88GMCtruck's never ending 88 GMC build thread

[88gmctruck]

Quick little mod. I used to have "SS-350" door emblems on the truck. When I swapped the 454 in I went back to the "GMC1500" originals. Well I recently picked up a set of "454-SS" emblems. I want something that helps indicate it's not your average 350 powered pickup a little moreso.

Before:

After:

I do wish they were all silver like my "SS-350" emblems were. I'm also toying with the idea of hacking these and my "GMC1500" emblems up to say "454GMC".

 

[btfarm]

I do wish they were all silver like my "SS-350" emblems were. I'm also toying with the idea of hacking these and my "GMC1500" emblems up to say "454GMC".

Nice idea :thumbsup:

 

[DieselSlug]

Cool! I like the subtle mods.

Im swapping a 5.8L in my 89 mustang. It has the 5.0 plaque on it currently. I bought a set of 5.8 plaques off ebay to put on the fenders.

 

[trouttrooper]

One of the subtle mods I did to mine thanks to ebay.

Came out of the store a month ago and saw a guy looking intently at my truck. Like everyone else here would have been, I was tad concerned something had happened. I hit the remote unlock button which made him turn around and see me. He pointed at the sticker and said "what's the 496 stand for?". I told him and his eyes got as big as dinner plates. He said he'd never knew they put that big of an engine in those trucks.

:thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[btfarm]

View attachment 36893

One of the subtle mods I did to mine thanks to ebay.

Came out of the store a month ago and saw a guy looking intently at my truck. Like everyone else here would have been, I was tad concerned something had happened. I hit the remote unlock button which made him turn around and see me. He pointed at the sticker and said "what's the 496 stand for?". I told him and his eyes got as big as dinner plates. He said he'd never knew they put that big of an engine in those trucks.

Guy in town has a white one with that set of 496 badges. I commented to him how much I like it and he mumbled something about DMax guys are A-holes. :dunno: must'a been a bad day for him. I would have had those on my '03 if they were available. Very cool!

 

[88gmctruck]

View attachment 36893

One of the subtle mods I did to mine thanks to ebay.

Came out of the store a month ago and saw a guy looking intently at my truck. Like everyone else here would have been, I was tad concerned something had happened. I hit the remote unlock button which made him turn around and see me. He pointed at the sticker and said "what's the 496 stand for?". I told him and his eyes got as big as dinner plates. He said he'd never knew they put that big of an engine in those trucks.

:thumbsup::thumbsup:

I remember checking yours out the last time I saw your truck. I honestly wish GM made a 8.1L/Allison emblem factory. Would have been awesome.

 

[88gmctruck]

Whats this?

Oh yeah. New bedsides! Came from a 95 Silverado, they are in perfect shape, can't find any damage on them!

 

[88gmctruck]

Ok, I finally got off my lazy bum and cleaned, painted and installed the XJ shaft. While I had the original shaft out I also re-set (tightened) the steering box pre-load, and adjusted the over center.

Truck has much better steering once again. Much more responsive. It still feels like it's on balloons (35s) but there is no way around that.....

 

[btfarm]

There is DIRT under your hood... :nonod:





:hihi: J/K

 

[88gmctruck]

The truck is filthy right now from winter. I'm a little pissed, they started using salt on our passes this year... So many things rusted.

Sent from my TBI 454 powered android device.

 

[88gmctruck]

Installed a new Delco fuel cap with tether. I had my original cap from 88 still. About a month ago I was helping a friend move, ended up loosing the cap at the gas station (was more concerned with the snow on the pass and a clean windshield). So, I replaced it with another OEM cap from the boneyard, ended up loosing it on my last camping trip...... So ended up getting this year correct cap with tether.

 

[Ed HD]

Now we see what happens when projects boil to an end....

 

[88gmctruck]

:lol: nope, this truck is a forever project, lots on the books with it.

Nothing to report though, except that it's parked in the garage right now. Just bought my first house, packing and moving for the next while.

 

[Ed HD]

LOL. Just what happens during the lulls between big projects, lol.

 

[88gmctruck]

The red truck is sad. It's been put into serious storage. At least it's out of the weather now.

Due to some financial things it might be in here awhile.....

 

[88gmctruck]

Figured it may be time for a status update.

The transmission in the 02 GMC failed (for those who didn't hear in my dually thread). I parked it in the shed awhile since I'm not in the mood to pull the transmission right now. That means the 88 came out and I've driven it around a little. Thinking forward, I'm fairly certain I'm going to be selling the 02, and putting a chunk of the money into the 88. I've been formulating a plan for some time now. So, here it goes, more or less in order.

Phase 1
- New custom front springs, 4" rear lift springs (ditch the blocks), new shocks all the way around.
- Remove the Detroit locker. This would go hand in hang with replacing the axle...
- Either rebuild the 14FF without the detroit, swap to a van 14FF (width to match the front), or swap back to a 14SF and 6-lug. In all cases, install a traction aid and disc brakes.
- The primary reason to swap BACK to 6-lug, is the 8-lug D44 front is about 3" wider overall and the tires stick out farther than I'd like. Alternative would be to run factory PY0 wheels with less offset.
- Pull body off the frame. Clean/Paint everything.
- Install 34 gallon fuel tank in place of 26 gallon.
- Revisit the exhaust. Install headers. Replace mufflers with slightly quieter Magnaflow or Borla. Current Magnaflows are too loud.
- Rebuild steering box, and all associated components.
- Rebuild transfercase.
- New motor & transmission mounts. Reinstall cab with new body mounts.
- New tires.

At this point, the truck could be re-assembled and would be again, useable. Depending on the status of space/time/money, it would be driven or I would skip right to Phase 2.
- Gut interior. Convert to Lt. Smoke or Neutral 97+ dash and all interior electronics.
- Convert engine to MPFI with a factory Vortec 454 intake & LS1 injectors. Convert to 411 PCM
- Replace/repair body panels. Passenger door needs replaced, as do both bedsides. Repair damaged cab corner.
- Paint.

 

[trouttrooper]

And again......jealous.

I replaced the batteries in my kids spiderman toy with higher quality name brand batteries. About the extent of my upgrading things lately

 

[88gmctruck]

Well, considering I will be selling a truck to fund this truck is a whole different bag of worms. If I keep the 02 the going will be much, much slower.

 

[88gmctruck]

"I'm baaaaaaaaaaaack"


Ok, well I've never left. But time for a bit of an update. As many of you know based on this tread, I have been formulating a plan to re-build the truck for a long time. Some of you may have caught this in my dually's build, but part of my plan was me selling my 02 GMC a month or so back. I hardly used it, and it was basically holding me back in the time/space/money department from concentrating on the 88. It's sale though prompted this parts rig: 98 K2500 Suburban.

If you didn't read it in my dually thread, I picked this up "not running right" for $700. 285k on the clock and a fairly trashed interior, it was exactly what I wanted for parts - 97+, 454, 4L80E, 14FF (w/4.10s and a G80), Black body and grey interior. It's actually going to be parted into multiple vehicles (engine going to a friend, trans to another, driver's door and fender onto the dually) but many things will be used on the 88. The goal here is to swap the entire truck over to the 98 interior, wiring, MPFI and all engine accessories. I'm going to put a 0411 in it as well. Anyway, after tinkering with it some It ended up being a loose dist. cap, 3 unplugged plug wires and a bad MAF, so it actually runs fine.

Last night I also picked up a set of really, really good condition PY0 wheels for $100, i'm considering running them on the truck and keeping it 8-lug.

So, here I go as I start to actually rebuild the truck. Progress might be slower to start as I collect parts, and eventually tear the suburban up. Having a single 2-car garage is going to limit how long it can be apart, so this might happen in stages. But, here is the overall goal:

-Rebuild everything that needs it.....
-Convert engine to full vortec 454 injection, wiring, and accessories. Convert AC to Sanden and R134a. 0411 PCM swap.
-Convert interior to full 98 dash/doors/etc.
-Pull bed, cab, etc. New springs/shocks/engine mounts. Undercoat frame. Install 98 fuel tank and pump.
-Convert NV4500 top over to newer style.
-Decide between 6-lug or 8-lug. Swap rear axle with either 14SF or 14FF. Get rid of the CUCV axle because the 13" drums suck and the detroit locker does as well.
-Replace bedsides, both doors. Eventually repaint.

There you have it. I'm going to be bouncing ideas around and making a good game plan to accomplish this. The goal is to fix a bunch of issues and eventually make this into a more or less restored nice truck to drive around, and lightly offroad (where it wont get scratched to hell).

For record, as she shits now, from one of my recent summer drive's with the truck.

 

[Ed HD]

Awesome. I look forward to seeing this!