Went and looked at a 97 Z71 today...

coop · April 3, 2005

This past week, a local car lot had got a 97 GMC Z71. From the road it looked beautiful, so today i went to test drive it. i test drove it away from the lot and pulled into a local shopping center so i could examine it without any pressure. i popped the hood and looked at the engine. it was a vortec. i looked for the engine sticker to see if it was a 305 or 350; however, i saw it said 7.4 I do believe 7.4 is a 454, right? what i want to know is if the truck could have came from the factory with a 454. i asked the guy at the lot, he said it was a 350 in it, but i didnt say anything about the sticker so i dont know if he was assuming that it was a 350. i didnt get the VIN..i may go get it tomorrow. so again, could the truck had been specially ordered with a 454 or not?

thanks,

coop

MS3DALE · April 3, 2005

NO,No 1/2tons in '97 ever had a 454 available-Only the 3/4 & 1tons.

PeterbiltChrome · April 3, 2005

valve covers would be fairly flat/broad sitting on that big block... that engine is pretty stocky compared to the 350. Hope you have good findings on the VIN. If it is a swap, be skeptical to its transplant in regards to everything electrical, even the trans... be it a 4l60e or 4l80e...

If the price is right, and i mean a steal, take it!

AirForceAngler · April 3, 2005

If it's a small block, i.e. 350 or 305, it will have 4 valve cover bolts going down the center of the valve cover. If it is a 454, it will have about 7 or 8 (can't quite remember) valve cover bolts going around the perimeter of each valve cover. And if it's a 454 it was either swapped in or it is not a half ton and therefore not a Z71. That doesn't mean it's a bad truck although I'd stay away from one that had this swap done unless I knew more about the swap, but if you were looking at the emmissions sticker, it is probably the right truck.

It is also possible that the truck was wrecked at one time and the core support from a 3/4 or 1 ton was installed from a wrecking yard and they didn't bother to remove the 7.4 emissions sticker.

coop · April 3, 2005

thanks for all of the help guys. i guess i looked at the wrong sticker or something. i really like the truck. it doesnt look worn at all. there are only 3 minor scratches on the whole truck and they look and feel like they can be removed with wax. the interior is flawless and the truck only has 90,000. Not too bad for a 97. When my brother bought his 96 about 5 months ago it had 142,000 under its belt. im really thinking about it but also gotta think about the payments. thanks again guys.

-coop