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What do you use your K5 for?

Big Blue was a project. When it graduated from project status, I lost interest in it. Fixing it was more fun than using it. I've had it on the road in DD/adventure vehicle status on and off over the 6 years I've had it. I've tried to keep it off the road in the wintertime, but for 2 of those years I didn't have other options. Since adding a cheap commuter car it has just sat. But this goes in cycles, I'm now back to the point where one of the DDs is on Craigslist so I can get back to driving the expensive thing. Not a practical choice, just a sentimental preference.

Suburban is a camping vehicle, but it's off the road at this point.

I'm planning to piece the M1009 together this summer and call it a winter driver (since its rusty body is more expendable than the others). But I've gotten bogged down in a whole bunch of non-truck stuff this winter. :(

To answer the original question, any of these would be a fine DD when pieced together. Most of the roads around here are 55MPH, with some 65MPH, but I've had two of the rigs above 80MPH down in high-speed country. They handled it just fine in stock form. I've headed out on a couple of >1000-mile trips in Big Blue, and many 400-mile trips. Would be quite comfortable doing it again. For project status, it keeps changing. Right now Big Blue is a bored street truck, no real projects in the works at this point. It has gone offroad a little bit, but it's a bone-stock street rig. The other rigs will likely be better at this.
 
I only drive my blazer in the summer and work on it for fun in the winter. I've concentrated the last few years towards making it more comfortable to drive. I realized that I don't do the crazy tough offroading that I originally had planned for it, so it was sitting way too much. I liked driving it around, but it was a lot of work, so my solution was to either make it less work, or quit driving it.

Now I can cruise at 80mph without concern, it has a decent stereo and bluetooth, etc... but, it is still capable enough to go have fun in moab or someplace similar if I don't get nuts. So far it feels like I'm heading in the right direction because I drive it way more than I did just a few years ago.
 
my suburban is used for camping/ wheeling trips, it's comfortable on the highway for hours at a time, at 80mph. i could daily drive it if i needed to but i have a company truck for the commute. i won't take it anywhere that'll bang up the sheetmetal but it get wheeled as often as possible. i've racked up about 13k miles in the last two years.
 
muddysub said:
my suburban is used for camping/ wheeling trips, it's comfortable on the highway for hours at a time, at 80mph. i could daily drive it if i needed to but i have a company truck for the commute. i won't take it anywhere that'll bang up the sheetmetal but it get wheeled as often as possible. i've racked up about 13k miles in the last two years.
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I'd still like to shake your hand and see your 'burb one of these days!
 
My '87 K5 is my everyday driver (although I do try to keep her out of the nasty weather:surepal:) and I wouldn't want to have it any other way. I've wanted one of these trucks ever since I was a kid and I finally got one as my first vehicle my junior year of highschool. All throughout my childhood when I was a real little guy, my dad had an '86 c10 lowered that was his little hot rod/work truck. I grew up hearing that exhaust tone driving up the street every single morning. Countless memories were made inside of that truck including multiple burnouts, drag races, and just hauling a$$ in general...:D:burnout: That truck was my first love and gave me my very first taste of horsepower that I have been addicted to ever since. Unfortunately when gas prices started going up back in 2005, he had to let her go and got a cavalier for mpg(he drove the 86 30+ miles almost everyday for 10+ years)... I was absolutely heartbroken watching the kid who had bought it drive it up the street for the very last time. I always told myself that I was going to get a squarebody as my first vehicle ever since that day...

And here I am now! Me and my old man have always been hot rod guys, but for whatever reason I always wanted a 4x4 K5 Blazer just to change things up a little bit! I currently work part time jobs, but once I start my full time trade this fall, I do plan on getting a chevy cruze as a daily. But for this summer, I plan on living it up in the blaze and driving it everywhere I possibly can! There is just something about driving these old rigs that new cars and trucks cant replace in my opinion.

I've only had this truck for 3 or so years now, but I've made countless memories with the old blaze.. It has driven me to school, to work, and to tons of parties on friday nights.. And I have even gotten lucky in the back seat a time or two.....:haha: This truck is part of me and I really don't ever see me letting it go..:rolleyes:
 
But to get straight to the point, yes, this truck is my daily driver that I plan on driving very religiously this summer. I already have a few road trips in mind to take it on. This truck (knock on wood) has really treated me well while I have owned it. And trust me, I do run the ol girl. I have replaced a few small things along the way, but all in all, I feel like I could hop in and drive this truck across the country with the cruise set at 75.
 
I DD my Blazer during the summer, and the pickup during the cooler months. The pickup never had AC from the factory, and it gets hawt here. Both are perfectly capable for anything from offroad to the freeway. I'll hop in either one to go hunting/fishing - the Blazer gets the nod if I know I'm gonna be car camping by myself.

The Burb gets used for long-haul trips. I drove the family to Kansas and back last Thanksgiving - we were all very comfortable at 80MPH and came back with a couple coolers full of venison. Easy peasy.

It took a lot of work and money over several years to get them all to that point of comfort and reliability. I'm at the stage of my life where I'd rather use them than build/fix them.

Part of the issue on old junk is that you'll fix one thing and just discover the next weakest link... :doah:
 
Mastiff said:
These trucks are getting a bit old. I'm curious how people are using them these days. I was going to post a poll, but there are too many categories. Here's the kinds of things I'm curious about:
  • Is your rig still a daily driver? Could it be?
  • Have you made it into a 100% off roader that is trailered, or only drives to local trails?
  • Would you drive it on the interstate (70+ MPH?) for long distances?
  • Is your truck more of a project, or does it actually get frequent use?
  • What kind of off-roading do you do, mild trail riding? rock crawling?
Mostly I'm just curious to get a sense of what's still possible with these trucks. For example, I spent a number of years fixing up and beefing up an old Scout 80 (1965) and eventually came to the realization that it just wasn't realistic to make it into a practical driver/wheeler. People were either restoring them for parades, or tearing them to pieces for trailer queen rock crawlers (that would probably shake to pieces about 45 mph). K5's are quite a bit newer than that, but the speed limit was not 85 mph when they were new either.
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1) No, but it could be-very reliable. If I've got a project going on the Vette I have no problem driving it anywhere.
2) No, reasonable lift and larger tires, relatively mild upgraded engine.
3) I'd prefer not, it would make the trip no problem but lots of wind noise/exhaust drone would get tiring.
4) Driven regularly, but is an ongoing canvas for projects.
5) Mostly mild trails, inclement weather.

Thanks to easy and cheap parts availability and the ease of working on them, I think these trucks lend themselves well to a variety of purposes depending on need. What I usually see is people who build a more extreme/unlivable truck than they need, and then find it's unsuitable for most of the driving they actually do, and that either limits their use or drives them to go back to stock.
 
79bonanza said:
After I had a 5.3 4l60e in my K5 it was a blast to daily drive but that being said it was a straight axle truck with a bent frame and bust spring bushings. 70mph was cruising comfortably but 85 and up with the wind and some strange front end rebounds over overpasses things got super sketchy. I think a square body with overdrive and efi would make a fine DD
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I want to do a swap as well and it makes me wonder if it's worth it bc my k5 isn't perfect. I wish I had waited until I could afford a much better truck to make all these improvements to.
 
LeoneSM said:
I use mine as a spare vehicle and something cool to drive the kids to t ball, home depot runs and to pull the occasional trailer. I wouldn't hesitate to drive it on long distances. I've driven it on a 500 mile trip and it's sat in traffic in downtown Atlanta with the A/C going strong. It routinely goes 80 on the interstate and I'm not afraid to drive it anywhere. I'm going on a bachelor party trip to the FloraBama this week and it'll probably make the 4+ hour ride. Because it's a lot more fun than my VW DD/commuter...
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Mullet toss?
 
  • Is your rig still a daily driver? Could it be? Yes, it could be a daily driver but is not.
  • Would you drive it on the interstate (70+ MPH?) for long distances? Yes I have, needs new spring eye bushings, but it is tight enough to drive on the interstate. In fact, I plan to drive it 400 miles down to the gulf coast at some point this year.
  • Is your truck more of a project, or does it actually get frequent use? Mine is still a project, though mostly finished and it gets frequent use, it would get more if I lived in a climate where it doesn't rain as much.
  • What kind of off-roading do you do, mild trail riding? rock crawling? None, as it is new and shiny and I want to show it at car events...I treat it better than a new car.

Interesting thread. The joy I get driving it offsets any comforts that it lacks....but you would really be surprised as how well it rides and drives. The only time it fights you is in high winds...that's when you notice you are in a big square body with no aerodynamics.
 
Mastiff said:
These trucks are getting a bit old. I'm curious how people are using them these days. I was going to post a poll, but there are too many categories. Here's the kinds of things I'm curious about:
  • Is your rig still a daily driver? Could it be?
  • Have you made it into a 100% off roader that is trailered, or only drives to local trails?
  • Would you drive it on the interstate (70+ MPH?) for long distances?
  • Is your truck more of a project, or does it actually get frequent use?
  • What kind of off-roading do you do, mild trail riding? rock crawling?
Mostly I'm just curious to get a sense of what's still possible with these trucks. For example, I spent a number of years fixing up and beefing up an old Scout 80 (1965) and eventually came to the realization that it just wasn't realistic to make it into a practical driver/wheeler. People were either restoring them for parades, or tearing them to pieces for trailer queen rock crawlers (that would probably shake to pieces about 45 mph). K5's are quite a bit newer than that, but the speed limit was not 85 mph when they were new either.
Click to expand...
Mines a dd but right now it's being worked on bc someone hit me. It was a project when I got it, then became my daily before I was hit. No trail riding bc here in the South the branches would scratch it and I worked my ass off on the paint job. I'd rather scratch my cornea than that paint. I would love to do some hill climbing but can't right now.
 
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