The new member of the family
 

2011 GMC Sierra SLE 5.3, 6 speed auto, 3.42 limited slip gears with a 5"/7" drop---so the wife can get into it.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Very, very nice. I bet it scoots.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Lucky, great choice, Mike

Re: The new member of the family
 

Nice truck!!!!

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Looks a lot like my silverado

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Did you notch the frame?

Re: The new member of the family
 

Damn nice addition there Frank, and imagine that... it's black! :D

How's the ride with the 5/7?

Re: The new member of the family
 

Notched the frame and used a McGaughy's kit.

Just got it run past my EFI tuning buddy today, that 5.3 has some potential.


The ride is quite surprising. The front springs setup is a little stiff when one hits a pothole or sharp drop off, but the supplier said that is a norm for this kit until it settles in. There is no vibration that I have experienced. I even had a chance to find the fuel cutoff point and it rides smooth. The 20" tires takes up a lot of the choppy highway stuff.

When I went to the dealer to look, they had red, silver and black. I had to do the black AGAIN.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Nice looking truck!
What size tires are on it?

Re: The new member of the family
 

The tires are 265/50/20 Nitto NT850s. They are rate for 50,000 miles and run pretty quiet on the road.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Very nice! Perfect look in my opinion.

What did you do with your OBS? It was very nice as well.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Right now, I have more trucks than I know what to do with. The 84 is still in the garage and the 91 DD is goign to a friend of mine. He wants it pretty bad.

Re: The new member of the family
 

that settles it 265/50/20 are next for me. 275/55/20 are too stuffed on a 4/7 drop, too much rubbing. And the first go around 265/50/20's were hardly around yet. It looks great, just perfect.

Re: The new member of the family
 

I was told about the Nitto NT 850 tires and that tire size by a friend that sells tires. I can't even find that size or style on the Nitto website, but they are out there and they are not overly expensive. They are rated high in mileage and workability. The size is a definite step down from the original 275/55/20 size tires that was on the truck. A total of 1.38 inches overall diameter. The handling is great.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Did you have this truck at the automobilia show last night?I think i saw it if not it was just like yours.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Did you have to remove the bed to do the drop and the notches?Did you use a flip and the drop rear hanger ?Sorry for all the questions but i have an 08 i want to sit like yours.

Re: The new member of the family
 

I went to the chevy dealership to check out a regular cab short bed with a 5.3, nice but basic options, 17" rims...Couldent believe the price was 28k...Thats 5k more then I paid for my new ex cab sierra loaded back in 2008. I guess those new 6 speed transmissions jacked the price up way too much. Maybe the unions:waah:

Im going back to the GMC dealer and seeing what they have. I like the sierra.

Re: The new member of the family
 

YES, it was at Automobilia, last night. It was sitting beside my son's red 86 SWB, on the West end of the show. There was also a black and silvefr 78 Indianappolis 500 Pace Car Vette sitting there.

I confess, I did not have time to do the drop myself, this time. I was working 5 nights on and 1 night off, for the last 100 + days doint the refueling outage at the Wolf Creek power plant. I had a friend of mine in Emporia Ks. do the work in his Sport Truck shop.

It is a McGaughy's drop kit. 5" front and 7" in the rear. The frame has been 'C' notched and the axle flipped. I believe they lifted the bed to do the work. The kit also changes the front springs to get the drop and to change the response rate. We changed the tires onit to get another 1" drop andadd the clearance for the front wheel wells.




Quore:

I went to the chevy dealership to check out a regular cab short bed with a 5.3, nice but basic options, 17" rims...Couldent believe the price was 28k...Thats 5k more then I paid for my new ex cab sierra loaded back in 2008. I guess those new 6 speed transmissions jacked the price up way too much. Maybe the unions

I did a search for GMC trucks and the dealer that I purchased my 09 G8 from found this truck on the net. It came with the 20" chrome rims, a 3.42 limited slip gear set, 5.3 with a 6 speed auto for what I thought to be a fair price. After my discounts from the company that I work with, the extra $1000.00 for purchasing the G8 ear;lier and the GM rebates, I got into this one for about $21,000. I put some down and had no trade-in.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Thanks for the info!I was also really curious as to where you got your mirrors from.

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The mirrors are from Street Scene. They are a direct replacement with the eloectric controls and heated glass in them. Sure beats having that large computer terminal sitting outside the window.

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Thanks!!

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P/P that is a really nice rig, congrats. We'll miss you on the 88-98 side.

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I still spend time there. It is a habit now. I start at the 67-72 section, go to the 73-87, next the 88-98, and now the late model stuff. This site has provided so many answers to the questions over the years. The 91 Silverado was a great truck and if I could have kept it, I would have. The new owner says it runs hnd handles better than his old truck which was a 01 SWB, that had been in a wreck. The 91 is sharing with him now.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Did you get your roll pan yet?

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I have the roll pan on a stand in the garage and I need time from work to allow for fitment and creation of the license plate bracket (to allow for the hidden hitch). I am running out of warm weather fast and this is not working well for me.

Re: The new member of the family
 

Is that a hard folding tonneau cover on your truck? If so what model is it and how do you like it?

Re: The new member of the family
 

Yes it is. It is a BAK Flip F1 cover that is made of a composite material. It is strong enough that a 300 lb person can stand on it, if needed. So far, I like it and it does a great job of sealing the bed. The only part that I have to think about is that it is recommended that you close the tailgate first, then latch the top down, since it goes over the tailgate lip. My work place requires that the cover be opened when you enter or the security has to loook under the cover. The guards are not aware of the things that they would have to do to open the tailgate and then close it. So, I fold the cover up to an open position before going to work every day.

http://www.bakfliptonneaucover.com/

Re: The new member of the family
 

That cover looks really neat. ive been looking at fiberglass tonneau covers but they all seem to have a poor fitment to these new trucks. my next question, is this lockable in anyway?

Re: The new member of the family
 

I'd guess that the release is on the inside, so if you have a locking tailgate you're good. No tailgate lock, SOL.
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Re: The new member of the family
 

The cover has latches inside at the folds. The rear latch is just inside the tailgate. As stated if you have a locking tailgate, then you can close up and stop access.

This cover will also fold completely up against the cab and allow full use of the bed. If you want a tool box, the company offers a tool tray/box that lays on the rails just under the cover.


Oh and by the way, check your tailgate lock. I had never used mine until last weekend and with a bunch of tools in my truck, I went to lock it and it would not lock. After a visit to the dealer, we found that the tailgate handle on my truck did NOT have the sliding latch that would allow locking. There are two styles on the market and mine got the wrong handle, but had the lock in the cover. For the most part, where I live, there is little need to lock the tailgate.