Good morning! Today we continue down Route 66 with a stop right smack-dab in the middle of the Texas panhandle. But before we leave Oklahoma, we need to settle the matter of yesterday’s V6 sticks:
Looks like you picked cigarette burns over burnouts. Many commenters complained about the Camaro’s lack of an interior; the consensus seemed to be that stripping the interior ruined the car. Why, it’s almost as if the forty pounds or so of weight savings wasn’t worth it at all!
Anyway, let’s move on. Today we’ve got two great big V8 powered vehicles, perfect for the great big wide-open spaces around Amarillo. One is a malaise-era luxury liner in need of a little help, and the other is a big friendly workhorse with some questionable modifications. Let’s take a look at them.
1979 Chrysler New Yorker – $3,000
Engine/drivetrain: 360 cubic inch overhead valve V8, three-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Amarillo, TX
Odometer reading: 101,000 miles
Runs/drives? Yep
In 1979, Chrysler was in serious trouble. You know the expression “it’s always darkest before dawn”? The late ’70s were dark for America’s number three automaker. Competition was stiff, sales were down, management was inept, and cash flow was nonexistent. And the cars, predictably, were utter crap. This car, the “New For 1979” R-body, was slapped together on a shoestring budget as a last-ditch effort to compete with GM’s downsized B-body cars and Ford’s newly-redesigned Panther cars. Needless to say, it didn’t work.
Build quality in Chrysler’s plants was essentially nonexistent at this point. And the technology was a series of ill-conceived Band-Aid fixes applied to 1950s technology in an attempt to squeeze just one more model year out of it. Anyone who complains about K-cars has never struggled with Chrysler’s infamous Electronic Lean Burn system, or had their Volare conk out in the middle of an intersection with a completely dead electrical system because of a faulty ammeter in the dash. Iacocca’s front-wheel-drive wonders were Camrys by comparison.
This New Yorker has, against all odds, somehow managed to remain on the road some 44 years after it wheezed its way out of the Lynch Road Assembly plant, and along the way, it has gained a fan. The seller waxes enthusiastic about this car, referring to it as “she” throughout the ad. I have a feeling there’s a bit of automotive Stockholm syndrome going on here, but hey, if they’ve been happy with it, we should be happy for them. A lot of new parts are listed, and according to the seller, the big New Yorker “hums and purrs and doesn’t give too much trouble.”
Cosmetically, it has seen better days. The interior is beat-up and dirty, and the seller says the headliner is missing. I don’t see any rust, which surprises me, but there is a big wrinkle in the right front fender.
1988 Chevrolet Suburban – $3,500
Engine/drivetrain: 383 cubic inch overhead valve V8, four-speed automatic, part-time 4WD
Location: Amarillo, TX
Odometer reading: 90,000 miles
Runs/drives? Nope, needs a fuel pump
Chevy’s Suburban has been the solution to almost every automotive problem except fuel economy and parallel parking since 1935. This big tough friendly wagon on a truck chassis can haul as much stuff or as many people as you’re likely to need, in reasonable comfort and with reasonable reliability. This 1988 model is a V1500 according to Chevy’s nomenclature; the C (2WD) and K (4WD) model names had moved to the new GMT400 chassis, but the Suburban (and Blazer) stayed on the old chassis for a few more years. That means this 4WD Suburban still has a solid front axle on leaf springs, instead of the newer independent front end of the GMT400.
This design makes it easy to lift, and this Suburban has in fact been lifted six inches, likely to accommodate the larger tires. Under the aftermarket cowl-induction hood is a “383 stroker” version of Chevy’s ubiquitous small-block V8, which pairs the 350’s 4-inch bore with a longer 3.8 inch stroke crankshaft, for greater torque. It’s a common aftermarket displacement, and crate engines in this size are widely available. I would guess that’s what this is.
The seller says this truck needs a battery and a fuel pump, which I guess means it’s not currently drivable? The ad isn’t clear on that point. They do tell us it has been equipped with 4.88 gears and locking diffs, which would indicate they had some serious off-roading in mind. (They sure weren’t thinking of fuel economy with that setup.) This truck would have originally been equipped with electronic throttle-body fuel injection, which uses an electric pump inside the tank, but I’m willing to bet that the 383 motor runs off a good old four-barrel carb, and has a mechanical fuel pump. If that’s the case, it’s two bolts, two fuel lines, and a blob of assembly grease on the pushrod to replace.
It’s rough, and has plenty of surface rust, and I bet there’s a story behind that bent front bumper. We aren’t given any photos of the interior, but judging by the rest of it, I can’t imagine it’s too pretty. The good news is that getting it running, one way or another, shouldn’t be hard.
Cheap cars aren’t easy to come by in the Texas panhandle, it seems, and interesting ones to write about are even harder to find. So that’s what we’ve got to work with: a derelict Chevy truck and a badly-made Mopar sedan. I can hear the groans and protests already, but just pick one, all right? Maybe New Mexico will have some better choices for us tomorrow.
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
I know it’s a standard CL disclaimer footer, but the “Beware wiring” at the bottom of the New Yorker listing just seems too appropriate in this case.
Both would look right at home parked outside The Big Texan, but the ‘Burban is more useful, so the Chevy it is.
The ‘Burban is theoretically more useful. I want to know how tall you need to be to get anything in and out of that thing! That chrome bumper sticking out just makes it worse! (My back and knees hurt just thinking about it!)
I’m tall enough the height isn’t much of a factor, but stick axle lifts are easy to remove.
Pour some fire-maker down the yap of the Suburban, and if it fires up, pay the man and start working. I’d de-lift it and put a stock grill on it, but the body is pretty solid. These things aren’t getting any easier to find or cheaper.
The ad for the New Yorker definitely needs to be read in the voice of The Stranger from The Big Lebowski.
I’m surprised to see so many votes for the New Yorker. A ’79 New Yorker in concours condition isn’t very desirable. They aren’t nice looking cars. They are also slow and handle poorly. I don’t see these cars having much appeal at all. Further, this particular example is beat to hell. I can’t believe the seller has the nerve to ask $3,000 for it. A fair price for this turd seems to be closer to $750.
The Suburban is also overpriced and worn out, but a terrible Suburban is better than a terrible New Yorker.
Saying the K-Car is better than the Chrysler is like saying “well at least this time i only got stabbed rather than being shot” or something similar. K-Car is the anti-Miata, never the answer.
Suburban.
Suburban.
I know that you can probably replace all the questionable stuff on the Chrysler, but at the end of the day, you’ve still got something that will always be a piece of crap at heart. The Suburban somehow managed to get rust through in Amorillo. Unless this thing came from the snow belt originally, I didn’t know that was even remotely possible. Maybe the Suburban could be made into something cooler, but it would probably be best served being it’s bad old self until it finally returns to the earth.
That Chrysler is badass. If it were closer, I’d buy that today.
Of course YOU would!
The dreamcatcher hanging from the rear view mirror seals the deal for me! 😉
Lol, I had to double check, I thought it was roach clips at first!
I think the bordello interior of the Chrysler is just great. That was produced during the era my parent drove nothing but Mopar products, so despite knowing all the things that are wrong I have a bit of unfounded nostalgia. Nonetheless, it runs and it has some style.
Speaking as a Suburban owner for whom you’ll pry it out out his cold, dead hands I just couldn’t vote for that mess. A six-inch lift and 4.88 gears are the antithesis of why the Suburban exists. The Suburban is for road trips, hauling things, and towing things; the reason you need the 4WD capability is to handle inclement weather and having enough bad road/off road capability to get you through the last few miles to your destination.
As I have found to my amusement, the Suburban is absolutely hopeless at “‘wheelin'”. Approach, breakover, and departure all pretty much suck, and it’s far too big to get through any really tight spots. My Suburban can’t hold a candle to a proper off-road rig, and that’s perfectly okay. Everyone still comes to me when it comes to hauling a butt-load of gear and passengers to our adventures, and we always get to where we actually need to be.
I’m a New Yorker. So, that answers that question.
I’m also not about someone else’s modifications, which is far different from the possible quick/sketchy fixes to get a cheap car running in the case of the New Yorker. That’s understandable.
I pushed the Chrysler over the 50% mark, and while I am sure it will bounce back and forth over that, I hate both, but a running car for cheaper than a non running one wins in my book. Plus I hate lifted trucks, so even running the suburban would be a hard sell for me.
Aaaaaand I just tied it up again by voting for the Suburban. It has potential after replacing the fuel pump and lowering it back to factory height. I completely understand though why someone else would choose the slightly cheaper vehicle that actually runs.
Chrysler for the pillow-top burgundy Barcaloungers masquerading as car seats. Yeah, one needs recovering, but I know a guy. A virtual trip through summit.com should be able to get what’s needed to free up some ponies in the 360 and make it reasonably reliable.
I do not want that Chrysler even for free.
The Suburban maybe I’d take for free.
I like the Suburban, especially with the barn doors. Parts should still be easy to come by, so the fuel pump is no problem. The mods can be reversed.
Very reluctantly – the Chrysler, please.
The 360 is a decent engine (often used in trucks) and can make good power with the right mods, and the 727 transmission will be fine. Give it a 3.23 Sure-Grip (LSD) and it would be a fun sleeper build. Also this one is currently running.
The bro-truck is just… not appealing. I like the idea of a 383 with 4.88s, but in a coupe rather than a comically lifted three-ton truck. Bring it back down to a more useful height for daily use and give it better gearing; I’ll re-do the paint with spray-on bedliner. 🙂
I’m sorry, did you say “hidden headlights?” +1 for the (Merry) Chrysler.
+2 for the Mike Ehrmantrout vibe
It’s the only reason for buying one of today’s shitboxes.
I’m sure Mike’s Fifth Avenue would be available for a similar price somewhere.
These choices are almost as bad as spending time in Amarillo. Let’s keep driving until we find something better that’s somewhere better.
I’d have more uses for the Suburban until it crumbles into a pile of rust.
Definitely the Suburban. We had an ’83, and they’re living rooms on wheels. Huge amounts of space, simple to fix, and you don’t even need to use your turn signals with that patina — they’ll get out of your way. Getting in an accident would be sad but you won’t care; it’s like a war in a foreign land, it’s so far away from you…
The Suburban is a good truck with minor issues. Assuming there’s nothing hidden, it’s a good buy at that price. No need to apologize for it.
US used vehicle prices are insane. Of course, insane is the new normal, but still.
$3500 isn’t out of line for a muddin truck that just needs a couple things.
It’s not as if it will depreciate any further, parts are cheap, and there will always be a demand for an old truck.
“Just needs a fuel pump”
Uh huh, sure.
For the majority of these, I’m able to come up with one reason or another to pick one over the other. But Mark called this one correctly, these choices both suck.
That said, I chose the Chevy.
When it comes to Lean-Burn, been there, done that, ain’t doin’ it again.
I’ll take the Chrysler here, option made under duress. Both have issues, both are gas hogs, but only 1 looks like it’s decently comfortable and reasonablyish cared for.
They both aren’t worth more than a grand. I chose the Chevy, just because I don’t like the New Yorker
Both are garbage, but the Suburban seems to need less to get is decent shape.