Daily Driving a Square Suburban

[RyanAK]

More discussion over on the projects board if anyone wants to take a peek.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=790519

[Old65C10]

I am not sure I understand the fear of driving an older truck daily. I can't tell you how few times in my life I have driven a vehicle that was less than 20 years old. It has been rare.
The few that I did own I just had a hard time loving them and sold them off.
My current Daily driver is a 90 Suburban. However, by daily I mean when ever I get to leave the house as I work from home. In the past though I have had regular commuting jobs and always had older vehicles.
People drove them daily when they were new, as long as you keep up with the maintenance they will run just like they did when new.
Other than Air bags and ABS, both of which are suspect, are the only "Safety" improvements that have come about in the last 30 years. Everything else is nanny systems that dumb down the drivers and make the cars less safe in my opinion.
I am happy with a solid frame, disk brakes and 3 point safety belts. ABS is nice, I have it on my motorcycle, but learn to drive and how to use the brakes and they are almost as good as with no ABS. (notice I said ALMOST)
Do I need or want a car that tries to think for me? No, keep that stuff, I don't want it.
Now, when you get back into the cars from early 70's and older, yea, they are best used for car shows and Sunday drives. Drums on all 4 wheels, single circuit brake systems, steering columns that will impale you, no safety glass, the list goes on.
VW bugs from the 50-early 60's had seats that would break off at the mounts, tilt back and eject you out the back window if rear ended. Remember, no seat belts till the late 60's. Good times.

[smokehouse]

Originally Posted by Old65C10

I am not sure I understand the fear of driving an older truck daily. I can't tell you how few times in my life I have driven a vehicle that was less than 20 years old. It has been rare.
The few that I did own I just had a hard time loving them and sold them off.
My current Daily driver is a 90 Suburban. However, by daily I mean when ever I get to leave the house as I work from home. In the past though I have had regular commuting jobs and always had older vehicles.
People drove them daily when they were new, as long as you keep up with the maintenance they will run just like they did when new.
Other than Air bags and ABS, both of which are suspect, are the only "Safety" improvements that have come about in the last 30 years. Everything else is nanny systems that dumb down the drivers and make the cars less safe in my opinion.
I am happy with a solid frame, disk brakes and 3 point safety belts. ABS is nice, I have it on my motorcycle, but learn to drive and how to use the brakes and they are almost as good as with no ABS. (notice I said ALMOST)
Do I need or want a car that tries to think for me? No, keep that stuff, I don't want it.
Now, when you get back into the cars from early 70's and older, yea, they are best used for car shows and Sunday drives. Drums on all 4 wheels, single circuit brake systems, steering columns that will impale you, no safety glass, the list goes on.
VW bugs from the 50-early 60's had seats that would break off at the mounts, tilt back and eject you out the back window if rear ended. Remember, no seat belts till the late 60's. Good times.

you are right about the seats they didn't fix that til about 73. i still love driving my 59 bug with no seat belts i don't have to wear them if it didn't come with them. the bad thing is my son can't be in the car with me so that sucks.
I drive a 78 burb everyday i love it more than my newer truck i haven't drove it in months so it's for sale. there is just more smile per mile driving and old cars and trucks.

[RyanAK]

Originally Posted by smokehouse

I drive a 78 burb everyday i love it more than my newer truck i haven't drove it in months so it's for sale. there is just more smile per mile driving and old cars and trucks.

Tell us more about your ‘78! I think the experience of daily driving earlier squarebody trucks is a bit different than the later ones, especially when you get to the TBI rigs. 4x4? Full-time NP203? 1/2 or 3/4 ton?

R

[smokehouse]

Originally Posted by RyanAK

Tell us more about your ‘78! I think the experience of daily driving earlier squarebody trucks is a bit different than the later ones, especially when you get to the TBI rigs. 4x4? Full-time NP203? 1/2 or 3/4 ton?

R

It a 350 2wd that super solid from out west and i just do normal maintenance on it like changed the oil plugs and wires. did all the brakes and suspension and u joints. that will make it safe to drive everyday and just put gas in it. i was lucky my qjet works great so i have left it alone. also i checked the compression and they all came back around 140 so i know the motor is good to go. always make sure you have a back up car. i have my 59 vw for that and i'm trying to finish my 70 vw panel bus so i'll have two backups. if they drove it 40 years ago that way you can drive it now the truck doesn't know the difference. i build stuff to drive not sit in the garage and just look at it. i haven't been on the interstate very much just stick to the back roads for now until i get over drive. interstates back then were only 55 and that's what these old trucks were designed for at the time.

On the gas mileage look at it this way i probably get the same as a jacked up new truck on 33's. i have a friend that has a new tundra he says he only gets 16 so i don't think i'm not to far off from that. I'll never buy a new truck ago these old trucks are just more fun.

[RyanAK]

Good input, brother. '78 is a little earlier than I anticipated, but I don't see why this rig couldn't be a daily driver. The NP203 full-time might not be ideal for highway commutes, and the brine that PA sprays on the highways in winter gives me nightmares about rusting out a nice rig... but otherwise this seems as comfortable and safe as any truck I've owned. Not sure I'd be keen if I had to 'beltway commute' every day in atrocious urban sprawl traffic, but for me, a squarebody Suburban should fit me an my family just fine.

R

[1976gmc20]

by daily I mean when ever I get to leave the house as I work from home

Yeah, "daily driver" for me is anything sitting out there that I can just jump in and start up and go somewhere when I need or want to drive that particular vehicle. Living on 40 acres I sometimes go days without driving anywhere.

The only thing I have in the current list below that I don't drive anymore is the namesake 1976 GMC which burns oil like crazy and I don't know now if I will ever get it rebuilt since it's only a 2wd

The 1989 and the 1991 I could just start up and drive to town, but our long distance out of state vehicle is a 2006 Chevy HHR not listed below. It's also our usual town/shopping car when the road isn't too muddy or slick, which is about half the year. We also have a 1988 Jeep Cherokee not listed below which is our "black jeep of the family" since it's not a GM

[1976gmc20]

I'll never buy a new truck ago these old trucks are just more fun.

Not to mention all the fun that you can have with that $60K that you didn't spend on the new truck

[Old65C10]

To be honest, I sold my carbed 84 Chevy K30 and bought the 90 Suburban. The only difference I noticed is that the EFI truck I just turn the key and it starts, the 84 I had the pump the gas 3-4 times to get the 454 to start. Once running and driving the 2 trucks drove about the same. A properly tuned carburated truck will run and drive just fine.
I have owned very few fuel injected vehicles, out of the 138 vehicles I have owned, less than 15 have been EFI.

[smokehouse]

Originally Posted by 1976gmc20

Not to mention all the fun that you can have with that $60K that you didn't spend on the new truck

I can buy a lot of gas to make up the difference from a new trunk vs old truck.
Parts are cheaper easy to change you can actually get to everything.
Insurance and taxes are cheaper

IMO i don't like the new trucks they sit up to high you can't hardly backup because you can't see. You almost have to have a step ladder to reach in the side of the bed to get something out and they are just getting uglier. My biggest gripe is after a couple years the plastic dash start to crack and you just paid 40K or so for a new truck and the dash is cracked.

I do plan on installing efi on it later and a gear vendor to make it comfortable on the interstate and i can run modern gas a little easier.

[1976gmc20]

IMO i don't like the new trucks they sit up to high you can't hardly backup because you can't see. You almost have to have a step ladder to reach in the side of the bed to get something out and they are just getting uglier

The newer pickups are about the size of my old 1965 GMC C-50 !

Now I do love medium duty trucks but if you need one that big and strong then buy a medium duty and leave the pickups to be pickups. No offense intended, but all the folks that need to pull 20K pound trailers ought to have just bought the size truck they really needed and not pushed pickups to be something other than a pickup.

I would almost be interested in something like the current Colorado/Canyon pickups if they were offered in a single cab / long bed configuration. I think side by side they would be just about the same size as my 1989 Chevy pickup (minus the extended cab which I don't find that useful).

As it is - I don't know ???? As I get older, I find it harder and harder to keep up an older vehicle to where you can just jump in it and drive out of state without any worry. When/if I had the money, a new or almost new pickup is awful tempting just to (theoretically!) be able to drive it 10 or 15 years without having to always be fixing something.

[smokehouse]

Originally Posted by 1976gmc20

The newer pickups are about the size of my old 1965 GMC C-50 !

Now I do love medium duty trucks but if you need one that big and strong then buy a medium duty and leave the pickups to be pickups. No offense intended, but all the folks that need to pull 20K pound trailers ought to have just bought the size truck they really needed and not pushed pickups to be something other than a pickup.

I would almost be interested in something like the current Colorado/Canyon pickups if they were offered in a single cab / long bed configuration. I think side by side they would be just about the same size as my 1989 Chevy pickup (minus the extended cab which I don't find that useful).

As it is - I don't know ???? As I get older, I find it harder and harder to keep up an older vehicle to where you can just jump in it and drive out of state without any worry. When/if I had the money, a new or almost new pickup is awful tempting just to (theoretically!) be able to drive it 10 or 15 years without having to always be fixing something.

I know from my experience that chevy trucks are way way cheaper than aircooled vw's by far and i have been working on them for 20 something years now. so everything i have done so far to my burb it's cheap to me.

The only thing i have hated is for over 25 years or so my tool box is metric and i've had to collect standard tools here and there to work on my truck. i've been lucky 9/16 is super close to 14mm lol.