New Ride!

[JMyerz]

Hey Everyone,

Well I should be getting this next week, if all goes according to plan:

2006 Chevy Express
5.3L V8
67k
AWD
Dual side doors
Fully loaded inside

We set out a few months ago looking for a Westy, but my goals of the rig
were to hop in and go without worrying about something breaking on the
way. So this combined with the higher prices of the Westy we moved onto a
Astro van with hopes of having something like T.Lows in the end. Since
there is a serious lack of nice Astros here in PDX, and this Chevy fell into our
lap, costing us roughly the same as a low mileage Astro would... we bought
the Express and man is it big. :drool:

The Summer mod list includes:

Interior build similar to the Westy Weekender
2" front Leveler kit
32" ish BFG ATs
Black rims

Next summer we may or may not to a SMB pop top. Since this is a much
larger van than expected a pop top may not be needed for us. We will see.

I'm also looking into the NP246 transfer case. Looking at my friends
suburban with the 2WD, AWD, 4H, 4L option I think the mod might be a
direct bolt in. More time will tell once I actually get the rig in my hand so I
can compare side by side. I'm really hoping this will work out, I'm not at all
interested in a solid axle swap as most of the driving is FWY to various surf
breaks and I enjoy how the Chevy handles with the IFS.

I attached the original Photo and a quick photoshop of what I hope to get
done this summer.

I'm so excited. :wings:

J

 

[JMyerz]

Whoops! Photos!

 

[T.Low]

:26_7_2::rockon:

 

[Herbie]

W00t! :wings:

Congrats on the van, its a beauty. Yes, the Express is HUGE compared to the Astro. You'll make good use of the extra space, I'm sure.

How many do you plan to seat/sleep? The way things are looking right now, I should be able to seat/sleep 2 adults+ 2 kids in the Astro, but gear storage and amenities are going to be tight on space.

I really hope to see you follow through on the NP246 or similar Tcase swap. When I was van shopping I considered an Express for the extra space, but I couldn't find confirmation that the AWD->4x4 Tcase swap was as bolt-in as it is on the Astro, which is one reason I chose the smaller van. If you can do it and provide good documentation, I'm sure many people may follow in your wake!

Cheers.

 

[JMyerz]

Thanks Herbie!

The first obstacle I see with the seating is the expresses rear seats do not fold! I'm not sure if I want to do a gaucho in the rear as it has to be able to hold our 1 year old safely in a car seat. If the guacho turns out not to be safe enough then I plan on ordering a OEM type seat from discount van that does fold.

Behind either setup I want to build a bed extension with storage underneath. Similar to the SMB 50 build.

I'll be able to seat 5 (including me) in the end. I'll still have an extra bench if needed to put in the middle for 3 more, but I don't see the need right now.

I hope the TCase works out too. When I looked at the Express it looks exactly the same as the Suburban / Silverado so we'll see.

:elkgrin:

 

[Herbie]

I agree that a Gaucho couch is probably not a good idea for a carseat. We have a 10-month old and I wouldn't strap her seat in sideways. Of course I also wouldn't subject an older kid to riding sideways either, but that's mostly due to my own childhood trauma of losing frequent Rock-Paper-Scissor bouts to decide who got to ride shotgun...

I think many of us agree that the SMB 50/Classic Westy layout is ideal for vans. T.Low and I tend to fall into the "Weekender" layout camp while others opt for forward cabinets, but either way there are a TON of people who seem to default into that layout. It just makes the most sense.

The DiscountVanTruck stuff looks to be good kit, but a bit more $$ than I wanted to spend, if possible. Also keep an eye on craigslist. (Maybe setup a google reader feed via Crazedlist.org). I was able to score a foldback seat/bed from a Dodge conversion van for $100. Turns out to be a perfect fit for my Astro! I was in the same boat, the Astro seats fold forward, which was less than ideal, so this was a great find. I'm sketching up a rack/bed extender that will go behind to make a sub-queensize bed.

What's the floor-to-ceiling height of the Express? One problem I'm running into on the Astro is that to keep a decent headroom for the seat/bed, I'm limited to the seat cushion about 16" off the floor of the van. This means the storage underneath the "bed extension" is limited to a similar height, which means I can't get my fridge underneath! With the extra length you have, you should be able to have a full-length bed without having to extend it right to the rear doors, which means you should have room for "tall" stuff in the back.

 

[JMyerz]

So the express seats do not fold in any direction, I was assuming they at least folded forward which would work perfect for my application. I was thinking of building the rear bed extender behind the rear seat, storage underneath, cushion on top. I was then planning to attach a separate cushion to the rear of the rear seat so when folded forward a queen sized bed is there.

But... the seat doesn't fold forward. A friend is a fabricator and we may goto the junkyard to find a seat with the folding brackets and do a little cutting and welding.

Not sure of the interior height as I don't get it until next week but I do know its much higher than both the westy and astro. I'm not worried in the least bit about head room and I'm 6'2".

All of this is of course speculation and idea brewing until I get this thing in my hands

J

 

[JMyerz]

It's official!

Today we took possession of the Van and we are very stoked! Got a little surf in right after and had some cervesas overlooking the PNW Ocean. Can't wait to get the interior built out over the next month or so...

Justin :sombrero:

 

[nbleak21]

Haha, Love it! What a great base for an Expo!

 

[T.Low]

Critical Mass

JDUde, you're gonna love that thing.

We are getting to the point where we need to have a west coast expo van get together; everything from SMBs, Tigers, Full sizers, Astro's, Westys, Syncros, Yotavans, Delicas, etc., on the southern Oregon Coast somewhere central next year. Every type of van needs to represent. (No, I'm not going to organize it!:Wow1

Or we can organize something like this: http://www.gowesty.com/picture_gallery.php?id=963

 

[rotor]

I really like the van! I think the weekender interior is one of the better layouts.

JDUde, you're gonna love that thing.

We are getting to the point where we need to have a west coast expo van get together; everything from SMBs, Tigers, Full sizers, Astro's, Westys, Syncros, Yotavans, Delicas, etc., on the southern Oregon Coast somewhere central next year. Every type of van needs to represent. (No, I'm not going to organize it!:Wow1

Or we can organize something like this: http://www.gowesty.com/picture_gallery.php?id=963

West coast expo van GT sounds good to me. who's going to organize it?