What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

is this burb worth it

D

dirtmover

Registered Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2012
Posts
8
Reaction score
0
Location
Mo/ Co
Hello everyone. I have a couple of questions for you:

1) The burb I am looking at is a 1986 diesel with 137,000 miles ooks to be very little rust and he is asking 1300 for it, is it even worth even going to look at it?

2) If everything is in decent condition will it be able to pull either a 20 foot livestock trailer stock?

3) Is there anything that goes wrong with these vehicles stock that I should ask him about?

My goals for this truck is to haul my horse to Colorado and to get my feet wet with turning some wrenches myself. This will be my first time under taking such a project. I have a diesel mechanic for a cousin who will hopefully be coming with me if not him I will get some on else. Eventually I want to put a cummins in it and out right it for my Zombie evac vehicle. Thank you for your time.

KB
 
I don't know a ton about diesels, but I know that the 6.5 is a lot more desirable than the 6.2. I also know that the auto trans could be a weak point for towing a 20 ft trailer.

Mileage seems low enough, but as far as whether it's worth it or not depends on the cost.

Also, be careful with 'very little rust'. These trucks hide it well, but once you decide to eradicate it, you find it everywhere and it will haunt you in your sleep.

I'm not saying you have to find one 100% rust-free, just know that there's a difference between a little bit if surface rust and the paint bubbles that hide huge rust problems underneath. Also check floor pans, floor supports and rocker panels thoroughly.
 
I think we need to know more about runnIng gear before we would decide, but I would say it would not be desirable to pull with a 6.2 sub., I had a 6.2 lwb k10 and it wouldn't pull the lid off butterscotch pudding it was so weak.
 
I would say towing with a 6.2 isn't the ideal setup,far from it really--especially with an automatic...and if it has a 700r4 overdrive,I'd say it probably would roast it within a few thousand miles unless it was freshly rebuilt and has a large tranny cooler added to it--if it had low gearing and a SM465 manual trans,it might not be that bad though--fuel mileagae may not be much better than a 454 would deliver under those conditions though..................................................................................................................................................................................................................I have a '86 K10 Suburban with a 6.2 and its no ball of fire ,even empty!--though it does have better take off having a 700r4 with the lower first gear and 3.73's ,than my '82 K2500 with a 6.2 does with a TH400 and unknown gear ratio (probably higher than 3.73's judging by the way it can go 60+ mph in second before it starts to wind up).........................................................................................................If I had to tow anything with my pickup, I wouldn't be in any hurry, because I'd be lucky if it would get up to 65 mph and maintain 50 mph on a hill..its so sluggish even empty that merging onto a highway from a dead stop is a life threatening situation at times--its accelleration is about equal to that of my old '63 VW Bus with NO trailer behind it......................................................................................................The 6.2 was designed to be a light duty diesel that would deliver about twice the MPG of a gas V8 and is roughly the same HP and torque as a 305 V8 would have--but diesels act differently than gas engines,they produce the most torque at lower rpms and dont like being revved too high,3600 rpms is about the max you can run one at before having troubles..they will bog down on a hill,when a gas engine will tend to be better able to accelerate under such a load--I dont consider a 6.2 a very durable engine when it comes to heavy use,most of them have cranks that break or other serious troubles like blown head gaskets when used "commercially"...the Duramax and Alison drivetrain is light years ahead of a 6.2 or 6.5 .................................................................................................................you could swap in a 6.5 with a turbo that would be a lot better,the Cummins is the ultimate powerplant for towing...but its so much work and expense to get one,and install it,and find a rust free Suburban thats WORTH doing all that work too it,I'd say just buy a Dodge with one already in it and tow with it..(but keep about 2K in the bank for when the automatic tranny dies,they done seem to last very long in newer Dodges)...
 
How much does this trailer weigh, loaded?

Find out what gears are in the axle(s). If it is 1/2-ton, you should probably upgrade to a 14B S/F for towing. If it's 3/4-ton, it will already have one.

The gem to find on a 6.2 vehicle is a turbo already installed. Adding a turbo, like the banks, really helps, but also stresses the drivetrain more. You need to make sure that tranny is prepped.
 
Would take a 350 or stock bbc over 6.2 turbo anyday. I would spend money on swap before I'd spend money on that motor.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom