I   LOVE   MY   GMC


[DOUG] [ELMER][MOORE] [PETE] [RICK] [ARCH]
 [SARA] [DAVE][CHUCK] [TIM] [RICHARD] [GENE] [JIM]

DOUG

I am with Gene.  I could cut travel down but that could torpedo a lifetime of retirement aspirations. 

I am/was an economist and have learned that prices go up and down - that can hurt some and help some at different times. Motor-home price fluctuations will not help or hurt me till I need to buy
 or sell.  I am not hurt till I feel real pain.  My coach is priceless until someone pays me for it, then it has a price. That price will be less than I have in it and likely less than I paid for it (it has had over $20,000 in upkeep and improvements which are "sunk costs" the recovery of which is not to be expected).  If I have to give it away, I already got my full value out of it and have lost nothing.  If I drive it, I am getting much more out of it in value than what I pay for gas and repairs.  This year my youngest sister told me it was beautiful and not the "trailer trash" she thought it was last year.  Amazing what parking next to other GMC coaches with better paint jobs, some new curtains in my coach, and some Prozac in my sister can do to the perceived value of my coach!

If I could buy a coach like mine for $1,000, I would not buy it since I have one.  If I could buy a coach like mine for $25,000, I would not buy one since I already have one.

Last month I had a chance to buy a large beautiful near new house in the Phoenix area for $60,000, but I have a house.  My sister bought one there for $30,000 but she needed one and was willing to fix it up.  She benefited from low prices this year but two years ago she lost her home and two rentals in Phoenix due to falling prices. I want prices to drop if I must buy and to raise if I sell. 

Looks to me like someone with a lot tied up in his/her GMC will not be hurt by price changes and fuel costs if they use the coach and enjoy it. In the mean time, I will accept high gas prices I might drive a bit less but probably not.  I can save more than the fuel increase by cutting my cell and cable bill - I recently cut my cable bill by about $80 per month and only lost two meaningful channels, one I will miss, and one my wife will miss. She is glad mine is gone and I am glad hers is gone so does that double negative make a positive? 

We will keep and drive the GMC because it pleases us to do so.  If health fails, we may not be able to do so; we know our health will fail in the next 30 years or less so we will drive it now.  We know the big quake is coming but we do not sleep in the back yard; If the house falls on me, I will die in comfort. We drive the GMC because we want to live while we live. We will drive and will not buy nor sell, so the price of coaches is an academic problem.  Douglas Norton

Jim Bolick

Vivian and I have owned our GMC for 13 years, have driven approx. 83,000 miles and have only been towed once.  We have had minor mechanical problems, but nothing major.  We live in it 4 to 7 months a year and use it at least once a month for GMC club rally's when we are home for the winter.  Get your coach in good mechanical condition and then
regular preventive maintenance.  I keep a maintenance log and check it regularly to see what needs attention before it breaks.  Just what I do.

Sara

The Engine of Mischief is our second RV. The first one, the BeHemoth, is still sitting in front of the house. We learned a lot from that old Suncrest (which is a handsome thing in its own right). We learned the basics of tank maintenance and power management. We learned that 27' is almost too big for us, and that we don't need an armchair in the living room or a separate shower. We learned that basements attract junk. We learned that owning an older RV can easily be at least as expensive as buying a new one.

Armed with that knowledge, I spent a lot of time here -- most of a year -- watching, listening, asking a LOT of stupid questions (and receiving excellent, thorough, and good-humored answers), and taking careful note of the responses. By the end of that year, I had a pretty comprehensive list of what I did and didn't want -- and a pretty good assurance that what I *did* want was a GMC. That list was the starting place when I went out to talk to Jim and buy my core coach last July.

We decided to go ahead and make the bet on a GMC for a number of reasons.

First, as Mark pointed out, new highliners are also notoriously rife with problems, so even paying $200K for a new rig isn't a guarantee that you'll have a happy RV ownership experience.

Second, like you, we're creative folks (ex-computer-game-designers) and wanted something with style. Not a big box with swirlies on the side, but something beautifully-designed and well-engineered that would turn heads -- even the heads of our jaded Silicon Valley tech-head peers. And we wanted something that we could customize, and make into a real mobile home of our own.

Third, we really liked the scale. They just don't make GMC-scaled RVs any more, which is a shame. It's big enough to give us our own back bedroom, small enough to take off the interstate and park downtown, low enough to get under the overpass and to step into without a ladder, light enough to actually get decent gas mileage for an RV.

Fourth, we ran the numbers. Our restoration will probably end up in the ballpark of $60-70K. For that money, we could have bought a very small (Roadtrek or Tioga) new or semi-new rig...which would have lost 50% of its value in the first five years (which all new RVs do, pretty much like clockwork). We expect to lose probably 25% of the GMC's restored value in a couple years. But after that, the curve will probably slow quite a bit.

Or, we could have spent twice that on something larger, with all the bells and whistles...and still had problems, and still lost half the money in five years, and still not had what we wanted.

Fifth, this coach is mechanically simple enough that breakdowns should be easy to deal with just about anywhere. Even the more esoteric parts are available via FedEx (the real miracle is that so many of them are still being made!); and the Black List is there to provide support if you're stuck in a strange place with a strange problem. Again, you can pay a quarter million for a Monaco, and not get these assurances. The support of the GMC community alone is a big part of this coach's value, IMHO.

Sixth is longevity. We expect our restoration to serve us for a good ten years, quite possibly double that or more. (We're already talking about the second restoration we're going to do on it in a decade, after the kids are grown and gone.) It's been on the road for a quarter-century already; there's no reason we can't keep her going that long again, and really get our money's worth.

We can't vouch for the reliability of an overhaul just yet -- our is stripped to the bare walls at the moment, and we're probably 2-3 months from having it finished. But I'm already awestruck by the sheer mechanical beauty of the thing (especially in her new coat of paint). Just sitting in her stripped-out interior in Jim's yard -- which I spent a good part of last week doing -- her spirit was palpable, and it was easy to imagine her as "home."

I know we'll have some frustrating times together. The Engine and I are both middle-aged ladies. We have our creaks and crankinesses, our peculiarities and preferences. We sag in places that didn't used to sag, and the machinery sometimes runs a bit less smoothly than it used to.

But time doesn't fade a true class act. Despite our mounting mileage, we also both clean up nice, and like to step out in style -- and I think we'll know how to treat each other with gentle good humor when things don't go as planned.  You can have good times in any kind of RV, but I somehow expect they're going to be just a bit better because we're having them in a GMC.
Sara

Elmer

I am not a GMC coach owner yet, however I will tell you why I am attracted to this coach.  Yes, I do believe they were/are ahead of their time.  Front wheel drive, dual rear axles, fiberglass / aluminum construction, fairly decent fuel economy, open architecture that allowed for many floor plan options.

Fun fact: Mention movies that have used GMC coaches as props. IE: Stripes.

Classic? Most defiantly, of just under 13,000 produced many are still in use today.  This also speaks well for the durability and craftsmanship of the GMC.  Remember that GMC only quit building these coaches because of high gasoline prices and they could build about 100 trucks in the same amount of man-hours as it took to build one of these coaches.  They quit due to simple economics.

Many of the coaches were "transmodes" and these ended up being mobile TV studios and I even heard of one that was a rolling bank branch office of some kind.

Future? Well, I'll be buying one someday.

Will someone make a new coach that looks just like the GMC? Probably not.  However, there are many companies whom the GMC has influenced. With all of the baby boomers out there who are now retiring and buying toys perhaps one or more of the current coach makers have plans to produce something that 20 years from now will be seen as "ahead of it's time" too.

It's unfortunate that GMC was forced to abandon the GMC coach platform.  We can only imagine what it might have become. Keep smiling, Mark Elmer

Moore

DISCLAIMER
There were some posts earlier about Engineers and Liability and I haven't had time to put in my two cents worth until now.  I have a mechanical engineering degree from a fairly well know university and have been a registered engineer so long my license number only has four digits.  While this net has helped me tremendously since I purchased my GMC back in May, I have realized that there are many things being passed along on it and other sites on the internet that may or may not be correct.  What I am putting in this post is not to be taken as a recommendation.

GENERAL
I didn't find this site until after I had purchased my GMC.  I spend several days reading archived posts and almost went into severe depression, because it appeared I had made a big mistake and should probably donate my GMC to a charitable organization and take the tax write off.  Fortunately I decided to follow my instincts based on many years of experience with GM products and to proceed with my original plan to bring the rig to a reliable operating condition.  The more I did, the more convinced I became that I had made a good choice.  I first concentrated on those things that could injure or kill me, the brakes, tires, wheels.  Then I moved on to those things that might leave me on the side of the road waiting for a tow truck, hoses, belts, cooling system, ignition system, fuel system, wheel bearings, transmission filter and flush.  Next were the items necessary to live in it, water system, roof AC, waste system, interior lights, stove, fridge.  Last came the appearance items, upholstery, driver's and passenger seats, steering wheel, carpet, blinds, etc.   Everything but the appearance group is essentially finished.

WHEELS AND TIRES
This topic can generate more posts that anything I have seen on this site.  Everyone should also know that I put about 40,000 miles on an Expedition equipped with the original Firestone tires with no tire problems and believe in keeping my tires inflated to their maximum rated pressure.  Based on a study done many years ago, only all steel, Load Range E radial tires are recommended for use on GMC's.  This recommendation is still being made after all these years for one reason.  LIABILITY  I believe this study was funded by GM and became their offical position.  When Cinnabar purchased the license to manufacture GMC parts, it automatically became their position.  It is a safe position because there is a study to support it.  Until someone comes up with funding to do another study which produces a different recommendation, the recommended tires for GMC's will be all steel load range E radials.  Owners that install other types of tires do so at their own risk.  This topic can be discussed on this site forever and the offical recommendation will never change.  End of conversation.

The recommended wheels for GMC motorhomes are radial rated steel wheels with a load capacity equal to that of 8.75 X 16.5 load range E radial tire or 2680 lbs. 16 inch steel wheels that fit 1973 through 1987 GM pickups with dual wheels will work if they are rated for use with radial tires and are hub centered.

Many GMC owners claim trued tires mounted on Alcoa Aluminum wheels and filled with balancing powder are required for a smooth ride.  From my experience, this is a myth.  My rig rides smooth enough on tires balanced in a one man shop in east Texas and mounted on steel wheels that the stove only rattles when I hit a bump.

FUEL SYSTEM
There are recommendations to install an electric booster pump between the gas tanks and the mechanical fuel pump to prevent vapor lock.  Vapor lock is caused by fuel vaporizing in the fuel line between the tanks and fuel pump.  This occurs when the vapor pressure of the fuel becomes lower than the boiling point of the fuel.  This can be caused by a hot fuel line causing the fuel to boil.  It can also be caused by a restriction in the fuel line which reduces the suction pressure to the point the fuel boils.  Since I have never experienced a true case of vapor lock, I assume that vapor lock causes the engine to lose power or surge or quit when operating under a load, but operates OK at idle or light load.  Installing an electric booster pump may be just masking the real problem.  A worn mechanical fuel pump will cause similar problems.   Quadrajet carbs. have a fuel filter that has a spring which holds it in place.  This spring is designed to allow the filter to bypass when the filter plugs.  This bypass will allow the engine to operate at light loads but to surge under heavy load.  There are also sock filters installed on the fuel pickup lines in the
fuel tanks.   A small hole in a fuel line between the tank and the pump can allow air to leak into the line which will cause fuel starvation.  Finally most GMC's sit for long periods of time and moisture can condense in the fuel tanks.

Until I dropped my fuel tanks, drained out several pints of water, cleaned them, replaced all of the hoses, replaced the sock filters, and replaced the carburator filter, I experienced surging under heavy load.  After doing all of the above, I drove the rig 3000 miles which included over 2000 miles with the temperature in the 90's extended operation above 4500 ft and a couple of
mountain passes above 7,000 ft with no problems.

The Quadrajet carburator is much maligned on this site.  There is also some very good information on Gene Fisher's site about it.  Most of the hard starting problems are caused by fuel getting out of the float bowl when the engine is stopped.  Two things can cause this.  There are plugs in the bottom of the float bowl which are bad about leaking.  The recommended fix is to cover
them with epoxy.  Heat from the intake manifold can boil the fuel out of the float bowl.  The only fix for this is to reduce the amount of heat getting to the carburator.  Blocking the exhaust passages into the intake manifold is the only fix for this.  An aftermarket heat shield between the carb and the manifold may also help.

Another common problem with Quadrajets is fuel logged floats.  The Quadrajet uses a float made out of a closed cell foam.  Over a period of time the float becomes saturated with gasoline and sinks which causes the carb to flood, idle rough, and be hard to start.  Black smoke from the exhaust when idling is a good indication of this problem.

All of the GM products I have owned over the last 20 years have had a Quadrajet carb and have operated for years with little or no problems.  Since I cleaned the carb, replaced the float, installed the larger jets recommended on Gene's site, replaced the OEM gasket with a heat shield, and adjusted the idle, my rig is running fine.  It starts easily and doesn't diesel when I
switch it off.  Since I changed the jets, fuel consumption seems to be down and power up a little.

COOLING SYSTEM
I have spent many years operating and maintaining pumps.  Centrifugal pumps like the water pumps on most engines are pretty simple.  They follow what is know as the "pump laws" pretty close.  Impeller material isn't a factor in a pump's performance if is satisfactory for use in material being pumped.  For example carbon steel will be attacked if it is used in an acid pump.  Diameter
is the most important factor.  A cast iron impeller and a stamped steel impeller will pump the same amount of fluid if they are the same diameter and have the same number of vanes.  All water pumps sold for 455 Olds engines don't have the same diameter.  When I replaced my water pump, I was offered pumps with impeller diameters ranging from less than 4 in to more than 4 3/8 in.  I finally found one with the same impeller diameter as the original pump.

The following may generate some posts.  At one time I was responsible for the operation of numerous "canned" pumps.  The only way to check these pumps for proper rotation is to compare their actual discharge pressure to their rated pressure.  If the rotation is reversed, the pump discharge pressure is about 60% of the rated pressure.  Don't know

Gene

>From one Gene to another -
The Bounder is big for what we want, can't park it anywhere when we are
sightseeing, but would be almost big enough if  you wanted to live in it.
Lots of places to visit in one or two days here in California, the GMC looks
like a better fit for us.
Do like "projects" too.
Gene
Pete
Hi all
Well I'm back in the GMC game again -- I had sold my '73 XPD in Oct '00 -
(I spent 2 years working on it's ground up restoration and customization).
Janice and I purchased a beautiful '99 Winebago Adventurer '34 diesel
pusher with slide-out at a great price. We traveled over 6000 miles in a
months time with our new RV. - BUT to me it just wasn't the same. Sold the
Winne via the RVTRADERONLINE to a couple in South Dakota. While looking
thru the December issue of the GMC Marketplace - I noticed a simple add
for a '77 GMC (Classco Conversion). A rear twin - dry side bath. It just
struck a spark in me - here was a couch with a dry bath for Janice (she
would never use the wet bath in our former GMC) and rear twins (she always
hated sleeping in the back against the window and having to crawl over me
in the morning). It had all the mechanical and customization work done in
'96 - The owner had passed away about 6 months ago and it was being sold
by the widow and her son. Janice thought I was absolutely CRAZY - but she
realized that there was a great passion within me that needed to get back
to a GMC - so I drove 1200 miles from sunny Daytona Florida into an ice
and snow storm to N/W Arkansas to see this coach before anyone else. WELL
it was beautiful - Lexus Gold paint job - well cared for - and absolutely
beautiful inside and out - All the details of all the work on the coach
were in a neat package - including a spread sheet with the grand total for
the mech & customization work done in '96 --- The amount of money spent on
the restoration work at Clasco was amazing. Everything that I was able to
test worked well - except the engine had a slight but noticeable miss. A
compression check reveled only 20 lbs of compression in # 6 cylinder -
most likely a bad or burned exhaust valve - (no popping thru the carb and
no oil being pumped out the oil filler or PVC valve) --- in fact the exact
same condition that I had experience on my '73 PD GMC. Well I purchased
the coach and drove my new '77 GMC 1200 miles home - thru freezing weather
- running on 7 cylinders and towing our '73 Toyota Tercel & got almost 10
miles per gallon and averaged 65-75 miles per hour. Pete

Rick

My GMC cost about what the sales tax would be on a $185,000 New-Aire or whatever.  And my GMC is a foot and a half lower, and fits under a 9' 6" railroad bridge, even with OEM roof air units.  And I can get parts from several sources around the country, and help and solace from Black Listers everywhere.  Yeah, I love my GMC.  The Newaire just confirms
our good taste!  ;-) Rick Staples

Arch

You may have answered part of your own question here. Most other
motorhomes are still losing value. Check the prices for the other
motorhomes you state. They are still going down. GMC prices
stabilized several years ago. I have a story for you. I pulled into
a campground and this guy came over to talk. He toured my GMC
than we sat outside and talked the night away. This was a
campground with a lot of big rigs. As the old gentleman was leaving
he turned to me and said "well at least your motorhome is not leaking."
I had no idea what he was talking about. Then he said you are not leaking
money. You probably have the only motorhome here that is not
depreciating. I had never thought about it that way.

Next For the last 5 years I have been camping with a group called LOWs.
This is a club for singles who like to camp alone. Now most of these
people are women who have lost their mate but still had a motorhome.
They just keep driving the old motorhome they have. I have worked on
many of them. First do not buy one with any wood in the frame work
of the sides or roof. After years of going down the road for many years
they all loosen up. Add a leak or two at joints where the roof and sidewall
meet and you are going to tear out a lot to fix it.

Next some of the units you mentioned used stock parts like water
tanks and holding tanks others did not. Good luck finding things
that break if the parts were custom made. Forget control panels.
Same thing for finding wiring diagrams and color codes for the wires.
Some of us complain about the prices charged by some places
like Cinnabar----at least we have a last resort to get parts. This is
not true for many older motorhomes.

Next if you cant do the repairs yourself or you hit a roadblock
where are you going to take it? Yes, you can take it to any big
RV dealer and they may work on it for you. But do they know
the little secretes about that motorhome. I can tell you they all
have secretes.

Next can you still get windshields for the motorhome of your choice.
It is a big problem for some motorhomes. The glass of that era was
not that good.

Next what kind of free support is there for the lady of your choice.
You will have a problem beating this net. I know there are other
news lists. Be sure to check out how often there are posts on
that list. I am on the LeSharo list and we do well to get 5 posts
a week.

Next I cant speak to other motorhomes but very seldom do pull
into a campground that somebody does not come up to talk
about my GMC. This has nothing to do with money but it does
wonders for my ego.
 

Next you may be able to buy in cheaper at this time but I think the
cost over the long haul will be much higher. This may
well be a case of you get what you pay for. I bought mine for $5000
from a junk yard. I am now up to about $16,000 total. I am very happy
with what I have. I dont think I could have anything else that has as
much admiration and respect as these ladies.

Next again nothing about money. I have driven several motorhomes.
My lady drives like a dream compared to others. She lives like like
a dream. It all works for me.

Finally I wish you luck what ever decision you make. I am happy
with what I have done. I dont think you can do better than a GMC.

Take Care
Arch

Dave

I really enjoy reading and learning from the posts here at GMC net.  It is a
great place to get answers.  The only major mechanical problem that I have
had was my fault.  I changed and checked all fluids except in one place, the
final drive, Oops.  I just did not have time to check the final drive before
I left and it was as dry as a bone.  I have always checked every vehicle
that I have ever purchased new.  I have never found One that was low in the
rear end so I thought I was okay changing it next time.  My tranny and Final
drive fused together out in the middle of nowhere near Dolan Springs, AZ.
It was only a $450 tow into the Circus Circus camping lot.  With my towing
through USAA, it cost me a tip for the driver.  Of course the overhaul was
$3500.  I wish I would have known about the options on the final drive then.
My coach only has 53,000 miles on it.  I trust driving it anywhere now.  The
GMC drives far superior to other coaches that I have driven and gets way
better mileage.  I get between 9 and 10 with a 455.  I use regular on flat
ground and premium when I know I will hit major mountains.

I have a good friend with a Flair Coach which is only 8 years old and
compared to it, mine is like brand new.  My Palm Beach is defiantly a
keeper.

Keep up the great discussions and thanks for all of the info.

David
75 Palm Beach (455cid
Tim Brown
Chuck, this was exactly my experience too! Including the approximate
distance travelled on the maiden voyage. I then had Buskirk-Rush go over
it, replaced belts, hoses, fuel line etc. The coach has run great for
the 2 years since with regular professional maintenance. ( I am a
student of the "David Greenberg School for the Mechanically
Challenged.")

I have often tried to chime in here when there seemed to be many tales
of woe, just to let newbies know that every GMC is not a ticking
timebomb. Many posters on the GMCnet are seeking solutions for problems
they've encountered, so it can seem at times like there's an awful lot
of problems brought up. I suspect that many folks don't post the good
stories because they feel it might be boring to the gearheads on this
list. ("I went to Forest City and nothing broke!") Personally, I love
these kinds of trip reports.

I don't have my head in the sand, I prefer to put my toes in the sand of
a Lake Michigan beach with my GMC parked nearby.  I read all the posts
here and they help me to at least be aware of the kinds of problems that
MIGHT occur. But I'm not worried. I keep my coach maintained and I use
it whenever I can, which is not often enough.  If my luck runs out and I
bust a widget or a "henway" ;^) well, I know a new one can be shipped to
wherever I was towed after I called my insurance co. on my cell phone
which I keep next to Dave's credit card!
 

Guess I love my GMC too.
 

CHUCK

I'm basically a lurker and I can see some agreeing with Roy Cummings t-in-cheek  statement, "After all I've read, I'm scared to drive mine!" I bought my GMC earlier this year because a friend (ex formula race car mechanic) who I trust about engines, called me and said, [quote] have you looked at the GMC? There must be something to them because one just passed me (in his 34 Southwind) going about 70 [unquote].

He then went on to tell me about their engine and how good it was (he has two toras for some reason. I went looking around Ontario and on the Net. Found one in the south, I bought it sight unseen (except for pictures), and on the say so of the owner as to what was right or wrong with it.

I flew south with a buddy, spent a day with the owner going over everything, then got in started the engine and drove 1,000 back (forgetting everything the  former owner told me) to Toronto. Because it had to be safety checked for the new plates, I took it to Dick Paterson. Three new tires, tuneup, new muffler system front to back and some small odds and ends, I got it plated and haven't had any "real" problems since. I have only put another 1,000 miles on it, as I can only use it on weekends (sometimes). That's the problem with full time work, it gets in the way of fun.

We bought this size/type of coach because we want to find out if we like to cruise (we come from power boats so we have long since got over the space problems), because if so upon retirement, we will do some serious traveling by motorhome. So far, we love the GMC. Great size, easy to drive, etc.

I tell you all this because sometimes when one follows the chat here, one could maybe get the feeling that you have to be a major mechanic, or a died-in-the-wool fixer to own a GMC. That could scare many, if not most, new or potential new owners away. I wonder what I would have thought if I had seen this discussion group prior to purchasing (but then again I'm a dive in a try guy). Now that I know it isn't all doom and gloom, only discussion about some problems that may crop up, I look for stuff that interests me, or I need. Because of this group, I got to know Jim Bounds (by telephone that is), and have resolved some minor, but important issues, and made some purchases from him. I didn't know how I was going to resolve the inside engine hatch "lifting" problem until Darren Paget came up with the bolts that worked great. I have figured out how I want to re-do the rear bedroom because of help from here, and I have got a binder full of ideas from the pictures and posting about other how to's, almost none have to do with the engine. I took out extra trip insurance for on-the-road assistance, and someone else will have to fix the engine if and when it breaks, the front bearings, if an when they break, etc. That's no different than my wife's '73 Mercedes 450 SLC (which is now for sale). When it breaks, a tow truck picks it up and takes it to the operating room. Not all, and I suspect most not most of us are mechanics. Now if you want to discuss the psychology of attracting an audience to a radio station, it could get downright nasty.

I post this long message, only to show (especially those lurking like I do most times) that there are a lot of things you can get from this discussion group, but don't get discouraged because of some heavy "discussions" about torque converters ballooning (would have thought you ballooned using "hot air").

Chuck
'76 Eleganza II
Toronto, ON

RICHARD

Just a few observations FWIW

- GMC Motorhomes probably have as good or better breakdown track records
than almost any older coach out there.One might even assume that GMCs
provide more security from breakdown given that most parts are readily
available and most ALL parts are avialable, albeit, some you must know
the source and may prove more difficult to procure. Although I am still
running down pieces my research has thus far only turned up ONE exterior
or mechanical part that I cannot find and as it is only a small decal I
had it painted on (Widham decal, may be peculiar to my coach... don't
know). Periodically the particular part you want only comes packaged in
'kits' along with other associated parts but the point is you can still
get them.
- If a person purchases any classic be it motorhome, car, truck, or old
Rolls Royce you are buying a vehicle that probably either has a
Kazillion miles on it or it has sat.. rarely used. One is as bad as the
other. Usage wears parts out... non usage dries and/or rusts parts out.
Either way age takes it's ugly course.
- It has been observed over and over on this terrific mailing list that
there are problems. But then also remember that there are probably more
than half of the original GMCs still mobile and many more, at least,
restorable. Those 6000+ GMCs, IMHO, is an exceptional number for a +/-
25 year old specialized vehicle.
- I'd not take a bet whether or not a large percentage of those that are
mobile actually break on any regular basis. I do know that other that
the original 'bringing it home' trip when there were problems caused by
old tires (MY oversight) I have not had any serious problems. I do
believe that any older vehicle requires a little extra care and
maintenance but that's part of the fun of ownership.
- My rather common 78 Vette offers up far more problems than the ARK and
certainly draws far more from the cash reserve. Parts for the Vette are
easier to source but I don't find them any easier to obtain given my
location.
- The one single event that stands out clearer in my mind was driving
the ARK down the Oregon coast last year at end June/first July...  met a
group of five or six GMCs heading north.... EVERY ONE waved at us. Never
had that with the Vette or for that matter any other vehicle I've owned.
- Terrific group of people these GMCers and obviously very helpful as
shown on this mailing list and elsewhere.
- Besides that it has become obvious to me that if I wish to hide from
the world I cannot dream of doing it in the ARK! Everywhere we go,
shopping malls, parking lots, campgrounds, gas stations or anywhere else
... there are always people asking questions and admiring the ol' girl.
Usually finishing the conversation with "Always wanted one".

 Only wish I had her 25 years ago!

Richard
75 PB Geneva
 
 

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