Why can't we have one of these?

[Lefty]

And speaking of small trucks, they are rapidly disappearing. I asked my nephew about this once. He's an exec at Ford. He explained small trucks were not as profitable: the same number of parts.

 

[Roert42]

Thunderbolt

 

[rusty ol ranger]

Nope, the Lightning just outran the SS.

Not sure how...the 454 had more power and weight shoulda been pretty close

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Not sure how...the 454 had more power and weight shoulda been pretty close

It wasn't.

Ford put a lot more R&D in the engine though. A tuned 351 with cobra intake and special cam vs a TBI 454 from a dump truck.

Tested: 1993 Ford F-150 Lightning vs. Chevrolet 454SS

From the Archive: Gauging two new-age muscle trucks with very different takes on performance.

www.caranddriver.com

 

[rusty ol ranger]

It wasn't.

Ford put a lot more R&D in the engine though. A tuned 351 with cobra intake and special cam vs a TBI 454 from a dump truck.

Tested: 1993 Ford F-150 Lightning vs. Chevrolet 454SS

From the Archive: Gauging two new-age muscle trucks with very different takes on performance.

www.caranddriver.com

Just looking at the specs though its strange...the 454 had around the same HP, smoked the 351 on torque, and was only 200lb heavier

After reading that the chevy for sure sounds more fun lol

 

[superj]

i don;t know. the 454 sounds like a bigger dog than a 350. i have had two full size chevy trucks, an 88 with a 305 that was gutless but was still running at 800k miles, and a 91 with a 350 that was gutless and ran great.

i could never figure out why the chevy v8 had such a following and its owners though they have the hottest truck on the street. bad gas mileage dogs is what htye were. i had to put a chip in the 350 to make it move like a v8 ford

 

[SenorNoob]

i don;t know. the 454 sounds like a bigger dog than a 350. i have had two full size chevy trucks, an 88 with a 305 that was gutless but was still running at 800k miles, and a 91 with a 350 that was gutless and ran great.

i could never figure out why the chevy v8 had such a following and its owners though they have the hottest truck on the street. bad gas mileage dogs is what htye were. i had to put a chip in the 350 to make it move like a v8 ford

I had a 350 in a 79 truck. Literally wouldn't get out it's own way. 2 people in the cab and an empty bed took 10-15 seconds to wind up enough to start rolling the tires. LOL I've driven enough to know something was very wrong there, but still.

 

[Shran]

I had a 1980 Chevy K10 that had a 350 and a TH350 auto. I was kind of a square body fan until that truck. I still like them but what a piece of crap. Green leather everything, doors/hood/tailgate never shut right, leaf springs for days, rattles and shakes and electrical problems everywhere. Engine ran good but it was a dog. I have drove my buddy's square body dually flatbed that has a 454 and a 4 speed, what a turd, makes a lot of noise and doesn't go faster. I think GM drivetrains are/were so popular because they made some pretty sweet muscle cars and the drivetrains were much more interchangeable - which remains true today - hence LS swaps and stuff.

The Cyclone and Typhoon were pretty cool as were all the 1st gen S10/Blazers. The generation after that I just absolutely hate. I hate working on them and they are made out of cheap plastic junk everywhere that crumbles to bits. That was just GM products in general from the early 90's onwards though. Dead nuts reliable power trains built on a chassis that would fall apart around them. Ford is totally guilty of all that too but it's the devil I know type of deal.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Dad has a '80 K20 and a 92 1500 both with 350's, aside from quadrabog on the '80 they both run fine to me.

'80 is a factory cab chassis with a utility box full of tools so I do cut it a little slack.

Eons ago on here a guy pitted his 351W truck vs his wife's 4.3 Blazer in a pulling contest, the Blazer mopped the floor with the 250.

 

[Roert42]

since we're doing a poop on chebby thread



I bought a 2001 MonteCarloSS with bout 80k on it, $6k. Guy I worked with was a big chevy guy and he talked the 3800 series engine up a bunch "most reliable engine Chev every made, and that's saying a lot since they made a lot of very reliable engines. Super easy to work on too, everything is very accessible for a transvers V6."

I thought it was a good looking car, all black with tinted windows except for aluminum wheels and the little red SS badge. Very comfortable ride, decent gas milage compared to anything I had before.


I think I had to fix every system on the car in less then 10Kmiles. Amplifier, fuel sender, Catalytic converter (3x) (first one was clogged and the two replacements rusted out quickly), brakes, ECU replaced (fog lights didn't work?), engine (spun a main bearing), electronic door lock actuator.

The thing drank oil like it was going out of style, apparently a common issue, I would top it off every time I stopped for gas.


I had it for about 9 months when I had to replace the engine. I gave it to my teenage brother when he got his license. He had to fix a bunch of more issues. Drove it for a summer, then sold it for something like $2500.


Between what I paid for it and what we both spent repairing it, it probably cost us around $15K for less then 20k of driving.



First and last Chebby.

Brother eventually bought a Silverado and the transfer case exploded on the high when on a road trip. Sold it to the tow company for $500 and caught a flight home.

 

[Lefty]

i don;t know. the 454 sounds like a bigger dog than a 350. i have had two full size chevy trucks, an 88 with a 305 that was gutless but was still running at 800k miles, and a 91 with a 350 that was gutless and ran great.

i could never figure out why the chevy v8 had such a following and its owners though they have the hottest truck on the street. bad gas mileage dogs is what htye were. i had to put a chip in the 350 to make it move like a v8 ford

800K? Really?

I would prefer a high performance V6 like the SHO, something that would not only go fast but also handle well.