Okay guys I know it does have 180k on the clock and has not had the easiest life, but come on give me a break! I have had my 95 GMC Jimmy for just over a year now. I am on my 2nd tranny, 2nd rear end, 2nd set of injectors,...these are the most significant problems I have had. I just got done doing another tranny in this vehicle, and last night I discovered I need to replace the intake gaskets on it now. The engine is digesting coolant somehow, I have to refill the overflow bottle every couple weeks. Ohh well I guess thats what happens when a Ford man buys a GM truck.

 

You must have the 4.3. The intake gaskets were a problem and it can get in your oil and ruin the engine. You need to attend to that immediately. On the other problems, you are either very rough on the vehicle or somebody is not repairing it correctly the first time.

 

180K and you haven't had to put a transfer case encoder motor in it yet? Just a warning...$500+

And yep, the intake gaskets are bad. If you let it leak too long, the water passage mating surfaces on the intake manifold itself start to erode and then it's time for a new manifold, too.

/Does at least 2 intake gaskets a week on these things

Cody

 

Oh that's nothing compares to my case.
My 3rd car is 1997 Dodge Intrepid Sport (I also have '05 F-150, '00 Mustang and '94 Camry). 3.5L V6 top Intrepid offered in 1997. Currently 90,000 miles. I got letter from Chrysler about recall and I took it to Chrysler dealership to checkup. Other than recall, they found $2,000 worth of problems. They told me that my car is not even safe for driving and that's just matter of time until my front left tire will just fall off.
I'm never buying Chrysler vehicle with engine smaller than V8 ever again. Intrepid's been nothing but trouble since day 1.

 

I wouldn't expect much out of any car/truck if it as 180,000 miles and a hard life.

 

It could have been a slow day in the service department...

 

Or Friday and they needed beer money.....

 

yeah 180,000 is pretty good the 92-95 4.3 was the worst one but they can still live long.

 

Nope, it wasn't Friday. It was today.

 

I have to agree, and also, 180k is nearing the end of a vehicles life, especially when you say that it has not been cared for very well in the past.

 

You have no right to complain... you purchased a worn out truck that you admitted was ill cared for.

 

Well i quess now is as good as any to get a real truck, FORD truck.

 

Maybe time to get a ranger. At 180,000 just getting broke in. Iknow off one at 500.000 miles with just reg maintenance.

 

When everything is working right it runs like a champ. I don't drive this vehicle hard at all, it is my daily commuter, and I hardly ever tow anything with it; if do it's not a heavy load. It was owned by a young woman who didn't know what vehicle maintenance was or that a vehicle might just happen to need an oil change once in a while...maintenance what a concept! The engine actually runs very strong, gets 40-60 lbs oil pressure, and doesn't run hot ever. When I replaced the tranny I added an auxilary cooler when it was still apart, I also plan on installing a trans temp gauge so I don't fry it again. I heard the 4.3 Vortec motors were known for intake gasket problems, I can only figure they have never been replaced on this truck. Shortly after discovering this problem, the push-button 4wd quit working. Ohh well it's 10 yrs old and high mileage, I'll just keep fixing it when it breaks...whole lot cheaper than a brand new vehicle. Most of my buddies are Chevy guys, and I drive them nuts when I something breaks on my GMC. I guess they can't accept the fact that GMs are not any more superior to anything else. Sadly my old 84 Ford F150 has been much more reliable transportation than my 95 GMC Jimmy.

 

Ya I got a 92 Ranger and its going strong at 172 thousand miles, it was very mistreated and beaten , the body shows that! Your jimmy will be just fine, vehicles mess up its gonna happen they are mechanical,its bound to happen! The main problem is when it does happen its always at a bad time lol!