bought this for use at the acreage-

3/4 ton, extra payload rpo code. 6th month 2000 year....kinda odd year for parts, but still repairable. has almost mint interior. runs and moves decent, tires are toast so hard to pinpiont the vibes-
made a list of repairs/parts needed-
3 of 4 door handles broken.
keys not matching-
both window regulators broken
tires no good.
wrong fluid in autotrac tcase
every cooler hose is leaking
steering box leaking
no interior lights
windshield no good.
steering components worn out.
suspension components worn out
hood latch release handle broken

already bought a set of tires and wheels from a dirtymax that have 75% tread tires. ordered all the hoses for the coolers, doorhandles, hood release handle, window regulators, some tune up parts-

already removed the steering box, sway bar fender liner/ battery tray etc
wife cleaned out some of the greasy areas that the pressure washer missed..
have reman steering box on hand. waiting for hoses.
has a exhaust putter. broken exhaust bolt- right at the very back...in the tight area of the firewall. i have new gaskets and stainless steel bolts on hand for the repair...

 

Looking at replacement ignition assembly w/ matching door lock cylinders. has anyone used those kits from amazon / ebay with any luck? or should i go to the dealer? dealer wants $280 for both sides and $18 per key.
amazon $70 for matching ignition cyl and door lock cylinders.
annoying only having 1 aftermarket key that only opens the passenger door, and a oem key for ignition, no key for drivers door lock. removed the lock cylinder from door handle, but no amount of graphite lube and jiggling would get it to turn.

interior lamps- had a blown fuse. wiring was broken and shorted out at the under hood light. repaired the wiring, but the one terminal inside the plug-in for the lamp is corroded away....the plug is fine. will look for a replacement.
all interior lamp bulbs have been changed to led. majority of the incan bulbs were black and burnt out. headlamp low and high beam bulbs changed to led. headlamps/ signal lamps quickly polished, look better, but will be replaced with new units in the future. new parts are cheap.
have replacement fog lamps on hand, just need to install w/ led bulbs.

my son replaced the tailgate latch and cable- adjusted the striker bolt as best as possible- the hinges have been bent on the tailgate / box , bent back with a prybar as best as possible. now both sides latch.
wife has sewn up the typical tear in the drivers seat fabric- the foam wasnt damaged.

door speakers are shot. foam rolled edge has turned to powder basically- may buy adapters and install some RF speakers.
drivers door regulator installed, window now works.
still waiting on parts to arrive.

will get a full ''tune up'' once all the parts arrive- i have some items but not all that is needed for a full service-
on hand-
spark plugs
air fuel oil filters /oil change
oem gmc trans filter / atf change
t case fluid change autotrac fluid
diff service GL5

can only do so much when limited to parts arrival...

 

more parts arrived.
installed a door handle and blend door motor last night.
wife is still cleaning the mess under the hood-but i do have all new cooler lines on hand, now for the replacement....

 

front broken bolt lh side

rear broken bolt lh side firewall

i've worked on worse...


my son started working on removing the manifold while i was at work yesterday. he found another broken bolt at the front this time.
plenty of heat and patience , and the remining bolts came out unbroken...
the 3 on the down pipe? two of them, even with the induction tool, still pulled the threads completely off the studs...meh, a new stud kit is on hand. attached the manifold to a saw-horse and heated the flange cherry red, drizzled paraffin wax over exposed threads, and made those studs scream for mercy while using 2 pairs of vise-grips to remove the damaged studs-
then my son cleaned the holes with the proper tap and drilling fluid- the new studs screw in and out with ease! i have extreme temp anti-seize to go on the threads at final assembly. right now its just prep work / cleaning the flanges on the manifold-

Those two broken bolts? i do have left hand drill bits, but those may just snap due to the heat cycles that those threads have been put thru. and the broken bolt by the firewall, a drill cant get in there.
Or weld. i do have my mig and a bolt bin full of nuts and washers- not my first rodeo when it comes to welding out broken bolts...just lots of extra items that could burn/ get damaged from welding...
With the manifold off, there is more access room to the engine oil cooler lines- that area will be cleaned, then the new lines installed, before the manifold goes back on.

or headers? ??

wife finished up the interior, then cleaned the stainless/ chrome on the truck. its looking better every day !!

 

got the two broken bolts out. drivers side all thread chased, will clean up the area and change the oil cooler pipes/ hoses while there is extra room in there-

someone spent time using silicone for a gasket, even between the steel layers of the actual oem gasket- at least no bolts broke.
used the induction heater to remove the studs from the manifold.
all new gaskets and hardware will be used.
now has matching , working door locks/handles/ ignition switch.

peoples pathetic attempt at repairs always makes me chuckle. just do it right the first time.

 

made another rock auto order. hopefully have this truck on the road in a week or two? will see.

 

all cooler lines, other than the power steering, are in place. new o-rings in all the fittings. new motor mounts installed, then the exhaust manifolds were installed, along with new dip-stick tube and hardware with high temp anti-seize for any of the exhaust / cyl head fasteners.
new spark plugs and 10 mm spark plug wires installed. those spark plugs are very worn out- the truck did run a little rough, like not as smooth as it should-
new transmission mount installed.

 

new hub bearing installed . steering box installed. all fluids installed.
serviced front diff- diff magnet was very fuzzy and when when cleaned i found tiny pieces of chrome well we all know that only comes from two places-a race or bearing is staring to fail- so diff was flushed, and fresh fluid installed while i follow up on different front diff options-and maybe a diff drop / lift kit when the time comes to replace front diff.
or leave it oem, install a reman and it will lats a lifetime with PROPER FLUIDS AND MAINTENENCE !!!

 

new 10 mm wires

new wires installed

 

old spark sticks

new degas tank

this isnt right