Faults:
The rear quarter panels have started to rust through, as is expected of a vehicle of this age.
The seats in it when I bought it were not original, so they did not fit. I did, however replace them with with Sierra High-backs, which are better than the stock seats.
Within a week the exhaust donut on the right side went bad. It cost me a whole of 68 cents and half an hour.
The rear window was a bit beat up, not cracked or broken in any way, but there were scuffs and scratches, so I replaced it.
The topper had been painted, so when it flexed, paint chipped and fell off. It looked really bad, so I replaced it.
At this point I got pulled over due to the exhaust. It was not a manufacturers problem, I just had the exhaust replaced for more ponies and a meaner sound. I guess the cop liked peace and quiet.
I replaced the cracked fuel hose going into the carb.
I replaced ALL of these parts for less than $300. I went to a junkyard and just bought another with the exterior pieces I needed for a measly $200. I sold the excess as scrap and got $50 of my money back.
General Comments:
For its size and age, this beast handles great at higher speeds. However, at lower speeds, or while towing, an inexperienced driver will wander all over the road.
Unlike a lot of newer trucks, this beast has lots of power in reverse. I have seriously lost count of how many cars, vans, trucks, and SUV's I have pulled out of the ditch, mud, snowbanks, and towed.
Due to the suspension lift and 36 inch Kelly Safari swamper tires, I had to get a custom done hitch so I could tow.
One thing GM did not think out was the fact that they put radios of different sizes in their trucks as opposed to the rest of the world. I had to custom build my dash to accommodate a cd player. There was plenty of room inside the dash to mount an amp for subwoofers. There was also a lack of stock speaker mounts.
You learn to watch the gas.
