Project Trail Rig:

[XplorerKid]

Ok so i come home yesterday after putting the fan through the radiator and all of this right, so me and my dad are talking, and hes like if you are really serious abou offroading, i can have the 1984 S-10 Blazer. Hes like we can drop a V-8 in and all this. So heres my Question? Should i buidl this 1984 S-10 Blazer up as my trial rig? Plans i have for it-

-Replace Front and rear Axles, the front is IFS, and i bet the Rear Axle is pretty Weak
- Rip all interior out, Herc where the carpet is
-2 bucket seat up front
-Chevy 350, 700R4, dont know bout a transfercase
-Custom Camo Paint
-Between 35- 38" tires

Ok so axles im thinking 9" Rear or soemthing thats chevy and comparable, Front i dont know, maybe a 44? or what is chevy and comparible?

Im open to all suggestions.....

And i would love to do this to the X, but i think ill keep it as my DD and Spend all the time i need on this........ But till than, ill keep wheeling the Explorer

 

[eXplorerGurl]

I say go for it!!!!!!



w/e u want to do

Luv ya,

Jessica

 

[boominXplorer]

Hey kid, can i get your g/f when your done with her? J/K but man I wish mine would let me spend money on trucks and spend time with them more than I have to with her.

 

[410Fortune]

nothing wrong with modding that truck for trail use.
Chevy's are more "Swap" friendly, everything bolts to everything else with a Chevy.


I still say build the Ford but what are you gonna do, it's free right and bonus = father and son project....

 

[XplorerKid]

well heres soem old pics of it, but this is what it still looks like........

 

[XplorerKid]

Thinking of cutting the rear portion of the roff/windows type deal off, and Putting a Tarp style roof, liek the Jeeps run...... what yall think?

 

[dman726749]

definetly do some metal choping, i am thinking soemthing like msupertec has on his x. soild axles and big ole rubbers and ya cant go wrong.

 

[eXplorerGurl]

Originally posted by boominXplorer
Hey kid, can i get your g/f when your done with her? J/K but man I wish mine would let me spend money on trucks and spend time with them more than I have to with her.

srry i am w/ caleb forever or until he breaks up w/ me
i still haven't got to ride in his explorer yet but that might change very soon (i hope) hint hint caleb

ok well c ya

Jessica

 

[XplorerKid]

Originally posted by eXplorerGurl
srry i am w/ caleb forever or until he breaks up w/ me
i still haven't got to ride in his explorer yet but that might change very soon (i hope) hint hint caleb

ok well c ya

Jessica

NEVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(will you be able to ride)

anyways right now i dont want to drive it more than i have to......

 

[eXplorerGurl]

y do u always say never?

 

[james t]

since i have done a 350 in an S10 swap, and seem to be the ******* child forum chevy guy, here are my thoughts-

engine swap labor
easy as can be. get the motor mounts and headers and bolt it in. other than it looking like it was crammed in there, it will fit like a glove. jegs and summit both have the motor mounts/headers in a cheap kit form.

cooling
you might wanna re-think the 350 idea if its gonna be a trail rig and go with a 4.3. just about every SBC in an Struck out there runs at the limits of the cooling system on the street. i would think cooling will become a MAJOR headache on the trails. problem is you cant fit a big enough radiator up front, even 4 core. since its a trail rig, cut the top off and run the radiator rear mounted w/ electric fans. this will solve these issues.

axles
best bet would be to go full width. sure, you could use D44/9" out of an EB, but Ford fronts are driver side diffy and Chevy is passenger side. what are you gonna do with the front driveshaft? yes, you could have the front re-tubed but i assume this is gonna be a budget trail rig. find an old 70's fullsize chevy truck. it will be D44 front and 12 bolt rear w/ 6 lug wheels. use those axles.

tranny
if you can find an R4 cheap, then go for it. but dont discount the idea of a T350. if its a trail rig, who cares about overdrive?

firewall
i think we had to beat a dent in the firewall to get to the distributer, but i cant remember.

basically, once you cut off the horrible Struck IFS, weak 7.5" rear, and throw the 2.8 V6 in the trash (most horrible V6 ever made by anyone) you will be good to go. above all else, remember you WILL have cooling issues if its gonna be a trail rig. the only way around it
is rear radiator. dont you dare even start it without a temp guage hooked up.

 

[Silverblade]

I agree with the TH350 instead of the 700R4 my buddy just blew his 700R4 and only has a 305 not a 350, apparently they are crap. My bro used to run a turbo 400 until he put in an sm465(4 speed manual) and it was strong.

Also my friend up the street has a K5 and his only top for it when it isnt convertable is the tarp top with the slant and it looks really nice.

Sand off the rust and spray bomb it one color and you will have a nice trail rig

 

[EBInterceptor]

Less questions and more work! I'm really curious how this thing is going to pan out. I think a solid color would be better than the camo...I even like the primer look of vehicles, but that is me. Definately chop it to give it a nice custom look.

Nice to see happy couples on the site. I actually had a girlfriend who would never let me drive her car (1999 Mercury Cougar)....but other people drove it. Finally she let me take it out and I pushed it to 115. To be honest I wasn't impressed, I got to drive another girl's special edition Cougar before. When you get to around 100 the steering wheel shook and her rotors were warped which made it interesting slowing down from that speed.