# Can i put a plow on a 2002 chevy 1500



## mac3897 (Dec 23, 2002)

First off I would like to say hello to everyone.

I have a few questions for the experts.

Can I put a plow on a 2002 Chevy Silverado Z71 with trailer/tow package 1/2 ton truck?

Will it void my warrantee?

If I can install one, What is the recommended plow for this type of vehicle?

Are there any modifications i could/should make to the truck so it can handle it better?


I used to plow with a 79 dodge power wagon with a Meyer plow but have been out of it for a while.

Thanks for all of the help.


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## Acorn (Dec 3, 2002)

check with dealer

do a search on this site for more info


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## copandplower (Feb 2, 2002)

Im not sure about your warranty but I bet you will get an ans. here. As far as plowing with a 1/2 ton, I know you can. I plow with a 1/2 ton silverado. My truck has been upgraded to handle the rigors of plowing. I have timbrens in the front, an added leaf spring in the back, heavy duty alternator, dual battery set up and a tranny cooler. My truck is a reg cab long bed and I use a 7.6 Western standard plow. I put 500lb of ballast in the back and keep my tires at max psi. This rig is a '98 and runs excelent . I do up to 40 drives and 2 small/med sized parking lots. The truck and plow have done this much per trip since day one. Truck has made it through some heavy snows. I do proper pm of truck and plow before each season and have had no mech problems.
Set your truck up right, do proper maint. and plow with the storm and a 1/2 ton will work fine.
good luck and welcome to plowsite,

Rick


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## WHITE=GREEN (Jan 14, 2001)

can you plow with a 1/2 ton? yes. is it the best choise for a plow rig? no. if its all you have to work with, then i say go for it. i plowed my first 4 or 5 years in business with a 90' f-150. in fact i plowed the blizzard of 96' when we got 32" of snow with that truck. i put chains on the rear, weight in the bed and off i went. i installed a set of heavy duty springs with air bags in them to handle the extra weight of the plow. i used a 7 1/2' meyer plow with the e-47 pump. if you beef up your suspension you should be fine. maybe you can make enough $$$ to upgrade in a year or two.


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## LB Landscaping (Sep 4, 2002)

I have a 2001 1/2 ton Chevy and I plow with it everytime it snows. No problems except for front end sag. I had to crank up the torsion bars to help. My truck came with the plow prep package, might want to check to see if yours did. I have a Fisher 71/2 blade on mine and I love it.


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## Earthscapes (Feb 2, 2001)

My friend runs a boss 7 1/2' on his 2001 1500 and he has no problems and he also runs 500lbs. of tube sand in the rear.

If you have the factory snow plow prep package on your truck, then no your warranty will not be voided.


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## mdb landscaping (Sep 29, 2000)

If you have snow plow prep, you will be just fine. i used to plow with a 2000 1500 z71 with a 7 1/2 foot fisher just like mentioned above. It plowed great and had a ton of power. You may want to pick up some timbrens to prevent front end sag, because those seris trucks like to squat without them.


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## Mick (May 19, 2001)

Is this truck a 4wd?


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## Mike 97 SS (Aug 11, 2002)

Hey guys, i wanted to ask a question since my truck is a 1500 also. I didnt want to start a whole new thread and waste space so ill ask it here. How can i tell if my truck has the plow prep package for sure or not? Its a 92 Chevy 1500 series 4x4. I see it has that big sticker in the glovebox with all sorts of numbers and letters, any particular code i should look for? Maybe i can tell by the weight ratings on the inside door sticker? It seems like a pretty heavy duty built 1500. It came with 265-75-16 tires from the factory. It handles the plow excellent, i just wanted to find out for sure, would be nice. Sorry for going off topic a bit, but i figure this would be better than starting a whole new thread and waste bandwidth or whatever you call it.  Thanks for any help in advance. Happy Holidays guys! Mike


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## Mick (May 19, 2001)

Mike, see if you can answer you're question the this site.

http://trailer-bodybuilders.com/ar/trucks_snowplow_installation_whats/


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## Earthscapes (Feb 2, 2001)

Mike 97 ss ........i don't believe chevy ever thought about a plow prep package back then. 

According to my 02' window sticker the plow prep pack includes:
130 Amp alternator
Transmission cooler
Thats it for the extra price of $285


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## LB Landscaping (Sep 4, 2002)

I believe the prep package also adds a little to the suspension or so I was told.


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## WNY PAT (Dec 4, 2002)

*Snow Plow Prep Package*

Yes.. includes a 130 amp alternator, increased cooling (transmission) and I believe it also comes with beefier electrical connections....


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## wxmn6 (May 23, 2001)

According to GM Bulletin #27, all GM C/K Pickup Trucks 1999-Current with Snowplow Prep Package includes:

- Emergency Roof Mounted Lamp Switch - with wiring inside the headliner.

- 130 Amps Alternator

- Accessory Harness Gromet - a predrilled 1 3/4" hole in the firewall for feeding wires through. 

- Forward Lamp Harness In-Line Connector - a set of mating eight cavity connectors on both the left and right side of the vehicle. 

- Backup Lamp Power Feed

- Increased Front Springs Rating

- External Engine Oil Cooler - LQ4 Only - Vortec 6.0L gas only

- Transmission Oil Cooler

- High Air Flow Front Bumper Impact Strip 

- HD Power Steering Cooling


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## wxmn6 (May 23, 2001)

mac3897, you will need to give more info. on your truck. I know that your is a 1500 but is it a 4WD? Is it a Regular or Extended Cab? Do it have a short or long box? What engine is on your truck? There are 3 different engines that could go on 1500 so you just need to give us some more details to work on to give you an answer.


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## John DiMartino (Jan 22, 2000)

Mike 97 SS,you can tell if you have the plow prep pkg by looking for the letters VYU in the glove box.If you cant read them.under the hood on the drivers side of the radiator the snow plow prep trucks have a single relay by itself mounted there,it is only on trucks with the plow prep,it is used to isolate the blinkers on the plow frame.from the turn signal switch,to proetect it if you have a plow frame mounted and tow a trailer,you may smoke the fuse/turn signal switch.. I know for sure that on the 1500's you could only get it with a reg cab/long box combo.Also all plow prep trucks have the engine oil cooler on them,and HD shocks,unless they are a Z71,then they already have Bilstiens.The F60 HD front springs are also std on the plwo prep trucks, So if you have F60 you got the HD bars.


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## LB Landscaping (Sep 4, 2002)

Just an update on my truck. We had about 20 inches of snow fall on Christmas night, the only truck I used was my 2001 Chevy 1/2 ton. It was out for 20 hours non-stop and then for another 12 the next day, never had an issue with power (its got a 305), it pushed more snow than I ever expected (probably took a year of the life of the truck though). A buddy of mine called me tonight after getting in from a holiday trip and wanted to know if I would help him clear out his drive. Its three days after the storm and he had the full 20 inches in his driveway plus a 4 ft snowbank and I had no problem pushing it out. If you are careful and no what you are doing a 1/2 ton should be fine.


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## Mike 97 SS (Aug 11, 2002)

Thanks for all the help guys. John, I will look for those code letters when I go outside later. I know I have the sticker in the glove box cause I have looked at it before but it may be partially scuffed up and hard to read, but Im gonna check and if its not legible, Ill look under the hood like you said. Thanks alot and Ill post my findings later today or tomorrow. Mike


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## truck1500 (Nov 24, 2002)

*back blade*

sorry to change it a little bit i have a 1500 siverado and i was wondering what kind of back blade would go best on the truck. although it is 2wd


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## Mick (May 19, 2001)

Truck 1500 - try looking for a web site for Daniels pull plow. However, also think what's happening here. You won't want to have just the pull plow. Pull plows are to complement the plow on the front.

Before you ask, a side wing won't work either.


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## John DiMartino (Jan 22, 2000)

Truck 1500-give it up,Your truck wasnt meant to plow,and plowing with it will be frustrating and unproductive at best,unsafe and expenisve at worst,why not sell it and buy a 2500 4x4 if you want to plow?it wil be cheaper in the long run.Buy the right truck for the job,or dont do it at all.


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## Mike 97 SS (Aug 11, 2002)

Well said John. Mick that was funny, before you ask, a sidewing wont work either, LOL.  Mike


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## kawdude (Nov 19, 2002)

my 1500 plows just fine


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## Mike 97 SS (Aug 11, 2002)

Me too kawdude, but he has a 2WD 1500 he wants to plow with. No good. Mike


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## mac3897 (Dec 23, 2002)

*More info*



> _Originally posted by wxmn6 _
> *mac3897, you will need to give more info. on your truck. I know that your is a 1500 but is it a 4WD? Is it a Regular or Extended Cab? Do it have a short or long box? What engine is on your truck? There are 3 different engines that could go on 1500 so you just need to give us some more details to work on to give you an answer. *


Sorry, here is some more info
Yes it is 4WD and it is Extended Cab Short box. with the 5.3l engine. Also it has the heavy duty trailer package with i beleive gives the tranny cooler and biger alternator.

MAC


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## Hawkz (Nov 6, 2002)

Hey guys, just my thread to add to. I myself run a 94 Gmc Sierra, 4by4, it is a 2 door, Z71 model. 
I use a Western Pro Plow and that weighs about 695 lbs or more. The truck is setup already w/ the stiffer suspension and shocks per Z71. I put salt bags and sand tubes in rear for ballast, so come spring I have use for it. Also count in a John Deere snowblower/ weight is 135 lbs. The truck for me runs great, it is the 1500 model, all I really need to do to it is put new tires on and keep up on the reg. maintenance. These are tough trucks and can last a hell of a long time if taken care of. The only thing I don't care for is the front end sag when first raising plow. Timbrens are the way to go for that- I have heard that tightening the torsion bars can be done, but is not really recommended because of wearing of the tires on insides, and can be a pain to get back to original location. I myself would skip the torsion bars and buy a set of timbrens. I will take some pics of the truck and plow but will only show them off when we actually get some frickin snow...... So I don't look like a freak w/ out anywhere to go. Any questions about my setup or comments let me know!!! Bring on the snow. Hawkz


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## wxmn6 (May 23, 2001)

mac3897,

I just looked up the Fisher snowplow selection guide according to your vehicle description, and it showed that they recommend Regular Duty 7.5' snowplow with 450 pounds of ballast in the rear.


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## Kent Lawns (Jan 18, 2000)

> _Originally posted by John DiMartino _
> *Truck 1500-wasnt meant to plow,and plowing with it will be frustrating and unproductive at best,unsafe and expenisve at worst. *


I could show you some THICK wallets that'd disagree with that !


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## WHITE=GREEN (Jan 14, 2001)

can i put a plow on this? its just sitting around not making me any money.


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## Mick (May 19, 2001)

Absolutely. Check with any dealer for a Municipal plow around 12'. Put a set of Timbrens on it and 1500 # of ballast. You'll be raking in money in no time.


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## OffRoadPlow (Dec 30, 2002)

*Would look something like????*

attached,,, true site, just not sure I would want to do this...


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## kawdude (Nov 19, 2002)

Wonder how that would do in the scoop position...............


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