I love my truck...

So we're going into Montana to do some camping. About 550km from home one way. Pulling our old 26' fiver down I-15 through some decent passes and through the mountains.

So today I got to spend a day with my old truck and go through my pre road trip rituals. Changed oil, flushed out and changed PS fluid, checked all the hoses, belts etc. Washed it, vacuumed it out, wiped down the dash and seats etc. It really only gets this "special" treatment when it's going on a family road trip.

As I was going about my work, it struck me: I really love this truck. It's really nothing special. Just an old Chevy 2500 6.0/4L80E extended cab truck. I've had it for about 5 years, and a good deal of that time it's been my DD. It's not real high mileage, about 210,000 km on it now. But it's almost 14 years old. It was a pretty nice rig back in it's day. Heated power leather seats, cassette AND CD player lol. The great thing is that EVERYTHING still works perfectly, and it's still a nice solid truck.

It's pretty much stock. Just headers/exhaust and a decent tune done with HP Tuners, and I added a nice Alpine Bluetooth head unit.

I can't really nail down why I love it so much. It's not good on fuel. It's not "fun" to drive. But damn it, it's just been so faithful. It's done lots of towing our RV and quads through the mountains. It's hauled lots of gravel and dirt for landscaping projects. I don't baby it, but I do look after it and it's not really a "work" truck, as in, I don't use it every day for work. But it does lots of truck stuff, and it sounds great pulling the trailer up a long grade in 2nd gear, TC locked, @ 3800 rpm.

The only time it has failed to start was after I left the lights on one night at the St Anthony sand dunes to serve as work lights while we wrenched on a buddy's Banshee late into the night so we could ride the next day.

When the day comes that the kids are too big to ride in the back and I have to get a crew cab, I'll miss it dearly. I'm likely more attached to this truck than any of the "fun" vehicles I've had over the years.

The old girl still cleans up pretty nice too!

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How bout some more stories of vehicles you have or have had and have grown attached to?

Awesome story. I had a toyota truck in college. Similar bond.

Wish I could get another.

The never ending project, I have had it for almost 10 years, a record for me, cost was a princely $250.

As a rotary I got it going after sitting for 10 years, then put 35K on it in a year doing deliveries in it.

Sold the rotary still in great shape when I did the 5.0 swap.

Next projects are stereo, interior and paint.

As far as I am concerned .... every family needs a truck

We just drove our 2003 Trailblazer from Chicago to Glacier and I feel the same way you do. Some days we started and stopped 25 times (Badlands Park) and other days we pounded out 750 miles doing 78mph. After we got home driving 4,000 miles my wife bragged that her Chevrolet, once again performed well for our family on a long driving trip.

It's not a sports car, is overweight, mediocre on gas, and is small in the back; but it hauled the family well.

Well, if we are talking trucks instead of long term ownership, I can still play.

I love this ridiculous monster too

I have the Suburban version of the OP's truck, and can't figure out how I lived without it. It replaced my Land Rover DiscoveryII, which was special in it's own way over my 6 years of ownership, but the Suburban 2500 Quadrasteer is just worlds better in every way except the quality of the leather.

While my truck is still new to me.. the 2003 Landrover Discovery has certainly grown on me. Still getting north of 17mpg (barely) in daily mixed driving, it's comfy, it goes over everything, and it towed my 3200pound sailboat plus 1000 pounds of trailer from Lake Champlain to Atlantic City without a single complaint.

I have a 9yr old chevy 2500HD oil burner that really isn't anything special up here in fracking country. Every roughneck has one. It's huge. It's ugly. It costs a lot to keep on the road but ... after a long weekend of racing exhaustion, sunburn and so on and facing a long pull home I love that stupid thing. Dragging 9klbs with ice cold AC, sat radio and enough torque to set the cruise and forget it even in the mountains makes all those other days where I can't find a parking spot for the behemoth seem worth it.

I should go wash it. Or something.