hey, im new to this forum but i just wanna see what you guys can tell me about this truck and tell me if theres anything special i should know. im thinking about buying one soon that i found from a guy downtown. He wants $3500 for it and i think thats a bit overpriced but he just put brand new 33s on it and to me it looks like its in good shape. he drives it around daily so im thinking it will be a great truck. Im not sure what the miles are on it yet but i know it has a 318 and he says it burns a quart of oil a month... im thinking thats the only problem and im wondering what you guys think on that situation? is that bad that a 318 burns that much. my dad is saying its terrible and i shouldnt buy it but i talked to my grandpa and he said that it wasnt much of a problem. i wanna know what other people think about that. other than that it seems like a great truck to me!

Thanks in advance!

 

The price is about right for a truck in real good shape. Not so sure about the price considering the oil it burns. When I was commuting in mine, it was burning a decent amount of oil. Maybe not that much, but it was noticeable.

Here's the thing: there are several ways it could be burning that oil. If its just worn valve guides and piston rings, that motor could literally run for 100,000 miles or more like that. On the other hand, it could have a bad headgasket or something, and be a timebomb.

Most of the time, its just burning oil because it's old and tired, which is fine. You just have to be sure to check the cooling system and make sure it isn't oily and isn't using a lot of coolant, because a head gasket problem is not out of the question.

 

Thanks! thats pretty much what i was thinking but im glad to hear the same thing from someone else. im fine with it having bad rings or something like that cuz like you said it would run for a while longer. im just worried about that headgasket. do you know how i could check it before i buy it? and if i do get it im thinking about putting some sealant in the coolant. hopefully thats stops anything small before it gets big.. that is if theres no big problems already. thanks again though!

 

if you live in California and it burns that much oil i don't know if it would be worth that much money especially if you have to rebuild or replace the motor to get it to pass emissions. a rebuilt motor would cost you at least $2000.

 

A bad headgasket will usually show itself in one of a few ways. Sometimes several ways. Have a look at your coolant. If its oily or has a brown tint to it, you have a blown headgasket. Same as your oil. Check for cross-contamination. If your oil looks similar to chocolate milk, that's another sign. How does the exhaust smell/look? Is it smoking or have a coolant (sometimes smells sweet, othertimes very bitter) smell to it? If none of those are obvious, I would assume it just has worn rings or valve seals/guides. Price isn't too terrible if the engine is good. A few years ago I wouldn't have said that, but since the "Cash for Clunkers" program, there isn't really such thing as a decent $1500 vehicle. Supply and demand. Lots of demand, little supply.