To build, or not to build. That is the question.

[SRMN8R]

Hey y'all. I'm a new guy here, but I've been around 4x4's since the 70's.

I have a 99 Suburban 1/2 ton that is getting pretty long in the tooth. She's served us well, but at nearly 220,000 miles, she's really in need of a complete ground up rebuild. My son will start driving in a year, and I've considered building the 'Burb for him.

I've noticed the trend of late is to go with full axle swaps, and generally to go with a 3/4 ton base model or 1 ton. My question is... am I wasting my time and energy if I build this 1/2 ton 'Burb for light duty off roading? She's lasted this long in stock trim, and I can't imagine a 3" lift and 33" tires would put such a strain on her that she'd break constantly.

For what it's worth... I've only built one off road vehicle before - a Jeep CJ. I broke axles, driveshafts, u joints, and broke the trans 3 times in 8 months. But.. I don't drive like that anymore!

Most of my builds are street vehicles. Most recently, a 55 Chevy pickup and a 90 Chevy SS pickup.

So.. what's the consensus? Should I scrap the old 'burb and start fresh with a 3/4 ton chassis, or can a 1/2 ton ifs 'burb make a decent cruiser and mild off road worthy truck?

 

[lstzephyr]

Depends on how mild you are thinking. I have been all over the Colorado mountains in a 25 yr old worn out S10. 4low and line choice works wonders, so does following reasonable trails for the vehicle you are using.

I would just leave it stock and use it offroad respecting its limitations. A suburban makes a great camping truck with no mods anyway, just throw in a mattress or a cot and have at it.

 

[bftank]

if you are swapping in a solid axle just to tinker, a dana 44/10 bolt are capable axles for light offroading. a dana 60 wouldn't be necessary in your situation unless you had a tire larger than 37 and were rockcrawling difficult stuff.

if it's for your son. i would suggest following lstzephyr's advice and let him wheel it stock. if it breaks it breaks and your son gets to learn from it. upgrade it with him. help him learn how to research what has been done and what could be done.

in summary

your half ton chassis is just fine for light offroading and expeditioning. let him wheel it stock to learn how it works and modify as you go.

 

[SRMN8R]

Thanks y'all. That's wise counsel. I think we'll install a 2" spacer on the front coils to bring the front up just a bit to offset the winch, and we'll replace all of the factory rubber bushings in the front end, new shocks and tires, and let him decide what else to do with it as time goes on.

Again, thanks for the input.

 

[saveitforsunrise]

You dont have coils up front, you have to do t-bar keys, you can turn yours up a good bit to get a feel for it, also remember with no lift you can fit the right 35 with minor front fender and bumper trimming

 

[BurbanAZ]

yea the 1/2 ton chassis is still a great one, and unless u put huge tires the stock 10 bolt rear will do fine. I had a 95 k1500 that i wheeled lightly for a while and it was a great truck, i got my 92 3/4 ton just because it worked out that way but id be happy with either truck.

 

[Buliwyf]

As long as you stick to a mild setup you'll be fine. Fix up what you have. A solid axle swap is a bit too hardcore.

Keys up front adjusted for 2-3", and a larger rear block (if needed), proper length BDS shocks, and decent 33" tires would be a nice start. I wouldn't want to go too hardcore when a new driver will be using the truck.

(You may not drive rough off road, but he will, keeping the trucks capablity down may preserve some of it's life) The 10bolt rear isn't a bad axle.

 

[saveitforsunrise]

I would personally never run a 10 bolt again in my life, just bad luck all the way around

 

[chilliwak]

Welcome to the site SRM, but please:Wow1: POST SOME PICS of your rig!:ylsmoke:

 

[BurbanAZ]

I would personally never run a 10 bolt again in my life, just bad luck all the way around

i can kinda see that, i did love having the 92 1/2ton when i had it but i did go through one rear 10 bolt when i broke the ring and pinion. I found another rear end cheap and just swapped the whole thing in.

 

[Spargman]

cranking your keys 2-3" is not the best idea as you will be more likely to bust your CV's due to their harsher angles. A really cheap way to lift the rig is with a body lift, but to make it look even half decent, you will need to fill the gaps. If this ends up being for your son, a body lift may not be a bad idea as he will be less likely to break things.

On a side note, these rigs in stock form are pretty capable for basic wheeling and exploring. Personally I would give it to him stock and see what he ends up doing with it (i.e. likes/dislikes) and modify from there.

With 220k+ on the clock, I would imagine your torsion bars are starting to wear out and adding a winch is going to make them sag further. It's not cheap by any means, but Sway A Way makes tougher tbars for our rigs and will easily support the extra weight hanging over your front end.

this may give you some ideas for mods...any questions, just let me know.
http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/74594-99-Tahoe-Expedition-Build!

 

[rabbiporkchop]

Mine is just a D44 up front

And a D60 in back

there is nothing wrong with a D44 for street driving or mild driving on dirt roads.

 

[darien]

Are you building the vehicle for the vehicle, or are you building it for the destination? If it's for the vehicle, then do whatever feels right, and fits your sense of correctness and "feng shui". If it's for the destination, then where will you really take it? What do you really need? It's amazing how our sense of what is minimally suitable has ramped up over the past few decades. You can just about cover the globe in an old used Subaru Outback. Our rigs mostly look the way they do because this is as much a vehicle/equipment hobby as it is a travel hobby. Many times moreseo.

Your stock Suburban will do just fine. Baseline it - really baseline the maintenance and all the systems (something many people are reluctant to do, opting for bumpers and winches and lifts and tires instead) - and hit the road.

 

[BigTex]

RabbiPorkChop- We need more pics and info on the SAS'd Blazer. Did you do it? I like how low it sits for a SAS'd late model. I don't want to muddy up this thread though. Do you already have a thread for this Rig?

 

[rabbiporkchop]

I joined this forum after I had it to this point, so no I don't have a build thread. I have more pics in my album though.