By accessing this website, you acknowledge that Edmunds and its third party business partners may use cookies, pixels, and similar technologies to collect information about you and your interactions with the website as described in our
Privacy Statement, and you agree that your use of the website is subject to our
Visitor Agreement.
Comments
Best deal I've had in GA is 500 over invoice.
I'll be back when it comes in.
GAS LINE FELL OFF AT TANK SPRAYING GAS ALL OVER. NOISE AND VIBRATION AT 40 MPH - DIAGNOSED AS TRANSFER CASE PROBLEM - SEVERAL PARTS RELACED ONLY LEADING TO OIL LEAK AT YOKE. NOISE IN SUSPENSION WHILE GOING DOWN HILL - DEALER UNABLE TO CORRECT OR IDENTIFY - TORSION BAR FOUND TO BE OUT OF ADJUSTMENT ON ONE SIDE CAUSING A NASTY RIDE - STILL NOT CORRECT BY DEALER - INTERIOR LIGHTS FLICKER AT IDLE - DEALER SAID THATS STRANGE- SO MANY PROBLEMS THAT I FORGOT ABOUT 40 MPH VIBRATION -LAST BUT NOT LEAST BAD BANG IN REAR END WHEN SHIFTING FROM FORWARD TO REVERSE - 14,000 AND STILL GETTING COMPLIMENTS
I also had a tapping noise that turned out to be some sort of frame-to-cab cable tie across the cab mount swinging back and forth and hitting the frame. Tightened the bolts a bit and it stopped.
Overall, I like the vehicle. I get annoyed at the auto-lock doors that have to be unlocked manually, but that's just me.
1. Better looking (I know this is highly subjective, but the '99's look like Toyotas to me, and I've always loved the '95-'98 GMC look)
2. Proven reliable 5.7L engine
3. Looked on Edmunds for the ratings of all the full size pick-ups (for '97) and GMC/Chevy was well above everyone else. So I figured the '98s shouldn't be any worse since they were essentially the same with a few improvements.
4. Fantastic deal on a new '98. I got an SLE with all the goodies (MSRP $29,998) for $21,100 after my GM card rebate ($2,216) and the manufacturer's rebate ($750). I'm sure the impending new model played a big role in making the dealer want to get rid of this one for that price.
I'm really happy with my decision, because so far it's the best vehicle I've ever owned and the power and fuel efficiency of the 5.7L is phenomenal for a 5,100 lb truck. My average mpg is 17.44. When all or mostly highway driving, I've gotten well into the 19's and twice I've gotten over 20. That's about double what my old Blazer ('81) used to get with the same engine.
You guys made a good decision too, though.
I am wishing that I had the back seat room that you have and I've heard the 5.3L engine is fantastic. Oh well, maybe I'll trade in the '98 in 5 years or so. By then the 5.3L will be much better established and will probably be even more powerful and/or fuel efficient. Have fun
tim
I pulled the trailer up to the 7,000-8,000 ft. level, and some of the grades were pretty steep. The truck handled it great. Up until the time that I got into some steep switchbacks in the mountains, the truck stayed in third and if I stayed below 60 mph, OD. I drove at 60 mph most of the way, but on long stretches of smooth interstate I sometimes creeped up to 65 and 70. On some of the longer steep grades in west Texas the truck would climb in third unless I got impatient with the accelerator pedal, and then it would drop into second. No matter what the grade, when it kicked down into second it quickly gained speed. You do have to forget about cruise control unless you are on fairly long flat runs, or if you don't mind the truck constantly rotating in and out of second.
For gas mileage I got from 9 to 12 mpg while pulling the trailer. I typically get around 14 in town and 19 to 20 on the road, while not towing.
On a sidenote-after I pulled in, a couple of guys came over to take a look at my truck. They had seen (and heard) me pull up the final grade and were impressed with how easily I made it with my trailer in tow.
DISLIKES: Only One-the Launch Shudder Problem
GM has to get the launch shudder problem solved. If you are thinking of buying, you can help by getting dealers excited about this problem. It may not hurt to tell them you heard there is a problem and it might affect your decision to buy until you know there is a solution on the way. I found that on very steep grades, and while pulling the 5th wheel, the shudder problem traveled up to second gear also. Although it did not cause a problem on the trip, it is not something that a truck buyer should have to put up with on a truck as expensive as this.
The dealership has had it twice to fix this. The first time they found a loose center spring bolt. The second time they lubed the front spring hangers and added rubber donuts to the bottom leaf springs. They also lubed the splines on the driveshaft.
The honk (and thump) is still there. I have heard that you can place the lifter spring from a small block Chevy engine between the end of the drive shaft (in the spline socket) and that serves to alieviate the problem. My dealer was doing this but got spanked by GM.
What are the cures? It is sure embarrassing to be at a stop light and take off with a honking rear end.
Then when I started from a stop, or drove through a dip, I got a honk from the rear suspension leaf spring front mount. I lubed everything up with chain lube, between the leaves, the bushings, etc. The honk went away, until the next morning, when it came back to a lesser degree. But when I removed the load from the bed, and reduced the air pressure, the honk was gone. Although I'm not sure if this is the same phenomena or not, there is a point where the rear springs or hinges aren't happy. And it is probably different for each truck.
The pneumatic air springs that you have mentioned sound interesting. When I load my boat, I get a pretty good amount of sag from the suspension. I have the standard suspension for an SL (forgot the code #).
How do they operate? Do you have an on-board air pump that you can inflate the springs and monitor the pressure via a gauge or is it an air valve (similar to tires) where you inflate the springs and stop when you get the appropriate height?
Please let me know. Also, what about cost? Thanks.
I think I paid about $180, give or take. I walked into Camping World, they had them in stock, I walked out with them. It took me about 4 hours to install them, but they will do it for a fee. They are not hard to install, but you do need to drill holes into your frame rails, and squeeze your hand into some tight places to attach the fasteners. But it's very straightforward.
Once mounted, you can remove or install an air spring without even taking a wheel off. I have been very pleased. They don't leak air, the quality of the components supplied in the kit were first rate, and the ride quality is outstanding.
But the Air Lift (tm) pneumatic helper springs are much nicer, because you maintain the compliant, plush ride of your stock suspension when you are not loaded. They do not increase your payload capacity, but let you carry up to the maximum amount while still maintaining a level ride height. As long as you do that, the ride remains plush whether you carry a big load, or not.
My Sierra has the factory Z71 shocks. Maybe I will replace them with spring overs or go with pneumatics.
My truck only has 6500 miles on it and maybe the 'honk' will go away as everything wears in. Hopefully, GM will get a permanent fix to this problem. Right now I just occasionally get under it with a can of silicon spray lube and hit the spring mounts with it.
Again, thanks for the input and I will keep monitoring this conference (and adding input) from time to time.
JP
Thanks,
Jason
That was all I've found that seems interesting so far, hope this helps those looking into ordering a 2000...I highly recommend waiting for the factory to make you one, I couldn't find a 99 the way I wanted it, but I can order a 2000 for 400 less than the same 99 would have cost me, not to mention saving 1% on the order vs on the lot...over $500 savings and I get the exact truck I want, now the wait begins...
-- Jason
My 99 is a 4x4 so your mileage should be better. Without my camper I averaged just over 19 mpg. With the camper installed (6500 lbs total) we averaged 16 mpg for a 13,000 mile trip to Alaska.
I guess the 4 wheel drive will take about 1 mpg off the total.
I'm happy with the power of the 4.8. Even fully loaded I have enough power. Sure do love the 5 spd. If I had it to do over, I would order the 4.10 gears instead of the 3.73's because of the camper weight. On 2wd 3.73 is the max.
Good luck,
Mike
Equipped with 5.3, auto, Z71, Z82 trailer, locking differential, autotrack, dual power buckets, CD, etc. Virtually everything but leather.
One problem to date: Driving to work Friday morning in the rain the truck just died with 124 miles on it. After two minutes was able to restart and drove several hundred feet and it died again. Repeated this several more times and then gave up and called GMC's roadside assistance.
Took two and a half hours for the flatbed wrecker to get to me and I was in a bad area of Detroit. While waiting, had a guy walk up to me and tell me he wasn't going to rob me but that he wanted a jump start for his car. When I told him mine had died he asked for eighty cents!? He finally shuffled off.
After looking at the truck on Friday the dealer determined that it was a failure of the crank trigger which was a part they didn't stock. They kept the truck over the weekend and it was back to me on Monday after the part was shipped in overnight.
The dealer, Ray Laethem GMC in Detroit, was excellent. They were getting the loaner car paperwork together when I arrived. No begging on my part. Very responsive.
No mechanical problems since then. First tank of gas was 16.7 mpg. Second tank that included 50 freeway miles towing a 2500 pound pop-up camper in third gear as well as the a/c on for virtually the entire tank was upper 14's which I am quite satisfied with.
It accelerates with gusto from a rolling start when the throttle is mashed. Sounds like a Z28. I'm impressed with the power. Haven't noticed any vibration problems like others have reported.
Have added an Extang tonneau cover and Bedrug bedliner. Looking forward to checking highway mileage now that the tonneau is on. Thinking about adding a Borla exhaust and will definately add a K&N air filter. At the first oil change which I plan to do 3000 miles will switch to Mobil 1 synthetic which I use in all my vehicles. I'm hoping to average somewhere between 17 and 18 combined city/highway once broken in. My target is 20 mpg highway.
More updates later.
About half the miles were highway, but all the miles were with the air conditioner on.
The other day a guy came up and asked for 80 cents for a sandwich. I said, I don't know, let me see the sandwich first. @#$#@#$!!!
Thanks,
Maury C.
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Generally, when you get cost information from Edmunds, Carpoint, KBB or others, the ad fee is not shown because it varies depending on the region.
THANKS FOR THE INFO.
MAURY
20 mpg on highway seems very possible to me on a '99. I've got 8400 miles on my '98 (5.7L, 3.73 rear end, Z71) and I'm getting 19's regularly and I've gotten slightly over 20 twice (I don't know if that's enough to actually tell people that "my truck gets 20 mpg" because 19 is probably the real number if you average in measurement error, driving conditions, etc.). I have a hard tonneau cover and a K&N air filter on it (and a carpet bedliner). I also drive the speed limit (between 60 and 65) the whole way to work and back. That's definitely key in getting the best gas mileage. Anyway, your '99 should do better than my '98 since your engine is more efficient. Anyway, good luck and keep us informed.
powerisfun
What are you people who are ordering 2000's getting as an estimated delivery time? I've called 10 dealers so far and have been told anything from 6 to 20 weeks, with an average of about 8-10 weeks.
I also have the 4-sp. auto transmission. I just started using Mobil 1 synthetic oil at 7000 miles. I wanted to make sure it was nice and well broken in before using synthetic (which I'm told can disrupt the break-in process because it's so good). To compensate for not having synthetic in there I changed my oil and filter after the first 1000 miles and then at 2000 mile intervals after that. Now with the synthetic (and since I drive mostly highway miles), I'll probably go 5000 mile intervals.
Just out of curiosity do the '99's have two
catalytic converters? The first time I looked under my truck I was surprised to see two separate
exhaust paths through two separate cat-con's. After the cat-con's, both pipes lead into one big muffler with only one tailpipe. Interesting!
Also, I wonder if Ford and Dodge trucks have two cats. If not, that could be a large part of the reason GM trucks get better gas mileage.
I can't remember how many times I have gone into the dealer to get things fixed, it's kind of a joke now really. Oh yeah, I too had the window rattle when open thing happen, they fixed it, something came loose inside. The transmission is very clunky, clunks into reverse, shifts abrubtly, dealer says this is normal..... Well, needless to say I will absolutely never ever ever purchase a gmc/chevy vehicle again. My eleven year old honda civic puts this 99 sierra to shame in all aspects of quality. The toyota tacoma I traded in on this truck went to the dealer a total of once during the three years I owned it, to have mud flaps installed..... My toyota and honda needed regular oil changes, new brake pads every 70,000 or so, and I think I replaced a battery once.... c-mon gmc get with it, I am sooooo glad I have a 36 month lease as I will cherish the day when I can get rid of this heap of garbage, yeah, I am pissed off, $31000 for the right to visit my dealer once every three weeks or so. Did I mention that my truck only has 7400 miles on it? Next time, TOYOTA TUNDRA without a doubt, and no I don't work for Toyota, I am a school teacher who saved pennies for three years in order to purchase this "Truck for the 1%" Consider yourself warned, email.. csv@srv.net
Thanks for doing the hands on research at the dealer. I should have thought of that. I wonder
if the dual cats were added in mid-year '98 or something. I bought my '98 at the end of the year. Thanks
-Tim
I would appreciate the responses of any others with manuals on the noise levels they have.
Had a leaking rear pinion seal fail twice in first month but working great since then.
Get occasional ping on 87 octane, even after reprogram. Run 92 octane when I tow my 4,500 lb trailer and ping almost non-exsistant. Have not pulled heavy load at sea level though.
Very happy with my truck.... Only would like maybe a slightly higher spring rate in rear. Get some clunk noise when shifting, but not much different than my last truck, a F350 CC Diesel 5 speed.
county dump and they weighed my truck ('98
GMC Sierra, ext-cab, three-door, K1500, Z71, short-fleetside bed with 5.7L engine and auto trans.) and the total was 5620 lbs with a full tank of gas (25 gal tank = ~175 lbs gas), my wife (150 lbs) and myself (270 lbs, and it's all muscle!...yeah, right!). I also added a hard tonneau cover that weighs about 30 lbs. That means my truck's weight is real close to 5000 lbs even. I'm just curious how that compares to the other trucks particularly the new
body style GM's. They probably list curb weights somewhere, but I'm not sure if that includes things like trailer hitch, big tires (265-75R16), tow hooks, Z71 suspension (all present on my truck). I'd appreciate any input. Thanks.
-Tim
P.S. I'm going to post this message on other boards as well so sorry if you're reading this many times.
I can't hear it when moving, only at idle.
My mileage has been 18-20 empty and 13-18 with a full load (6500lbs).
17,500 miles and no problems. I'm happy with my $22K truck.
Mike
Jay
Any advise on what to get?
I'm very pleased with the truck. I have the 5.3 engine with the automatic trans. I've noted a few comments about converting to a dual exhaust. Is this an expensive thing to do? Also I note the owners manual doesn't show the HP for the motor - which seems strange.
I have the P255/70R16 tires, when I picked the truck up from the dealer the tires where inflated to 44#. The sticker on the door says 35# cold. I lowered them to 37 which seems to help the ride. Any reason for the overinflation?
The only reason for inflating tires above the
recommended pressure is to improve gas mileage.
I have mine at 39 psi cold (to allow for expansion when the tire is warm from rolling). The maximum on mine (Good Year Wrangler 265-70R16) is 44#. I prefer mileage over a smoother ride, but to each his or her own.
Regarding the dual exhaust, it's actually not as expensive for GM trucks. They've already got two separate catalytic converters for each side (both leading into one big-[non-permissible content removed] muffler). Only one tailpipe though. You would only need to purchase
turbo mufflers and some extra tail pipe.
powerisfun