[plumbdog]

Hey Guys,

i am looking at a 1974 Chevy Cheyenne 10 pick up truck that is for sale
it is a clean truck with 77k miles,3 speed auto,350 engine.
i looked underneath and it appers there is a small stain on the pavement (perhaps an oil leak)? anyhow i have not heard it run yet and was just wondering if it is a good deal or what to look for (never owned a truck b4) price is $3,000.

thanks

Plumbdog

 

[Blacksheep1]

If its not too rusty runs & drives well, That's not too bad a price atleast up in the salty Midwest.

 

[plumbdog]

thanks ,i thought it was a good price,i would be useing it for light hauling from time to time.

 

[tbplus10]

Like the previous post said if it runs decent and isnt real rusty (expect some rust, it is 37 years old) $3k is a decent price.

 

[plumbdog]

as far as rust goes i saw no rust at all.either it was keept indoors or it has been repainted,also appers to have newer tires
if it runs and handles good,trans shift ok,brakes ok,motor then ya,just wondering about that leak on the ground though...

 

[tbplus10]

I would research the leak to find the source, but truthfully like rust it's 37 years old if it didnt leak at least a little I'd be worried somebody was hiding something.
Look at the undercarriage for signs of fluids blowing back, if it's a bad leak it's gonna show.
If the undercarriage is freshly washed and real clean you might have something to worry about, if it's dirty and has a light coat of fluid I wouldnt worry.
Again try to find the source thats gonna tell you more than anything.
Some leaking should be expected, more than likely its from the oil pan or trans pan gaskets, those should leak a little after all this time and will need attention in the near future but they arent a show stopper. If its oil coming from between the trans and the engine thats probably the rear main, still not a show stopper but entails a little more work to fix.

 

[stephan]

Like the others I agree $3k is a good price, but I'm doubting the 77K miles on the odometer. That's only 2,000 miles a year, but if you're not concerned about it being 177K or 277K then jump on it.

 

[plumbdog]

ok so i heard the engine run today,sounds good,drove around the block,handles well,brakes are ok,transmission seems to shift well,it did backfire once
but the gas tank is near empty,the leak on the ground that i saw ,the guy said the the bolts on the transmission pan prob. need to be tightened.

everything seems to be operable,only thing as far as i can tell that would need to be done is have fluids/filters changed new plugs and wires maybe
it has a new battery. guy says that the 77k miles are orginal is there a way to know for sure (carfax)?

anyhow got the price to $2,500

still sound good?

 

[mfleetwood]

Still sounds like a good deal. If the vehicle was bought and sold at least once or twice, the mileage should appear on the carfax report. If it is a one owner vehicle or if it hasn't been bought and sold within the past few years, it will be more difficult to tell.

 

[stephan]

The problem with relying on Carfax reports Plum, is that they weren't around for the first couple decades of this trucks life, so you would only get recent history. Sometimes you can tell by the wear on the pedal pads. If they are really worn down (possibly to the metal) then it's more than 77K miles. Ask the owner to tell his story on the low miles. It may be genuine if he's owned it all it's life & he had 3 or 4 other cars that he was driving all the time instead of this one. Maybe it was a farm truck & he only used it an hour a day. It could be actual miles, just ask about it.
If you're satisfied with the way it runs, then at $2500 it probably doesn't matter whether the miles are original or not.
Be sure & slide under it & see if the trans pan is leaking, or if this might be an engine oil leak. Engines from that era were famous for having rear main seals that leaked & would be more expensive to fix than a simple trans pan gasket. Wipe up some of the leaked fluid off the ground onto a white piece of paper or a white paper towel. Is it red (trans fluid) or is it more clear colored like engine oil?

 

[plumbdog]

thanks for the advice,the owner is actually a dealer and has only had the truck for a short time
i think im set on getting it,i wouldn't be useing it everyday it is a nice truck that's for sure even if i have to stick a little money into
if it is the rear main how much do you think that would cost to repair?

 

[stephan]

If it's a dealer & he's only owned it a short time, how can he verify the actual miles??
Check & see if it's the rear main or the trans pan gasket. If it's the rear main seal & you end up buying it you can replace the rear seal in the truck if you have some mechanical experience. If you get it post back here when you're ready to replace it & I'll walk you through it. As far as what it would cost for a shop to replace it, I don't know. They'll probably try & sell you a complete R&I the engine, pull the crankshaft to replace the seal & then while they have it apart they'll find marginal bearings, rings etc, plus depending on what part of the country you live labor rates vary a lot, so find out what it is first & go from there.
One other thing, pull the trans dipstick & smell it. Does it smell burnt? ATF should be a nice cherry red & should not smell burned. If it does, then get an estiment on a rebuild from a shop as you won't be able to do this yourself, or get a price on a salvage yard trans & make the guy an offer with this $amount deducted off the $2500. price of the truck. Even with a few problems this is probably still a good buy, but you don't want to burn all your money right at the beginning or you won't have any for more expensive repairs, & there may be other trucks available that are just as nice if you can't come to an agreement with this salesman. Is this at a dealer, or is it a pot lot?

 

[mfleetwood]

Great point about carfax not being around that long!

But since this is coming from a dealership, they should pull the carfax for free. I'd ask them to do it just to see what's on there...who knows what you could find or you could even garner a little more peace of mind.

 

[plumbdog]

If it's a dealer & he's only owned it a short time, how can he verify the actual miles??
Check & see if it's the rear main or the trans pan gasket. If it's the rear main seal & you end up buying it you can replace the rear seal in the truck if you have some mechanical experience. If you get it post back here when you're ready to replace it & I'll walk you through it. As far as what it would cost for a shop to replace it, I don't know. They'll probably try & sell you a complete R&I the engine, pull the crankshaft to replace the seal & then while they have it apart they'll find marginal bearings, rings etc, plus depending on what part of the country you live labor rates vary a lot, so find out what it is first & go from there.
One other thing, pull the trans dipstick & smell it. Does it smell burnt? ATF should be a nice cherry red & should not smell burned. If it does, then get an estiment on a rebuild from a shop as you won't be able to do this yourself, or get a price on a salvage yard trans & make the guy an offer with this $amount deducted off the $2500. price of the truck. Even with a few problems this is probably still a good buy, but you don't want to burn all your money right at the beginning or you won't have any for more expensive repairs, & there may be other trucks available that are just as nice if you can't come to an agreement with this salesman. Is this at a dealer, or is it a pot lot?

im in OHIO,this truck is at a parking lot of a plant/mulch place,owned by dealer,says he had a dealership across the way
i dunno that back fire and leak have me worried now,i am not a auto mechanic but am mechanically inclined (plumber)
the fact that the truck is so clean on the outside is what amazes me? ya when he said he was a dealer i was like hmmm....
ya i never bought from a used car dealership b4 and have heard horror stories on some of there selling pratices.....

Im young never owned a pick up truck b4,but have driven alot of my dad's Chevy's vans and cars as well as a couple El Caminos
this truck has a nice look but i sure would hate to fork alot of $$$ into it after i bought it,i think i may bring a mechanic buddy of mine with me
and have hiim look it over b4 i buy it,i told the guy today i would buy it but i never signed anything so i dunno it's better to be safe than sorry

 

[mfleetwood]

GREAT idea having your mechanic take a look at it! Let us know how it goes....you have my curiosity piqued now.

 

[KidHauler]

Are you able to test drive it again, and take it to your mechanic buddy? You would be able to look it over a little better, maybe on a hoist, and wouldn't have the dealer looking over your shoulder. While you are driving, make sure the odometer is ticking off the miles like it should. Check the suspension rubber for weather checking, too. That might give an idea of how much life this truck has had.

I'm with the rest of the gang; $2500 is a good price for that truck, in that shape, for what you want to do with it --- if it doesn't need a major fix. A little backfire could just mean it needs a tune-up, and I've always said that a truck that old isn't leaking - it's marking it's territory!

Also, see if you can get a picture of it and post it up. This group could probably tell you if it's original paint.

Good luck,

 

[stephan]

X2 on taking a mech with you to look at it, but if you can find a leaky pipe in a house, you should have no trouble finding out where this leak is coming from so no worries if he can't go with you. Just be sure to smell the tranny fluid & be sure & use the white paper towel trick to determine if the leak on the ground is red or yellow.
Don't worry about the backfire. It could just be 2 plug wires laying alongside each other & bleeding voltage across at the wrong time, moisture on the wires, moisture in the distributor cap. Could also be a bad distributor cap with 77K miles on it. A good tune up could easily cure what ails this truck. Even the leaks shouldn't worry you cuz if you can plumb a house, you can fix an oil leak on this truck. Like others said, you should take it for a test drive & make sure & take it somewhere you can get it up to 50 or 60mph so you can listen for rear end gear noise, front or rear wheel bearings & engine rods knocking, or whining or slipping from the trans... basically any noises or vibrations that just don't seem right to you. If this thing drives nice, shifts good when it's warmed up, & you don't notice any unusual noises or problems with it, then it's a winner for $2500.
Kid Haulers idea about possibly putting it up on a hoist is great. If you could do that you could easily spot hidden problems & it's easier than crawling around under it on your back.

 

[plumbdog]

ok well i took my mechanic buddy up to look @ that truck, and the fluid leak appers to be the trans. pan gasket,the oil pan has been smashed like someone tried to use a lift on it,there is rust under the drivers side door,and these "new tires" are dry rotted.

I looked @ the gas and brake pedal and the brake pedal is worn down pretty good at the bottom of the pedal,the gas pedal was no where near as worn down like the brake pedal.

under the hood has some "newer aftermarket parts that looks like they were installed within the last couple of years:
starter,altanator,battery,dist.cap,spark plugs and wires.

so anyhow the backfire deal could be a few things maybe just a simple carb.adjustment,i also understand that in those older trucks you are supposed to use a "leaded" fuel additive like ever other fill up otherwise you can burn out the seats in the head?


My buddy said he wouldn't pay more than 1,900 especially since the tires are dryrotted due to sitting.

i wish i knew how long this truck sat for.....

the other day i told the guy that i would buy the truck for 2,500 but i didn't sign anything
so asking him if he would take 2,000 seems weird (but also justified since the tires are not gonna last long)

all in all i think this truck would be perfect for someone who would want to restore it
(not me) and for 2,500 i know i can get a truck that is a hell of alot newer and with less problems.

Also 1 more thing ,if it's such a good deal than it would have been sold along time ago wouldn't you think?

We handshaked on 2,500 but i feel beter that my friend pointed out the dry rotted tires ...


dealers will tell you anything to sell you an auto this i have heard and this i now know.

also i checked the tranny fluid and it is red with no burnt smell so that is a good sign
just wondering if there is sawdust down in the pan lol

Thanks for everyones advice and suggestions on this topic.


PlumbDog

 

[bronx boy]

as far as mialge my 2000 silverado 4wd 1500 has 8800 so it is possible. as far as leaks dont worry .you can pull that motor and tranny in one shot .there are a ton of cheap parts out there for that truck .a gasket kit is cheap enough.that is agreat starter truck no bs on it just a good straight foward truck .im actualy jelouse .these days there is to much crap on these trucks .you need a scanner tool that cost as much as a rebuild kit for his truck.just buy it and have fun bud good luvk with it