2002 ZR2 Build up

sodnahue862002

New Member
Joined
Jan 31, 2009
Location
Rock Hill SC
well hello NC4x4, today was a sad day but a happy day, in short was working on my rig fixing the rear axle and went for the first rid and it locked up and trashed the rear end, then to top that i took the rear drive shaft out to limp it back to the house and all i was doing was dragging the rear tires, and destroy the cv axle on the passenger side. So got it towed to the house and sat down and think, and the only thing that i can come up with is to take my cab and motor and drop it down on a k5 frame and drive train.
so that is going to be the build, 2002 ZR2 S10 on an 80s straight axle k5. To start im going to get a blazer that a friend has and take out the motor and give that to Bama ( a local friend and nc4x4 member). then we are going to take the body off the k5 and clean up the frame and all the suspension, and leave the tranny and transfer case.
Then we need to roll that frame out and roll in the zr2. We are going to need to use the motor and the body. motor is going to be the 4.3 untill I can get up the funds for a 350.
there will be things that we are going to run into im sure but should not be to bad relocate body mounts and extend steering shaft and some other things.
I will keep eveyone posted on how everything goes and im going to start a photo bucket account so everyone can see whats up.
look forward to everyone's opinions and advice and hope to get a nice 4x4 rig out of this screw up.
 
Ok so day 2 brought some knowledge from doing alot of reading and going to the local junk yard i believe that the frame that i need to use is from a suburban. I would like to find a complete set-up that the body is trashed but i really dont think that is going to work out to well. so i think next weekend or so im going to go and start the process of taking every thing off the suburban at the junk yard.

The reason im thinking of using the suburban frame is because it has the closest wheel base to my truck. my body is set-up on a 122.9 inch wheelbase, the suburban has a 129inch base. i can get all the other frames at this junk yard for the same price but i think as far as to get my cab to fit down on a full size frame.

If anyone can get me frame measurements for full size truck frams i would greatly appreciate it. thanks everyone and will keep you up with the build
 
i do not feel confident to set up sfa swap that will be straight and correct. 2nd i want to get away from driver side drop chain transfer cases, and just try to make the truck simple like good old school chevy. i would like to have a daily driver that is set up correctly. and in the future i believe that having a full size frame is the best rout for upgrades and dependability
 
wow! not to knock your idea (its been done, no question), but an SAS would be a lot less work IMO. Is your zr2 a 5 speed? swapping the chain drive case shouldnt be too big of a deal either. Dont they use an NV3550 (5 speed) or a 4L60e (auto)? The full size chevy frames are not the best, they are known for flexing and w/o proper bracing and such the frame will break at the steering box from the stress of tires 35" and larger. I personally would do a bit more research before starting this project. If your truck runs fine now I would try to keep it that way. It will end up costing you more down the road to do this over an SAS. If you are determined to do a frame swap I would look at doing a toyota frame. Find an IFS X-cab 86-95 frame and do that. There are many SAS kits available for these frames and are pretty hard not to get right. They come with alignment jigs and everything. Plus I would venture to say that the toy frame is stronger than the FS chevy frame, they are fully boxed (opposed to C-channel). I have read that the hi-lux frame is rated at 1 ton cap. over seas and i dont think they are much, if any, different than what we have stateside. Sounds like your on the right track to having a nice rig just consider all your options before you start tearing things apart, and always make yourself a price list of EVERYTHING you will need to complete the project then add 20% for unknowns. good luck either way...:beer: -J
 
another option is this: If you like the old simple chevys then just do that, get an old simple chevy. You mentioned a blazer, pick up that blazer, get it running and viola. Build it as you get time to have fun with and in the mean time just fix the zr2. Lets see, you have a busted rear axle and front CV shaft. You should be able to pick up a used 10 bolt from an s10 for no more than 200$ (should be much less) and a re-man CV shaft from your favorite parts store for around 100$. With a chiltons manual you should be able to do those repairs yourself and you'd be rolling again. The reason I say this is b/c theres really nothing simple about a cab swap and retro fitting a vortec fuel injection into an old truck. Again its just an option...
 
the frame he has now is fully boxed. :flipoff2: also i don't see him busting a rear axle any time soon.

I think you should join ZR2USA.com. you are really underestimating your ZR2... just my .02 cent

just to give you a idea of some rigs with ZR2 frames..


ai30.photobucket.com_albums_c323_DLWhitley1_Harlan10_08Randi020.jpg


ai30.photobucket.com_albums_c323_DLWhitley1_eb6.jpg


pics048.jpg



ok i'm done for now..
 
the OP says in the first two sentences that the rear end went out thats the whole point of him wanting to do all this...but I didnt know that about the frame. so yeah just roll w/ it...I'm sure there is someone on the zr2 forum that makes a nice SAS kit that is easy to install.
 
ok the whole deal with my truck is i still owe 8400 on it and i do not have the money to just let it sit and keep insurance on it and get another truck to drive and put insurance on it, and it was in a wreck little under a year ago, the insurance "fixed" every thing but was not done correctly. the front end alignment has been messed up and the tires have worn really bad. when the rear broke like i said I took out the rear drive shaft the try to get it back on front wheel drive. while doing that the cv axle broke, and i feel strongly that the upper and lower a-arms bent some how cause the driver side tire is straight and the passenger side is turned in a good bit. so all that tells me that my frame might be bent from the wreck. and now i have to replace all the IFS stuff as far a suspension. I feel that even if i do replace all that i will still have the tire issue cause of the frame. i have been a member of zr2usa.com for years now and for some reason i can not post on the site. i have read alot on there but can not find anything on frame swap. and i have not seen any kits for SFA made they are all home built and very nicely done at that. I feel that the easyist way for me my tools and my knowledge is to take a running full size 4x4 and put my body on it. Even if the motor is blown i can put my 4.3 anywhere a 305, 350, 400 goes because it is the same block with the front 2 cylinders cut off. please keep the suggestions coming.
 
If you do a SAS with either leafs or coils/coilovers on your current truck, youll be happier, and itll require less work...

I think that alot of the issues you just discussed could be fixed with a SAS as long as you made sure all your measurements are right before installing it... Also I think there is going to be alot of headaches trying to DD a truck with a body swap, and making sure that everything is done right and safe... Also, I forsee there constantly being small things that will come up, that youll haveto deal with because of the swap...

Also, you can stay DSD without a chain drive case, or you could put a PSD case in and modify everything for that... dana 300 with a different input might work, for example...
 
Well if you owe 8400$ on the truck then youre in kind of a tight spot. For me, I would try to get out as economically as possible while fixing the problem correctly. You think the frame is bent, but it will not cost too much to be sure. Take it to a shop who has a frame jig and have it checked. If its found to be straight then I would still persue the SAS. I realize what a 4.3 is and that it will "bolt" where other small blocks have been, but that is just a scratch on the surface. getting it to run is a whole other ball game. As far as that goes, why not just find another s10 frame? I looked for about 5 min on the
zr2usa.com and found this...http://www.zr2usa.com/mboard/index.php?showtopic=28769&st=220
looks like this guy is offering a nice kit that allows you to use a TJ axle (or an aftermarket TJ replacement) and they also offer a bracket kit to allow use of any other d-drop axle. So the way i interpret that is that if you had a wagggy d44 and one of the aftermarket braket kits offered to retro fit it into a TJ then it would work in this application. That would be pretty sweet. Also you can buy a brand new Rubicon D44 from mopar for around $1500 and that comes with your choice of gears down to 4:88 and an electric locker. Coupled w/ say an appropriately wide (WMS-WMS) toyota v6 rear, ford 9", dana 60 rear then you would be ridin' dirty with a truck that would not be as shady insurance wise and just better overall IMO. "IF" it were me (pending the frame is straight or replacing it w/ a straight s10 one) I would go this route. I would find a waggy 44 front and an IFS Toy v6 rear and use those. Both can be had for around the 200 ea. mark and the toy rear comes w/ 4:10s stock. I would then buy an aftermarket bracket kit for the front that would let me bolt it into a TJ, then buy this guys SAS kit. With the stock springs in the rear, now sprung over, you should be sitting about right for 35's, which is about where you would want to be strength wise for the axles. For drive shafts, jess at high angle sells T-case flanges that will allow you to use Toyota drivelines (you can also get a pinion flange for the D44). As far as the T-case goes I think those trucks use a np241 which is really a pretty good case, but if your truck is an auto you should be able to run pretty much what ever you like as there are plenty of adapters offered for the 4L60e (probbly the nv3550 too). There you have it...take it for what its worth...haha. :wheel:
 
yes that truck has a small block in it too and probly a carb. I have seen plenty s trucks on full size frames, that dosent mean that its the most prudent thing to do. there is one here in my home town on 3/4 tons for 6500$ Its an 80's x-cab very similar to the one you posted, that is still much different than an 02 zr2. But we have all been where you are at one point or another, sometimes its takes growing pains to learn. Just like anything else i guess. good luck man :beer:
 
ncgamedog if you would be so kind and if you got the time could you see what frame is under it and could you get any pics, if not please let me know where it is located and ill try to make it that way, thanks bud
 
not sure what your asking?? about the truck here? If so I'll ride by where it was sitting a month ago on the way home. I doubt its still there, but if it is i'll get the number and pass it along too you.
 
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