Well....I decided to completely build my next keeper

[drowssap]

So some of you have seen my semi build thread where I am rescuing 3 NBS's. 03 and 05 Tahoe and an 06 Yukon. Here is that thread! http://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/saving-a-few-nbsssss.98740/

The whole reason that I got into NBS's was not only because of the looks and build quality but quite honestly you get a great vehicle for the money these days and I have been clearing out the vehicles with big payments in favor of these great vehicles that I can pay cash for. Out of all of them I believe I like the Z71 best. I LOVE the way all NBS's look lowered but for my use I need a little ground clearance. I don't want to constantly chase vibrations and bad CV angles so I don't want to lift either which is why the Z fits perfectly. Ground clearance yet still retaining the sporty feel. BUT.....I have always loved the 2500's too and with our second kid arriving in Feb I think it's time to move onto longer wheelbase for one of our vehicles. Or at least this is what I am saying to convince my wife! My only problem is that the end result will be something that I think has never been attempted!

Here is the plan....I am going to purchase a 03-06 Yukon or Suburban....whatever as long as it is 4WD and 2500 chassis. I am going to purchase an 03-06 Escalade ESV and swap bodies. THEN.....I am going to purchase a 2500 quadrasteer 2500 donor and swap the system in.....then........THEN.....once that vehicle is completely dialed in.....I am going to do a LBZ / Allison swap! The swap will take me about 6 months to get to though only because I want whatever allison I can get my hands on to be rebuilt well. I also will be rebuilding whatever LBZ I get.

I am so damn excited about this that I can't sleep right now! I have spent about 25 hours the last 5 days figuring all of this out! The only missing piece is that I need to speak with Eric down at Duraburb to find out if this is even possible!

This might sound dumb but I may even swap a HD silverado front clip on it and I believe I may even be able to still use the Esky cladding / fender flare!

There really are not many pics of lifted Esky's out there but here is one that I believe will be the closest thing to what I envision! Also....who likes a thread without eye candy!

 

[PG01]

Can’t wait, im subbed and eating all the mf’in popcorn in this forum.....lol

 

[swathdiver]

You probably won't need to rebuild an LBZ, even with 300k miles on it. Hey Pete, pass one over!

 

[Rocket Man]

Why not, I'm in.

 

[PG01]

Why not, I'm in.

Diesels last forever....


Edit: unless you work with people like i do who beat them to death

 

[Doubeleive]

perk

 

[Tonyrodz]

Why not, I'm in.

X2

 

[drowssap]

Can’t wait, im subbed and eating all the mf’in popcorn in this forum.....lol

I shot a little coffee out of my nose after reading this! So far I may have located the 2500 chassis. I can find plenty of them but need it to be 4wd being that 2wd frames are pretty different. I want to just focus on grafting in the quadrasteer and not the 4wd system! The chassis that I found claims that it had frame damage. It could be due to a tweak or the truck could have been plowed into. I will be able to see it on Monday. I may have even found the Esky I want to build.

 

[adventurenali92]

This should be interesting.....

 

[Tonyrodz]

I shot a little coffee out of my nose after reading this! So far I may have located the 2500 chassis. I can find plenty of them but need it to be 4wd being that 2wd frames are pretty different. I want to just focus on grafting in the quadrasteer and not the 4wd system! The chassis that I found claims that it had frame damage. It could be due to a tweak or the truck could have been plowed into. I will be able to see it on Monday. I may have even found the Esky I want to build.

Coming along..........

 

[HiHoeSilver]

This is gonna be epic. How you gonna do it with your uppity neighbors?!

 

[drowssap]

Diesels last forever....


Edit: unless you work with people like i do who beat them to death

Yeah while I have a 2013 cummins currently....I am no where near an expert on the duramax motors. After all of the reading I found out that some gens have more issues than others. I learned that the LBZ takes boost the best but some may have problems with pistons and head gaskets. I just want to freshen up with better pistons...clean the cylinders and use new rings. New bearings everywhere and better headgaskets with ARP studs. Everything will be freshened up actually....both diffs as well as trans, transfer case and turbo. I want to also be around 500hp but I still need to find out what a great goal for torque should be. The idea is to build a $90,000 vehicle for under $20,000 and keep it for a very LONG LONG time! The only way I will be able to accomplish this is to be able to reassemble a second truck using all of the left over parts to re-sell. So donors have to be pretty decent as well. The only donor that will be the red headed step child will be the quadrasteer truck. They are much easier to find in 2WD so the idea is get it cheap enough so that I can just swap out all of the goodies and get all of my money back out on the re-sell.

 

[drowssap]

This is gonna be epic. How you gonna do it with your uppity neighbors?!

HAHAHA.....I will be renting a garage with a couple of lifts for a month. Not only is working on vehicles a big no no around here....I am already hated for driving a diesel truck. Worst part is that I return home from work at all hours of the night and you could hear a pin drop in the neighborhood after 9pm. You have to hear the noise of my cummins around here just at idle! They are going to flip when I come come with a second diesel that will have an open 5" exhaust!!!

 

[HiHoeSilver]

HAHAHA.....I will be renting a garage with a couple of lifts for a month. Not only is working on vehicles a big no no around here....I am already hated for driving a diesel truck. Worst part is that I return home from work at all hours of the night and you could hear a pin drop in the neighborhood after 9pm. You have to hear the noise of my cummins around here just at idle! They are going to flip when I come come with a second diesel that will have an open 5" exhaust!!!

You're a Maverick renegade.....

 

[drowssap]

To be honest....the main reason for considering a HD silvy front clip swap is because of the core support needed for all of the ancillaries up front. Rad, coolers and such. I won't be able to bolt up the Esky clip to it. I still may even do a hd sierra clip primarily because I was inspired by this truck:

Problem is that I really love the HD hood but just can't seem to convince myself to like it on a GMC front clip. I truly applaud all that have swapped them on correctly......I just don't like the look. I want to use the Esky because of all the goodies that come with them. Considering the price for them and what burbs and kons go for in price....they will all be pretty much equal so why not start off with the base that comes with all of the stuff that would cost me $1000-$2000 more to swap in.

 

[drowssap]

You're a Maverick renegade.....

 

[swathdiver]

The 2007 LBZ VIN code D is the best IMO. I think Duraburb sets them up for 500 horsepower and 1000 ft/lbs of torque.

Changes include:

• Cylinder block casting and machining changes strengthen the bottom of the cylinder bores to support increased power and torque
• Upgraded main bearing material increases durability
• Revised piston design lowers compression ratio to 16.8:1 from 17.5:1
• Piston pin bore diameter increased for increased strength
• Connecting rod “ I ” section is thicker for increased strength
• Cylinder heads revised to accommodate lower compression and reduced cylinder firing pressure
• Maximum injection pressure increased from 23,000 psi (1,585.8 bar) to more than 26,000 psi (1,792.6 bar)
• Fuel delivered via higher-pressure pump, fuel rails, distribution lines and all-new, seven-hole fuel injectors
• Fuel injectors spray directly onto glow plugs, providing faster, better-quality starts and more complete cold-start combustion for reduced emissions
• Improved glow plugs heat up faster through an independent controller
• Revised variable-geometry turbocharger is aerodynamically more efficient to help deliver smooth and immediate response and lower emissions
• Air induction system re-tuned to enhance quietness
• EGR has larger cooler to bring more exhaust into the system
• First application of new, 32-bit E35 controller, which adjusts and compensates for the fuel flow to bolster efficiency and reduce emissions

 

[drowssap]

The 2007 LBZ VIN code D is the best IMO. I think Duraburb sets them up for 500 horsepower and 1000 ft/lbs of torque.

Changes include:........

You just eliminated about 10 hours of research time for me! Thank you so much!

That is exactly what I want to build. A little more power but I want it to last for 500,000 miles!!

 

[swathdiver]

A friend has one and it's been rock solid reliable for over 200k miles so far. Bought it new in 2007, runs strong, gets 19 mpg around town if I remember right. I'm not yet ready to pull up alongside him in my Yukon! LOL

 

[drowssap]

A friend has one and it's been rock solid reliable for over 200k miles so far. Bought it new in 2007, runs strong, gets 19 mpg around town if I remember right. I'm not yet ready to pull up alongside him in my Yukon! LOL

I am hoping to achieve this kind of reliability if not more after the motor has been freshened up with better parts.