What about the GM 8.1 Vortec?

[T.Low]

Found a 1 ton rig I like. Price is good, private party seller, custom set up is perfect for me, and rare, and expensive to duplicate, original owner that I do not know personally. It has a stock original '02 8.1 liter Vortec in it at 91,000 miles. I have no experience with this rig, and my AstroLander is the first GM I've owned since my '72 El Camino and a '63 Biscayne.

Reviews are saying it will indeed pull the house off the foundation, but at the expense of very bad mpg and a quart of oil per 3k mi. month. Ring problems that GM will not admit to.

I'll pull a 4500lb rv twice a year, and generally drive the heck out of the rig for work 90% of the time, about 25k mi/yr. Therefore, I estimate it will have 140-150,000 miles on it in two years from now, possibly 200k in four years. I would probably get a 4yr loan on it, and my company truck allowance would cover the payment, ins., and gas.

I could go as cheap as a used 2wd 1/2 ton, or even a used Dodge Caravan...but I feel life is too short to drive vanilla. :smiley_drive:Especially if I'll be in the darn thing as my mobile office 8 hrs a day, 25,000 miles a year.

Is he selling it because at 91k, it's time for it to get expensive to maintain? I'd offer more details, but I'm sort of afraid someone might buy it out from under me while I'm himmin and hawwin.

Please let the opinons fly fast and furious and I will sort them out.:ylsmoke:

Thanks guys.

 

[dirtyweekendrig]

It depends..... if you don't mind paying truck loads of money on gas, buy it. But if I was in the marked for a tow rig and if it didn't have to be a 4WD I would get a Duramax instead of the 8.1L anyday. Then again I don't know how much is the truck you're thinking about buying.

 

[chasespeed]

Well, if they are paying for gas... I say... why not? thats a 496ci engine, and a monster... I would prefer a diesel personally... BUT... I would certainly enjoys its 340hp......

The big svc coming up, may be the 100k.....

Other than that, I have no experience with this engine...

Chase

 

[maximumrob]

I'll pull a 4500lb rv twice a year,

A smooth riding half-ton will pull that with no problems.

and generally drive the heck out of the rig for work 90% of the time, about 25k mi/yr. ...Especially if I'll be in the darn thing as my mobile office 8 hrs a day, 25,000 miles a year.

If you're spending so much time in it, why get beat to death with 1-T suspension when a 1/2-T truck will still get the job done? If you've driven a modern 1/2-T truck in the last few years, you know they generally ride hard as hell in the back, too, since they all want to lay claim to macho man capacities.

Were it me, I'd buy a moderately used 2009 RAM with cushy rear springs

 

[ujoint]

I've driven a bunch of rigs with them, good motor. The lifters tend to make some noise, but I've never heard of any major failures.

 

[T.Low]

It depends..... if you don't mind paying truck loads of money on gas, buy it. But if I was in the marked for a tow rig and if it didn't have to be a 4WD I would get a Duramax instead of the 8.1L anyday. Then again I don't know how much is the truck you're thinking about buying.

Thanks for the replies, guys. Good points, all.

Well, its not a tow rig per se, even though I would use it a couple times a year to tow, but thats all.

He's asking $18,500.

Its main function is to be a mobile office to write bids and orders for construction materials at job sites. The allure of this particular rig is that the expensive stuff has already been done, (I would never do that to a work van, but I see the value in buying one already optioned that way) and whats left is the blank slate of an interior that I would want to customize quite specifically, anyway. Envisioning the standard EB50 Sportsmobile layout, I'd build a desk and cabinet system behind the drivers seat along the wall, complete with laptop work area, maybe a fold out drafting table for performing "materials take-offs" from blueprints, a printer, fridge and microwave. Then, instead of the bench seat, maybe just a swivel bucket on the passenger side. Then the back would display some samples along the driver's side wall, with mountain bike and gear (or the GasGas on Wednesdays) in the rear passenger side, to take advantage of whatever particular area my sales schedule happens to take me.

http://reno.craigslist.org/cto/1445038462.html

It may be all for not as I haven't heard back from him, but its got me thinking.

In the rainy PNW, I could pop the top, my builder buddies could come in out of the rain for a cup of coffee and go over the bid, or browse materials, make decisons and changes, and order the deal right then and there.

My wife just thinks I want to sleep at the jobsite.

Yeah, a used Sprinter would be more practical...but...you know how some rigs are so ugly that they are cool, like a Vanagon. Well, Sprinters are ugly but not that way.

I honestly will use the 4wd two weeks out of the year due to snow. So of course realistically, thats not necessarily the point of the 4wd. Like I said in the OP; life's too short to drive vanilla.

But then I'd be that guy with two 4x4 custom pop top vans and no pickup truck. Thats just weird. And I refuse to put 35,000 miles a year on the AstroLander between work and play, so thats out of the question.

But a van would really work better for both my work and play than pickup. Hmm...

 

[T.Low]

I've driven a bunch of rigs with them, good motor. The lifters tend to make some noise, but I've never heard of any major failures.

Thanks, good to know.

I may just end up buying a cargo van and adding the 4wd and lift myself in time if I feel like it. Know where a guy can get a kit for such a wacky idea?

Seriously, I'll spend a lot more of my life in this rig than in the AstroLander, unfortunately, so why not make it what I want it to be. WTH? I've got 13 kayaks and 5 bicycles, why not two vans?

 

[desertrover]

My experience with the 8.1 involved a couple up-armored suburbans. They were fast, reliable, and had an appetite for fuel that put a 11000lb HMMWV to shame. Either way, those trucks got us out of their fair share of rock and a hard place situations. Not as stylish as the Brits in their G-wagens, but faster off the line, even at nearly 9000lbs.

 

[Lumberjack]

My dad has one with about 50K on it. Runs good, burns a quart of oil every 1,800 miles and feels at home in front of the gas station. The good news is a 4,500 lb trailer won't even effect the gas mileage. Also check all the hoses, tranny cooler lines, oil cooler lines, power steering, ect. They like to leak and are expensive.

Den

 

[ujoint]

Thanks, good to know.

Know where a guy can get a kit for such a wacky idea?

NO IDEA!!!!!! Unless it has a blue oval on the grill of course.........

 

[JJackson]

We have 5 2500 HD Chevy's at work with the 8.1L, mine has the lowest miles at about 91,000. We have only seen a couple of problems, one lost a transmission at over 120,000 and one had the transfer case go out. These trucks do pull trailers and on occasion a wood chipper that is at least 6000lbs with not many problems, though we're limited to 55 mph with a trailer. Mine does use a little oil, maybe a half a quart for every couple of thousand, seems pretty normal for a big block. As far as fuel milage, without a trailer I average between 9 and 13 miles (hard use to hwy). I love taking it to Phoenix from Flagstaff as it may only shift out of OD once on the way there and at least once on the way back, it does not slow for any of the steep climbs and only usually see the climb 200 to 300 above what it's cruising at on flat ground. I love the engine in that truck, the fuel milage is not far off from what those guys with the slightly modified 80 series landcruisers get, and they can tow as well.

 

[T.Low]

NO IDEA!!!!!! Unless it has a blue oval on the grill of course.........

I had never considered a Bowtie until this one popped up. Iv'e most always been a First On Race Day kinda guy (until the RRRAstro).

 

[Bella PSD]

My brother in law has one. 02 8.1 L 4wd. Bought it new. He just had to put a new tranny in his at 60K. He did not tow or abuse the tranny?? I also know he always has a few quarts of oil with him. He has told me he gets about 13mpg at the very best, and most of the time less.

I can see the attraction here for you I think as I have a 01 GMC Safari AWD with BFG AT ko's. Its all stock but one heck of a van, love it for the most part. I just don't see the 8.1L in the same league as the GM truck you have now, if that makes sense?

Are you on astrosafarivans.net

Louie

 

[T.Low]

I love the engine in that truck, the fuel milage is not far off from what those guys with the slightly modified 80 series landcruisers get, and they can tow as well.

Thats high praise, especially considering its coming from a Toyota guy.

 

[Larry]

WOW, that is a nice van! Hmmm, that van is almost the same price as the Four Wheel Camper I am looking at :drool:

Well, I have a couple rigs with 8.1L engines. The first is a bone stock 2001 ECSB 4x4 Silverado HD with a ZF-S650 6 speed manual that I bought brand new. It now has 50K miles and has burnt a quart of oil every 1,400 miles like clockwork ….but no different than any other big block. Big bore engines use oil…period. The second is a 1978 K10 that I dropped a 2002 8.1L engine into last year running on a marine engine controller with screwy calibrations. Just a change in calibrations alone makes the 8.1L come alive! This one has no problems making a barber pole out of a drive shaft or wiping the teeth off the ring gear on a 14 bolt full floating rear axle if you are not careful. You have to be careful with these if you turn off the powertrain protection Torque Management that is programmed into the original ECM....they will break things! I also have 2 additional brand new 8.1L engines sitting on engine stands in the garage. I guess you could say, I kinda collect them. I am actually getting ready to pull off the marine controller and go with a tweaked automotive controller on the ’78 though. While the marine controller makes it run like a weed wacker, I want a smoother operating system (The algorithms of marine controllers are pretty crude, basically 1980’s technology…hard to explain).

In stock form the 8.1L is a low cost alternative to a Dirtymax as it has major diesel-like low end torque which is why they were so successful in GM medium duty trucks. On the other hand, a stock 8.1L isn't all that fast of a mover due to the restrictive air induction system, exhaust system and conservatively calibrated ECM all in an effort to meet emissions. In fact, my other Silverado HD with a 6.0L is quicker and more athletic around town but put a few thousand pounds behind the 6.0L and it falls flat on its face while the 8.1L doesn’t even flinch. The 8.1L also gets the same fuel mileage as the 6.0L but does it loaded or unloaded.

I am not a big diesel fan now that the feds have almost ruined the engines where they aren’t as desirable (or durable) as they were just a few years ago but with the mileages you are talking about, you might be better off going the diesel route even considering the cost of admission to get into a diesel and the never ending engine maintenance and costly repairs.

Problem areas with the 8.1L…. 2001 and 2002 have notorious crank shaft position sensor failures. Being that van is a 2002, it should be replaced if it hasn’t failed already. 2005 was a bad year for oil pump shafts breaking. When they break, the engines usually are not damaged as the PCM will shut it down as soon as the oil pressure falls off a cliff. Look up the problem areas of a Dirtymax or a Powerjoke and the list is 10 miles long....8.1L, 2 items.

Over all, the 8.1L’s are great engines! I would take a G-van with a gas lov’in 8.1L over a Ford E-van with a Powerjoke any day of the week. The diesel Ford will be the first to take a ride on a hook to a dealership long before an 8.1L lies down on you. The Dirtymax is alright but still not as durable as an 8.1L in my opinion. BTW…I work for a diesel engine manufacturer and I own all GAS! :Wow1: