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What do you guys think about this burban? pics added

R

RampageFSJ

1/2 ton status
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Ulysses KS
Pics added.

I have a friend that is looking for a truck, preferrably GM, and he seems to be drawn to suburbans (I am too:D ). I found an 89, 90, or 91 suburban 1500 4x4 (didn't have time to ask for the correct year, but the front clip is from those years). The owner told me that he bought it to put the tbi setup, bucket seats, and some other odds and ends into his truck but he would sell it right now, as is, for $500.

It looked like it has 300,000 plus miles from the quick look at the dash that I had, but the owner said that the engine and tranny have been rebuilt / replaced, he just doesn't know how long ago (I'm guessing it's a 350, 700r4 combo). The truck is disabled with a busted front auto locking hub and a blown rear ring and pinion. The drive shafts can move, but the truck can't:eek1: . The body and frame looked to be rust free, but there is some damage to the front passenger side quarter panel that throws off the aim of the headlights (no biggie).

The interior as I saw it looked to be in fair condition, but some of the glass was cracked. My friend is looking for a project truck to turn into a DD / trail rig, so the stock axles will probably be tossed for some 3/4 tons. I was wondering if you guys think that it would be worth a shot, or should I not even mention it to him? I'll try to get some pics if my friend is interested in going with me to take a look.

Any help is greatly appreciated from the both of us.:bow:
 
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pics help but asuming everything else is straight doesnt sound too bad. did the engine knock or smoke? was there and tranny fluid leaking or an excessive amount of oil / dirt build up on the engine. id go back for another look. most trucks at that price in new england are rotted to s.
 
Like I said, I'll see if he is interested in it tomorrow. Then I'll take him with a camera hopefully sometime within the next couple of days to see it. I only got a quick look and description before I had to leave, but he said that it runs, just needs a new battery. I'll probably jump start it to hear it run the next time that we're there.
 
Here it is. It seems to have some of its own quirks, but my friend is enthusiastic about it. The engine runs like a top, even with fairly old fuel. Only leak that I could find was on the rag joint for the steering box. The frame has only slight surface rust. It could use some new paint. It needs exhaust work from the muffler back, but my friend wants to replace that anyways.
Fender
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Engine
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rampage019.jpg

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An attempted shot of a section of frame.
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Blown apart rear diff.
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Attempted shot of the mileage.
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In my opinion, without seeing the rest of the truck, it would depend on what the interior looked like, you're not just going to be able to throw a fender and bumper on that, and have it all good,,,,my bro smacked the front drivers side slightly of my Burb a few years back, all it did was put a ripple in the fender where the bumper pushed into it, but it STILL bent the radiator core support enough to make a new grille not line up right.

you can pretty much count on replacing the whole front clip, depending on what's wrong, if anything with the drivers side fender,,,

tel them $350-400, see what they say, you mentioned something about windows too,,,


EDIT,,,well ok, as i was posting up, you put up more pics,,,,,
 
oh, that's right, the front and rear diffs are bad too huh,,,,,$300,,,you're buying parts and a motor

and even that's pushin' it IMO
 
Trouble with the price is that the owner is a wheeling friend of my brother and I. I'm pretty sure that $500 is th price that he got it for and he isn't trying to make any money off of it. He bought it for the TBI, and now that he just got his carb rebuilt, he doesn't really want to go through the troubles of converting. I don't really want to short change him either due to his new addition to his family.

My friend that wants to buy it seems to be willing to pay that much out of his own pocket. Then I suggested that he should sell his other 2wd pickup for the $1,000 that it's worth and use the money to fix it up.

Oh yeah, some of the glass is cracked. Nothing is boken out though.
 
i'm not saying don't buy it, but realize what you're getting.

if you overpay cause it's a buddy, you'll still regret it later.
 
I'm not the one buying it, I'm the inspector and advisor in the deal. I'm fairly certain that it's a pretty good deal for what he would be getting for $500. Considering that some people, like somebody said before, would pay that much for a body, and I almost payed that much for a running 350 engine alone. I'd say that the engine, tranny, T-case alone as is would be worth at least $600 or so to me.

It has a title, and all I see that it needs to get road worthy would be some axles, which I can find a set of 3/4 or 1/2 tons for $200 max around here, new exhaust ($100 max), clean the interior, straighten the headlights, and a tune up and flush the gas tank.

I forgot to mention that this would be his learning rig, which seems to have just the right amount of work needed to let him learn a thing or two.

But that's just my opinion, I'm certainly not an expert. That's why I'm turning to you guys for advice, and I appreciate every comment put up here. I'm terribly sorry if I come off sounding a little like an A-hole, as it seems like it to me, but I'm just expressing my opinion.
 
Kinda pointing out the obvious here, but the rear overhang on a burb, and it's weight can be an impediment to it's wheeling ability.
 
i'd buy it, especially if he has the 4th aluminum rim for the left rear. the running motor worth a couple hundred, atleast. and price a good tranny for it. its worth $400 to part out!


btw...where you getting a complete new exhaust for a 100 bucks!
 
blazersnburban said:
i'd buy it, especially if he has the 4th aluminum rim for the left rear. the running motor worth a couple hundred, atleast. and price a good tranny for it. its worth $400 to part out!


btw...where you getting a complete new exhaust for a 100 bucks!
Click to expand...
It just needs new from the muffler back, I can put it together for him. Thanks for the advice.

Oh yeah, I also forgot to mention that it is a 90, and it has power door locks and power windows. Also, what it the gas mileage that can be expected for a suburban with tbi and an overdrive? I was guessing in the mid teens for around town and close to 20 on the highway. Of course, it will go down some once it is modded.
 
If your buddy just wants a trail rig and is going to put 3/4tons. go for it. Put a new front clip on it and the 3/4ton running gear and since its not in perfect condition you don't have to worry about it getting thrashed on the trial.
 
It sounds like he is going to get it. I was wondering, is a mid 80's fender the same as the 90 one? I was looking in the grill swap article in tech and it mentions that the fender needed is an 80-91 fender. If it's true, that would be perfect, as I know that there's some mid 80's parts trucks in the junkyard.

He told me that he'd like to stay with half tons, I think I found him a d44, 12 bolt combo that he can use. Thank you for all the help, and for any other questions that I might post here:bow: . If / when he gets it, I'll probably start a build thread for it here.
 
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