I’d heard that the “1990s generation Chevy truck” — i.e. the GMT400 — was good. Say the name “GMT400” in any automotive gathering, and you’ll conjure up a crowd of true believers who will talk your ears off about stout G80 differentials, torquey TBI 350s, and indestructible NV4500 transmissions. I’d never owned a GMT400 because I’m more of a Jeep person, but a few months ago I scored a rust-free five-speed 4×4 1989 Chevy K1500 for only $4900 — a deal I could not pass up. And now I get it: The GMT400 might be the GOAT.
I’ll admit that I tend to throw around the term “GOAT” a bit too loosely, when really it should be reserved for the likes of Lebron James/MJ, Tom Brady, and the WW2 Jeep. But you get the idea: The GMT400 is seriously, seriously good.
I said as much in my report right after I first got behind the wheel back in January, but now that the newness of my relationship with the truck has faded, instead of the rose colored glasses coming off they’re now firmly bolted to my noggin.
I’m writing this because I’ve been daily-driving this truck for weeks, as I’ve been moving across town. Since I’m way, way too cheap to hire movers, I’ve been filling my K1500 to the brim and driving it probably a hundred miles every couple of days. In this past month, I’ve put at least 1500 miles on the truck, and my overwhelming takeaway is: This truck doesn’t feel as old as it is.
I expected this 36 year-old truck to ride significantly worse than any modern pickup I’ve piloted, but it just doesn’t. I’d have to drive them both back-to-back, but based on my recollection of what a recent Ford Ranger FX4 felt like, the GMT400 doesn’t ride any worse.
Watch Motor Week‘s review of the new-for-1988 GMT400 Chevy truck, and you’ll hear things like “The most sophisticated pickup truck ever” and “The Cheyenne blasted through out test course feeling like a sports truck.” You’ll hear about how aerodynamic the truck is, how the flush mounted windshield and lack of vent windows contribute to a quieter ride. You’ll hear about the good handling thanks to the independent front suspension and you’ll hear about the solid braking. Plus there’s this: “Get inside the Cheyenne and you’ll find one of the roomiest truck cabs around.”
But that review is as old as the truck. A good truck in 1987 doesn’t translate to a good truck all these years later. But in this case, it does.
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What I look for in a pickup truck is a combination of factors: 1. Simplicity/reliability 2. Durability 3. Off-Road Capability 4. Towing/payload capability and 5. Comfort.
Back when I was in my 20s, I’d have thrown “comfort” out the window (and indeed, I did), but nowadays it’s not that I’ve gone soft, it’s that I’ve piloted far too many vehicles that offer both truck-ish capability and comfort. I’m no longer impressed by vehicles that don’t. And yes, most modern trucks are much more comfortable than my Chevy and offer way more towing capability, but no modern truck offers the number one thing I want in a pickup: simplicity/durability/serviceability. And frankly, most modern trucks are a step backwards in terms of off-road capability.
So when it comes to crowning a pickup truck GOAT, I just can’t put a modern pickup truck into contention. And I also can’t put a really old one with a three-speed, overdrive-less gearbox and solid front axle (I think pickups should all have IFS, as the sheer geometry of trucks limits them so much off-road that the advantages of a solid axle are significantly diminished) that make highway driving a chore. The ultimate combination is something that’s new enough to be a smooth highway cruiser but old enough to forego all sorts of electronic gizmos and sensors and other complexities that are hard to repair. And the GMT400 fits right in there.
One thing I noticed right away when I first hopped in is something you might not expect from an older truck: it’s humongous. No, the GMT400 may not look big from the outside compared to a modern Silverado, but inside it is massive. When I sit in my Jeep J10 pickup and close the door, that door comes right up to my left elbow. Honestly, the distance between that door panel and my steering wheel is a bit tight. But on this K1500, the door panel seems like it’s in a different zip code than the driver — it bowes outward with the truck’s exterior door panels and makes the front bench seem like it could easily seat four adults across.
Firing the truck up, I grip a stylish but airbag-less steering wheel, and turn the key in the ubiquitous Saginaw steering column (which is loose, as millions of tilt Saginaw columns are due to internal bolts vibrating loose), only to hear a surprisingly quiet Chevy 350 fire up instantly under the hood.
I slide that five-speed into gear (a surprisingly tight and engaging five-speed that just snicks into gear, even if it’s one of the weaker earlier Getrag five-speeds), pop the park brake via the dash-mounted release, and smoothly trade clutch pedal for accelerator as the truck takes off.
On city streets, the K1500 is maybe a little on the firmer side, and its steering radius is laughably huge, but at any speed over about 30 mph the truck just cruises. The aerodynamic mirrors and general cab profile — while not exactly slippery by modern standards — mean the cabin is quiet even at 75 mph.
Sure, with only 210 ponies, the truck is glacially slow, but 300 lb-ft of torque means it’ll steadily get you up the steepest of grades even with a heavy load.
My biggest complaint about the early GMT400 is the seats; they don’t tilt, there’s no headrest, and they’re a bit flat and upright. They look cool, but I’d much prefer the mid-’90s GMT400 seats.
Whether the GMT400 is the GOAT is, of course, is probably not something we’ll agree on. It doesn’t have a Cummins 12-valve, it looks a bit plain in some folks’ eyes (I think it’s handsome), it’s not the most comfortable truck ever (many give the GOAT title to the GMT400’s successor, the GMT800, and while a 6.0 V8 with a 5-speed is extremely cool — or even the 8.1 with the 6-speed — I like the looks of the GMT400s a bit more) and it offers modest towing and off-road capability relative to the kings of the segment. But it’s competent everywhere. It’s spacious, handsome, reliable, comfortable, easy and cheap to work on, capable off-road, and devoid of any major flaws.
So if the GMT400 isn’t the greatest truck of all time, it certainly comes close.
That is a nice clean California unit David – even the sealed beam lights and steel wheels. Early 400s have a reliable lazy motor and a strange interior, but not bad. 96and up 400s had the stronger 5.7 Vortec motor, less strange interior.
I still prefer the 800 overall. Still simple but a bit more upgraded, and the LS based engine is great.
As someone who doesn’t have a truck, I suspect that every truck is the “greatest” when you’re getting full use out of it.
No press-fleet truck will ever feel like the GOAT to you, because you aren’t going to fill it with crap and find its limits, or get used to its quirks, or call it home away from home, you’ll never have that experience with anybody else’s truck. And the thing is, since everyone who has a truck knows that their truck is the GOAT, they’ll never find out if that’s true because they’d be crazy to try anything else.
The rare exception is when someone buys a lemon, replaces the transmission 3 times and swears off whatever brand the truck happened to be.
My best guess is, if I ask any truck enthusiast, the best truck in the world will always be the one with their spare boots under the seat.
As someone who doesn’t have a truck, I suspect that every truck is the “greatest” when you’re getting full use out of it. No press-fleet truck will ever feel like the GOAT, because you aren’t going to fill it with crap and find out just how tough it is, and you’ll also never have that experience with anybody else’s truck but your own. And the thing is, since everyone who has a truck knows that their truck is the GOAT, they’ll never find out if that’s true because they’d be crazy to get anything other than that.
My best guess is that the best truck in the world is always the one with your spare boots under the back seat.
You need to try out more trucks then rewrite this.
“with only 210 ponies, the truck is glacially slow” you should try my Datsun 720, with 72 ravenous diesel horses on tap.
Yeah, these things are nowhere near glacial.
When I was about 13 in 1993 my dad bought a brand new Silverado extended cab long bed 2WD to move my Jr Dragster around. The dealership looked at him like he was crazy for wanting that combo but it was such an amazing truck. I’d love to buy another one now but they’re all so expensive.
I love GMT400s. Certainly the best looking trucks inside and out ever made. I’ve had several Suburbans, and my father-in-law has a 3/4-ton single cab long bed. Their downfall seems to be shit falls apart on them at an alarming rate after an undetermined amount of time. I think a good sign in later models is after ALL of the treble, bass, fader and balance knobs have cracked and fallen completely off, that’s when the door handles, ash trays and important plastic cooling system fittings in the engine bay (at least in the Vortec vehicles I’ve had). But most of the newer Burbans and Silverados up till say 2020 really feel like gussied up GMT400s to me. Thats to say newer Chevys feel kinda crummy, while the GMT 400s were ahead of their time.