96' Hoe' Hualing Heavy.......

[Busted Knuckles]

hey is there anyone who has done some major mods to their Tahoes' for hauling heavy trailers . (42'- 38' trailer) ?
Does anyone the the spring rates or load rate of the front bars ?
I have a few ideas , I measured 1 ton 4x4 torsion bars , they are 54" , the Tahoe's are 52 1/2" ,the hex heads are same . There is that much "socket" left on the lower control arms . I could possibly use the 3/4 ton bars if they were up too the job (Nose Dive on stops) of stopping . The rear end will have to go . I thought a Rr. end from a Z71 with Discs in the rear . Then convert to High
3's or low4's. I'll be running 285/16"-17" tire and wheel .


I also mulling a Diesel (I have alot of money in it now and won't get it back)
So I'm looking at a few options for it , plus I just wan't to build .

T.D.R.

 

[h0tr0d]

The Technical forum is for Write-up's on Mods, and maintenance to your Tahoe or Yukon. If you have a problem you are trying to find an answer to please post it in the General Disscusion forum or the section that suits it best.

 

[Busted Knuckles]

Susp. Mod- 3/4T or 1T under Tahoe ?

The Technical forum is for Write-up's on Mods, and maintenance to your Tahoe or Yukon. If you have a problem you are trying to find an answer to please post it in the General Disscusion forum or the section that suits it best.

Thanks for the heads up . Any chance you can move it ?
This is a pretty Technical Job . Not a problem but a serious mod for my 96 Tahoe .
I was hoping to find someone that has done the conversion or made plans too .
Maybe a better title is in order .

 

[steamroller]

I'm guessing this is a 4 door since you mentioned the TB lengths, if you switch to the truck or suburban crossmember you can run the longer bars. Specs on the bars below. As far as springs go you could pick up a set of used3/4 or 1 ton leaf springs and build your own 'bastard pack' by tearing the pack apart and adding the ones that will fit below the main leaf. 14 bolt semi-floater rear is a bolt in, they came in both 6 and 8 lug. Just keep in mind you'll still be working with a 1/2 ton frame and don't overdo it


15048307-LH (code XK) (Max torque 4553)
15048308-RH (code XK) (Max torque 4553)

15048309-LH (code XL) (Max torque 4626)
15048310-RH (code XL) (Max torque 4626)

15712407-LH (code WX) (Max torque 4863)
15712408-RH (code WX) (Max torque 4863)

15048311-LH (code XM) (Max torque 5638)
15048312-RH (code XM) (Max torque 5638)

15058267-LH (code YH) (Max torque 5913)
15058268-RH (code YH) (Max torque 5913)

15712409-LH (code WY) (Max torque 5913)
15712410-RH (code WY) (Max torque 5913)

15528957-LH (code GG) (Max torque 6709)
15528958-RH (code GG) (Max torque 6709)

15712411-LH (code WZ) (Max torque 7267)
15712412-RH (code WZ) (Max torque 7267)

15528963-LH (code GK) (Max torque 8615)
15528964-RH (code GK) (Max torque 8615)

15528965-LH (code GL) (Max torque 8782)
15528966-RH (code GL) (Max torque 8782)

15732338-LH (code XG) (Max torque 9054)
15732339-RH (code XG) (Max torque 9054)

15528959-LH (code GH) (Max torque 7161)
15528960-RH (code GH) (Max torque 7161)

 

[Busted Knuckles]

Matt,
Wealth of Info ! Gives me alot to work with .
Yep, It's a four door . We have 6 dogs and if we need to leave in hurry ,they're my cargo .
We really wanted a 36-42 Travel Trailer , but,,(big but) is that I'd need to raise the body off the chassis and box the frame as far forward as possible then either replace and gusset the original x-members .
Major job . May be a while from the looks of it .
Really appreciate the help .
Steve

 

[steamroller]

No problem. The torsion bar crossmember swap is easy once you get the parts from a donor vehicle. The 4 doors use a 'dogbone' link to locate the crossmember whereas the trucks, 2 doors, and suburbans the crossmember bolts directly to the frame so it's alot easier to slide it back 2-3" and is a much stroner setup. I just realized I didn't post the specs for the 4 door torsion bars, mine has the RPO code 6YB and 7YB bars.

15988805-LH (code YB) (Max torque 1935)
15988806-RH (code YB) (Max torque 1935)

15528951-LH (code GC) (Max torque 1933)
15528952-RH (code GC) (Max torque 1933)

You can go to this website and enter in your VIN and it will pull up all the specs for your vehicle. You can also get exploded diagrams of every part of most GM vehicles by entering in your info starting at the left hand underneath the vehicles listing. It comes in real handy when you need part #'s or bolt sizes

http://www.compnine.com/vid.php

 

[Busted Knuckles]

RPO Holy Grail

Steamroller ,
Thanks for all that info .
I'm going to do a "re-stack" on the rear springs for now . Springrate is one monster I don't really understand . How can you tell how much spring you need ?
The Diesel conversion is out . I read on "Wiki" that the 6.2/6.5 had problems with the Mains web cracking (?-years) . Anyone else hear that ?

I'm on hold until after the 26th. waiting for new camber/caster bolt and eccentrics (Rt. upper arm at the rear was worn bad ) The price of one at the dealer , summit had a full set for about 5.00 more .
I'm wanting it done and back on the road . Next is tires ...
to get this thing back on the road .

Just need more torque , 383 ???
Yess.. Another thread

 

[steamroller]

I'm going to do a "re-stack" on the rear springs for now . Springrate is one monster I don't really understand . How can you tell how much spring you need ?

Wish I could give you a good answer but I don't have one other than trial and error. I know 95% of the 4 doors I've seen (including mine) suffer from the sagging rear syndrome without any weight on them so I took some leaves out of an 85 S10 Blazer pack that my brother had dropped to get mine level.

More torque? Big block gets my vote, shouldnt be very complicated since they were an option for the trucks and 'burbs. Fuel mileage would be the only negative. I've seen a few Cummins swaps as well

 

[Busted Knuckles]

I hear you about "Butt Draggin' Syndrome" Mine will with a 16' trailer and a 1700 lb. load . I also thought about "Coil Overs' or an Air Ride System . They're about the same price as new springs .
These OEM springs on my rig have 187K rough miles . I found rear springs for around $400.00 a pair at Summit with several different rates and lifts availeable .
Gotta get my front end rebuilt and aligned . And find some good tires !
We have to run E Load Range tires just to keep them more than a year .

What years of the 14 bolt SF'rs came with disc brakes ? I may have a Tru-Trac for offer . That's only downside to upgrading the rear end when I find one . It's new , less than 10k on it .

Thought about a Big Block but like you say they're "Hogs". No matter how it's done the tranny will need to be addressed .

I like that Cummins Idea ! I like all that torque down low .

 

[CLC]

towing 42ft trailer with A TAHOE

Just my own opinion I think this is wildy unsafe and I think you should look up the specs on your hoe and find out whats safe to be rolling down the freeway , just by hearing the size of that travel trailer being 42t you are way over the GVWRon that truck just my own thoughts any one agree

 

[Busted Knuckles]

Just my own opinion I think this is wildy unsafe and I think you should look up the specs on your hoe and find out whats safe to be rolling down the freeway , just by hearing the size of that travel trailer being 42t you are way over the GVWRon that truck just my own thoughts any one agree

You may have misunderstood about the trailer it's 38-42 ft. long . I don't have weight specs , depends on slide-outs . Possibly 7 ton ?
I've restored classic cars for about 25 years . Boxed frames etc . These jobs were all frame-offs or ground-ups . Welding ,plating ,gusseting etc. was all part of it . Other than all the electrical ,A/C,fuel lines , brake lines being a P.I.T.A. lifting a a body is not that hard as long as you kinda know what to expect far as clearences and blocking .

 

[newmarketeod]

I can tell you first hand, towing my 16' car trailer with my jeep loaded on (Approx 7400 lbs) you will not enjoy it.
I have a 1998 Tahoe 4 door on LT285s and 3.73 gears. Truck sits about 3 inches above stock in the front and 2 in the rear. Has true dual exhaust, K and N intake, Blackbear tune and HUGE trans cooler (the biggest that summit sells). The truck is okay powerwise for that load, although at any speed over 65 I went from 10 MPGs to 6-7 MPGs. The big issue is the small size of the truck. The Tahoe is a very short vehicle and could easily be pushed around by a large trailer, especially the length you are talking. It is not too bad in normal driving conditions but in an emergency, especially on the freeway, the massive size of your trailer to the small size of your Tahoe could make for a bad day.

 

[Busted Knuckles]

Haulin Heavy **'

Thanks for the Heads-Up ! I've been working on the **' hard as well as packing for the first trip back to Nevada . I'll be going over my mosted hated route- I-40 out to Kingman to I-15 then up thru Vegas and I-95 (Going I-70/I-80 is too far north north this time of year) .
I worked Saturday on it for 13 hours straight . fixed several exhaust leaks , put on a "Painless" headlight converter (I like to drive at night), new heater motor/wiring, Helwig Overload Springs . I have to install the B/M trans controller. and the electronic brake control unit . I'm sure I'll have a few more things to do to the **' before I'm satisfied it's ready . I've wrapped up another $1500.00 in all of this .
I picked up a set of 265/75-16 Goodyear Wrangler Authority 10 plys 2weeks ago . They're nice tires and getting them from Wally-World I'll have a nation wide warranty .
As far as the trailer, I've redecked it with pressure treated 2"x10"'s then bolted them down to the cross beams before/after the axles , also rewired it for about the 3-4 time (keep snagging the wires on brush etc) . Got the electric brakes working but not yet wired to the Pig-Tail .
I also got a Curt Trunnion style load equalizer and a Curt anti-sway unit . Winds out in the desert are vicious .
I dunno if you've ever made a trip out there but it can be a ***** even in good weather .Flagstaff,AZ. is going to be tricky (it's 6900' alt.) and one helluva drop coming out . I've got 2 sets of chains for the **' and I think a set for the trailer . The new cross-over at Hoover Dam just opened So I won't have to fight that monster of switchbcks and the drop/climb out of it .
I'll have a gas air compressor / and tools set at the door of the trailer just in case I run into "Murphy's Law" This about the 6th. trip in 12 years on I-40 and it's a rough POS of a hi-way , but staying south is good bet on traveling in better weather . So , I figure a bit of "over-kill" on the suspension etc. is worth it .
Right now I'm ripping about 300 CD's and getting a 32GB. USB flash drive for my stereo . Can't handle a run like that without Tunes and Coffee !
Can't wait !!!!!!!! Gettin' back to all that BLM Land to 4-wheel on back there is going to be great !!!!!!!!!!

Steve
"The Desert Rat"