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$4,000 for a K5. What's best?

C

crahm

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$4,000 for a K5. What\'s best?

Dear Users,
I need a 4wd and prefer the K5 blazer. I duck hunt in the Red River river bottoms of Oklahoma. The soil is mostly sand and in December is soupy with cow manure and a little clay. My budget is $4,000 and see many K5s for sale in the DFW Truck Trader. I'm new to Blazers and have been reading the post here and other webs. I'll need a truck with at least 30" tires and maybe a 2" lift. Do any years have characteristics which I should avoid? On another post here, I saw someone say 82-83 have cruddy transmissions. What about limited slip diffs? Detroit lockers?
I did some searching on previous post and didn't find much.
Many thanks, Charles
 
Re: $4,000 for a K5. What\'s best?

I prefer 70's model most came with 350's, th350 trans 203 transfer case witch all are very simple and reilable and cheap to repair. but many blazers of those years are pron to rust so watch out. Many 80's model came with 305's this is one of the worst V8's ever made by GM and they are mated to weaker 700R transmissions. But this is just my 2 cents. as far as I know all blazers can run on 31" tires stock.
 
Re: $4,000 for a K5. What\'s best?

Thanks for the input. I'm very mechanically inclined, I just don't know what to look for regarding 4wd axles, driveline, etc. and how to evaluate their condition. Do these trucks come with limited slips in the rear? What about the front? thanks!
 
Re: $4,000 for a K5. What\'s best?

Yeah, you can never really go wrong w/a 70's model. That is what I prefer. You should DEFINITELY get a good K5 for $4000.00. In my opinion, any year will do fine. You must also consider what your main use for it will be. Will this also be your daily driver?
 
Re: $4,000 for a K5. What\'s best?

Some of them will come with the Gov-Lok (a form of limited slip). If treated right, they're ok. Most of the time though, they're regarded as junk b/c they tend to grenade when you're hard on it. The front came open stock.
You may be able to find some with a locker already in the rear. (Detroit is the way to go).
Anyhow, basically, all the years are great. 69 to 72' are the first generation, in a class of their own.
The 73' to 77' came with the 12bolt rear and Dana 44 front axle. 10 bolt rears started popping out in 81' and 10bolt front started around 78'.
70's with Manual Tranny came with the bullet proof NP205 Transfercase (gear driven). Auto's came with the very stout NP203 tcase (chain driven)
80' had the TH350/NP205 combo.
82' to 86' had the very bad rep 700R4 tranny.
87' they fixed that very bad rep R4, and also first came out with the TBI motors. 91' is the last year of the true K5's. (solid axle front).
90' was the first year with ABS.
There's so much more obviously, hopefully someone else will hit the other key points. I'm at work, sooo, I have to get back to work :)
Boss

89' 1 TON of FUN K5
 
Re: $4,000 for a K5. What\'s best?

The K5 would be used for duck hunting in Dec and Jan. I drive about 2 hours to the spot so I want something fairly civilized for highway cruising. (not too much lift and tires). I go to New Mexico a couple of times a year and go off road on steep rocky trails. I had a 96 Range Rover but those things out of warranty are a bank breaker so it's gone. I now have a car for everyday use with the idea of buying a K5 for hunting and off road use. Thanks again.
 
Re: $4,000 for a K5. What\'s best?

Hello fellow Dallas Texan!
I've got a '79. It's got all the creature comforts without all the emissions requirements and damn reliable! I love it. I think the late '70's were the best years, but that's my opinion.

<font color=purple>Have you hugged your K5 today?</font color=purple>
 
Re: $4,000 for a K5. What\'s best?

I got my 77 for 4,000$! It is in very very good shape! Had a 350 crate with 40,000 miles on it, 160,000 on the 12 bolt rear, dana 44 front and SM465/NP205 combo! About as bullet proof as a half-ton rig comes stock! I love it so much, and it was well worth the money! Do be careful of rust, and just thouroughly examine it before you fork over the cash! Happy hunting!

<font color=red>1977 Blazer, GM350, SM465, NP205, Dana 44/ 12bolt, 31x10.50r15 BFGs</font color=red>
"Awh....Prarie $hit!!" -Blazing Saddles
 
Re: $4,000 for a K5. What\'s best?

I got my 77 for $2000, but high milage.
I have 31-inchers on my k5. Did they come stock? The guy I bought it from said they didn't.

77 Blazer, 350, NP203, K&N, 31-inch Cooper Discoverers
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.Jonathan.coloradok5.com>http://www.Jonathan.coloradok5.com</A>
 
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