House Republicans develop plan to overturn EPA rules

[vdubnut62]

Wait a minute...BOB doesn't drive a DIESEL?!   The mileage in my '73 Chevy is horrific. I can't figure out why besides weighing 6000lbs. I know a guy who drives a school bus based on a medium duty chevy chassis, with a 366 big block, and he gets better mileage than my truck with a 350 small block!

I've always been a truck guy too but I've really been eyeing the new Ford van the neighbors at my shop got. (plumbers) It's basically the van front with what looks service truck bed with a canopy over it, though it's built to match the original lines of the van. Walk through too. I want one...

In my experience, the only engine that Chevy ever built that liked gas more than 350 is a 454, and I don't know why. Well, a 292 straight six rated right up there too.
Ron

[quinnf]

Hmmm . . . I don't suppose this is a good place to mention my '89 Toyota p/u with the 22RE.

[mobile_bob]

i got an '83 toyo diesel pickup too!

it likes to run down the highway at just about 58mph,, although under protest it will do 75 plus

i like the little bugger a lot, however i really like my G30 chevy  even if it doesn't get all that great of mileage.

wouldn't have a van with a diesel, never, ever...

its bad enough just doing a 100k mile tuneup on the 454, thats about a 6 hour job all on its own. no way do want to fuss
with a diesel in such a cramped application as a van.

in a perfect world?   a P series van  16k gvw plus, about 18-20 long, rollup back door, flip up front end, and a dt466 with allison
mounted mid ship with a work bench over the top. and my miller welder up under the flip open hood where the engine generally
would be found.

then to service the engine, i could unlatch the bench slide it back off the engine, and have it open for easy access for service/repair work.

a dt466 at about 220hp or so ought to get about 12mpg or maybe a bit better, and the p-van is relatively easy to get in and out of.

that would be about the perfect service truck in my opinion.

bob g

[mobile_bob]

i bought the van at 105k miles, and put about 5k more before the first tuneup
went with top of the line parts and double platinum plugs

made it to 205k miles before the next tuneup and found the platinum used up, so i went back with all the same stuff
again,, figuring 95k miles on a heavily loaded work truck between tuneups is pretty good.

other than a bitch to work on, it has been a real workhorse, and been the most production friendly service truck i have every owned.

if i could find a low mileage 1ton cargo (no windows) G30 with a 6.5l diesel i might consider it, but it would have to be a mid 90's van
i really don't like the newer body style for what i do.

something about big v8 engines stuffed in the nose of a van body is just a horrible combination to work on, but i guess that is the compromise that has to be made.

while i like the technology of the navistar/ford 6.0 liter ford,, i would hate to have to do anything on one of them stuffed in a van.

bob g

[BioHazard]

Tuneup ? What's that ? Sold my last truck with the original spark plugs in it. I was rather upset that I had to put in a new battery after about ten years of service.

LOL, my '01 Dodge has almost 150k on it now, factory plugs and battery. When you open the hood it's difficult to find the engine under all the plastic. That's why a 2001 is the newest thing I own. Funny enough, my '73 is just now hitting 50k for the first time. 

[vdubnut62]

My 86 Yota is a motorhome chassis with factory dual wheels and a 9 1/2 foot flat bed. After my son drove through high school and is still beating it to death (he's 26 now) it still runs great, but uses a little oil- ok a lot of oil. I don't know how many miles are on it  the speedo didn't work for the first 7 or 8 years. I have hauled 3 and a half tons of gravel on it.
way cheaper to drive than the Dodge dually.
Ron.

[bschwartz]

Not a van by a long shot, but for moving stuff around, my '95 GMC Suburban with the 6.5 TD will comfortably run 19 MPG at 65 MPH (drops to about 17 at 75MPH).  Not too bad for waste fryer oil 

[AdeV]

Suddenly, I feel a whole lot better about my old bus, which does ~17mpg. Or, as you Americans would call it, a "mid-sized station wagon"... (I'm talking about the one up front, not the one behind, which does about 2-3 mpg...

[vdubnut62]

How the Hell do you get 17 MPG out of that?!? Drive down hill everywhere
Ron

[AdeV]

How the Hell do you get 17 MPG out of that?!? Drive down hill everywhere

6 litre straight 6 diesel, no turbo

She'll do 90mph down hills...... but only 9mph up hills (steep ones anyway). I think the MPG is partially offset by the oil she burns 

Not bad for a 42 year old engine!