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06HHR (Forum Supporter)
06HHR (Forum Supporter) SuperDork
2/22/24 11:11 a.m.

I think that refers to the 1980 redesign and it's decendants out to 1996-97.  Seventh, eighth and ninth generations according to the Wikis..  

amg_rx7 (Forum Supporter)
amg_rx7 (Forum Supporter) UltraDork
2/22/24 11:59 a.m.

GMT800 is my go to cheap truck. Much better engine than the gmt400 (LS), newer, more of them around at better prices (in my area). Gmt900 are also great and have a 6 speed transmission so better towing and mpg. 

akylekoz
akylekoz UltraDork
2/22/24 12:00 p.m.

HA! I really don't like the OBS term.  It should always mean the generation before the current one, it does not.   So if you are 30 years old OBS means something different than what it means to a 75 year old.   Aah yes the OBS from 68 to 86, or 53 to 63, or 90 to 2002, or 2009 to 2016 these all mean OBS.

I'm done now, this is not the rant thread but good question.

06HHR (Forum Supporter)
06HHR (Forum Supporter) SuperDork
2/22/24 12:16 p.m.

In reply to akylekoz :

Yes, it's confusing at best.  IIRC In the Chevy world the demarcation line appears to be GMT400, as it's now the OBS, and the Squarebody is the OOBS (Old-Old body style), the GMT800 is the NBS, and the GMT 900 is the NNBS (New-New body style).  So yeah, it's problematic.  Better to just refer to model year and go with that.  

rdcyclist
rdcyclist GRM+ Memberand HalfDork
2/22/24 12:49 p.m.
amg_rx7 (Forum Supporter) said:

GMT800 is my go to cheap truck. Much better engine than the gmt400 (LS), newer, more of them around at better prices (in my area). Gmt900 are also great and have a 6 speed transmission so better towing and mpg. 

And the 800/900 have rack & pinion steering so, IMHO, they drive better. I will admit the 400 looks better though, especially the Chebbie Silverado single cab shorty with quad headlights. Dang I like the way they look...

I had an 88 3500 single cab long bed dually with a 350TBI. That thing could haul E36 M3 around and looked the business. 12mpg pretty much everywhere. You could eke out 13 if you drove 55 on the freeway and you could get 11 towing E36 M3. My dad burned it down when it got a fuel line leak and he didn't shut the engine down before bailing, which I totally understood. Getting my mom outta the burning vehicle was the priority...

madmrak351
madmrak351 HalfDork
2/22/24 12:49 p.m.

Gmt800 is a good choice. I am inclined to avoid the GMT 900s that have DOD as well as OHC Ford models. Both seem to have issues as the mileage accumulates.

rdcyclist
rdcyclist GRM+ Memberand HalfDork
2/22/24 12:54 p.m.
madmrak351 said:

Gmt800 is a good choice. I am inclined to avoid the GMT 900s that have DOD as well as OHC Ford models. Both seem to have issues as the mileage accumulates.

"DOD"? Whazat?

RacetruckRon
RacetruckRon GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
2/22/24 1:05 p.m.
rdcyclist said:
amg_rx7 (Forum Supporter) said:

GMT800 is my go to cheap truck. Much better engine than the gmt400 (LS), newer, more of them around at better prices (in my area). Gmt900 are also great and have a 6 speed transmission so better towing and mpg. 

And the 800/900 have rack & pinion steering so, IMHO, they drive better.

GMT800 2wd have rack and pinion. Still steering box on the 4wd/AWD trucks until GMT900

madmrak351
madmrak351 HalfDork
2/22/24 1:58 p.m.

In reply to rdcyclist : Displacement on demand. A cylinder deactivation system that is prone to lifter failure in the best case failure. It can be removed but requires the heads be removed to replace the lifters. Most recommend camshaft replacement also.

 

pres589 (djronnebaum)
pres589 (djronnebaum) UltimaDork
2/22/24 2:05 p.m.

I really like the look and interior of the late GMT400's, like 1995+, but I don't like the Vortec "spider" fuel injection setup.  I think the GMT800 does ride a little nicer (really depends what options/capacity is being compared here).  Probably the best compromise in my book would be a 1999 to 2002 Silverado before they got the square-ish headlight facelift.    If I was feeling picky about looks that's exactly where I'd be looking, pre-2002 GMT800 with a 5.3 and 2WD and an automatic.  Long box, standard cab.  

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