I have the opportunity to buy my sisters BF 1999 chev 1500 for $1000. Has 291,000 km with rust on the wheel wells and cab corners. He also thinks the head gaskets are done. With it running and playing with the throttle it sounds like bubbling in the coolant tank from in the cab. Is the truck worth fixing or should I not even bother? Also how are these trans? The oil is kinda burnt probley needs a service he hasn't had any problems with it though. Thanks

 

What do you want to do with it?Sounds like it needs an engine and the 4L60E is on its way to its usual early demise.I would likely grab it for that money,I have seen far worse trucks go for more than twice that around these parts,worse case scenario you can part it out and maybe triple your money.

 

That looks like a good truck for 1g , I'd buy it.

 

I haven't had a chance to lift it up and slide under it yet but I will today. And i will plug in the EFI live to scan it to see what codes are throwing the CEL. The use of the truck would be mainly for my gf to drive in the winter then We can park her Jetta or getting groceries and parts runner for me. It's got a tonno cover on the box so that's handy. I know it wasn't bagged he just drove it to work and back also and isn't really mechanically inclined ( he's an aid at a hospital) really nice guy. So would it be worth repairing the engine it has now or just buy a used different one? Also what's a 4l60E worth rebuilt?

 

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Yes, it's worth buying.

To answer you other questions, it depends on the cost of used parts Vs. rebuilding.

Lets say the heads are $300 to rebuild and new head gaskets bolts valve cover gaskets and so on are another $150-$200

Is that worth it or can you get a used engine with less miles for around the same money???

Same with the trans, what does it cost in your area for a refresh???
If you have a good guy and plan on keeping it, it might not be a bad idea to spend the extra coin on a refresh. With that kind of mileage and dirty fluid it's probably going to break down soon.


Your going to need oil, filter, and coolant either way.

With that type of mileage, your probably going to want to do a water pump and the coolant reservoir. You might also need to replace some if not all of the hoses.

Since your making this a reliable rig you might also want to do the Fuel pump and regulator at some point.

 

Thanks for the reply, I did some research and newer 2000-2001 engines are a bit different. Now is it a simple drop in with a PCM and done with? I found a few engines locally ranging from 1999-2003 from $300-1000 with 100,000km to 300,000. I'd obviously go with the lower km one but if its new generation I'm curious of the simplicity of the swap

 

before you yank that engine your bubbling may just be your heater core. mine started to do that when a shop that replaced my thermostat used the wrong coolant. he clogged the line. this could just be your problem. also cab corners from LMC truck are cheap. i replaced a rocker panel and the drivers side cab corner on my truck for 150 bucks and paid my buddy 60 bucks to weld them in for me. this could be a cheap and fun project. but if your going to toss in a new engine i would grab the 6.0 if you can find one and have the PCM calibrated.

 

You didn't tell us what engine it had. The V8 LS engine in a long block form is exactly the same from 99-02 and depending on the application some 03 were the same. The main difference would be the bolt on items like the intake manifold and the exhaust. There are other minor things like injectors, throttle bodies, head gaskets EGR air injection, and so on that are different between the years. Injector flow ratings changed from 99-00 so as long as you use your original computer with your original injectors it should be no problem.

Since your sig says you have rebuilt engine's, a long block will be an easy swap for you.

Get a mild tune for best performance. The engine will run smother through out the RPM range.