S10 Swap how to

[rtinniste]

On average following skymangs directions how far back does a sbc get pushed back roughly? I'm just trying to figure out if i can get away with s10 v8 swap motor mounts from jags that run. One less thing to fab so i don't mind spending 50 bucks for mounts if they will work.

Mounts I'm talking about
http://www.jagsthatrun.com/Pages/Par...onvsnMnts.html

[wibas]

rtinniste it does not take much to fab motor mounting pads. I had the cab placed on the chassis than bolted some 1/4" or thicker flat plate to the to the original motor mount bolts in the frame. I used 2 1/2" x 1/4" wall square tubing with holes drilled to match motor mounts. I moved the engine around and trimmed the square tubing for height until I liked it. Make sure you know what your steering shaft and exhaust need for room. Sounds kind of involved but all it requires is basic fab skills. I ended with the motor set about 3/4" to the passenger side and about 1/2" clearance between valve cover and firewall. Than fab trans tunnel as needed. Be sure to keep the crank center line parallel to the frame rails.

[fredscarryall]

I got these from amazon for $96 trans dapt 9906. The thing I ran into when using these were easier then fabbing bracket front scratch. If you running a smallblock chevy you really need to have a short water pump, so you have enough room for a fan. You may have a problem with the fuel pump bump sticking out of the block interfering with the bracket. So you will have to put the bracket on the frame and the motor mounts on the block. The problem is that the factory motor mounts on the frame have a nut on the other side that you cant get with a wrench unless you cut a access Hole in the frame like I did on both sides. Nice part is it's not a structure bracket. Just be careful not to cut off to much or drop the nuts in the frame. Then on the drivers side mount. Two hole will have to be ovaled out on the frame to be able to fit the bolts through the bracket. Then you will only be able to go so far back because the passanger head on small block Chevys are offset and will touch the firewall and the driver side headwill be about an inch away. So you may need to do a small notch in the firewall to fit. Un fortuntally dropping a v8 into an S10 with conversion bracket gives enough clearance for everything. But dropping a V8 onto an S10 frame in a advanced design truck requires some work. And isn't just a bolt in. But you may have a few differences because the frames can very a small amount from year to year.

[fredscarryall]

Clearance with a long water pump to the radiator about 4 Inches.

[fredscarryall]

Here is what the bracket looks like bolted up. With v8 conversion S10 headers (patriot h8036) and showing you the firewall clearance.

[rtinniste]

Originally Posted by fredscarryall

I got these from amazon for $96 trans dapt 9906. The thing I ran into when using these were easier then fabbing bracket front scratch. If you running a smallblock chevy you really need to have a short water pump, so you have enough room for a fan. You may have a problem with the fuel pump bump sticking out of the block interfering with the bracket. So you will have to put the bracket on the frame and the motor mounts on the block. The problem is that the factory motor mounts on the frame have a nut on the other side that you cant get with a wrench unless you cut a access Hole in the frame like I did on both sides. Nice part is it's not a structure bracket. Just be careful not to cut off to much or drop the nuts in the frame. Then on the drivers side mount. Two hole will have to be ovaled out on the frame to be able to fit the bolts through the bracket. Then you will only be able to go so far back because the passanger head on small block Chevys are offset and will touch the firewall and the driver side headwill be about an inch away. So you may need to do a small notch in the firewall to fit. Unfortunately dropping a v8 into an S10 with conversion bracket gives enough clearance for everything. But dropping a V8 onto an S10 frame in a advanced design truck requires some work. And isn't just a bolt in. But you may have a few differences because the frames can very a small amount from year to year.

Dude first off thank you this was the info I was looking for.
And i agree if i can buy the mounts I'd rather do that saves time from having to fab them. Short water pump was going to go on regardless i have a spare brand new short water pump from my dads c10 build. i was planning on notching fuel pump clearance on the frame seems like everyone has to do that. And yea those motor mount bolts are a pain ask me how i know i ended up just drilling the heads off on both mounts luckily the ends all fell out of the frame.
Main thing was i wanted to make sure the motor mounts will push the motor back far enough to the firewall to clear a fan with a short water pump. So ill order up the jags that run mounts gives me 3/4" side to side adjustment which should help with snaking the steering linkage in there.

Now another question i know s10 headers will work i also read somewhere that Camaro exhaust manifolds fit? How about block huggers i can get a pair of headman blockhuggers for a decent price.

[skymangs]

Originally Posted by rtinniste

Dude first off thank you this was the info I was looking for.
And i agree if i can buy the mounts I'd rather do that saves time from having to fab them. Short water pump was going to go on regardless i have a spare brand new short water pump from my dads c10 build. i was planning on notching fuel pump clearance on the frame seems like everyone has to do that. And yea those motor mount bolts are a pain ask me how i know i ended up just drilling the heads off on both mounts luckily the ends all fell out of the frame.
Main thing was i wanted to make sure the motor mounts will push the motor back far enough to the firewall to clear a fan with a short water pump. So ill order up the jags that run mounts gives me 3/4" side to side adjustment which should help with snaking the steering linkage in there.

Now another question i know s10 headers will work i also read somewhere that Camaro exhaust manifolds fit? How about block huggers i can get a pair of headman blockhuggers for a decent price.

Square body Camaros exit from the rear, and are perfect for an S10 swap.

[47owner]

Great information. I plan to use the 4.3 V6 that comes with the S10, do I have to make a lot of mods besides moving it back 7"?

[fredscarryall]

I think with block hugger the outer header pipes and exhaust flange might be to fat. You can always get a painted set from jegs mock it up and if it doesn't work out, they have a good return policy. How about ram horn exhaust manifolds. I have not tried them but you can get them used dirt cheep.

[Coldshot]

Clay, I responded to Chris when he brought it up. I'm using an energy suspension bushing kit and the smaller bushings came in the kit for the front clip bushings. Kit was about $80
I unfortunately had already followed the 1/2" drop suggested and when I put it together I thought I did something wrong cuz I went straight to the smaller bushings for the cab and the "C" brace dropped right over them. I added 1/2" worth of washers on top for now. Will need a permanent fix later.

Just order new bushings, the non poly's are cheap (I got poly) you see the bushings and it will make complete sence.
I'll try to get a pic up on here if I can

[Clay54]

Coldspot, a picture would be great, I would really appreciate that. So far, this does not compute to me. Is there anything you are using that looks like the bushings shown in the link I provided above? Thanks for your help. Clay

[Sim6]

clay,
what part doesn't make sense? Why the cab mounts are different heights from front to rear? why there are 3+ inches off the frame? Or what to use that will fit in the rear brace?
Jeff

[Coldshot]

The reason for the 1/2" difference is because the normal cab bushings are pretty fat. The other bushings are thinner. The "C" brace thing under the cab where you mount to wont go over the regular cab bushing but the front bushings are thinner in girth so they fit into the "C" the "C" is 1/2" deep. I just used all front mounts under my cab from the poly bushing kit worked great.

I'll take some pics when ever I get home.

Long 14+ hr days never end I tells yea

[Coldshot]

In that pic the very front pair and the smaller bushings you can see there 4 larger ones landed up in the second row and the rest are the corasponding peace's that go underneeth.
If you get an extended cab kit you get 4 small ones like I did or you can just use the smalls for the back and normals for the front. I couldn't open the link you posted, but these are what I have and they are pretty cheap.
You can always just use delrin pucks or shaved down hockey pucks, anything will work lol

[Clay54]

Coldshot. thanks. Pictures are worth a thousand words. I assume these are S10 bushings of some sort. These bushings are what I thought Chris was referring to when he sent me that link that shows some long somethings that don't make any sense to me at all. Now I think I might be back on track, I have seen some kits that have what looks like the bushing you show on the second row setting on top of S10 cab mount bushings. And no, I will not cut the rear mounts 1/2 inch shorter. Thanks again.

Jeff (Sim6), I understand why the cab stands are different height-not sure about the 3" off the frame though. Different height is to level the cab on the frame, I think. Yes it has always been what goes in that C brace. Chris stated to use something instead of the delron and when he sent me that link which was very confusing as those long black pieces of rubber just didn't make any sense to me. I know we have discussed this previously and you suggested Chris might have misunderstood what I had ask him. Not sure and it doesn't matter now as I think I now know what he may have been referring to.

Thanks to you both. Clay

[fredscarryall]

Here are the measurement I have actually measured and just some info I collected. Hope this helps others. It worked great for me. I don't have any info on the s blazer but that could be another option for a rear axle. For those who don't know what a gov lock is. It's a gm locker. Some call it a posi but it seems to work like a limited slip to me.To test if it works ,you have to be spinning the wheels at about 10 mph. When one wheel slips the other will engage.To get both wheel to spin in the same direction. But in most cases that's not possible.so another way is th spin one wheel really hard and fast. You should here a little clunk and both wheels should spin in the same direction. In non lock mode both wheels will spin in the opposite direction. This info is not gaurantee. Gm does odd things at times. You should always double check.

S10 zr2 Wms to Wms is 63" 8.5 axles factory gov lock and 3.73 ratio

S10 4x4 Wms to Wms 58" hard to find in gov locker 7.5 and 7.62 and some 8.5 axles

S10 2wd Wms to Wms 54.5" 7.5 and 7.62 axles

Center of spring perch to center spring perch is 38 1/2"

Option codes to s10 for rear axles found in glove box door or drivers door sticker
G80 gov lock locker
Gu1 2.41
Gu2 2.73
Gu3 2.93
Gu4 3.08
Gu5 3.23
Gu6 3.42
Gt4 3.73
Gt5 4.10
Hc4 4.56
Attached Images

[fredscarryall]

Here's a picture of a 1998 S10 ZR2 8.5 rear axle with 63" wms to wms (wheel mount surface to wheel mount surface) With gov lock and 3.73 ratio. 38.5" center spring perch to center spring perch so it will fit perfect on s10 leaf springs. This info is not always a gaurantee, gm seem to do odd things at times.

[fredscarryall]

Here a pic to show the difference in axles

[rtinniste]

Originally Posted by fredscarryall

Here are the measurement I have actually measured and just some info I collected. Hope this helps others. It worked great for me. I don't have any info on the s blazer but that could be another option for a rear axle. For those who don't know what a gov lock is. It's a gm locker. Some call it a posi but it seems to work like a limited slip to me.To test if it works ,you have to be spinning the wheels at about 10 mph. When one wheel slips the other will engage.To get both wheel to spin in the same direction. But in most cases that's not possible.so another way is th spin one wheel really hard and fast. You should here a little clunk and both wheels should spin in the same direction. In non lock mode both wheels will spin in the opposite direction. This info is not gaurantee. Gm does odd things at times. You should always double check.

S10 zr2 Wms to Wms is 63" 8.5 axles factory gov lock and 3.73 ratio

S10 4x4 Wms to Wms 58" hard to find in gov locker 7.5 and 7.62 and some 8.5 axles

S10 2wd Wms to Wms 54.5" 7.5 and 7.62 axles

Center of spring perch to center spring perch is 38 1/2"

Option codes to s10 for rear axles found in glove box door or drivers door sticker
G80 gov lock locker
Gu1 2.41
Gu2 2.73
Gu3 2.93
Gu4 3.08
Gu5 3.23
Gu6 3.42
Gt4 3.73
Gt5 4.10
Hc4 4.56
Attached Images

Also olds bravada should all be gov locked and I think I saw somewhere that they are the 8.5 but my neighbor that runs the local pick a part said that's not true. I havent looked that deep into it just when i was cruising the web.
But the bravada axles seem more plentiful and better priced. Car-part.com also helps when your on your search!!

[HUSSEY]

^^^^^
That's what I got my axle out of and it's 7.625 ring. The code on the Glove Box was GT4 G80, that is, 3.73, Posi.

I too have heard the 8.5 came in these but I don't believe it, never seen an 8.5 in a Blazer or Bravada, any year. I have heard you can find an 8.5 in a 4x4 manual trans, never seen one of these trucks at a yard though.

If I had known about it, I would have gotten a 8.8 out of an Explorer and after a certain year, 2000 I think, they all had Posi and Disk brakes. And best of all, they practically right drop into an S10.

http://v8s10.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5279

[old yelr]

The 8.5 came in all S10's and Sonoma's (1998 to 2003 not sure of the previous generation) that were equipped with a manual transmission, 2wd trucks had the narrowest version and 4wd ZR2 trucks had the widest version.

[Cautrell05]

Originally Posted by old yelr

The 8.5 came in all S10's and Sonoma's (1998 to 2003 not sure of the previous generation) that were equipped with a manual transmission, 2wd trucks had the narrowest version and 4wd ZR2 trucks had the widest version.

Not trying to step on your toes, but the only s10 that had the 8.5 rear end was the four-wheel-drive zr2. All of the rest of them had the 7.5.

[HUSSEY]

Originally Posted by Cautrell05

Not trying to step on your toes, but the only s10 that had the 8.5 rear end was the four-wheel-drive zr2. All of the rest of them had the 7.5.

It's funny, just earlier today I heard a quote, "Believe nothing you hear and only half of what you see", which applies so well to this topic.

I've heard what the elusive S10 8.5 in. is in so many different ways, from enthusiasts, car junkies, self proclaimed S10 subject matter experts, and dealer mechanics or parts counter guys. Everyone has a different answer.

Before I believe anything, I'm going to have to see it with my own eyes or receive a personally signed and notarize options list from Mary Barra herself.

[steve aleve]

I know I have seen it on this website before but I can't seem to find it now. I am looking for info on an application for an AD truck with an s10 swap and what steering shaft options there are. I have seen astro van parts and jeep cherokee parts but I am not totally clear on what exactly to mix and match. Any help will be appreciated.

Thanks,
Steve

[Cautrell05]

Car junkie and GM dealer mechanic since 95 here.