ANY QUESTIONS for dave40 aka CHEVY LOVER

rsplatt · April 1999

I am looking at 1997 GMC trucks on Edmunds.com and was wondering what the difference is between a LB and a SB? I feel dumb asking this question but I am looking at buying a 1997 GMC SLE Z71 and am trying to find out every thing I can before taking the big plunge

pjb0422 · April 1999

dave40,

Just wanted to let you know that I replaced the bulbs in my '99 Silverado fog lights with 50 watt halogen bulbs. So far they are nice. I drove around last night with them on and the brighter bulbs make a difference. Now I can tell that the fog lights are ON! My main concern is whether the heat will deform the fog light lenses or housing. Only time will tell.

Keep us posted on the Flowmasters. I am considering getting the 70 series that they just came out with for the Silverado. I have to justify the cost ($400), so do they really get better mpg and hp and torque?

Thanks.
Phil

quadrunner500 · April 1999

Apparently, some Z28/Firebird car guys using Hypertech HPP-III programmer and Jet Powerchip are finding that the powertrain control module (PCM) is "re-learning" the stock air/fuel and spark curves after Hypertech power tuning has been installed, effectively canceling out their gains. These guys are pretty sophisticated, using Auto-Tap real-time diagnostic scanners for reading out PCM parameters while testing on chassis dynomometers. The same problem is happening for the Jet Powerchip. The guy that has figured most of this out is a competitor by the name of Stephen Cole of TTS Power Systems. You send your PCM to him after telling him your installed modifications, and he re-programs and sends it back. Some guys were reporting big horsepower gains on the dyno with TTS, whereas the Hypertech and Jet Powerchip had gains initially, that degraded as the PCM relearned stock settings.

quadrunner500 · April 1999

By the way, from what I am reading, most all the guys state they are getting SES lights from making mods to intake and exhaust on LS1's. Also found out there is a "flight box recorder" like device that records the vehicle speed when the air-bag deploys, to nail you if you caused an accident that was speed related. There is a way to reset the PCM, but when you do, there is a procedure to calibrate the IAC (idle air control valve). Otherwise the idle rpm hunts from 2500-3200 rpm since the PCM does not know the position of the IAC pintle. Not trying to spoil everyone's fun here, but I wonder why everyone wants to make a truck go 0 to 60 in 8.0 seconds when you could just buy a stock Camaro, Firebird, or Mustang that would do it in about 5 seconds for less money than the truck. As a Z28 and GSXR-1100 owner, my $0.02 worth.

quadrunner500 · April 1999

Perfect for that, no question.

markbuck · April 1999

I only wanna do one thing, get rid of the limit. Any ideas?

cornhusker1 · April 1999

The dealer can adjust your truck for the larger tires much cheaper than buying the programmer

markbuck · April 1999

think I could get them to get rid of the speed limit?

pjb0422 · April 1999

For those of you that want to know what bulbs I replaced in my fog lights, I put in some halogen bulbs, part number 885. I got these at Auto Zone, a local auto part chain store. The brand I put in was by Lighting Technologies. I am sure you can find some bulbs by Sylvania or GE. The part numbers on the bulbs seem to be standard. These are 50 watt halogens and they do brighten up the road a lot better than the stock 27 watt bulbs. There is also available a 38 watt bulb if the 50 watts are too bright.

pjb0422 · April 1999

Glad to hear that!

cornhusker1 · April 1999

Is there an aftermarket thing you haven't bought yet Dave40?

chevy4me · April 1999

DAVE 40 does the tow haul mode change the way the hypertech3 operates?

quadrunner500 · April 1999

I'm close to making an attempt to modify the stock coolant thermostat to open at 180 degrees instead of the stock 195 degrees. I tried using a mirror to see how many bolts hold the thermostat housing to the block, but I couldn't work it in there...too tight. But I found you can remove the intake plumbing between the air filter and the throttle body in about 5 minutes. Once removed, there is plenty of room to access the thermostat. It is held on with two 10mm bolts. I need to buy some G.M. Havoline Dexcool coolant, and get a big drain pan to put underneath so I don't become the toxic avenger! If anyone is interested here is a link to a site that details this modification, and illustrates with some pictures. http://www.tech-ls1.com/Forum/ubb/Forum6/HTML/000016.html

26andrew1 · April 1999

just a note in regards to dex-cool.

GM says 100,000 miles on dex-cool before you have to flush it. But read the fine print as long as the driving conditions are perfect, etc....

I recommend you change the dex-cool just as you would if you had the green. I have seen alot of pumps go to the way side as well as rads geting plugged with dex-cool.

My two cents when you flush switch to the green. I'm not impressed with the orange at all.

quadrunner500 · April 1999

Thanks Andy. I hope to be able to catch most of it, and just add a little bit to make up what I lose, since I only have about 5000 miles on the factory coolant. It's a '99.

g8tr · April 1999

Need some advice. I'm thinking about dual exhaust for my 99 Sierra. I have an SL 4.8L auto and 3.42 rear end. I know of a shop that will install a Flowmaster system for about $200. The installer claims I'll gain about 20 h.p. Is this accurate? Is this a good price? What are some other considerations (pro and con) that I'll need to think about? The installer also said he could not do true duals because of the catalytic conv. and warranty issues. Any opinions/suggestions?

quadrunner500 · April 1999

I modified my thermostat per message 266 above. Here are the before and after temperatures.

Operating Temperature before: 204 F
Operating Temperature after: 191 F

Runs cooler by 13 degrees.

Now my Silverado is the "Coolest!"

Breathes cool, dense air.

Engine feels calm, relaxed and quiet. Improved response.

Warms up fast.

Heater still works great.

Feels like it gained 15 horsepower, no kidding!

Best part....the modification is free!

Re-used my engine coolant, did not require adds.

I drove it for 56 miles. Mod did not turn on SES (service engine soon) light. Could not detect any engine-ping, but I still have premium in the tank. I hope this mod lets me go back to using regular grade octane. Looks good so far. Report later about possible effects on fuel mileage! Could get better maybe?

chevy4me · April 1999

this 5.3 rocks so. cal

markbuck · April 1999

Think you are way wrong on your advice. Been running Dexcool in my diesels and motorcycles as long as it has been out. Was running japanese low silicate before that.
No problems, will never go back to silicate. Plus, you can run it forever.

quadrunner500 · April 1999

See topic 626 for explanation of spacer I used in thermostat mod. Here is the link http://wellengaged.com/engaged/edmund.cgi?c=Pickups&f=0&t=626

dodgeram · April 1999

dave40,

How much hp and torque does yuor 6.0l have now with all the mods?

markbuck · April 1999

I'd love to see your dyno curves...... Any guesses as to peak rear wheel HP?

26andrew1 · April 1999

You have been one of the few who have not had problems with dex-cool. like i said they (dex-cool) state it lasts 100,000 under perfect driving conditions. Driving to work and back does not meet those conditions. I have seen for a fact dex-cool turn to mud alot sooner then the green. Don't get me wrong it works as far as cooling but I would change it just as if you had the green. I say flush your system and but the green back in. It's cheaper.

quadrunner500 · April 1999

The green and the orange are both ethylene glycol. The orange is just silicate/phosphate free, so your aluminum parts and water pump seal last longer. What is there that turns to mud? And cheaper? At Pep Boys, Havoline Dexcool was the same price as regular Prestone. What 'facts' are you citing? Could be something else, like oil mixing with your coolant that turns it to mud.

markbuck · April 1999

Just a followup on the usage my dexcool vehicles see. While the diesel pickup did travel back and forth alot, it also ran from AZ to FL and back over 6 days, running highway speeds. Also towed quite a bit and I live at the top of a 7,000 ft hill, so lots of WOT. My 2 stroke dirt bike spends most of it's life running either WOT or no throttle, and I occasionally boil some coolant out of it in tight technical sections.
The precipitation out of coolants is usually the silicate falling out. As Quad500 says, mud forming is usually due to oil in the coolant.
Long haul truckers have switched to non silicate coolants and are putting dummy coolant filters in and running the stuff 150,000 then put a booster can of additive in, and then keep running.

PS. Did not replaced a water pump in the ford diesel for the 170,000 miles I owned it, and the last 100k was on Dexcool.
Why would GM, honda, and Ford use Dexcool or compatible as OEM if it isn't better?

26andrew1 · April 1999

Yikes, just saying what I'm seeing in the dealership. dex-cool costs more at our parts counter. I guess that is not the case everywhere. I have a limited widow as far as pricing goes. I always get everything over our parts counter foriegn or domestic. Saves me the hassle of running around.

As for my gm etc.. use dex-cool if it wasn't better, Trust me they do alot of things that make no sense at all.

quadrunner500 · April 1999

Have you seen Tom Byrne's Project Silverado? It's a 5.3L ext cab 4x4 Z71. Has Borla cat-back, PCM recalibrated by TTS, CNC ported heads, JBA ceramic coated headers, and JET II module that removes the speed limiter and re-calibrates speedometer, Air-raid intake, some red plug wires, maybe a few other mods. I forget.

He logged a 15.56 e/t in the 1/4 mile, with his Autotrac transfer case switched in "auto." Trap speed was about 86 or 87. Then he used Auto-Tap to read out and record his max rpm during a separate top speed run, (so he didn't have to take his eyes off the road) which he converted to mph of 126.

huntman · May 1999

I have now had my GMC Sierra for over two months and it is the best vehicle I have ever owned or driven. My gas milage has averaged 15mpg and been as high as 18mpg on the road after 3600 miles. It has a few quirks but I guess that gives it character. While on another discussion forem http://www.pacific-audio.com I was referred to the site http://alladvantage.com/go.asp?refid=BTP090 this site pays you to surf the internet up to $20 a month for 40 hours. I have signed up and I thought that you guys might be interested. Best of luck and enjoy the summer

Huntman

huntman · May 1999

Wouldn't it figure that I would give the inocorrect address, if you want to go to the site
use http://alladvantage.com/go.asp?refid=BPT090

lt1 · May 1999

Hey Quadrunner:

I've been looking for Tom Byrne's Project Silverado on the web. Can you please point it out for me.

Lou 10 In Tampa Bay

quadrunner500 · May 1999

Here is the link Lou 10.

http://www.tbyrnemotorsports.com

lt1 · May 1999

quadrunner500

Thanks for the Project silverado page. Now I've got some questions for you chevy lovers.
How do you think the flare side box (Made of Plastic) will hold up ? Do you think they will improve the quality control on the 2000 models. I'm hearing some neg stuff which had temporarily made me start looking at the f150's.

Lou 10 in Tampa Bay

quadrunner500 · May 1999

lt1,
Just because you asked....my opinion is that there are NO consistent defects on the GM's. Instead, there seems to be somewhat inconsistent quality. Again, personally, I don't think quality control will be any better on the 2000 models. They never did fix the rattling catalytic converter heat shields on the old C/K series did they?

The F150s are nice trucks, but having owned Fords, I can say they have their own quality control quirks.

I think you would be happy with either one. My Silverado was not delivered perfect. It had a few flaws. But the flaws were fixed to my satisfaction, and I'm very happy with a great truck.

lt1 · May 1999

quadrunner500

Thanks guy. appreciate your advise. I've read through most of your posts and you seem knowledgable enough. I've owned my share of vehicles over the years but at the current prices of these PU trucks you'd expect to get some long term quality. On the news tonight jd powers reported sierra and silverado had the poorest quailty ratings. Maybe GM needs to take heed to the rumblings out here and tighten up. One thing for sure...you don't keep kicking the cat and expect him to come runing every time you call. Quality control starts on the assembly line and if those workers are pissed off you and I are gonna pay for it. I know what union workers will do when they wanna get even and it aint pretty. Anyway, I still don't know which one to buy F150 or silverado..I'll wait till the my2000 roll out and just make a decision.

quadrunner500 · May 1999

Sounds like you have a manual transmission tomnjo. Is that right?

tomnjo · May 1999

No it's an automatic. Dealer "reflashed" the computer today and now the lockup on the torque converter doesn't kick in until 70 mph. Havn't tested it towing yet but I suppose the Jerking will be less without lockup. The downside is the gas mileage will be less too. There is a new bulletin out on "surging" and it pretty much says it's not really a GM problem. They want to blame the loading, hitch, or driver error. No surprise, they don't want to acknowledge a problem exists.
I'll keep looking. By the way, this is a definite "jerking". It's a for and aft motion and I still think it's associated with the engine. Trailer Life has had three articles on the problem but there recommended solution was reflash the computer also and that's where I lost lockup. Otherwise it's a great truck.

quadrunner500 · May 1999

Well it's too bad the bright minds at GM didn't think to link that torque converter lockup change with the Tow/Haul switch, so you could control it.

It irritates that with so many "re-flash" options, they don't put in a switch panel somewhere that would let you change some of them without making a dealer visit.

tomnjo · May 1999

Yup, and I asked two dealers about installing a switch to disable lockup and they won't even discuss it. They only do what the manufacturer says and it's still under warranty. I have the service manual and I may do it myself later. I'd rather they would come up with a real solution though.

waldo · May 1999

Dave40:
Tell me about the CHevy 305 engine. Good, bad, wimpy? Looking to get a 1990 K2500 and it has one. Want to know how reliable a motor it will be.
Won't be pulling stuff- so lite duty is ok.
Please advise. 10-q

eaborg · May 1999

Hopefully they increase their torque.

markbuck · May 1999

Increase where in the RPM range?

tungle · May 1999

Yeah. I saw that too, and that is nice to have.

quadrunner500 · May 1999

And if you don't put them back when you are done, the jack handle rattles.

quadrunner500 · June 1999

Dave, I'm lowering the limit on your mastercard/visa.

mksalem · June 1999

Sometimes do you wonder if "Dave" is actually a real person or just a computer program rattling along in "random post" mode. Has anyone ever seen a picture of "Dave" . . . . hmmmmmm . . .

chevy4me · June 1999

That 6.0 is equipped with Corvette aluminum heads.
Dave you thinkin on replacing those cast iron heads?

pjb0422 · June 1999

Hey Dave40, I thought I read a post that you were going to try this new stuff. Any report?

dickb · June 1999

Dave: I've had my new Sierra SLT extended cab for a week now and love everything about it except the
leather bucket seats. I cannot get comfortable.
After 30 minutes in the seat I am screaming to get
out of the truck. None of the almost infinite
permutations work. The pain is mostly in the mid
to lower back area. Do you know of any upholstery
modification tricks or do you recommend any
particular replacement seats? I am six feet tall, 172 lbs. and do not have trouble in hardly any other car seats.

skipthomas · June 1999

Hey Dave,I'm thinking of buying a new Silverado 4X4 pickup, but I need a no nonsense 4X4 for those winter days when the snow gets deep. What is the "active transfer case" option that Chevy offers, and, what is Auto Trac?

robertth · June 1999

What is the likelyhood of finding a Silverado 2500 Ext. Cab with Long Bed on a dealers lot? What about the 1500 (ext. Cab/LB)? Have they made these kind of trucks in quantity?

ANY QUESTIONS for dave40 aka CHEVY LOVER

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