Offroad-Adventure-Travel.com Suburban Build

[Colorado Ron]

No suspension mods. But it was tired so this last trip to Baja, the suspension gave up the ghost. Instead of new shocks and rebuild, I just went D60 due to the weight of the cummins.

They did make non turbo 6.5s. If your interested Im selling the 6.5turbo out of this suburban and the brand new 4l80 for it.

Heres the link

 

[Ranger Steve]

amazing build sir...cant wait to see it with the cummins and SAS

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Same here, nice work Ron... I have a NV5600 going in my FJ55, one big mutha... Some transmission...

 

[brut4s]

Hello,
I don't know if you are past this point or not, or if you already know about Avalanche engineering or not but one of their guy's did a 'burban like this and they now offer a kit to swap the cummins to your truck.check it out.It was in peterson's 4 wheeldrive a couple of years ago.


Avalanche Engineering - (970)884-7716 - Extreme 4-wheeling parts and ...
Tube frames and mega-travel suspensions for off-road performance vehicles. ... website by : military.htm buggies.html industrial.htm cummins_engine_conversions. ...
www.avalancheengineering.com

 

[Colorado Ron]

Thanks for the heads up. We are past that point now and everything was fabbed in house. We are now just bolting things back together and tackling the wiring. You can see a few "cheater photos" on my blog at www.coloradoron.com

 

[Super Doody]

Nice build up and design. Whats the purpose of the exo? Is it to increase load capacity for the roof rack or rock/roller over protection?

 

[mrstang01]

I've been watching this too, I've got a K1500 Burb I'm building for Expo type travel. Do you have any details on how you wired your roof rack for lights? Also, any update on the Cummins swap? When the 350 goes in mine, I'd like to upgrade to the 3/4 ton running gear.

Michael

 

[Colorado Ron]

Sorry for the super slow updates. I had the truck at a shop that took ALOT longer than originally promised. It still wasnt done, so I pulled it out and took somewhere else to get finished up. I want to keep this post positive, so I wont go into the details! :violent-smiley-031:

Anyway, the drivetrain is in. Just waiting on wiring it all up. We are going over our options today. The exo cage is more for sheetmetal protection and light roll. No, it wont hold up to 50 rolls down a hill. But it should be more than fine for a flop. It also increased roof rack possibilities.

The wiring for all the lights where gathered to one location. A 1 inch hole was cut in the roof and the wires fed thru. It was then sealed with marine grade sealant. The switches for all the lights are in a switch panel mounted in the roof mounted center console, like so:

I set it up so I can turn lights on in any direction. Front, either side, rear, or any corner. Or 360 degree light for a mile!:088:

 

[jingram]

Are those Checkers/Schucks HIDs on the rack? They have the red ring so just curious? I have a pair that I picked up for $79 a piece from them a year or so ago now and they have been awesome! One of those killer deals listed out on IH8Mud and then coupons pop up... well you get the picture. Anyway, I never see anybody who has them, so just curious.

Jack

 

[Colorado Ron]

Yep! There was a posting here about the same time it was on IH8Mud. I saw that and jumped on them. You should have seen the ladies faces when I asked for ten!HAHA.:smileeek:

 

[jingram]

LOL, ten?! Nice! How have they been working out for you so far? I keep telling myself I need to paint the red ring to make them less "blingy", but still haven't bothered.

 

[xjames]

I know you have heard this before but, WOW, awesome build! I am wondering how you like the Super Swamper SSRs? I am looking at a set and haven't seen many people using them. I imagine they perform perfectly, they are Super Swampers after all. How are they wearing? How many miles on them and how much tread left? Any regrets?

 

[pete.wilson]

Hey

Colorado Ron,

I see your moving to southern MO. if your coming through my part of Kansas, stop by in Ottawa for a visit, especially if your bringing that sweeeeet looking Burb. There are quite a few bigfoot reports down in that part of southern MO. if you see one, give me a buzz. Good luck with the burb build and the move.

Pete Wilson
Kansas Bigfoot Investigations
Bigfootpass@Yahoo.com

 

[Colorado Ron]

Thanks for the positive feedback. The swampers work great! I havent put enough miles on the SSRs to know for sure on the tread depth, since its been under the knife for so long. But Ive used these before under a different rig, and loved the life I got out of them. As far as Im concerned, these are the best all around expedition tire out there. Not so loud on the rode. Serious tread, for when it gets thick.

 

[suburbanjo]

Your Wheels

Nice looking rig. I'm looking at a 1997 suburban 1500 4x4 today. I'm intending to put modestly taller tires on it for superior snow and general all purpose traction.

I'm a big fan of maximizing the fender wells. I don't like disproportionate lifts. Did you have to modify your fender wells or do a lift to fit your wheels? I like your wheels. Don't know how big I can go and/or if I need to do a 2-3 inch lift where would I go. I really don't want to spend over 500-1000 dollars.