Chevy LCF (gas) 4500 Review

[MA Arborist]

I purchased this truck early 2017.
It is the same as the Isuzu NPR gas version

Got 20,000 miles on it

Pros
-Excellent power and acceleration even with a load and towing an 8000 lb chipper (GM 6 liter V8).
-Good handling and well built
-AC and power windows standard
-Smooth 6 speed automatic transmission

Cons
-Low profile tires are terrible for traction.
Even with limited slip Differential this thing gets stuck easy.
-Eats gas at 6mpg. Doesn’t matter if you are towing a heavy load or gliding down a hill in neutral, it gets 6 mpg!

One month ago a ten wheeler backed into this truck and totalled it. Bummed me out.

Overall I really liked this truck. It was my
first gasser after 3 decades of Diesel engines. It was super easy to maintain with no emissions BS like the diesels and I would recommend it to anyone who needs a smaller truck that can hold around 12 yards of chips.

-JC

 

[Basswood]

Are the gassers known to be more powerful than the diesels for these trucks? I drive an NPR for my PHC truck and a different one often that has a chip box.

I love my PHC truck but I kind of hate the chip truck in many applications. If I’m pruning and it’s not a lot of material in the back it’s sweet as. But I’ve had it fully loaded, towing a chipper and it feels like it’s not enough power and kind of sketchy at times.

My two biggest complains with the cabovers is bumps and how exposed you are with no front end. But I still keep an eye out for them when thinking about a set up for when I want to work on my own. The turning radius is pretty awesome.

 

[MA Arborist]

Are the gassers known to be more powerful than the diesels for these trucks? I drive an NPR for my PHC truck and a different one often that has a chip box.

I love my PHC truck but I kind of hate the chip truck in many applications. If I’m pruning and it’s not a lot of material in the back it’s sweet as. But I’ve had it fully loaded, towing a chipper and it feels like it’s not enough power and kind of sketchy at times.

My two biggest complains with the cabovers is bumps and how exposed you are with no front end. But I still keep an eye out for them when thinking about a set up for when I want to work on my own. The turning radius is pretty awesome.

These gassers have more torque than the diesel
My last truck was a Mitsubishi diesel cabover. The gas truck outperformed by a lot.
a full load of chips or logs doesn’t slow it down as much as my old diesel