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Drivetrain strenght 3/4 ton vs 1 ton?

ok, another quick question if anyone is still watchin this thread...

I actually like IFS, crazy I know:eek1:, but I love how it rides and like the look ( I know, crazy again right)

are the 8 lug chevy front ends from the 88 to 99 pickups pretty strong for moderate wheeling. No rocks, since they don't exist in anywhere in my part of the US, just mud, hills, and big holes :D
 
I mean they are 9.25" size wise. Another thing some people might not know is that it uses the same carrier and internals as a 9.5" 14 bolt..
 
It's stronger than the half ton IFS but 35's are about the limit with regular wheeling of the 9.25". You have to remember that it has stiff torsion bars and so-so unit bearing hubs, ball joints, and steering components. GM didn't design it with wheeling in mind.
Beat on factory IFS of any sort too much and it gets expensive fast.
 
Thanks for the input guys, I'm slowly starting to turn away from that year Chevy truck. I love how they look, but I can't afford the time or cost to do an sas, and my k5 needs a real pickup bed:D

I usually wheel decently tough on the weekends, so a solid front axle is on the list then I guess, but I don't want me, or any of my family/girlfriend driving in a truck without airbags for a DD anymore, so out goes my my favorite, the older body style gm.

So I guess it's either a dodge or ford 3/4 ton:(
 
Gag on the Dodge. Go over to www.PavementSucks.com and read some of the crap guys have with them on the Dodge forum there. I owned a low mileage '99 1500 4x4 for 10 months 02-03 and ran away screaming. Trouble, trouble, trouble, and more bad design and production.


Eh, not a big fan of airbags. The wife is small though, sorta dangerous for her.
 
yah, I've never really been a fan of doge, and think they have the least reliable and cheapest truck out there.

Except for the 94-98 2500's with the 12 valve cummins, dana's, and a nv4500 all from the factory:D

I've been seeing them sell for around 6 grand with 180,000 miles.

Look at me, i'm listening to the devil on my shoulder, someone kick me before I lose my GM heritage!:haha:
 
I used to be a mechanic at a Chrysler dealer, and thought it was hilarious when the other mechanics talked about Dodges. "There's nothing wrong with buying a Chrysler vehicle, just sell it by 70,000 miles or you're likely to regret it.":rotfl:
 
90, go over to Pavement sucks and read up on the 94-02 "Dana 60". D44 size axleshafts, crappy unit bearings, multi piece axleshafts on the passenger side, a weak housing...it's basically got VERY little in common with the D60 in a similar Ford or Chevy.
I'd NEVER get buy another Dodge truck of that vintage unless I got the deal of the century on a low mileage Cummins/stick 4x4.
 
You cant give up on GM just because the IFS isnt popular. While it is not the best off road setup the compition doesnt offer much better. Its kinda like the new jeep d44's They are not real d44's. I admit a solid axle of any kind is better for off road than GMs IFS but if you do your research you can make it work.

The funny thing is I have a few friends with IFS GM's and they wheel the crap out of them and never seam to have problems with them. I just seam to have bad luck with them. I am convinced now that you get what you pay for when lifting and modifying IFS. I bought the cheapest lifts I could on my past trucks and had hell with them.
 
hey ajmblazer, I did go over to pavement sucks and I can't believe that they would use the same size axle shafts as a 44, what is the point of that lol? I just saw dana 60, and thought, hey it's got to be good:rolleyes:

well Original, i've just heard so many stories about GM ifs here on ck5 it's scared me off! I actually prefer the ride over a solid axle (my k5 is my dd and I hate it compared with my brothers 92 silverado) but i'm the kinda guy who likes overkill, otherwise i'll always be worrying about it in the back of my head.

I also am kinda scared away from the 6.5 compared with a cummins, but that's for another forum.
 
Bah, don't be scared of a 6.5...they just aren't in the same league as a Cummins or Powerstroke. A light truck diesel shouldn't be compared to a medium truck diesel shoehorned into a light truck. I like my 6.2L very much and think of all the bad things people say about them!

Heh, Pavement Sucks is a great forum...but unfortunately the trucks the majority of them own just aren't up to the task at hand. They know it too! There used to be a hilarious thread stickied at the top of the Dodge forum titled something like, "Welcome to your Dodge Ram 1500" and it was literally a page or more of stuff to watch out for, fix, and work on.
 
It seems like most people just get a 6.2/5 and try to hot rod the heck out of it, abuse it, and then get upset when it breaks...

I've never broken anything axle wise, and I've towed with bad u joints ( didn't know it) and offroaded with my ten bolts for a while when everyone laughed and said they would break.

But, I want a truck I can run hard and not worry about too much in the back of my mind, it's a big dilemma that I unfortunately don't have the money to fix, and build my own rig i'm not embarrassed to drive people in :D
 
looks like the h3 pickups will be hitting the market this fall, i don't know if you're set on a full size or not, but the h3t's are getting great reviews and they'll out maneuver a fullsize anyday. you could stick to your GM heritage this way.
 
yah, I would die for an h3t! lockers front and rear in a small/midsize truck =:D:D:D

only thing is, there's no way I could buy one right now because money's pretty tight, and i'm not a big fan of leasing.

Unless gm give some incentives were I could pick one up for 7 grand:haha:

I'll have to find someone I know that gets one, and beg to take it out for a spin:woot:
 
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