Have some Burban

[sweet70beast]

A couple of weeks ago I picked up a 54 Suburban that had been sitting in a cow pasture for 10 years. It is in pretty rough shape. I've been kicking around a few ideas for it.

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[sweet70beast]

I tossed around the idea of putting it on an S10 4x4 frame and run an awd Bravada tcase, but I decided I didn't have the time or money to do that YET. I'm going to use a 73 up front crossmember and suspension so I can hopefully get it on the road in the spring.

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[sweet70beast]

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For the engine I'm going to use a turbo charged Grand National motor.
Nice motivation!

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[63 & 64 Bowties]

Neat project. Subscribed.

[ratrodmiller]

dude . I like your taste on motors you couldnt picked a better engine if ya ask me ! your burb is awesome i would love to have one.

[sweet70beast]

Thanks ratrod, I've wanted one ever since I got my 50 3100 10 years ago.
Well I went and got alittle more done on it today. I took the front shock mounts off and the seats out. The seats are in suprisingly good shape considering it sat in a field for 10 years.
My Father-in-law gave me an 82 Chev Van that will hopefully donate its front suspension if it fits. I'm thinking it will. The van will also give up its tilt column for the Burban.
I'm headed to the shop tomorrow and hopefully get somemore done.

[nickp51chevy]

Cool stuff going on here. Subscribed.

[Truckbert-CS]

What did you have to do to get the cross member to fit? It looks like it will work but I am wondering if any serious modifications were required.

I put a '81 front cross member on my 69 and all I had to do was drill two holes.

If this could work for my '54 I might try it.

TW

[sweet70beast]

I got it from Runinlow from the 60-66 forum. If I remember right you have to cut an inch out of the middle and weld back together. Kdrodworks said he'd call josh and see if that correct. You could send him a PM and see what he did.

[Number98]

Originally Posted by nickp51chevy

Cool stuff going on here. Subscribed.

Oh yea!

[sweet70beast]

Well I went to the shop the other day and took the passenger side lower and upper A arms off of the 82 Van and went to put the on the suburban and the cross bar on the lower A arm wouldn't fit in the U brackets on the underside of the crossmember and the holes for the u bolts are closer together than on the van. I couldn't figure out what was up. I went out and looked at the van again and realized it was a 5 lug 3/4 ton which means everything is beefier. So my crossmember is from a 1/2 ton so luckly I have access to a 79 1/2 ton van to get things from. One complaint I have heard about doing this swap is that the front tires stick out too far. I'm using van stuff because I'm hoping that the A arms are shorter than a trucks but I haven't done any comparing yet.
If I can figure this out and get the bugs worked out I will take the crossmember out of the 3/4 ton van narrow it and use it under my 50 3100, it is getting a 348 which is a pretty heavy engine so the extra beef might be a good idea.
I did get the tilt column, brake booster, and the bracket the the column and brake pedal hooks to. I'll check that bracket tomorrow and see if I can make it work under the burban dash.
More later.

[OrrieG]

348 will be cool, I always loved the upside down W valve covers. Go vintage with a tri-power set up. Get some repo 409 flags for the fenders and you are set!

[sweet70beast]

Well I went and took off the upper and lower A arms on the 1/2 ton van took it back to the shop thinking they would fit and walla.,.,., didn't fit. Son Of A. I crawled under a 1/2 ton pickup that was parked close by and it has a smaller cross bar on the lower A arm. The A arms are the same ( I measured them today), upper and lower between the vans and trucks but the cross bar is smaller on trucks. That really suprised me. I don't know if it's called a cross bar but it's the round bar that the lower arm bolts to that is U bolted to the cross member.
I have a 75 1/2 ton that I have for parts for my 76. I will take the suspension off of it, I didn't want to tear it a part yet so that's why I want the van route. If I'd have known, oh well, now I do.
I still think I'll cut down the van cross member for my 50, I like the bigger cross bar. It just seems like it would be stronger to me.

[clinebarger]

[QUOTE=sweet70beast;For the engine I'm going to use a turbo charged Grand National motor.Nice motivation![/QUOTE]

Thats a late 70's early 80's turbo regal, monte carlo engine. Grand National,Regal T-Type,GNX are fuel injected, distribuless ignition with a remote mount tubo and intercooler.

[sweet70beast]

Originally Posted by clinebarger

Thats a late 70's early 80's turbo regal, monte carlo engine. Grand National,Regal T-Type,GNX are fuel injected, distribuless ignition with a remote mount tubo and intercooler.

Thanks for the info. I learned something new. It is missing the carb. Anyone know if it takes a special carb or will an Edelbrock work?

[clinebarger]

They had a boost indexed Quadrajet (blow through). I bet there hard to find. You wiil also need a Carb Bonnet if you dont have the original one.
Do some reseach on blow through carbs. If i were you i whould go with new head gaskets, head bolts and a oil pump kit. the pump is external very easy job.

[72BlckButy]

Great looking project, can't wait to see how it turns out.

[sweet70beast]

Picture time

This is the cross bar I was talking about.
The van is on the left.

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[sweet70beast]

I was talking to Derric the yesterday about these A arms and he told me he had a cross member out of a mid 60s 1/2 with the arms on it still. We went out today and grabbed them. They are alittle different width wise and the bushings other than that they bolt up the same.
Any way I bolted both sides on and put the van spindles and rotors on, they arn't bolted on because I have to get 73 and up ball joints for them to fit.

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[kdrodworks316]

Just so everyone knows, runninlo narrowed the x member 2". We will be running bags in the front to get the ride height in check. The x member will also get the KDR notch kit to raise the member and lower the burban a bit more...if anyone has questions, feel free to pm me or Jared

[sweet70beast]

Got some more work done on the Burb, it is atleast siting on rubber now. We are going to notch the crossmember a couple of inches because it does sit too high. Right now it's on the rubber bumpers and it sits about an inch below ride height if even that. If that's not enough I'll get some drop spindles too. Fortunatly we didn't drill any holes yet for this very reason, the frame is just sitting on the cross member.


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[sweet70beast]

Well some great news and some sorta bad news. The good is the title on it's way to my hot little hands. It makes me leary to start on something without a title.

The sorta bad is that I took a good look at the turbo V6 that I have and did a little searching on the net and found out that I am missing quite a few parts on this motor.

http://www.gnttype.org/techarea/pict...rbedmotor.html

After finding out it's not accually a Grand National engine I was bumed, it is a turbo Buick engine tho. I think the amount of time and money it would take to find the parts I need for it wouldn't be worth it. I have a 98 Vortec 350 and 4L80e that I'm going to use instead. I think the vortec will put out more power than the V6 anyway.

[drivea55]

keep it coming brother!............. its all good!

[Jonboy]

There is a big difference in the turbo 3.8, the SFI turbo 3.8, and the intercooled SFI turbo 3.8. I had a "hot air" 85 GN. Not the same as the 86-87, by far.

[Fat Mike]

Even thou you shortened the crossmember will the wheelbase still be alittle wide. I have a 47 that I had considered putting a 75 1/2ton crossmember on but was told it would still be to wide. Is that true or false?