The 1987 Chevy Blazer Is How SUVs Used to Be
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Chevy K5 Blazer review! The old-school K5 Blazer is a cool SUV -- and it reminds us of how SUVs used to be. Today I'm reviewing the K5 Blazer, and I'm going to show you all the quirks and features of this old-school SUV from the past. I'm also going to drive the K5 Blazer and show you what it's like behind the wheel.
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Doug and I are a similar age, and when he says "it is only 25 years old", I end up nodding my head in agreement...only to realize that, wait a minute, it is THIRTY FIVE years old. This is how you know us old millennials are getting old. Because everything from the mid-80s to the 2000's is "only 25 years old" while everything post 2000 may as well be just five years ago.
Seriously. Time has been speeding up since 2008 it seems
I found out that I’m only four days older than Doug
You nailed the sence of time for someone who is between 30 and 40 today.
It is not psychological. It is physics. Einstein said, "time speeds up", or some shit like that 🤣😂
Was born after 2000 and it's the same way, was at pick n pull seeing e60s BMW 5 serise and r230 SLs saying to myself these are to new to be here I remember when they were new and it wasn't that long ago
Doug's dad face and voice while saying "you sat back there, and you liked it" was perfection.
Back when kids lit up a smoke to pass the time like mom and dad.
I remember back in the early 90s my buddy's dad would a lot of times pick us up from football practice in his old Silverado, and he would always be smoking cigars. We would sit there on the bench seat, crunched three abreast, having to move legs because of gear shifting, and WE LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT!!!! We could even hop in the bed legally back then in California!
Back when kids had manners and knew better than to complain.
I grew up in these. That one he is showing was the base model. They actually had power rear windows and center console in the higher optioned models. The higher models also had a better gauge cluster set that had a tach, engine oil pressure, temp and voltage where the large warning indicators are.
I had that model k20 Silverado
Had a 87 k5 blazer w Silverado package, it had power windows and door locks. Power rear window, center console, heat/ac. This thing is as base model as you can get.
True
If you got the automatic, you could even get a clock in one of those pods on the left. My truck had a clock there.
Yeah, it's not just age, this thing was crude even for the SUV standards of '87.
This guy is a real Drama Queen.
These were among the best rigs ever made, IMO. As long as you didn't go stump jumping every weekend, they'd last as long as any pickup. No weird surpises - just a basic simple truck with a short body. When they loaded them up with all the goodies, that's when trouble began.
Wing windows were for ventilating the interior of cigarette smoke without having to roll down a window, which would introduce buffeting. They worked like the venting system on a nuclear submarine.
Doug, I know you say these videos don’t do well but I for one am grateful you review older cars. Keep it up if you can!
I shared a 1985 blazer with my dad in the mid 90s. Great truck and lots of great memories. I miss him every day.
One day it's a k5 blazer and one day it's a Koenigsegg
I agree ☝️. Enjoy these review of the older vehicles
This will do well because there are plenty of us that want a basic car without touch screens and a bunch of other crap
Yeah, these are my favorite videos. Enthusiast cars that are actually obtainable, not $5,000,000 hypercars that none of us ever have a chance of seeing in person, let alone owning.
@@TheDomeHepot010 WHICH COMMENT?
My family had one of these and I had a stack of MAD MAGAZINES stuffed into the pouch we would read as kids sitting in the back. I miss those days. 🤩
My son left a playboy in my truck that I discovered when going to work one morning. He was extremely embarrassed when he realized I found it. I explained that it’s a gentleman’s magazine and From that day on I’d buy one each month and leave it in the back seat pocket. My wife wasn’t impressed. Boys will be boys however.
Wow, did not expect to find you here MetalJesus! Didn't know you were a car enthusiast.
......and CARtoons!
Talking about Mad magazines, i also sometimes look at some Mad TV videos on RUclips!
I grew up in the Pacific Northwest in the 70's and 80's. These were actually used as daily drivers there at the time. The Blazers, Broncos and Ram Chargers were actually a step up from the pickup trucks from the 60's that I also remember being driven in the 70's and 80's.
Very common up here as the logging industry was thriving. Hunters loved the Blazers, Broncos and Ramchargers. Hell even the Sheriff's and Fire stations had at least one for captains to drive. The forest department/rangers. Was a different time and glad to have been part of it.
Exactly, he kept making such a huge deal about the fact its "not mom's suv"...no shit, it was just another vehicle on the road for us lmao
@@douglasb.1203 To bad Nothing Like em today Closet thing Are Regular Cab Trucks.
I wish Doug Demuro wasn't so confidently wrong almost all of the time. At least aspire to be humbly wrong, and only occasionally.
Had an 82 Ford Bronco 4WD. Loved it, still miss it.
Love this! My first vehicle was a 74 Jimmy (thanks Doug for explaining the origin of that name!) It had the full roof panel, which I probably removed twice during my ownership. It was very cool with top off, but insanely inconvenient to remove & store. The rear window roller was actually more dependable than the later electric versions.. constant problems with those. My Jimmy had carb & choke issues. Would frequently have to pop the hood, remove air intake and use a screwdriver to hold the carb flap open to get it going on cold mornings. But mine was full time 4x4 and had Hi Lock & Lo Lock instead of 2wd and locking hubs. Eventually upgraded to (similar) 76 and then 85 Suburbans. Loved them all.
I'm 40 years old now, was a little kid in the late-1980s. It's so nice to see one of these vehicles in such great condition.
Can’t believe that SUVs were short bed trucks with campers at the back and were used as workhorses, not overrated lifted sedans just 3 decades ago!
The 1st gen Xterra is a Frontier. That is 20 years. A LOT better than this thing. Just not as cool
Thats what suvs should be. Big ass trucks body on frame with a closed bed.
@@marciliojunior4919 On the data plate under the hood, GM even called these "covered trucks" because the term SUV hadn't been invented yet.
@@marciliojunior4919 Yeah I don't understand why people call the current Blazer a SUV. Anything unibody should just be a crossover. RAV4, Bronco Sport, all BMW X series and all Audi Q.
The only things I call SUVs are body on frame stuff, 4Runner, Tahoe, Bronco, Wrangler, G wagon.
I think crossovers are very useful I a world where every sedan has to be as low and impractical as possible to look sporty. But they are not SUVs.
That's what I love About the Bronco K5 Blazer. And Dodge Ramcharger They were Short wheel base Pickups with Seats in back that U can Pull back to give u even more Cargo Something you cant Buy today.
It should be noted that this Blazer did originally come with a center console. By this time they all did, even this base model. This one has had it taken out for some reason. You can see at 7:00 in the video that the indentations from the console and small holes in the carpet from where the console was screwed to the floor are still there. Also, the rear did have plastic/carpet panels from the factory. For some reason they were removed from this one as well. By the early 80s only the military CUCV were all metal in the rear. You can clearly see the interior trim screw holes at 9:13 in the video where the panels were attached. Also.... those aren't the original front seats. From the factory the passengers side seat had a lever that tilted/lifted the whole seat foreword for easier rear passenger access. These werent the most plush trucks when new, but its hard to give it a completely fair shake when alot of interior pieces are missing or incorrect.
But the driving section though... oh man 😍! Just the sound of that pedal squeak every time you pushed in the clutch, and the plastic snap every time the turn signal activated and cancelled, even the slight bearing sound of the steering wheel turning brings back childhood memories! I grew up with my dad owning a 74 K5, 87 C/10 custom deluxe, 85 K5 Silverado, and myself owning a 78 K10 and 79 K20. Those sounds are all very familiar to any squarebody fan! ❤
Keen eye, a few other things to notice is the tailgate has no lock cylinder or tailgate support torque rods. The tailgate weighs a ton and for some reason when people swap them they don't put those torque rods back in to help you close it. lastly, the fender emblems are backwards.
@@jingorat I wasn't gonna comment on the tailgate... 😅 I just figured that Doug was doing his usual shtick about the "struggles" of owning an older vehicle as if it was the same as a slog across the great plains in the 1800s. 😅
Also it's clear the truck has been repainted. Somewhat sloppily. Theres obvious overspray on some of the window rubber, and the top weatherstripping has been painted over.
My 88 GSA truck didn't come with carpet in the back. The previous owner added aftermarket carpeting but there's still no carpeting on the tailgate itself or previsions for there to have ever been carpeting there.
@@RoofysGarage First thing I noticed was that the fender badges looked "off". Had to go reference photos of other Blazers from this generation to confirm it wasn't my (aging) brain playing trucks on me.
My former 1967 Wagoneer had the same kind of tailgate and locking 4WD hub systems. And this car is 20 years newer than that one was! This was a really fun review. It's always fun to appreciate how simple older vehicles can be.
I owned a '69 for a while and was thinking the same thing. Love that generation of Wagoneer.
The K5 with the Silverado trim had different gauges that contained a quartz clock. It also had a button to roll down the rear window from the front. I think you could even roll down the window if you were outside the truck by putting the key in the rear key slot on the tailgate. By turning the key, it would lower the window.
Yep he didn't do any research at all it seemed like
Loved the sliding side windows on my parent's K5.
my 87 Bronco did the same with the rear window
I can confirm all of this is true. I have an 85 K5 Blazer Silverado. The door key works the rear window. You get a temp gauge oil gauge and battery gauge. You also get a headliner. And as for the center console i think it was an option you could buy if you went with a base model. (I’m not sure I’m just guessing at this point).
Yep. The electric rear gate window also had a switch up front to roll it down.
My dad had a '79. Ah, the memories! The Blazer Doug is reviewing is quite a basic trim level, because Dad's Cheyenne-trim had a full gauge package, center console, rear sliding side windows, and auto-locking front hubs
That’s awesome. I kinda love that doug reviewed a base model though, it makes you really appreciate the higher trims and of course how far we have come today with what comes standard.
I'm honestly surprised it had a passenger side mirror.
Agreed. I had an 81 Blazer and it had an electric back glass, center console with cup holders, headliner and decent gauges.
It's definitely not often you see one with so few options. Great to see a manual survivor though
LUXURY ! ! !
When I was 17, it was a very good year.
Trucks like this were everywhere,
And this one was just made then
My 87 Bronco ][ had the same locking hubs
They were very reliable btw
And you could leave them locked during bad weather and just engage 4WD as needed
I was ran over by one of these when I was 9. The driver took off and I had to get up to get to the side of the road. I remember laying in the road looking at the back end. Your comment about pedestrian impacts brought up that memory
Thank you for continuing to review older vehicles. For a lot of your viewers, this is what we really gravitate to.
Agree Tho Wish he Did a 1991 Silverado K5 Blazer Final Model year like He did with 1996 Eddie Bauer Bronco and The Recent 1993 Dodge Ramcharger Canyon Sport he did.
“It’s only 25 years old”.
Doug, you might need a calculator.
yep, only off by 10 yrs lol
Nah, suddenly I’m 28 again by Doug Math
yep we're back in 2012 thanks to Doug
Also is not the engine carburetors instead of injection with the dash showing choke on lol?
I had a 96 Bronco like this. It was a beast for many years. Changed the brakes and locking hubs and that’s about it. If Chevy or Ford were allowed to still make them I would buy one immediately. I also loved the lack of a center console. Easy to move around in, a great place to put a cooler or have your dog. I would buy it again immediately. I must have driven it across the country 10 or 15 times with the dogs. My 96 Bronco flew though. 85-90 no problem compared to this Blazer though.
Love seeing this! My first vehicle (handed down from my dad) was a 1987 GMC Jimmy. Had a few more things than this did (carpet, roof liner, power windows, etc.). Mine had the 6.2L Diesel but a very similar color scheme. Loved that thing and it's still at my parents house and still runs...with some help usually.
Doug killing it with the older cars this week!
He just wants to see how many old people are still alive that are watching his RUclips content 😂😂😂
Hope he ends killin this week with Clio
More like he killed the paint on the tailgate when he slammed it with the handle flopping around. 🤣😂
@@BabyJesus66 The spinner knob on the tailgate window crank was obvious, yet he chose to turn the whole lever one turn at a time. I know he doesn't understand old cars but that should have been obvious as soon as he unfolded it.
It's sad that people actually think an '87 is an "old" vehicle.
Seeing the pop out handle window crank brought back a flood of memories...crazy how a little forgotten detail like that can unleash a mountain of childhood memories. Thanks Doug.
They also offered power as an option as well my parents had a new 1988 model you used the door key and inserted into a similar hatch crank and left turn was down right turn was up, slower than frozen hog shit up and down lol.
@@z71offroad2000 the Silverado model and maybe other upper end models had power window
My Dad's 84 K5 had a power back window. You have to put the key where the crank is and turn one way to go down and the other way to go up.
Couldn't anybody just come along, and roll down the rear window, or did it LOCK somehow?
@@invisiblerevolution You needed the key.
My favourite Doug videos are the ones where he reviews older vehicles. Great job!
I rode a lot of miles in my dad's Blazers back in the 80's. The controls and gauges were pure memory! My dad's did have a big center console though. That was my seat in the front. In the back seat I would sit squeezed onto the wheel wells. I personally preferred his Suburban though because there was more space to play in the rear cargo area. Somehow we all survived.
What I like about Doug that he has no limit when it comes to kind of cars that he reviews. That was my ride when I used to work in Saudi Arabia.. loved it so much.
He has alot of limits. He doesn't do cars with modifications and doesn't do "old" cars which is why cara and bids is the "80s and 90s".
Were you working for SHELL in Saudi Arabia?
I guess gas was cheap there! Must have been seriously hot touching that interior metal roof after parking a few hours in the Arabian 🌞!
@@mducheine2784 Not all of them were this basic. This is not only a base model, it's a stripper model. Higher trims like the Scottsdale and Silverado actually had headliners.
@@trentpettit6336 Aramco hospital
Man, what nostalgia this brings me. My dad used to have one of these when I was a kid, I drove it one time to go to the store (rural area, so no other cars basically) and I felt like the coolest person around
My 87 Blazer had a center counsel with cup holder but it was also an automatic transmission. The rear window was also automatic but you had to roll it down from the inside before putting down the tailgate. Loved that Blazer, wish I still had it.
My dad had a blazer just like this one and he had a Bronco. I remember the Bronco had that rear tailgate with the window that could be rolled down either manually or with a little switch in the driver seat area. I was pretty young so I could be mistaken but I remember that Blazer rear window and that lever that you showed. Plus he would take the top off occasionally and on the Bronco it was more of a pain in the neck to do so he rarely did it. I was Especially happy for that because along with the removal of the back roof area came along with a lot of cuss words and loud yelling, lol. But that was my old man. Those Blazers and Broncos with the “get out in the elements and turn the front hubs” was always a fun endeavor when the roads were impassable by snow.
What year was the blazer your dad got 1973? What year did your get bronco 1994?
I love it when Doug does reviews of these older vehicles. Massive respect to him! Great Video Doug!
Gotta love the base model. The factory 4 speeds are incredibly rare in these old Blazers, and even the Broncos. Whenever I see one I have to hold myself back, I love them.
I had an 81 Bronco with that exact same transmission. It was ridiculously fun. Crazy how Ford and GM used the same contractor for drivetrain components.
@@ryanlunde575 Pretty sure not the same. Blazer would be SM465. Ford would be T18.
@@ryanlunde575 I have a '90 F-150 XLT-Lariat that I'm doing a frame off restoration on. That auto is going bye-bye
Air conditioning with a manual tranny is a rare combo
blazers are common with manual trannies, broncos are less common
My dad has an '82 GMC Jimmy (same as the Blazer) it had electric windows, including the rear glass and automatic hubs. The hub would automatically engage when you entered 4-H/L and then go back into 2H you would select the mode and then reverse until it unlocked. Worked really well. My dad drove this for his land surveying work, and he had that truck for nearly 30 years and saw well over 500K miles (though it had a couple of engines and automatic transmissions). It was nearly fully loaded. The best engine we replaced with was a 350. The stock 305 lasted about 150K and was well underpowered from the truck. Great truck. Thanks for the video. Brings back a lot of memories of driving it for work.
The locking hubs can actually be left in lock position during anticipated need to shift into 4x4. The axles turn, but 4x4 isn't in until the shifter is moved into that position. I used to leave mine in lock all winter to avoid exactly what Doug mentioned. Worse gas mileage though...
My first car was an '84 K5 Blazer with 38" Mickey Thompson tires and a V8. My current car is a '17 Fiat 124 Spider with an I4. A difference between them of 2,100 lbs and 12mpg, but the 124 has slightly more horsepower stock than did the Blazer. Crazy how engines have evolved
I had a white 84' blazer as my first. Was the Silverado package that had a much much nicer interior than the one doug reviewed, i was surprised to see how barebones that 87 was compared to the silverado trim package. Had a gutless 305 and a 700 R4 auto, reliable-ish, cheap to fix. like all the vehicles i have sold i wish i still had it heheheh
lmao I have a 78 power wagon and a 16 miata and its hilarious parking them next to each other, and going from the miata where you have to contort your body down to the ground to get in because i took the seat rails off to sit lower and the power wagon where you have to jump up because it's lifted on 35's
I'm from the Netherlands and i love these big squarebody Chevy's! I still remember in the late 90's and early 00's these were very popular for importing. Alot of them were the ex military CUCV'S K5 and K30's. Dodge W200's too. High fuel prices ment the gasoline powered ones were all converted to gas. Now they are sadly becoming a rare sight. Alot of them have rust issues and are already scrapped, tucked away in a shed or sold. Some firetruck versions are still being used at racetracks though!
My family was the exception to your rule... we had a '79 Blazer and TOTALLY used it for soccer practice! Great content!
What kind of commie enclave did you grow up in? 😆
Another great review Doug, thanks! Sorry for the tome I have written here, but so much to tell. Ah the memories...my first car was my dad's hand-me-down '75 Chevy Blazer in Yuba Gold Metallic! The thing was a BEAST! What made matters worse is that I was only 5'1" when I got my driver's license. Luckily I grew into the vehicle (topped out at 5'9", thank God!) My friends and I named it "Bertha." It was a rust-bucket when I got it (1980), so I proceeded to sand the whole thing down, fiberglass patch and Bondo the holes in the doors and body, and paint the entire vehicle, both inside and out. Paint scheme was similar to the one you reviewed, but being ahead of my time, I painted all the chrome bits flat black! I bought some really fancy Western-pattern seat covers (I loved the J.T. Whitney catalog, anyone else?) I drove it another 6 years. One of the best features was the CB radio my dad installed along with a PA system under the hood! Bertha was a true terror in Monroe, WI where I grew up. Invincible in the snow and even more of a threat when the muffler rusted through and fell off every 3 years or so (350 cu. in V-8, baby!) I loved driving it with no muffler! During her prime, she visited Mt. Rushmore and the Badlands and even Cape Cod and Maine. My brother and I didn't realize what a buckboard the rear seat was, which is a good thing. Also, a quirk (certainly not a feature) was that the seatbelts were in two sections...one lap belt (not retractable) and the shoulder harness (also NOT retractable). When we got buckled in, we weren't going anywhere! You literally could not lean forward but rather were firmly and motionlessly strapped in place, unable to move at all. Both the rear AND front seats had a similar design, but the front seats at least "featured" a retractable lap belt (shoulder harness was fixed in place). Bertha was a truly "unique" vehicle and was a legend in her own time...thanks for the memories!!
Yes ! My cousin had one of those first Blazers and I loved it !
Doug is knocking it out of the park. Yesterday I watched his Mega Cruiser review🤤. I love my 80 series Land Cruiser. Today, he’s doing the Blazer. I got a 79 Blazer, three on the tree straight 6!
This is the Blazer I think of. The “new” Blazer is just a carbon copy of yet another crossover, given a name it doesn’t deserve. This classic Blazer is the one I’d love to have. It’s timeless.
Personally, I think the K5 is way too big. I'd rather have the S10. Or even the Trailblazer.
The new Blazer was such a missed opportunity and proof that GM is just out of touch with reality. They had to have seen how popular the Wrangler was. They had to have known the Bronco was going to be an enormous hit. They had to have known the 4Runner is still selling extremely well despite being OLD.. They had to know the new Defender was on it's way. They HAD to have known that offroad SUVs are enormously popular.
So what do they do?
Turn their legacy flagship offroader into a soulless overpriced crossover!
And as if that wasn't bad enough, they went and ruined the Trailblazer, Tahoe and Suburban too!
Seriously. What the hell was GM thinking? They already had an enormously successful crossover lineup in the Equinox and Traverse. Why did they need two more to muddy the waters?
@@damilolaakanni the S10 Blazer and Jimmy are the ones I remember and would rather have too.
@@wun1gee They were thinking Obama biden bux..
It's not pussified.
I own a '73 Blazer Cheyenne. Didn't grow up with one in the family, but we had family friends that did. The Cheyenne was the top model for the day, and nothing was power, except for the steering. I kind of long for those days when everything was not as complicated. You can get by with a bag of tools and do most everything you needed - everything in the engine compartment is accessible. Today you need an OBD2 scanner and a large rolling toolbox, and that's IF you can get to something on the side of the road.
I also do love Chevy's use of Western towns and cities for their trim levels - it just evokes a sense of the outdoors and the wild frontier that these vehicles were designed to traverse. Cheyenne, Scottsdale, Silverado, Tahoe...
It looks like it was a base trim model that someone ordered with optional AC. My parents bought a new K5 Blazer in 1986 (when I was a senior in high school). It came with full carpet (I saw there was none on the rear wheel wells), AC, AM/FM Cassette stereo, an automatic transmission (an optional upgrade), cloth seats, special order two-tone metalic blue paint, and I am pretty sure it had a headliner over the front seats (my memory is hazy, but I don't remember painted steel. I don't remember if there was a center console or not. I do remember coming home on leave from the Navy one Christmas and noticing my dad had reattached the driver's side door pull strap with a sheet metal screw after it tore off one day.
Growing up in the midwest back when these were new I remember how heavy the tail gates were. They did get lighter as the sheetmetal on these started rusting away after the first winter. Lovely truck, hard to find one that has not rusted back to the earth. This looks like a great buy for someone. Keep these older reviews coming, love them.
It is odd seeing this one without it being rusted out.
They didn't get lighter, they got scarier to lift in case it broke off and fell on your feet.
My buddy had a 1985 GMC Jimmy in high school and it was fully loaded. Auto hubs, electric windows, auto transmission and much more. It was a beast off road too. It was better off road then the late 90’s full size Blazer’s. Best part you could put 33’s on stock suspension. Which was really good for a vehicle of this time.
My 02 trailblazer has 32's..
@@Heavychevy0402 yep my 06 trailblazer is on 32s not as cool as the 78 blazer I had in highschool on 38s but I'm a dad now 😭miss that truck
I love how you've now reviewed all three of the old full-size SUVS - the Bronco, the RamCharger, and now the K5 Blazer lol. I still love them. They're trucks with a very short bed and a cap lol
OMG What a trip! Watching you drive around San Diego in an old rig like that made me feel like I was in highschool again! I've since moved on from SD, but man, that brought me RIGHT back there.
I like all of Dougs videos and watch all of them, but this kind of cars are the most interesting for me, much more than latest craziest supercars.
I totally agree. The supercars are cool, but I’m always more excited to watch Doug’s older car reviews. Great vid.
This is basically my dream vehicle.
thats because your more likely to see these things on the road if your born in its time period. Or because there really hard to come by these days compared to supercars now.
@@KeweenawPatriot enjoy the mediocre mpg
I find these reviews more interesting than any modern supercar for some reason…maybe because I’m old enough to still think of them as new😅
Nice to remember.
My K5 (1979) have had a spare tire in the back. Slide windows in the back. The back seat was foldable, even removeable easily.
Engine was the standard 350 (5.7liter), with double register carburetor. And! A better milage with continuous 4WD, automatic trasmission.
Some models had an electric opening for the rear window.
But, I miss her!
One thing I don't like about how Doug does a doug score on ol
older vehicles is that he compares the technology to modern technology and doesn't judge them for what they were at the time. That's like comparing a modern day flat screen smart TV to a big heavy box square TV of the '70s and '80s
I can attest to the fact that locking the hubs on a 4WD system when it's freezing cold out is a giant pain in the butt. Especially since half the time the damn thing is so cold it doesn't want to move much, it's covered in ice so it's hard to grip it, and your hands are so cold they feel like you're about to watch them fall off.
Digging into a snow bank just to get to it, clearing the snow out of the lock to turn it, and repeat on the other side. Congratulations you made it through the snow bank. Now pull over to the side of the road to undo it before you get on the highway since old 4WD system's weren't meant for driving over 45mph
Ridiculous. Those are free wheeling hubs. All you had to do was leave them "locked" while driving around. Having the hubs locked did not mean ypu were in four wheel drive. When 4x4 was needed you simply shifted into four wheel drive with the transfer case lever from inside the truck.
Anyone who was digging out a snowbank to "turn their hubs" had no idea what they were doing! 😅
We all just kept them locked all winter, and unlocked them in the spring too try and save some fuel and wear. Just because your hubs were locked didn’t mean it was in 4 wheel drive. And if you waited till you were buried in a snowbank too lock them….you deserved the work.
@@zrally2107 the NP208 can be shifted on the fly up to "50" mph but I would just say keep it to 25mph and below, and the hubs shouldnt turn hard if you have the right amount of grease in the hub and the right kind. if you were moving and pulled over to engage them, they should be warm. if you started a cold morning, you should use a grease that doesnt get so damn thick when cold ;)
BUt yeah leave them locked till you can safely unlock them, but shift into 4x4 when needed.
@@jerryjeromehawkins1712
They had automatically locking hubs. If I recall correctly, you unlock them by shifting out of 4wd and back up.
My dad had a 1982 6.2L diesel 4wd 3/4 tonne GMC with the 4 speed with the "L" gear. It was the best truck I ever drove. The diesel had an unimpressive power rating, but we towed a full sized MF tractor on a flatbed behind it once and it barely slowed it down.
My mom had an 82 K5 Blazer Silverado. It had a power tailgate window, which was so much cooler and easier to open than that clunky manual one in this video. Interestingly the front doors had manual windows and locks as I recall. I believe ours had a center console and gauges to the left of the steering wheel for oil pressure and such, rather than idiot lights. The Silverado trim still had vinyl seats though. Thanks for sharing, Doug! Definitely a nice old truck!
This is so nostalgic. My father had an '86. He used those hang on the door cup holders and used a wooden box as a console. It was a cool truck and very capable and rode surprisingly well. It had some major issues though. Ours came with shift on the fly but the hubs destroyed themselves so it was refitted with manual hubs. It also pulled to the left under hard braking. Like dangerously hard to the left. It's what made my father get rid of it. A GM technician told me years later Gm knew about that braking problem and never did anything about it.
A K5 was my first vehicle, and I can tell you it was excellent for teenage shenanigans in the 90’s.
Mine too. Had a 79. I was also born in 79. Got the Blazer in 95-96. I put every dime that I had in it then it disappeared without a trace.
My parents had a 79 Bronco when I was young. I remember family occasions when Uncles or Aunts would ask why he drove such a thing. His response was I can go anywhere you can go in you Honda but better, just let me pick the day. I'll go when there is a foot of snow falling. One of my first cars was a 79 Blazer. This brought back some good memories.
Had a 1971 K5 Blazer. Loved that thing! would still probably have it today if I won't have hit ice and totalled it into a bridge. I miss that truck.
My 73 K5 was lots of fun. I don't recall having any leak issues 🤔. Hearing the duals bark without the top on was a great feeling.
Hey Doug...the reason the dash is weird is because you've got a base model Blazer there. The higher trim levels did have a tach, and they had gauges in those four round areas on the left where the huge warning lights are. That's the same dash layout Chevy used on their pickups/SUVs for what felt like a zillion years. But the Custom Deluxe was one of the lower trim levels and they got the basic dash, manual hubs, vinyl seats, four-speed, etc.
I remember that. Good recall.
Yep - they just made the idiot lights the same size as the optional gauges to avoid the need for more than one style of gauge panel. Oddly, there was an option for having all the extra gauges EXCEPT a tachometer. Tachometers hadn't really caught on back then.
@@ericl2969 Most of the higher trim levels were automatics. I can remember my dad’s was optioned that way: full gauges but no tach.
18 model years, 1973-'91
Haha. I just bought an 88 Blazer.
God these things are fun.
Mine left the factory just like this one, except as an automatic. Base model. GSA rig.
Love it to death.
I once worked at a place that had an 87 Blazer and an 88 Jimmy (both full size) for plowing and general use. I loved those trucks. It was great in the summer when we could take the top off. We could park them in the garage when it rained, so there was never a leaking issue. They were a lot of fun and I missed them when I left the place.
Had one and loved it. Ex work (engineer/surveyor) use. My kid loved the stadium type seating in the back for the view.
You don’t mention the hood closing penalty. You have to push it in before pulling it down to close. If you pull down first it will fold in the middle.
I appreciate your appreciation of the basic upgraded stereo head as the only non-stock feature you'll accept in a review, because it is so hard to find old cars with stock radios. I bought a stock Miata from a couple in their late 60s and even they had changed the head, it was the ONLY thing not OEM on the car
My Dad had an '84 4x4. He called it "The Pig". When the 4 speed 1/2 ton automatic transmission went he replaced it with the 3 speed from a 3/4 ton truck to increase the towing capacity. It got 16 MPG on the highway, downhill, with a tailwind, with the 4 speed.
yep swapped it for a TH400 trans very common and was an option for many years.
We has a 1976 Blazer and it was a beast that was 90% the same as this 87 Blazer. Even the clutch squeak is identical.
Dang my dad still has the family's 86 blazer. It has spent it's life going through mountains and was rebuilt recently. Great car, but I don't drive it because I am used to how low my Miata is lol.
Had one of these in '82 in Saudi Arabia when I was working on a pipeline project. Most were automatics, but mine was a manual: very low 1st - a crawler gear really - then 3 normal. Plus diff lock, 4WD and low gearbox. Had great fun dragging the automatics out of the sand!
I actually had an 85 blazer and that rear window was an ailutomatic window that rolled down when you put the key inside and turned. You could also roll it down with a button in the front dash.
I posted this to another guy as well above " Z71offroad2000
Z71offroad2000
0 seconds ago
They also offered power as an option as well my parents had a new 1988 model you used the door key and inserted into a similar hatch crank and left turn was down right turn was up, slower than frozen hog shit up and down lol."
My driving instructor had one of these new back in the day. She told me she got crashed into by another driver that ultimately totaled the car in the 90s. Very unfortunate for her, but it was very cool listening to her talk about it.
If the damage was bad enough to total the blazer I'd hate to see the car that ran into her
You could get high end packages with electric windows, ac, a center council a tachometer and other gagues automatic transmission, there was an option for 4x4 that didn't have lockout hubs, and headliners were also optional.
Thanks for reviewing another old truck! I love these videos.
That military version is actually called a CUCV (commercial utility cargo vehicle). They are sought after on the surplus market. I would own one!
I’ve got a fully optioned ‘85 with the exception of the engine which is a crate 350. My dream vehicle that I waited 10 years to get. I get compliments on it almost daily. I will never sell it and love that these are getting to be as popular as they are.
I had a 79 Blazer in high school. It had a power rear window where putting the key in and turning right or left acted as the switch to go up and down. That was pretty fancy 😅
"Get out and lock the hubs." Heard that several times growing up. I have a retrosound stereo in my "81 stepside. They are great.
Love this GM oldschool SUV , in here "Brazil" , the Blazer was rebadged Brasinca and the Suburban was rebadged Veraneio and both have the 121hp 250ci (4.1L) I6 from Chevy Nova , they were too slow!
For the 1987 model year, lowest trim for the Blazer was the Custom Deluxe like in this video. The highest trim was the Silverado. This is why the gauges on the left are just lights instead of actual gauges and other features are not shown that came on the nicer models.
This has been restored. There's no way the wall to wall carpet and shiny two-tone paint is original. This is a base model one step up from the military CUCV. I don't see why you'd go to all that effort and keep it basic.
He should have done a 1991 K5 Blazer Silverado Model.
Those little windows that you love in the front we're cut from Gm production altogether as far as I know once the Express van came out in 1996. They are called 'Wing Windows' and they are quite possibly the greatest automotive innovation of all time! My 1990 GMC Vandura has them and beyond the obvious uses is a lesser known one and my personal favorite. If you crack them open just a little bit they not only help to defrost the windshield faster and with less heat but when the rigs moving they act like a vacuum. Faster you go the better the vacuum. It will suck just about anything out of the rig on the freeway short of rocks. Smoke, ashes, tissues, tomatoes, wrappers, boogers anything fairly light.... my personal favorite: FLYS AND YELLOW JACKETS.... they get anywhere near it they suck right out! I suppose it's not as good of an invention as say maybe the windshield wipers or the heater but it's pretty damn close.
that body style suv and truck continued from 73 to 91. that's also a base model, and the higher ones had power windows, center console, extra cupholders, etc.
The higher models had a differnt 4 headlight grill to.
As soon as Doug talked about recently test driving a Blazer when he was driving the Mega Cruiser, I was anticipating the video. I recently saw a Jimmy version-same vintage-at a car show and it looked so cool with the roof off.
'88 Blazer was the vehicle I learned to drive on! We did long road trips through the midwest, to Canada and back. Moved with it. It was a beast! You stepped on the gas and watched the gas needle move. Finally had a chance to drive it again back in about 2003, as we had sold it to my uncle at the farm. That thing was a BLAST to drive.
Had an 82 Ford Bronco 4WD. Loved it, still miss it.
My 86 Jimmy came as a diesel, now has a 454, and 3/4 ton axels.
Big, fun, beast. Always smile when I'm in it.
My dad had one of these as a work truck when I was a kid, in that awful 80's light metallic blue with the blue interior. I sat back there. I liked it. I can still clearly remember staring at the bolts holding that fiberglass cap on while we were driving and wondering what it'd be like with the top off.
I can remember those bolts. Either 8 or 10 giant star headed bolts. And my dad never took the top off of his either….because he knew as soon as he did, it would start to leak…lol. Hey, it was 1980s GM…you kind of expected it.
@@zlinedavid it also takes like minimum 4 people to take off, it's heavy as fuck.
I love how happy Doug is reviewing this! This Blazer was made my Senior year of high school... THIS.....! ! was the shit back when I was growning up.
Like commented below Custon Delux was the base model; other than the A/C it's a stripper for sure.
Always laugh like hell and shake my head when Doug describes a everyday car from the the early 90's back like it's a Model T or Flintstones Mobile.... LOL!
I agree, locking hubs and crank down windows were the norm for the 1st half of my life.
Yes, I had and still have my 1980 GMG Jimmy, I have headliner, full gauges (minus tach) massive console , I replaces console with a aftermarket lock box console as I run the soft top. I laugh as how he thinks the rear roll down window and especially locking hubs are so quirky.....
Yes, they 1980 is fairly modern with integral power steering, brakes, but I have no OD so that is old school. Has a TH350C, yes C
If this guy could only drive a car from even the 60's like a stripper mustang with manual steering and brakes and 4 wheel drums, can you imagine?
@@stevekowalski7936 Yeah, like when Mr. Regular drives a 66 Plymouth with a 318 727 torqflite and AM radio. I've seen him do the whole 'how did people survive" routine too. LOL.
@@seththomas9105 I love how he compares all acceleration to a most modern car with over 1000 HP. In the 1980s any HP figure in upper 100s with torq over 200 was more powerful than most things. Only exotics had like 300+ HP.
@@stephenkowalski2448 Or muscle cars from the 60's.
🤩loved my 77 K5 Blazer! Took it everywhere, from camping in the Sierras to Pismo dunes. You can upgrade that thing left and right with lift kits and mods so easily which were quite affordable to do.... even maintenance i.e., my alternator was going out, so I drove to Pep boys used one tool 5/8 wrench (you could use a cresent wrench) and 15 minutes later I was driving away. Try that today! Vehicles were so simple and easy to work on for anyone in the day...now it's near impossible to fix any vehicle today for a normal person
I like your presentation ..
you deliver in a unique way and keep it interesting .. 👍
My girlfriend's dad had one of these, only he had the three-speed with the column shifter. That was interesting to drive. Those manual locking hubs were a lot of fun in the snow and ice, as the little dial would get frozen. Nothing like being stuck in snow and hammering on it to get it to move.
Always enjoy the reviews of the old school cars that I grew up with. I find it much more interesting than unattainable super cars.
You might see one of these on the road or even buy one. You'll never see the latest most limited edition $3m Lamboclarenarri.
I owned a 1974 K5. The top was a full top removal. 4 speed with full time transfer case. Positraction. Cheyenne model. Crane performance cam with Fuely headers. Owned it 14 yrs. Rotted like crazy. Replaced many panels on it including the under body supports for the total top removal.
I was all set to buy this K5 new in 87 but was talked out of it in favor of an S-10 same year. Chevrolet redesigned the K5 a couple of years later and I traded and got the new design in 92 K5. I loved that truck.
I grew up with one of these in the family. Majority of my childhood was spent in my dads 84 Blazer. Couple differences here, His was a diesel and had a very tacky vinyl headliner, with cloth seats as well as most of the bare metal in the back area covered in the same carpeting material you see on the dash. 8 year old me burned my knees on the backseat ashtrays more times than I can count. I loved riding shotgun in that thing. Brings back a lot of childhood nostalgia.
In high school an 86 in this same color was my buddy's 1st car. Best part was oil changes, the blazer was so high you didn't need a jack to get under it.
I had a 1978 K5 Blazer, but the 350 in it was probably from some late 60's Camaro or Corvette as it had the double hump heads, headers and a Holley 4011 if memory serves, and way, way more horsepower than a '78 was supposed to have. It ran 33" tires and with the stock gearing and power it used to snap U-joints all the time. When I was in college I used to just carry spares in the back and got so good at changing them I could drop the drive shaft and replace it in about 10 minutes. It had the New Process full-time 4wd setup with the low range and I remember that transfer case being pretty hard to shift and then causing me to blow out a disc in my back when I had to pull it out to do some repairs on it. But, what a fun truck that was and it was usually easy to repair. I remember driving off road and hitting a rock with the wheels turned and it broke a pin inside the spool valve of the power steering gearbox. Being poor and having a bit of ingenuity I managed to press out the broken pin and replaced it with a piece of hardened drill bit shaft of roughly the same diameter. You could pretty much take apart and fix anything on those trucks without the need to replace entire components.
When Doug was talking about the giant idiot lights, that was just cost cutting by GM because the upper trims actually had gauges that went there - a coolant temp gauge, ammeter, oil pressure gauge, and I actually found a tachometer in a junkyard near Ft Devens that I pulled and put in place of my giant fuel gauge, along with a small fuel gauge that went in one of the empty idiot light circles.
I also absolutely loved the sound of the way the dual exhaust was routed to both sides rather than straight out the back. And the little wing windows were great since mine didn't have air conditioning. Mine survived a fire, a rear differential blowout on the highway in Connecticut, and then a flex fan blade detaching and slicing right through the hood, but it couldn't withstand the rust. It got horrible mileage, was loud and ponderous, and required a lot of upkeep, but man did I love that truck.
They did have automatically locking hubs back then, so you only needed to shift to 4wd. Then you unlocked the hubs by shifting to 2wd and backing up, if I recall.
Correct!!!
Bringing back memories......I think all of my cousins and myself learned to drive by the age of 13 in a K5 on a ranch in Montana. I remember one cousin thought he had locked it into 4 wheel drive. Only for us to realize that when he tried driving thru the creek on the ranch and the front wheels were under water, that they were not locked. That's how we also learned to drive tractors. Man I'm making myself sound old.
Great video. I learned to drive in Anchorage in 1977-78 in my parents' 1975 K5 Blazer. That thing was a beast, and was terrifying to drive, so I preferred to drive--and took my license test in--our 1974 Ford Pinto wagon (the non-explodey model). But come winter in Anchorage--which comes in October--the 4WD and heft of the K5 was necessary. Doug is absolutely right about the driving position--high, great visibility. It was, in a way, fun to drive in the winter. But, wow, it was heavy. I hit a patch of ice in our neighborhood maybe going 15 mph and hit a parked Toyota head on and utterly destroyed that car. The damage to the Blazer was one segment of that huge plastic grill was broken, and a bunch of dirty ice and snow was broken loose. I can't say I loved the Blazer--and was happier when we replaced it with a Subaru with much better gas milage. But I do have a soft spot for this thing, and I was thrilled to see this here.
One of my favorite memories growing up is riding in my dad's 1980 blazer with the top off and blasting 80's rock.
Awesome rig. I've had several K5s spanning the years 1974 to 1990. All of them were fantastic 4x4s. Never had a 2 wheel drive version. I think I may find one just to see the difference.
What the hell is the point of a 2 wheel K5? Lmao
@@playdiscgolf1546 Not everyone lives in the woods or the snow or on the beach or in mud or near a river or.... .....🤔yeah. I see your point.
The difference is this Blazer still works wonderfully 35 years later. Great video, this is why I subscribe :)
Man I love these K5's. It's very hard to find one in nice shape with a standard especially.
Right that K5 Is Someone's Dream truck a Manual Transmission Am looking for a manual Truck myself.
Opening that tailgate as a child is the reason I'm as big as I am today. for anyone wondering, my family has an 84 Chevy Blazer in Red, but it was the car we were taught how to drive in because it was automatic.
My dad's buddy had a yellow mid-70s Blazer like the one you fkashed the picture up. It was always a treat when he could take the top off in the Summer for a week or two. That was my favorite car that I got to ride in as a kid.
I have a 78 Corvette and you're right about how high the RPM is because when I was going 75 I was at 3600 RPM.... I decided to change the transmission to have an extra gear and now it's at 2500 RPMs going 80mph