Craigslist Lust of the Week: Square Body 'Burbs

volvoclearinghouse wrote:

1988RedT2 wrote: Don't be afraid of the 454 from a gas mileage perspective. From what I've heard, they do no worse than the 350. Unless you romp on it, of course.

I have a '93 454-powered dually quad cab truck, with a 5 speed manual, and have never gotten better than 10 mpg, highway, empty. Mrs. VCH's 350-powered 4x4 Suburban, with a 700R4 automatic, has never gotten less than 14 mpg, even in mixed driving. I know it's not exactly apples-to-apples, but the big block will suck more gas. And the difference between 10 mpg and 14 is a shocking amount of fuel.

Similar experience here. My vortec 454 powered 97 4x4 burb gets slightly over 10 and my 89 with tbi 350 gets 14-14.5. I'm sure the 97 is a bit heavier but still.

Some temptations for you:

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/cto/d/1991-suburban/6249381380.html

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/cto/d/1990-chevy-suburban/6272361935.html

I'm partial to the 1989 front end restyle.

In reply to volvoclearinghouse:

You guys are terrible enablers, you know that? I think I've seen the one in Fairfax already, looks nice aside from the couple of rusty spots that pretty much ALL of these in the northeast seem to have. Don't think I've seen the truck in Haymarket yet, but that one looks pretty decent. Hard to tell from the pic, but no obvious signs of rust and the price is tempting.

I think the 454 is definitely out on the basis of fuel economy, everything I've seen seems to suggest double digit mpgs are a real struggle. I'm actually pretty impressed to hear the 350 TBI trucks seem to be capable of 14 routinely, that's better than I would have expected and probably good enough for me.

In reply to fidelity101:

I'll have to read your build thread tonight. Already read through VCH's last night.

How did you like the SM465 in your truck? It's basically a 3 speed with a granny low gear right? Are they hydraulic or cable actuated clutch? How's the gas mileage?

When I was a kid, Dad ordered a brand new 77 3/4 ton Burb with a 400 SBC and 4X4. That thing could go just about anywhere. The rustbug eventually took it.

In reply to Furious_E:

Sometimes I commute in a '88 Chevrolet Suburban. 2wd, 350 TBI, 700r4. Drives good and floats down the road. My normal return was 17 mpg.

Pretty cool if you are prepared for the pain at the gas pump.

In reply to Furious_E:

Yeah the rust monster eats these things pretty handily. Mrs. VCHS truck spent most of its life in VA/NC, so it's pretty solid. There's a few spots underneath that I need to tend to soon, though.

In college I had a 77 Burb with a 350 and a quadraslob. 2WD. It was a beast. The rust was so terrible on that truck- rockers were completely gone, door bottoms rotten, and everything about a foot from the bottom behind the rear wheels was gone. The floor behind the rear seats rotted out, so I replaced it with plywood (pressure treated!). I finally donated it when I graduated college and could afford something more than $550, which is what I paid for that thing. But it was a great truck. I probably put 30k miles on it, and it always got me where I needed to go.

Had a 1990 GMG 2wd with the 350TBI and 700 trans. It had 240,000 miles. Friend of mine found a raggedy 1997 S-10 from a Payday loan office that wanted a grand for. So I got the Burb for said grand. He spent $3,000 to fix the S-10 and ither than normal maintenance, only had to replace the alternator after the shaft welded to the bearing. It also kept the racing kart all the time. The guy who has it won't sell it and now is letting it rust away.

Furious_E wrote: In reply to fidelity101: I'll have to read your build thread tonight. Already read through VCH's last night. How did you like the SM465 in your truck? It's basically a 3 speed with a granny low gear right? Are they hydraulic or cable actuated clutch? How's the gas mileage?

I loved it! and yeah its a 3 speed with a straight cut low gear. It depends on the year if its hydro or cable and I THINK there are 2 variants of bellhousings for hydro. Best MPG I would get is 13 and worst was 9. towing or not.

In reply to fidelity101:

There's no cable. It's rods and levers and the feel is so much better than any hydraulic clutch I've ever felt

Buy Me!

https://delaware.craigslist.org/cto/d/91-4x4-suburban/6243153385.html

For almost the same price that my cousin bought his first relatively clean 911sc I give you

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/cto/d/1956-porsche-356a-rusted-out/6536734825.html

Mine was a Bare bones Cargo Door, Rubber Floor mat 350 with 3 On the Floor. It pulled the race car W/ trailer Like it wasn't There. Gas mileage wasn't a concern but it really didn't change much Loaded or Not.   I miss it.