Looking for advice on buying an 89 D150. My daily driver is a 2011 Silverado. It is a regular cab, 318, cap, 94k miles, $2700, ac, auto, radio, windows all work well.

Wondering if there is anything to look at when I take it out for a drive and pop the hood. Any major problems for this year?

Thanks!

 

Just like any 30+ year old vehicle. Check the fluids to see what they look like. Oil reasonably clean? Transmission fluid clear and red with no burnt smell? Coolant look good or rusty? One thin I do sometimes is hook a timing light on an engine with more than 100K and watch if and how the timing jumps around. Rust on the vehicle? Frame, under the doors, wheel wells and so on. A lot depends on where you're looking. In Michigan, cars tend to dissolve. Near the beach, same thing. A lot of cars down south have been flooded and starting to show up so look really closely.

 

someone more knowledgeable about first gen fuel injection should please chime in.

 

What is it you want to know? I had a 90 witch i drove for over 150k before i sold it. 89 was the first year for the overdrive trans(option). It was one of the things it had to have. Over all it served me well. If you are looking at one see if the check engine light is on and if so get the codes. Look at everything! Any issues? leaks noises etc.. Take it for a ride and make sure everything works as it should.