Debate on Generation designation

[Mark Nixon]

and just for the record, if cummins and dodge had never met, i would still have my truck with a 8 mpg 440 in it.

daryl

As would I.
Not like we'd have much choice, unless we wanted to go Perkins, Mercedes or Nissan.
Or (gasp) Mitsubishi.

Mark.

[ellis93]

Oh boy,I'm gonna get it after saying this but I'm gonna anyhow
I wouldn't touch one of these truck for nothing if it weren't for the cummins motors. I'd still be in a chevy

[CAJUN 93]

its not that hard to do a chevy-cummins transplant. besides, the 6.5 is a much better engine.

daryl

[Mark Nixon]

... besides, the 6.5 is a much better engine.

daryl

I dunno' if you're serious, or joking.
Hopefully that's a joke.

I've found a rustfree '80s Diesel Suburban I'm contemplating buying.
2 of the best things about it are rustfree and cheap.

If Chevy had been the one to get it, I'd say there would have been a WELL BUILT diesel truck with a Cummins in it, instead of what we have to deal with now, because, let's face it, between the Mini-Van and the Cummins powered Dodges, there'd likely be no Chrysler Corporation.

Then again, the Dodges hold up pretty well for being nickle-dimed together from the start.

Mark.

[ellis93]

Guess I should have specified a little better, 73 thru 87,that's the trucks I'm referring to. As long as there is NO 305 ,converted old's 5.7 gas motor to diesel, 6.2 diesel or integrated head six cylinder. They lasted,and could stand some torture. No cracked and squeaking dashes, no lights blinking on and off from poor connections and under sized wires, no 2wd front end ball joint and spring problems,etc........
The list goes on

I guess I'm crazy to believe all that and still be as attached to my truck as I am . I'll never sell it or dis member it for a conversion,that cummins motor is " at home" under the hood of that old truck and besides the factory bucket seats fit my ass
Oh ya, a 6.5 is not a good motor nice try GM My dad had one,we killed it twice then sold it off . Its kinda like a thermo quad carburator on a 440 or the hucky pucky filled ingnition modules on the fire wall,huh cajun

[CAJUN 93]

lol, yeah dodge has had some designs that make you scratch your head. i will say that as a gm parts guy in the early to mid 90's the ck series from then suffered from many more problems than the 91-93 dodge. you remember bad eproms, 2 piece radios in the square dash that quite working and aftermarket radios wouldn't fit, the constant rebuilding and updating of the 1st 700r4's, etc. they weren't the beloved "rock" that gm guys like to remember. i can tell you i made boatloads of money of off them. not saying the dodges didnt break, but other than 518 issues, they weren't real consistant problems, just normal parts failures.

that brings me to another point, folks like to compain about the dodge auto's. as a parts guy in the 90's i can not ever remember my 2 trans guys without a 700 (4l60) spread out on the bench without a couple more waiting in the wings. stripped sun gears, broken planetaries, valve body issues, and constant updates from gm. that was with 350's and 6.5's. yet the 700r4 and its derivatives are worshiped by chevy guys. they are no more or less junk than the 518. i've made plenty of parts money off of both. still dont get that one. kinda like the ford guys in the waiting room at the dealer talking about how great that 6.0 is. . to each his own

one last dig, gm cant build an alternator or starter to save thier lives.

just a former gm parts guy
daryl

[CAJUN 93]

man, did we get off course on this one or what.

back to the original concept of this thread, i like the term "square nosed dodge" better than 1st gen. it covers all the 81-93 trucks. still my favorite i have owned was my 72 std cab, short box 440 auto. 12 mpg and 12.50's with the a/c on. what a blast to drive.

daryl

[ellis93]

one last dig, gm cant build an alternator or starter to save thier lives.

just a former gm parts guy
daryl

That's NOT my experience,the delco alternator is one of the most widely used in the automotive,farm and industrial industries.
Hands down the 727 based dodge trans are WAY better than a 700. No disputing that
Back to your previously tuned program

[Mark Nixon]

I've heard the term "flat side dodge" (referring to the upper body contour) used in reference to the '81-'93 trucks.
Surprisingly, if you use that term in a junkyard, they seem to know what you're talking about.

IMO, the Dodge trucks were all "square nosed" from '72 on, but that's just my opinion.

Speaking of which, after having driven my '95 V-10 for so long, I jumped into a '92 the other day and got that "crammed in behind the windshield" and the "elbow hitting the door" crowded feeling.
It's hard to switch from one body style to the other, they each have their pros and cons.

Mark.

[CAJUN 93]

never heard "flat side dodge" used before but it fits the bill. 72-93 dodges all share a platform but the lines just wont interchange on the round headlight vs square. i dont think much of the round headlamp trucks when shopping parts for mine.

mark you're right about switching trucks. made a recent long road trip (home-chattanooga and back, 16 hrs in cab sat-sun) in my brothers 97 ext cab. when i got back in mine monday morn it felt kinda crude in comparison. just as comfortable on long trips, just not as many bells and whistles.

ellis, in 95-99 we kept 6 of the 105 amp alternators for the 305-350 trucks on the shelf cause we would sell 2-3 per day. sold 2-3 starters a week too. i know the volume is higher cause of the sheer number of ck trucks on the road but still i made good commisions on them. cant beat a single wire delco for hot rods, tractors, etc, except of course with my 160 amp leece neville.

[dazedandconfused]

I'd still be in a chevy

The only GM vehicles I will ever have will be the ones gave to me. The Tahoe I have was gave to me and that POS does everything it can to drive me crazy. I've had way more electrical issues with GM trucks then Dodges personally. The tahoe will drain the battery after sitting for a few days along with our dump truck and my brothers 454. If you drive them everyday they are fine. My dad praises GM being the best and spends more time working on the piles of crap then I have with any of my Ford's or Dodges.

[ellis93]

I'd still be in a chevy

The only GM vehicles I will ever have will be the ones gave to me. The Tahoe I have was gave to me and that POS does everything it can to drive me crazy. I've had way more electrical issues with GM trucks then Dodges personally. The tahoe will drain the battery after sitting for a few days along with our dump truck and my brothers 454. If you drive them everyday they are fine. My dad praises GM being the best and spends more time working on the piles of crap then I have with any of my Ford's or Dodges.

Hadn't had problems out of a dodge . Give them time,you aren't immune I've had problems with mine and so has everyone else.
And my first chevy post was about the span of 1973 to 1987,not the new crap that's produced. Of course I have a 2000 chevy I bought right out of high school that's NEVER gave any problems for 221000 miles,well execpt for 15mpg.

ellis, in 95-99 we kept 6 of the 105 amp alternators for the 305-350 trucks on the shelf cause we would sell 2-3 per day. sold 2-3 starters a week too. i know the volume is higher cause of the sheer number of ck trucks on the road but still i made good commisions on them. cant beat a single wire delco for hot rods, tractors, etc, except of course with my 160 amp leece neville.

That's not the era I was talking of
Yes the old delcos are what I'm talkin of,you can make those work on anything,anywhere.

[dazedandconfused]

I agree other then the Bodies rotting off them the early 80's chevy's were good trucks. I've always been a huge 80's Ford Fan myself. I'm trying to find a ;id 80's crewcab dually to repower.

[oldestof11]

I would love a 85-87 Suburban. I grew up in those until there was a need for a 15 passenger van.

[Mark Nixon]

I would love a 85-87 Suburban. I grew up in those until there was a need for a 15 passenger van.

Kinda' like this one with a blown up 6.2 auto that I just bought out in Idaho?




Mark.