the crossover was junk. Another $400 for exhaust (upgraded to 4").

While I was poking around TDP, I found several discussions on water pumps & crank dampeners (aka harmonic, torsional). Figured by the looks of my water pump, another $45 or so was cheap investment as I already had everything off.

Both dampeners also needed replaced. Another hundred or so.

The Diesel Gods must have been smiling on me the day I checked my timing chain - it only has almost 3/8" of slop, well within the wear limits.

Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING that I have taken off the engine has had to be cleaned either via sandblasting or wire wheel and painted. (I use Rust Bullet - great paint).

Did I mention the left inner fender well? I'm amazed the battery didn't fall through. Another $50.

Like you, I have some mechanical experience and was a bit overwhelmed with these diesels. Nevertheless, the information on this site and in the Diesel Bible is fantastic and the guys (and gal) here are very helpful. Chances are your issue "du jour" has already been talked about. But don't be afraid to ask if you can't come up with something.

Manuals? I have a Chiltons Repair manual for the truck & the aforementioned Diesel Bible. I also bought the subscription to AllData, but other than the TSB's & recall info, they really don't provide anything more than the Chilton's book.

You CAN do it, man. Patience & willingness to learn is all it takes (plus some metric deep-well sockets). We're all here to help.

-Bill

[bleucrew6.2]

As with anything that has a bit of age to it, your truck will always need some attention. Sometimes its just a matter of priority, (or money!). I bought my truck because it was old enough for me to be able to work on myself. My main concern was body/chassis integrity, because everthing starts there. I concentrated on safety issues first as Robyn suggests, and then added some creature comforts. The truck has some dings here and there, but I kind of like it that way. Its my first diesel, and the folks at this website have been very helpful and supportive in my flounderings. Hang in there. I'll be thinking of you when the weather here is warm enough for me to change out my two gas tanks in the driveway....