1990's GM 6.5 Turbo Diesel???

[JimR]

Hopefully this picture will post. I still haven't had a chance to go check this truck out. I won't until I have the funds set aside to buy a truck.

 

[RollingsFarms]

Hopefully this picture will post. I still haven't had a chance to go check this truck out. I won't until I have the funds set aside to buy a truck.

thats a good looking truck. its not beaten up like alot of the old 6.5 equiped trucks that are being sold. you should be ok just from going on what i see from the picture. however, you dont want to buy a money pit. do you know of any other potential buyers? the reason i ask is because you might want to wait and see if another diesel pops up that might catch your eye. i shopped for a good used sierra/silverado 97-99 with the old 5.7 in it. the ones i liked, they owner wouldnt sell or either wanted and arm and a leg for it, and the ones that had good prices were worn out and showing rust. after i broke down and bought a 2004, wouldnt you know it, everywhere i looked there were 97,98, and 99's with everything i wanted and at a really good price for sale. any old dodge cummins for sale around your parts that you know of? maybe you should go by a few dealerships in your area and tell them to keep an eye out for what you want, and let them know youre serious as a heart attack about buying. theyll usually come through for you.

 

[JimR]

The dealers around here are like Pirranna. They also do not keep high mileage vehicles on the lot. They wholesale them out at the car auctions. I don't see many Dodge diesels for sale around here. Although I haven't really looked for a Dodge either. Like I stated earlier. I in the saving money mode right now and do not want to really look too hard until I have at least 3K put aside. The Chevy Silverado is still for sale. I think there may be something wrong with it. He told me he had it for sale at $5200, then for $4200 and now $3200. Maybe I'll offer him $2000 for it.

 

[RollingsFarms]

The dealers around here are like Pirranna. They also do not keep high mileage vehicles on the lot. They wholesale them out at the car auctions. I don't see many Dodge diesels for sale around here. Although I haven't really looked for a Dodge either. Like I stated earlier. I in the saving money mode right now and do not want to really look too hard until I have at least 3K put aside. The Chevy Silverado is still for sale. I think there may be something wrong with it. He told me he had it for sale at $5200, then for $4200 and now $3200. Maybe I'll offer him $2000 for it.

maybe people are just scared off by the miles. do you have any friends that are diesel knowledgeable? i figured you could get one to tag along with you if you decide to go look at the truck and they could give you the thumbs up or thumbs down. if you do decide to offer him $2000 all he can do is say no.

 

[hudr]

I hope folks keep bad mouthing the 6.5TD. Maybe the next one I buy will be even cheaper. No, they will not run as long as a 5.9 cummins. But the Cummins motor was designed for a lot larger, industrial type vehicle than the 6.5TD. I have had a string of Chevy diesels and really couldn't complain too much about them (I started w/ a 5.7 in a 78 Chevy). The 6.2 was an improvement over the 5.7 (different motor altogether) and the 6.5 improved on the 6.2 (to some extent). I have a 6.5 in a 97 K3500 crew cab and I love it. The best thing... its paid for. I don't have the $700 to $800 payment attached to a new Duramax. No, it won't run 80mpg w/ a 30ft gooseneck full of heifers behind it and I don't want it to. If I have that much weight behind a truck I am more concerned about stopping than setting land speed records.
One thing I don't like since the diesel "horsepower wars" started... the 6.2 in my 84 GMC got 24mpg on the highway and 20mpg around town.
The best part... my 97 rides and drives like a Chevy.
Maintenance is the key to any diesel engine.

 

[KICK]

i HAD A 95 gmc 3500 CREW CAB WITH THAT ENGINE.

while it was under warranty the injection pump took a hit.

I drove it another 120k miles and sold it to a friend of mine.

its still going, has 200,000 miles on it now.

the truck you showed in the pic looks good, if you can get it at the price you want, buy it.

 

[Builder]

I hope folks keep bad mouthing the 6.5TD. Maybe the next one I buy will be even cheaper. No, they will not run as long as a 5.9 cummins. But the Cummins motor was designed for a lot larger, industrial type vehicle than the 6.5TD. I have had a string of Chevy diesels and really couldn't complain too much about them (I started w/ a 5.7 in a 78 Chevy). The 6.2 was an improvement over the 5.7 (different motor altogether) and the 6.5 improved on the 6.2 (to some extent). I have a 6.5 in a 97 K3500 crew cab and I love it. The best thing... its paid for. I don't have the $700 to $800 payment attached to a new Duramax. No, it won't run 80mpg w/ a 30ft gooseneck full of heifers behind it and I don't want it to. If I have that much weight behind a truck I am more concerned about stopping than setting land speed records.
One thing I don't like since the diesel "horsepower wars" started... the 6.2 in my 84 GMC got 24mpg on the highway and 20mpg around town.
The best part... my 97 rides and drives like a Chevy.
Maintenance is the key to any diesel engine.

With all due respect-if all you have to compare your 6.5TD to is a 5.7L Oldsmobile diesel and a 6.2L GM diesel, then yes, it would seem like a nice diesel.

I do agree with you on the fuel mileage and the payments...... but my paid off 6.5Td never broke 15MPG even with it's crappy 210HP rating and the '99 7.3L I run side by side with my new DMAX only manages about the same fuel mileage, but has less HP/TQ.

 

[KICK]

my opinion of the 6.5 would be that it fits in between a gasser and the offering Ford and Dodge used in those years.

It got about 13-15 mpg in crew cab dually , 9 when towing

6.5 didn't have as much power as a Cummin of Powerstroke or get quite the fuel economy but it was better than driving a 1 ton with a 460/454 ( I had a 91 Chebbie with big block) or V10 and it seems the 6.5 cost about 2500 as an option, the 454 was 900 so the Diesel cost 1600 more than the big block while at the same time the Ford and Dodge diesel option was 5000 dollars.

so you could get some of the benefits of a Diesel without the large cost, and IMHO the 6.5 was integrated into the GM vehicle better than the other two .

it was all GM in those trucks. GM car oil filter, 4L 80 E tranny, GM rear end, GM alternator and AC, one powertrain computer etc... so it had some good points also

not so for the other two, still remember my buds 89 Ford 250 with 7.3, seems every part on it was from a different manufacturer, leece neville alternator, mitsu starter, interantional engine, mazda tranny, borg warner transfer case etc...

not trying to sell anybody on one, just pointing out my observations of the one I had.

 

[Builder]

my opinion of the 6.5 would be that it fits in between a gasser and the offering Ford and Dodge used in those years.

It got about 13-15 mpg in crew cab dually , 9 when towing

6.5 didn't have as much power as a Cummin of Powerstroke or get quite the fuel economy but it was better than driving a 1 ton with a 460/454 ( I had a 91 Chebbie with big block) or V10 and it seems the 6.5 cost about 2500 as an option, the 454 was 900 so the Diesel cost 1600 more than the big block while at the same time the Ford and Dodge diesel option was 5000 dollars.

so you could get some of the benefits of a Diesel without the large cost, and IMHO the 6.5 was integrated into the GM vehicle better than the other two .

it was all GM in those trucks. GM car oil filter, 4L 80 E tranny, GM rear end, GM alternator and AC, one powertrain computer etc... so it had some good points also

not so for the other two, still remember my buds 89 Ford 250 with 7.3, seems every part on it was from a different manufacturer, leece neville alternator, mitsu starter, interantional engine, mazda tranny, borg warner transfer case etc...

not trying to sell anybody on one, just pointing out my observations of the one I had.

It depends on when you bought your diesel. In the mid 90's, they were all ~2,500-3,500.
My '99 7.3L was $4,595. By then the 6.5TD was more than $2,500.

My 7.3L has only 3 major parts outsourced- Dana front axle, NP tansfer case and IH engine. The rear axle is Ford, trans is Ford, chassis is Ford, electrical system is Ford.

I don't think it makes a truck any better to have it mostly made in house. In fact, I'd take my '07 HD which has some of the best of the world in it. (Isuzu/GM diesel, allison trans, NP transfer case, etc).

I do agree it was probably better than gas power, but my mid-90's 460 powered Fords were more reliable and had much more ***** to them.

I remember some GM dealers flat-out used to refuse to sell any 6.5TD GMC trucks and most wouldn't service them, either.

 

[JimR]

I remember some GM dealers flat-out used to refuse to sell any 6.5TD GMC trucks and most wouldn't service them, either.

I find it hard to believe that a GM dealer can refuse to sell or service a GM product.