Making Our 33 Year Old Chevy Truck New Again • Power Plant Gets A Fresh Heartbeat! 

Love seeing you beginning the process of restoring the Silverado. Brings back memories. Good thing is older models you can work on without having to take to a dealership. I recently purchased a different vehicle and to do tune up have to take the heads off to change the plugs, won't give price stick shock of what they want to charge!

Wow. I’m 80 and haven’t taken a car course since 1965. Watching you I’m learning how much I forgot. Holy cow!!!! Lydia, May I suggest take off your rings so you don’t break them and get real dirty grease on them and wear grease proof gloves otherwise you’ll have to do the dishes a couple times to get them clean lol

Boy that brought back old times! I wonder where my timing light is or if I still have it. I remember going to the store and having to reset the points so the truck would run. The good old days lol.

Dang it!!! I knew this was going to happen. This video makes me miss my ol' OBS Chevy so bad. It was my dream truck back in the day. 93, single cab, choo choo customs. I have searched and searched and cant find it but would love to have it back. Last I heard it was in Oklahoma somewhere. I love that Lydia isnt afraid to just jump in and learn new things and I also appreciate you, Jim, for explaining some of the things you are replacing and what they do. Its a good lesson for all. Fun project yall. Can't wait to see where it goes.

This is awesome. I had a 92 454ss that my dad gave me for my 16th birthday. Well didn’t give me, I lined brakes and greased gravel trucks for him for years prior lol. Sharpest truck in my little hometown of elkhorn city Kentucky. Giving me some good memories here Jim and Lydia, thank you guys.

We just like spending our time with you guys!

My first truck was 91 Chevy and dating myself that’s when I turned 16 and my Dad got me that truck brand new . But I grew up in dairy so I used for work also lol

My brother from another mother!! Yes sir, good video. Just put a new bucket on my Ford tractor...don't be jealous, I started with more than a box or parts like you bought. Love the little diesels.

Great job, both of you!

EGR = Exhaust Gas Recirculation. 👍🏁👍

Good job correcting the EGR valve, next time you can say IAC valve too. (Idle Air control.) EGR is for emissions, it does not make the engine run cooler. To time that engine you can use a timing light but you need to remove the wire from the computer to the distributor that advances the spark. If I remember it is brown look from the plug the factory installed for that reason. Good work.

I have been working on my own cars since I was a teenager and I really enjoyed this video. I would highly suggest replacing the belt tensioner on that truck. Those things are notorious for breaking. Thanks ya'll!

great useful truck especially where you live great candidate for a LS injected resto mod, old fashioned tune new plugs, cap , rotor and leads carbi cleaned out and tune at least if no replacement. than filter and carbi replacement air cleaner cover, new coil? and degrease and spay off the engine and engine bay to look great too.

Very nice to see you both again and working on the truck. Great job and video, Thanks for sharing 👍

I've always wanted an old stepside.. It may be a bit ornery but still in really nice shape.. One thing I might suggest is to remove/ replace all those unsealed buttons connectors.. They will cause you nothing but problems.. Better to go with heat shrink .. Good luck and have fun..

Love fixing up old cars and trucks can be a pain at times but end result is the pay off y’all take care.❤️😎🇺🇸

I don't know why this didn't show up for 14 hours. I love that truck! Great job getting it running better. I have a '97 Chevy GMT 400 I got from my uncle. It's showing some skin cancer spots, so I'll have to get into that this spring. Also a misfire in #5 cylinder. But it smooths out when I'm driving it. Anyways, love the video. More of these are fine with me!

It's great to be able to do mechanic work, it is both satisfying and you can save a lot of money. I have often wondered how much stuff gets thrown out, that could easily be fixed. Have a great day 😊.

In Australia, I find the driver's side the most difficult to access. Could be that we drive on the other side of the road.

Jimbo....when I mark timing and other reference marks, I always use Hot Pink Fingernail Polish... It really stands out with timing light....also makes a good emergency glue...I'd swap out the ignition system for a HEI and better plugs...

Yes I had a pain in the neck,time with the number 8 spark plug,so I had to remove the passenger tire,and remove part of the inter fender,and even with doing all that,it still was not a cake walk. But my 69 Old Cutlass was a lot better,so much room you could almost stand up in the engine bay. But she sounds heathy.

great video `that's a sweet sounding truck now I'm really glad you had the time and opportunity to work on it to get the timing right, the plugs, ect...

Glad to see you finally getting some time to work on the Silverado. One thing about old 350's is that they will start and run regardless of how out of whack everything is. They're not always very fuel efficient, but they ARE dependable. You're gonna enjoy it once you get it all dialed in and you're well on your way with that.

Prety smart guy , good job , but its all about baby steps to find the problem !

Looks like some kids have been playing Auto Body Shop on that truck.

Can’t wait to see the progress 😊

Hey don't forget chrome will get ya home lol😂😂. Don't forget to change the fuel filter, it could be about plugged up. For some reason people always forget about it. Have fun, I like your channel. From Indiana.

Now I know why I quit working on my own car after my 1972 Nova I had the 350 but without all the bells and whistles. I remember seeing a PCV. There was actually room to get in with the engine (Jim we say motor or engine around here)😊 Still had the back spark plug passenger side install problem.😊 Glad you were able to get it going again. Are you planning on making the engine look nice. ( Maybe I should just wait and let you show us )😊 Yep, parking a work in progress in the driveway will keep bringing it to your attention 😊 Thanks for showing us the play by play.

Now this was a surprise! Should be interesting! I noticed that Jim used a ring finger to find that one hole, is that what he prefers to use! I used the same spark plug from 18-60 then it just stopped working!

Had a 1973 Ford F150 for about 10 years, it was about 4-5 years old when I got it. Did all that maintenance myself those motors were made to be worked on and maintained by the owner but not today. That old truck had 25000+ miles and still run good but the body was falling off and that was one thing I didn't like to do. Good job on maintaining that motor.

And here I was being worried you were going to not have enough projects to keep the channel going, LOL😂

Use to have a mid-90s Chevy. I had it for 25 years and decided to junk yard it because of the smaller issues mentioned in this video.

This video came at the perfect time! To much rain here to get anything done and you just gave me 30 min. of great entertainment. Looks like you're off to a great start on the truck. Oh, and I see some new tires will be on the list soon.😂

In Australia we would call you a hoon for that take off you did at the end . Hahaha❤ love learning about cars motors. Does it chew up the gas being 8 cylinders? It looks like it w I understand be a very smooth ride with the mag tyres. Well done so far.❤

I am amazed by the whole mechanical knowledge Jim has BRAVO

Love your truck. Man, that brings back memories.

Love the video. And I like working on engines and motors. Definitely different and a change up. Looks like quite the project ❤ Until the next video ❤😊

Be a good idea to see how much play you have in the distributor. With the year of the truck it could be wobbling.

I love a Silverado. My first pickup was a Silverado, and I loved working on it.

Watching In the pouring rain on the porch right now!!

Great video. I look forward to seeing the next steps. Have a great week.

Lydia that egr valve does the same thing as that ceiling fan that you put in the bathroom with the double bar tapped nice tile in the floor lol

Nice video. I have worked on my own vehicles all my life. You know what they say about if you want it done right. That is a good year for a DIY truck. I would love to find about a 74 model pick up. No "computers". Cut my teeth on a 68 Belair. I miss that car. 307 with a 2 speed automatic. It had almost 200k on it when I sold it.

If you look at the contacts that line up with the hot burning plug on the distributer I will bet that its burning hot because of the mass corosion in the cap , dont think its out of time as it would be random per cylender and not just one , but if your compression is within 5 psi things should be good , but if it ranges 10 the motor is not , but from the look of things may have a sticky valve and seafoam can most likely fix that !

Oh wow he’s wearing his mechanic crocs.ive got to get me some!

Enjoyed the video. Thanks for sharing

Good morning Lydia and Jim, it was good seeing you again. I’m excited that the truck project has begun and I’m looking forward to more episodes. Not surprising, the tune up made a big improvement, those plug wires were a mess. Good idea swapping out the other parts while you were right there. I don’t recall the back story on the truck, specifically, where it lived before you picked it up. From the video it appeared it may have been in a high moisture environment due to what appeared to be deterioration and corrosive like appearance of metal surfaces in the engine bay. It’s hard to say from a video. There are many little things that need to be cleaned up and squared away in the engine bay, more for appearance than function. The fuel filled neck area behind the door appeared to have deposits of reddish dust almost like it had been out in Georgia dirt. It would be good to get this up on a lift to see what all is going on under there. Due to the depth of the front wheels, I’d also pull them to check for bearing wear. The good news is that you can easily pick up any replacement part you will need from LMC Truck or other vendors. Lydia, it was not surprising at all to see you jump right in there and help out - it was nice to see 😉. Have a great week ahead. Larry, Central Valley, Ca.

Timing is set at 0° from factory, grab your timing light and advance your timing to about 4 or 5 degrees. you need to compensate for the age and the slack in the timing chain.

You guys are awesome!!! I’m always learning from you all❤

Awesome video Jim And Lydia thank for sharing

Try changing plugs and wires on an S-10 Chevy ... there are a couple plugs that are nearly impossible to get out and even harder going back in ... for me and others I know, the degree of difficulty on your truck compared to an S-10 is day and night ...

This made my day. Nice fixer upper. And capped of with a burnout! Woohoo!

Cool project Jim, even the little lady couldnt keep her hands off it, needs some real truck tyres though, something beefy would look good, have fun with ya new truck.

I really enjoyed this video. The truck reminds me of trucks customized by Choo Choo Customs back in the 80's and 90's.

EGR Exhaust Gas Recirculator! Love your videos

Hi guys long time no see hopes you keeping warm. it's good to have skill in everything watch call it jack of all trades especially ladies don't mind getting her hands dirty.

great job looking good

I put a blue tarp or cardboard under where I am working. I have a GMC Sierra,,original paint ,no rust, fabric interior is in excellent condition, the carpet is not greasy...1991 with almost 400,000 miles on it..The guy we bought it from drove it back and forth from Brewton, Alabama..to his of off shore job parking lot in New Orleans..it had about 335000 miles on it when we bought it in 2004 or so...we drive it all the time ..just drove it to Birmingham the other day. BTW....I just roller painted my son's '98 Honda Civic with Rustoleum Silver..it looks awesome..also I bought stripes and silver window edge lining from TEMU ...(it is because of you I shop at TEMU all the time.} My husband was a helicopter-fixed wing mechanic /crewchief..He could work on anything. He always bought a Chilton repair manual for every vehicle he had.. GOOD Aircraft Mechanics work strictly by the book. That book will tell you everything about that truck. lov from south alabama.

Purchase a Haynes Manual from your local Autozone(parts store) for that ole truck, you'll be glad you did.

Ohhhhhhh ya love the truck!!!! perfect project!!!

Nice work on the truck . It mst be well , sick trucks have trouble running like that .

Great video ! Good purchase for an every day truck 😊

Good job 👍

I love these kind of videos. Thanks guys!

Absolutely loved the video! As always!!! ❤

Great video!

I enjoyed this episode of Cajun Country Car Restoration.

Can’t wait to sit with the wife on this one😂 thank you brother!

Now your talking my real language ! Look into M S D ignition parts as I swear by them and you wont be dissapointed in the performance and the gas it saves !I would say to try aftermarket plugs , but its always best to go with factory or a factory recomended upgrade ( just a bit hotter burning plug ) Change the iol , but run some seafoam in the oil /gas and you wont believe the difference , but only run the foam in the oil for about an hour than change iy to full synthetic and it will run like you cant imagion .

Jim, my man!! I was wondering if you were anything like me! You have to test it out to see if she spins😂!! Old Betsy sounds good, and she got some get up and go!! I love old Chevy Project trucks like that, too!! Can't wait to see what else you do with her!! But as always, see y'all next time, friends ❤

That's what you call Chevy tough ❤

Not sure if I missed some history on this, but were the hood and driver's side door replaced due to rust, or an accident? Didn't really get a good look at the inner driver's side front quarter panel to piece together the mystery of the replacement parts, but the blue interior and firewall point to this being blue on blue, while that maroon on the hood/door says "replaced for reasons". I really dig the stepside bed on that, and whoever sprayed the black plasti-dip or bedliner really did a great job. Looking forward to the fun with this truck!

Oh ya, love that Chevy!! Can’t wait to see what’s next.

I would love to have that chrome air filter! I'm a huge Chevy guy and it would look great in my Chevy man cave! I'll pay for the shipping! :)

You are so lucky to have a wife like her.

Was hoping it would end in a burnout!

That’s a Craigslist rebuild as Derek Bieri would say lol. I love them old Chevy trucks.

Hi ya all 👋

This is a special day for Cajun Country Living... Jim is wearing pants! LOL

Some mechanics call it Exhaust Gas Recirculation.

Very cool great job guys

American trucks are so good, bet you could fit our uk trucks in back if yours ha, sound unreal to.

Wonderful…. 💙❤️

love it! I liked the burn out.

The 80’s called, they want those rims back…lol. It’s almost impossible to find an older truck where the wiring isn’t all hacked up.

cool old chevy Truck :)

I have honestly never heard anyone refer to the passenger side as the 'left' side... and I lived in Louisiana for three years! 🙂

Just a tip next time take some of that air out of the front tires. It’ll lower it down so you can work on it along easier when done add air back into them. Just a tip and only that.

Enjoyed the episode but I have a couple of questions. Jim, you said you “know enough to get by” what y’all did is more than getting by in my eyes - granted I know nothing about mechanics. How do y’all know so much about building & mechanics? What’s y’all’s training? Just curious 😊

I got a 1993 step side Silverado im rebuilding it to my show truck at the moment 60 over it will be a looker when done

I had that same truck! I kick myself often for ever getting rid of it 😊

Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines ... this is going to be a cool, fun series. Off to a great start, pun intended!

Oil pressure sensors are a weak link to look out for. They are a diaphragm and when they go bad it's easy to lose a quart in 6 miles. EGR always stick. If it was new piston rings 1/2 oz. Marvel Mystery Oil might help but with old rings that could impact the carbon holding the rings together. Bad. With the new computer controlled engines I believe EGR is no longer used. Oxygen sensors are almost always stuck bad wanting to pull threads out with them. In warmer climes a good 2 minute blast with Loctite Freeze Off and an overnight pause gives good luck. Sidewinder 45 is a hard to find pro grade penetrating fix on stuck bolts. Some engines are only really happy with the spark plugs they originally came with. Even bargain priced fitted spark plug wires can make a big difference. Because of the can of worms they look like it's usually best to replace them one at a time unless you have a photographic memory. Fuel pumps now are in the gas tank. The gas keeps them cool and lubricates them. Not supposed to let gas get below one quarter tank. They are expensive and the labor to change them out about the same price.The new LED headlight bulbs run hotter. If their cooling fan fails they can melt the headlight casing. Might melt it anyway. Stick to what the engineers designed them for. Those 350's are feel it in seat of your pants power. Small big block power. Nice. Love the gray man paint job. Sell me your truck. Haha.

Man, I really miss when u could actually see the sparkplugs without having to remove the top half of the motor. 😂

Exhaust Gas Recirculation valve.

I know the left side is the passenger side in England....I thought Cajun Country was in Merica.... passenger side would be the right side Jim. LOL

your engine position sensor holder was empty and could be your problem depending on how they bypassed it

I disagree about your comments regarding the markings on the distributor. Guys who just dig in tearing stuff apart without taking note of anything usually are the one spending excess hours on reassembly, bending valves and paying other mechanics to fix things. My first rebuild, I went slow, writing and marking every wire and bolt I removed. When it cam time to reassemble, it was just the reverse. She started right up on first crank.

A tuned 350 is a badass engine

and your timing dhould be i think 6 or 10 degrees before top dead center