31st Jul 2005, 19:17
You must have had a truck that wasn't taken care of.
My brother has a 1988 GMC 3500 Diesel which has about 106,000 miles on it, It has had only ball joints and CV Joints put in, Everything works and runs great. Paint isn't chipping either.
5th Oct 2005, 20:17
That doesn't seem typical of what I've seen with my 1990 GMC Sierra 2500 with a 5.7 liter V-8. Maybe a lot of it has to do with the 454 engine. Replaced engine pulleys with metal ones, so the belts would quit slipping off and normal maintenance expected with any vehicle that now has 191,000 miles. Took it deer hunting this last week, with a camper and a trailer. Bad luck it sounds like to me.
12th Jan 2006, 19:15
I have to disagree with both previous comments. I work on 88-98 Chevrolet and GMC pickups all day long, and besides the 1967-72 model years, I think that the 88-98's were the best pickups that Chevrolet ever manufactured. I know these trucks inside and out, and although certain years have their weaknesses, all in all the late 80's to late 90's GM pickups are fantastic trucks.
2nd Aug 2006, 19:35
I have had a problem with an air bag fuse blowing out. Has anyone had problems with that?
28th Sep 2006, 17:38
Been reading on the comments and all about the 88 GM Pickup. I own one for about 5 years and haven't had a problem with it except the u-joints and reg. maintance that is required. The fuel pump is now the second one. The original went last year.
23rd Oct 2006, 19:31
Just bought a 1987 GMC 3500 454 Granny four speed four wheel drive and I love it. I know that it is not a 1988 but just thought I would add that the same TBI gasket is leaking and both gas tanks are going to need replaced, but for pulling and hauling around the farm I wouldn't consider another truck by the way mine has 87,000 miles on it.
29th Dec 2008, 15:52
I have a question... I bought a 1988 GMC pick up truck and the wipers do not work.
How can I tell if it's the wiper motor or the switch arm on the column?
26th Aug 2009, 08:49
I have a 1988 GMC Sierra 4x4. I bought it in 1992, and used it only had 45000 miles on it then. 17 years later this truck has 240000 miles on it and it is still going strong. Clear coat paint is finally coming off and she still runs like the day I bought her. I try to take care of my vehicles too. But she was a good truck very faithful to me. These are very good pickups.
6th Dec 2009, 09:29
I have a 1988 GMC 3500 turbo diesel. How do I tell if it's a 6.2 or 6.5? Did they even have both?
5th Nov 2010, 14:49
I have a question, just picked up an 88 GMC 3500 454 with a four speed from a "friend" and it's a mess. There was no place to test the 4 wheel drive, but it went into low and you could tell, but the front wheels don't drive now that I've had a chance to test it. Any suggestions before I get started?
11th May 2004, 23:02
I just had another flashback! The starter crapped-out once too! I had stopped near Davis, Calif., while returning from the San Francisco Bay area en-route back to Reno. Just imagine replacing the starter in a MacDonalds parking lot while the rain was pouring down! Sure glad the parts house was located nearby to the hamburger joint! There were so many things that went wrong, I can't keep-up with remembering them all! Oh yeah, the windshield wipers also had a tendency to pause for a couple of minutes before functioning. I never figured that one out?