Newbie With A Looong K1500! :)

[SCREECH]

Hey all! I just joined up, so I figured I'd throw out an intro post to, well, introduce myself, and to ask a few preliminary questions that I've got that maybe a few out there have addressed already.

 

Back in August '09 I picked up a '91 K1500 155.5" wheelbase - extended cab with an 8' box. The L03 305tbi and 3.42 gearing means it isn't exactly full of "get up and go". With the long frame it's been a real joy when towing my flatbed car hauler - I've noticed a lot less deflection in the tow vehicle compared to the std cab 8' box truck I was previously using. Getting the truck for less than $1000 certainly put a smile on my face.

 

 

 

 

 

So far the only real mods I've done have been swapping the steering wheel for a '90 Celebrity Eurosport wheel (see above), and I've ditched the bedliner and added a BackRack behind the rear window. I've also picked up, but have yet to install, a 6-lug 14-bolt axle with the G80 locker. It was cleaned up, painted, outfitted with all new brake hardware and cables and then only used for a few months in a summer truck. Although it has a healthy front pinion leak the $350 price tag seemed more than fair.

 

And most recently I picked up an '89 C1500 with the L05 350tbi as I started getting coolant in the engine and have noticed degraded towing capabilities. Unfortunately I grenaded the driveshaft and rear axle in the '89 by doing a sweet burnout in my brother's driveway! I'm well into my 30s yet I just can't seem to shake this teenage-style obsession with such tom-foolery.

 

 

 



 

Eventually I'd like to get into a diesel truck (or do a swap on mine!), but for now I'm quite pleased with my rig, yet as with all my vehicles, I've got an ever-growing list of "to-do" mods and upgrades - yes, it pretty much drive's my wife nuts.

 

As for the QUESTIONS I said I had, I'm sure there's some I'm forgetting, but the one that still sticks out in my mind is: Does anyone know of any options for HEATED side mirrors for these trucks??? I'm currently planning on getting a new set of power mirrors for the doors (for like $60 from one of the eBay vendors), but if I can get ones that are heated (having the signal would be sweet, but I've pretty much given up hope for that) then I'd love to hear it.

 

 

[Mike G]

Welcome aboard.

 

The cool thing about saving a few bucks on the purchase allows you to bust a few parts having fun... I didn't even know the 91 came with power mirrors. The heated units didn't come along until later. I know the wife's 02 heat up when you toss the rear window defog on. I'm sure you can come up with something, if you can get the mirrors to start with.

--Mike

[mcreyaufmiller]

Welcome!

[grampadirt]

Have fun with your build,I wish you great success Nothing like working on an old truck I still enjoy it(except laying on my back under the thing).Don't know about the heated mirrors though....never thought about puttin' 'em on my '95

[SCREECH]

The cool thing about saving a few bucks on the purchase allows you to bust a few parts having fun...

Ya, thankfully the '89 truck I blew the driveshaft and rear out on was just purchased for the engine, which thankfully still runs fine. As an unexpected bonus, it turned out that the truck has clean, unbroken internal quarter trim panels, the ones that go down and meet the sill plates - and the interior is the same colour as my '91! The ones in my '91 are all broken from ppl stepping over them to get in the back I guess. Plus one of the previous owners cut them to put big speakers on the C-pillars.

 

I tell ya, though, I wish I had a camera running when I grenaded that '89's driveshaft - it was SOOOO violent! The rear section of the driveshaft kept spinning for a few rotations when it broke free of the tranny and it wacked the concrete and underside of the truck HARD a few times. It knocked the fuse box door off onto the floor, took out the front fuel tank strap (you can see it hanging down in the pic of the truck with the driveshaft on the ground) and scrapped up my bros driveway real nice. Anyway, it was sweet.

 

 

I didn't even know the 91 came with power mirrors.

The mirrors (currently manual) and the wheels, were added from a '96 (so I'm told) by one of the previous owners. I'm going to have to custom wire the truck for the power mirrors once installed.

 

On an interesting side note, when I got the truck the driver's mirror was smashed, so I replaced the head unit with one from an Astro/Safari van. Three bolts go up through the base into the bottom of the folding portion of the mirror, so I was able to swap just the head as the van mirror uses a different base. Good mirrors on the truck base seem to be like hens teeth in wrecking yards around here! It looks like I'm just going to end up ordering a NEW set of power mirrors from eBay, however - a number of vendors list SETS for less than $60US!

 

I was hoping I could do something similar with swapping a set of power HEATED mirror heads onto the existing mirror mounts, but alas I believe the '00 and up mirrors are too different to mount to the existing bases. I was kinda hoping there was an aftermarket source I hadn't seen yet for direct replacement late-model GMT400 heated mirrors, but you've pretty much confirmed that there's not. I'll give it a little more thought, and keep my peepers peeled for options. I'll post a new thread with info if I get something rigged up that's easily repeatable.

[SCREECH]

Oh, and thanks for the "welcome" as well, guys!

[SCREECH]

Have fun with your build,I wish you great success Nothing like working on an old truck I still enjoy it(except laying on my back under the thing).

Thanks! I'm fortunate that I've got a garage with a concrete floor, but it always seems that I've got something in there at the most inopportune times and I end up having to do stuff outside. THANKFULLY the snow has finally all melted here and we're looking at temps approaching the 50s by this weekend! WOO-HOO!! This is the time of year when I really get ramped up into "project" mode and some really cool stuff can start happening!