Any way to tell what the total mileage is on my 89 truck?

[Phil Stuart]

Hello all,



This has had me wondering ever since I bought the 89 about 2 1/2 months ago. The odometer has turned over at least once I do know that. But I can't believe it's only got 110,000 on it now?

The brake pedal cover has normal wear and is not down to the metal part of the pedal as with say a high mileage vehicle. This is usually one indicator of the use.



I've had a few people look at it and say it has probably turned over only once because the body is in very good shape and the paint is good for a 14 year old truck. I bought the truck out in Missouri and from the previous title it shows that's where it's from. The truck had a homemade gooseneck hitch in the back (which I removed) as well as the Kelderman air ride (which is still on it)and about three other types of trailer connectors mounted on the rear bumper which were corroded and I removed those also. The previous owner was into horses or cattle and must have towed a lot with it.

I know that out in the midwest there's nothing but highways and long roads with no traffic lights and miles between towns and cities. That gives me a reason to believe it has more than 110,000 on her

Looking in the owners manual which was still with the truck,there were brief records of maintenance performed on it with another owner who lived in Arkansas.

The truck was well taken care of by this person and the last owner before I bought it , the truck must have nickeled and dimed him/her after a while on little things and that's why they got rid of it.

I have done a lot (mechanically) to get her back in shape and on the road and if anyone can help me figure how many actual miles the girl has on her that would be a HUGE help. These old 12 valvers are not like the newer ones with the extra digit on the odometer or the electronic type which keeps memory of it.



Sorry to be so long on this but I figured I would try to give you all as much info as I could to go on.



Phil

 

[The patriot]

You can do a carfax on it, or take the VIN to the dealer. If there was any sort of work dont, they'd have the mileage.

Other than that, it's just a guess.

Eric

 

[JSchlachta]

you can run a carfax on i yourself also and it will show where it was titled and the millage. Can be yeally helpful when looking at used vehicles.

 

[bgilbert]

Seat wore out, kick panels on door, floorboard worn. Original plastic/rubber under the hood; down on frame so that mud and dirt cant fly up on engine, around radiator. Things like this missing under the hood can indicate mileage. Bill

 

[Phil Stuart]

Originally posted by bgilbert

Seat wore out, kick panels on door, floorboard worn. Original plastic/rubber under the hood; down on frame so that mud and dirt cant fly up on engine, around radiator. Things like this missing under the hood can indicate mileage. Bill

Bill,



The bench seat is in really good shape, no tears, just a slight bit worn on the drivers side seat bottom part.

All the under hood stuff is there , the rubber splash shields on the lower inner fenders , the hood insulation is intact, I don't see anything missing as far as I can tell.

There was quite a bit of dirt/ dried up mud on underside of frame and in the usual spots. I took a pressure washer to it and cleaned it good.

The auto. trans was out of adjustment as far as the two bands go. I adjusted these and replaced the filter. The fluid was not burned and still had a pinkish tint to it. It doesn't slip in low range like it did before the band adjustment. I also turned the allen screw out about two turns on the valve body to raise line pressure a bit more and to firm up the shifts.



The carpet had been replacd once before and I removed the carpet just to put down a nice thick vinyl floor covering.



keep the ideas coming!





Phil

 

[RHancock]

Look at the rear end and what kind of backlash it has. My truck with 140k has very little backlash but my freinds with 320k has alot. Also pull the cover and look at the ring gear...



What is supprizing is how well these trucks do with a lot of miles compared to the newer ones. It is very hard to tell the actual milage on a first gen by looking at it...

 

[cfarrar]

The odometer in my '91 has an extra digit so it can read to a million miles. When did they make the change. I'll add that it is an electronic odometer, too - no cable.



Clark

 

[Phil Stuart]

Originally posted by RHancock

Look at the rear end and what kind of backlash it has. My truck with 140k has very little backlash but my freinds with 320k has alot. Also pull the cover and look at the ring gear...

I pulled the cover on the rear end not too long after I bought it and seems to have the original red/orange sealer on the cover and the fluid was black as night!I drained/cleaned the inside and checked it out while the cover was off and the gears looked good to me, hardly any backlash/play in it. I filled with synthetic gear lube and it's been real quiet,no noises at all.

I also change upper and lower ball joints on the front end.



Phil