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Just bought a K5 for 280 mile daily commute.

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bu2chlc

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Hi all,
I recently purchased a 1989 K5, put in a 14 bolt 4.10 detroit and open dana 60, 241 SYE , 33" tires, and warn powerplant 12K. Here is my dilemna:
I am in southern Cali. I live on one side of the San Andreas fault but work on the other side. My daily commute is 140 miles each way. I got the blazer in the hopes that after an earthquake I can beat the hell out of it to get me closer to home and my family. Any ideas on how to make this get closer to Prius status? I NEED to carry a full size spare, a few select spare parts and some VERY strategically chosen tools, a case of water, and fairly heavy (to me!) backpack, but I need to minimize weight. Ripping out a heater or going back to my stock 10 bolts is certainly not an option. Does anybody have any thoughts on how they would set up a blazer for durability AND efficiency? This poor thing is gonna see daily 15 mile hill climbs in the heat with the AC on, stop and go traffic in downtown LA, and who knows what else. and those are gonna be the good days!
 
5.9 cummins swap .

all the power you need.

run for few 100k miles

and lots of tourqe



you might better ask this in the garage area. more traffic
 
Wow that is a brutal commute. As far as MPG I think Diesel swap maybe the only real difference maker.
 
May I ask what you do for a living? What type of tire do you run? A tall skinny radial may help.
 
why do you need the K5 for the commute? why cant you get a cheap beater car. the money you save in gas would pay for it i bet
 
because I need the ability to get back to my family should an earthquake occur, otherwise it would be a Yugo!
 
Can you do a chevy diesel swap like a 6.2?( i thought there was some thing about same year or newer motor swaps) how about axle gearing even 373 would help a little.
 
I don't think 6.2's were made after my model year '89. the "new" motor that i swap in must be newer than the vehicle it goes into. I have 4.10's with 33's so the gearing is stock final ratio. too low and it screams on the freeway (almost 100 miles is high speed freeway), and too high would make it lug during the stop and go getting out of downtown LA. There is no "right answer" for this. I think swapping in some 33x10.50s would help a little along with synthetic fluids. Would a hotter ignition help or would it make the computer go nuts?
 
For a MPG gain and durability/simplicity.
A good Exhaust system will do the best for you.
The Edelbrock TES system is a very good upgrade plus its CARB approved. Replace the stock cat convertor with a high flow cat. The stock cat on the 89s does not flow well. Performance muffler like flowmaster, magna flow dynaflow, ect whatever is your choice.
MSD coil is good. Give you a bit more fire and better at higher rpm than the stock coil. it is really the only ignition upgrade you need besides. A Tune up with quality cap rotor and wires.
Get the power plate and power charger from here:http://marine-performance-parts.com/gmtbiperformance.aspx. Gives a bit more power and low end torque.
Synthetic lube in the drivetrain.

I have a 89 K5, mild TBI 350 700r4, with these mods 4" lift on 33s 3.73 gears. I get 16-18 mpg at 70mph on the interstate no problem. 14-15 combined city highway. But i live in a small town. I have nocied when i drive in big city stop and go traffic my milage drops off a bit. But I have no complaints about gas milage its good for a lifted 4x4 on mud terrains.

As far a diesel goes. In a 1989 i think you are stuck with the GM 6.5. I dont think you would see much of a MPG improvement over TBI to justify the swap or the added expence of a diesel.
 
As for commuting get a Enduro motorcycle, way better on gas, cheaper, faster in the carpool lane cheap ins. When the big one hit's take it OFFROAD!! I don't think it could be beat!!:D:D Save the k5 for weekends with the family!!:laugh::laugh:
 
Thunder said:
For a MPG gain and durability/simplicity.
A good Exhaust system will do the best for you.
The Edelbrock TES system is a very good upgrade plus its CARB approved. Replace the stock cat convertor with a high flow cat. The stock cat on the 89s does not flow well. Performance muffler like flowmaster, magna flow dynaflow, ect whatever is your choice.
MSD coil is good. Give you a bit more fire and better at higher rpm than the stock coil. it is really the only ignition upgrade you need besides. A Tune up with quality cap rotor and wires.
Get the power plate and power charger from here:http://marine-performance-parts.com/gmtbiperformance.aspx. Gives a bit more power and low end torque.
Synthetic lube in the drivetrain.

I have a 89 K5, mild TBI 350 700r4, with these mods 4" lift on 33s 3.73 gears. I get 16-18 mpg at 70mph on the interstate no problem. 14-15 combined city highway. But i live in a small town. I have nocied when i drive in big city stop and go traffic my milage drops off a bit. But I have no complaints about gas milage its good for a lifted 4x4 on mud terrains
Click to expand...
fantastic ideas! I will try these over the next few weeks!
 
cool, I've always wondered about this stuff... maybe I could do my 40 mile commute with the K5 then!

is there an affordable bolt on exhaust system? or would it be cheaper to go to the shop? (headers, full exhaust system... I don't need cats)

I don't mean to hijack your thread bu2chlc, I hope this helps answer your questions too :wink1:
 
Southern California is LONG overdue for a rather large quake. Something the locals call "the big one". Nobody can say for sure when it will happen, in an hour or in 20 years. My commute takes me DIRECTLY across the fault zone so when it hits, I will be the only person in California driving/walking TOWARDS the fault zone. Everybody else will be running from it. 99% of the time my k5 will just be a commuter. The other 1%, I will beat the hell out of it and most likely have to abandon it to get back to my family. It will be worth it, no doubt.
 
So it this earthquake before or after the zombies?
 
Wow, i hope you can figure out on a good setup in that case, and I hope that the 1% part doesn't happen! no doubt you'll be prepared though if it does.

Zombies are everywhere man, its already happened. Just drive down the back alleys in downtown Regina :haha:
 
Thunder said:
For a MPG gain and durability/simplicity.
A good Exhaust system will do the best for you.
The Edelbrock TES system is a very good upgrade plus its CARB approved. Replace the stock cat convertor with a high flow cat. The stock cat on the 89s does not flow well. Performance muffler like flowmaster, magna flow dynaflow, ect whatever is your choice.
MSD coil is good. Give you a bit more fire and better at higher rpm than the stock coil. it is really the only ignition upgrade you need besides. A Tune up with quality cap rotor and wires.
Get the power plate and power charger from here:http://marine-performance-parts.com/gmtbiperformance.aspx. Gives a bit more power and low end torque.
Synthetic lube in the drivetrain.

I have a 89 K5, mild TBI 350 700r4, with these mods 4" lift on 33s 3.73 gears. I get 16-18 mpg at 70mph on the interstate no problem. 14-15 combined city highway. But i live in a small town. I have nocied when i drive in big city stop and go traffic my milage drops off a bit. But I have no complaints about gas milage its good for a lifted 4x4 on mud terrains.

As far a diesel goes. In a 1989 i think you are stuck with the GM 6.5. I dont think you would see much of a MPG improvement over TBI to justify the swap or the added expence of a diesel.
Click to expand...

Back on track... Again my question on the bolt on exhaust system.. is there any good ones?

Also Thunder, are you running stock axles or a better setup? Is 3.73s ideal for fuel economy on 33's? I'm running 3.42s on my '90 (stock/33" rubber). My TBI has a mild comp cam but pretty much stock other than that. I'd like to make it run more efficiently as well
 
The 6.2 was offered in the K5, Suburban and Crew Cab right up til '91...it was a factory offering newer than what oyu currently have so that should be cool with the smog nazi's. My 6.2 pick-up gets me 25 mpg all day long, no computer, no sensors to fail, 100% mechanical. I'm certain the 6.5 was not intro'd until 92 or later.

Rene
 
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