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Posted by: DeuceRooster
Go with the Tahoe. I had a 1994 Yukon GT (2 Door Yukon) and I loved it! You don't see a ton of them around plus if you lift them a little they look really awesome.
Posted by: Kraw
what truck? Anything but a Chebby
Posted by: Specta
Buy the vehicle that has had the fewest modifications. They seem to give you less problems in the long run, modify it your self. I don't like body lifts and suspension lifts on IFS effects the steering and stability of the vehicle. Buy a 96 or newer, they are a lot smarter than 95's. 95's were a "change over" year for most manufactures and their electronics are questionable, especially Dodge.
Posted by: BigBadScrambler
Its never really a good idea to buy a lifted truck. You don't know what the person has done to it and if they did it right. There is a lot more to it than just a lift and tires. The speedo, trans, and computer all need to be recalibrated. You will need to regear it, especially with 39" tires. I can almost gaurentee that that first truck has a body lift. You are not going to get 9 1/2" of lift out of an IFS vehical and not be replacing balljoints, CV joints, and other steering and suspension compents on a regular basis. Not to mention, Swampers are not exactly a very good on road tires. They are more of an Off road only tire. And they wear out really fast and cost over $200 a piece for 39's. Not to mention, the insurance company will rape you when it comes to trucks and SUV's, especially lifted ones. My buddy put a 6" lift on his Explorer and his insurance more than doubled. As for lifting with the torsion bars, yeah it is a cheap way to go. On my blazer, I put 1.5" Daystar shackels in the rear and cranked the torsion bars up about 3/4" to level it out. I had to replace the ball joints, tie rods, idle arm, cv joints, and torsion bar mounts after I did that. I wouldn't really reccomend it. Plus it rides like crap with them cranked. You will also have to get an alignment as soon as you touch those damn things. Just my .02 hoped it helped
Posted by: maddog56
The vortec is definately the engine to have. However, if the engine in the lifted truck has already been replaced once and needs another engine now, then I would be very weary of the other parts on the truck. namely tranny and drivetrain. Anything that went through that many motors in that short of time was either beat to all hell or very neglected and poorly maintained.
Posted by: quadsportin
GO for the Z-71, the lift and tires sound good and a motor rebuild would be worth it to have the extra power.
If you do get the other truck DO NOT PUT ON BODY LIFT!!!!!!
If you do any off roading you will have stock running gear which is not good.
If you jump or do any xtreme off roading the lift pucks can break right through the body causing severe damage!!!!
Hopefully the Z-71 does not have body lift, its the worst thing you can do to your truck.
Just get a cheap 3" suspension lift it is less complicated to put on and will not cause any problems.
If you dont believe me, contact a serious off road shop (not pro- trucks they are a street truck co.) they'll back me up.
Sorry if I sound like an a$$hole but you can ruin your truck like that.
Posted by: quadsportin
Quote
Originally posted by: curlytop
I'm not trying to start a fight but I'm not as rich or have as much money as you guys do and all I can afford is a body lift, I just want it lifted for looks anyways. Besides my parents won't let me get the first one, they just told me. I would like to have a dodge dakota v8 4x4 ext cab but they are hard to find around here for a fair price.
How much are you planning on spending on a 3" body lift?
Shop around, you can find susp. lifts cheap, a friend of mine just picked up a 41/2" susp. lift for just under $1000.
You can get them far cheaper. That way you can go wheeling if you want as well as have the good looks.
Posted by: quadsportin
You could also just get some longer shocks and block up the leaves out back.
Up front you can get some real cheap lift brackets and still not have a body lift.
It wont be the best lift but its much nicer to the truck.
Posted by: BSA
Have you looked at new trucks at all? The dealers are discounting 2003s below invoice and offering 0% interest. A friend just bought a new 2003 F150 2WD, V6, 5speed, for 12,000 with 0% for 60 months. His payment is only $166/month with a $2,000 down payment. Not all the bells and whistles you are looking at, and not 4WD, but pretty darn cheap and there is something about a new vehicle.......
Posted by: BSA
Edmunds shows a range for a 95 Tahoe of average condition 4X4, 150,000 miles: $3,000 dealer trade in, $4,000 private party, $5,000 dealer retail.
You asked for opinions, so based on Edmunds, my opinion is you would be paying way too much. Crazy way too much for a vehicle with 150,000 miles.
As I suggested before, look at a new truck. The deals are pretty good right now. You may not get all the extras, but you won't be getting all the problems of a 150,000 mile vehicle either.
If the new F150s are too much as $12,000, Rangers are under $10,000 new. Get something you can afford, that has a warranty, and save yourself money and headaches.
There is something about a new vehicle........
Posted by: curlytop
I found a couple of pretty nice trucks and need an idea what would be better that I found.
1996 CHEVROLET PICKUP Z-71, 4x4, V8, '97 350 Vortec, 9-1/2" lift, w/39-1/2x15 Super Swamper TSL, fully customized, blue w/ghost flames, w/shaved door handles, auto., pw, pdl, cruise, tilt, am/fm cass., cloth int., ac, ps, pb, good cond., keyless entry, alarm, needs new motor for $6000, I might be able to get it for $5500.
OR
1995 2 Door LS, automatic, V8,4x4, PW, PD, PS, tilt, cruise, running boards, garage kept and maintained, 152,000 miles mainly highway Must Sell!! $5500 OBO. If I got this I would put a 3" body lift on it and bigger tires. thanks
Posted by: curlytop
usually how much is it to rebuild a 350.
Posted by: curlytop
Quote
Originally posted by: curlytop
I found a couple of pretty nice trucks and need an idea what would be better that I found.
1996 CHEVROLET PICKUP Z-71, 4x4, V8, '97 350 Vortec, 9-1/2" lift, w/39-1/2x15 Super Swamper TSL, fully customized, blue w/ghost flames, w/shaved door handles, auto., pw, pdl, cruise, tilt, am/fm cass., cloth int., ac, ps, pb, good cond., keyless entry, alarm, needs new motor for $6000, I might be able to get it for $5500.
OR
1995 2 Door LS, automatic, V8,4x4, PW, PD, PS, tilt, cruise, running boards, garage kept and maintained, 152,000 miles mainly highway Must Sell!! $5500 OBO. If I got this I would put a 3" body lift on it and bigger tires. thanks
sorry I ment to put that the 1995 ls is a 2 door tahoe.
Posted by: curlytop
I'm not trying to start a fight but I'm not as rich or have as much money as you guys do and all I can afford is a body lift, I just want it lifted for looks anyways. Besides my parents won't let me get the first one, they just told me. I would like to have a dodge dakota v8 4x4 ext cab but they are hard to find around here for a fair price.
Posted by: curlytop
I am planning to spend around $200 on a body lift.
Posted by: curlytop
Like i said before i am not going to get the z71, and i got to looking at the tahoe ad and the phone number wasn't there so I found another tahoe for $8000. It's a 1995 one owner and has about 150k miles on it and new water pump, belt, and some other stuff. It also comes with some aftermarket speakers in it. It is a real nice one. so what do you think
Posted by: curlytop
OK kids Like I said before I am only 16 and can barly afford a used truck and certainly not going to buy a new truck. Plus my cousin has a 2-door tahoe like i am talking about and it has 330,000 miles on the original motor and still going strong.
Posted by: BigScary
Quote
Originally posted by: quadsportin
GO for the Z-71, the lift and tires sound good and a motor rebuild would be worth it to have the extra power.
If you do get the other truck DO NOT PUT ON BODY LIFT!!!!!!
If you do any off roading you will have stock running gear which is not good.
If you jump or do any xtreme off roading the lift pucks can break right through the body causing severe damage!!!!
Hopefully the Z-71 does not have body lift, its the worst thing you can do to your truck.
Just get a cheap 3" suspension lift it is less complicated to put on and will not cause any problems.
If you dont believe me, contact a serious off road shop (not pro- trucks they are a street truck co.) they'll back me up.
Sorry if I sound like an a$$hole but you can ruin your truck like that.hr>
you are correct, if you plan to do any extreme driving the body lift is not for you.........
but if you just cruise around town to look good in a jacked up 4x4 then the body lift is fine...
Posted by: hotseatperformancefan
also did you ever think about the gas money. with big tires you are going to be spending hundreds of dollars a week on gas!!!!
Posted by: hotseatperformancefan
THAT much for a 95!! go to a dealership and find the newest one for the cheapest amount. plus trucks that old you dont want to fool around with because youre gonna be replacing the transmission soon. My moms 95 tahoe sh!t the bed with 120000 miles on it.
Posted by: Spanxkx
well the voretec is extremely nice! my father has a 2001 chevy tahoe, and my friend has an older yukon with the 350 not vortec heads, and there is a noticable difference in power. the first truck you found is a little newer. You have to be careful with buying trucks that are lifted because the ball joints usually need to be replaced after while. a new motor tho thats not fun.. but you could always find a good used motor and put that in. The second truck is getting higher in miles too, so it would need to be replaced or rebuilt soon anyways. the 2nd one you would have to put the lift on, so thats more money and work. over all i would say either keep looking, or if your set on these two trucks, buy the first one and start looking for a good used motor, or rebuild that one. Good luck!
Luke
Posted by: Spanxkx
well it all depends on what you have to rebuild, the top end is cheaper to rebuild than the bottom half. Unless your doing all the work yourself, I would imagine it would be cheaper to find a used one with low miles on it, and either have it put in, or put it in yourself.
to rebuild a 350 your looking at ABOUT $2500 $1200 top end $1300-$1400 bottem end. and thats not modding anything, thats just replacing everything. So I would think you could possible find a used one cheaper? not sure, but good luck!
Luke
Posted by: Spanxkx
oh a tahoe! well those are very nice too.. I would still go with the first one tho and fix it up.
Posted by: Spanxkx
yeah he is absolutely right about that...l
Posted by: Spanxkx
hey, i think that on a tahoe in the front you can adjust the tortion bars?? (not sure if im thinking of the right thing...) and the back you could put blocks in. Im not no expert, but i dont think your gunna get a lift for $200! yeah the tahoe 2 dr with a lift would look really nice. try putting a 6 in lift with 35 in tires! or a 3 in lift with 33 in tires. actually, if you left it stock it would be nice looking! good luck with your purchase!
Luke
Posted by: bigblock2stroke
1996 is the first year for the Vortec heads and they do make more hp with better fuel economy (The wonders of that black magic art called intake charge flow optimization). I agree that buying the one with the least mods is the way to go. If the one truck needs an engine, it means he beat the crap out of it so the rest of the truck will probably need to be worked on.
I also agree with buying a new ride. Much like interest rates for refinancing your house will never be as low as they are (or were 6 months ago). You will proabably not see a better deal on a new truck than the OEM's are offering right now.
Posted by: TexasPsycho
i've know of a tahoe with almost 200,000 that is still running great but is you pay more than the book value and have an accident that totals it, tour fault or the other guys, the insurance will only pay the book value. if you owe $5000 and the book is only $3000 that means you have to come up with $2000 to pay the bank. make sure you don't go over the book value whatever you buy. if you can't afford a new car that's fine, my first car cost $750! of course that was nearly 24 years ago. dang i'm getting old!
Posted by: TexasPsycho
becareful on the lifted trucks. you can get a cheap lft but thats what you want to stay away from. i have 8" of lift on my excursion and run 36's. i have never had the insurance company say anything about the truck being lifted but they are higher on suv's. stay away from the body lifts because they look like crap on chevy's, to much of the frame shows. you can get a lot of lift for a chevy if you go with a whiplash kit, but you still talking $$$. with the lift, triple shocks at each corner, tires, wheels and ladder bars i have close to $4000 in mine.
