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Bought a new K5

Mikey von

Mikey von

1/2 ton status
Joined
Dec 21, 2005
Posts
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Location
Burney, CA
I bought my family a '85 K5 with a 6.2L for $815 last night. I really needed a 4x4 since my suburban went down with a blown head gasket (plus maybe more).

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It has some issues, but is pretty rust free and runs strong. I have a few questions.

The thermostat stuck closed and then opened up and is now stuck open. In the first 5 miles driving it home (90+ mile trip) it warmed up to about 215-220 and then quickly cooled to around 190. Around 30 miles from home the temp started dropping till it leveled off just over 100. Is there a thermostat that is best?

The cold idle does not seem to work. It starts right up (20 degrees this morning) but it will idled really low this morning. My burb's cold idle would kick in even on warm days for the first few minutes. Is there an easy fix?

The guy I bought it from claimed it had a radiator leak on the passenger side. It did look like a leaky spot and the low coolant light came on at the end of my trip last night. Will JB Weld work for now?

The rear window motor does not work (it is sitting on the passenger floor board). I plan on going to pick 'n' pull and getting a new one. I assume it is an easy fix. Anything I need to be aware of?

One of the rear belts is broken about 6" above where it bolts to the floor. It looks like a star drive nut. Can I pick this tool up at napa or harbor freight?

I spoiled myself and drove to work today (i usually walk). It died once while i was coming to a stop. I let it warm up for about 10 minutes as I scraped ice off my wife's car, but it never got warm (See thermostat issue). What could cause it to die?

Anyways, I plan on finding some new tires and running it as it is for now. I really want to get my burb going again. We need a 4x4 just to make it up to our house in the snow and this beat out a pickup by having four seats. Can't beat the price either.
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Nice.
I would say just get the recommended thermostat.

Try Barz Leaks (sp) to seal radiator or the silver stuff.

Can't help on rear window I have crank type but from what I read it should not be hard just getting window lined up hardest.

I think mine on a 1987 were allen heads.

Did you post in the Diesel forum here? dremu comes to mind to talk to or I think 84cucv (thinks it is his name). I am jealous you got a Diesel.
 
Hm... well I don't know if your cold idle solenoid is bad but on my truck the army put instructions on the visor saying to push the pedal to the floor if its below 32 degrees and halfway down if above 32. I think this activates the high idle. Also, is the fuel filter clean? That may be the cause of your stalling.
 
From what I understand a gas engine you want to run cool... like 160 ish is probably ok to around 190 for performance...... Diesel needs heat... that is what makes the whole thing work.. sine they have no spark plug they work on compression and the heat just helps the fuel burn more efficient.... so I would say yes for sure you need a thermostat...... no clue about the cold start or the rear window... mine in el manual.....
 
thanks for the comments. yes i know i need a thermostat, just wondering if there is any that are better or any to stay away from. I think the 6.2's like it around 190-200.

I will try the Barz Leaks for the radiator.

I have only had the truck 24 hours now. I put the pedal to the floor this morning and when I started it while I was looking at buying it. My burb, which has a 6.2, you just have to tap the gas to get the cold idle to go. I will take a look at the solenoid and post over on the diesel side.
 
I don't claim to be a diesel guru, especially since I sold mine earlier this year :(, but a coupla things do come to mind:

Get the factory temperature thermostat. If you change it to hotter or cooler you'll just be biting yourself in the butt trying to chase problems.

The radiators for the diesel are stupid expensive (lots less of them, economoies of scale I guess.) Mine leaked around the low coolant sensor, drove me nuts, so I splurged for a new radiator.

I would seriously hesitate to use the stop-leak stuff, as it's also gonna go into your engine. JB Weld is cheap and since you're doing it from the outside, the worst that happens is that it'll still leak. (Do scrub the heck out of the area with a strong wire brush first, get you some good adhesion, and obviously try to keep the area dry whilst you're patching it.)

As I recall the seatbelts use a huge Torx drive, like T-50 or something. They're loc-tited on the back side, so I *highly* recommend torching that off first. I did this on a Burb, and was able to get to the back side of the bolt; I don't know if it's easier/harder on a Blazer. If you don't get that loc-tite off, you WILL break the Torx driver (I had it on a ~12" ratchet) and then you have to drill out the bolt and clean the threads and get a new stupid size metric bolt. Been there, done that :haha:

The cold idle I never had to mess with, plus mine was a CUCV so it may well have been different.

I tell ya, in this season I miss that truck; no matter how cold or crappy the weather, she started right up and drove right through. (The K5 I kept has no top or doors, so it's not so suited to foul weather =))

-- A
 
As it was explained to me, the fast idle is strong enuff ta open by itself. GM ALWAYS says ta floor it, gas jobs too. The cold start/ fast idle also advances the timing for a better cold start. My Blazer's works, but my Sub doesn't. Get the shop manual, and I'll ask my know-it-all friend.
Erratic temp is also cause of low coolant. Change it, diesels are hard on coolant cause of electricity generated from hi comp.
Stalling... My Las Vegas Sub also stalls erratically. I'm thinking IP. Is HectorInjector from eBay good?

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Make sure you get the actual 6.2L thermostat. I've seen many people mention getting the generic parts store thermostat and then having trouble only to find out they've been given the same stat as a 350 gets. THEY ARE NOT THE SAME.
 
gas your diesel

while i am not the biggest diesel guru i know that the best way to pep up your diesel is to add a small amount of 87 octane to a full tank of diesel. i know this sounds dangerous but me and my dad have done this to are 20 ton forklifts for years and they have supercharged 429's in them. the ratio we use is for every tank of diesel (16 gallons) we add 1 gallon of 87. we do this becuase it helps us for cold starts and we dont have time to let ours warm up. we start it and put it to work immediately. the only thing this will do is raise your temps but since you have no thermostat and yours is extremely cold blooded this seems perfect for you. becuase were using detroit industrial diesels i recomend you start with just a 1/2 gallon 87 and experiment form there. as far as your leak goes mix barrs with whats called egg shell hardener and it will leak no more. this is basicaly the same principal as sand and super glue but this way is safe for long time use. both of the things i just mentioned may seem like mickey mouse ways of doing things but i have tried them both and now swear buy them. buy the way your 6.2 will run like a raped date with a little 87
 
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