New Project (S15 Jimmy)

[Zimnij Volk]

Well, at long last I got myself a new truck. I really had my heart set on another old Suburban, but the situation called for a new vehicle, and fast. Lucky for me, I came across this little gem. No, it's not mint, but for $550, I really can't complain.



Knowing me, I can't wait to dig into it. I've got a lot of things to clean up on it, but overall it's looking pretty well maintained, minus the fact that it's loud enough to make a dragster cringe. I chose the 4 door model because of one crucial fact. It's easier to take a baby in and out. The only 2 door vehicle I'd buy would be a full-sized Blazer or Jimmy (Or Ramcharger if I could find one). I've had my fill of trying to get into the backs of cars. Getting into the back of an SUV I'd be able to do, purely for the fact I could stand up to do it...

I've heard that the small S10/S15 vehicles have a pretty good reputation for being tough and reliable, however I haven't seen many used for Expo, and I'm a bit curious why that is.

I'm thinking of a relatively mild build, hoping to fit some 33" BFG ATs under it with a minimal lift. Does anyone know how wide you can go with a set of 33's on a S10/S15? The 33x9.5 I saw on one just look really skinny.

Now for the pictures:

Not too bad of rust for a WI native vehicle...



Could use a new center console, or just a new hinge. Depends if I can find a better use for the space...



If anyone has some ideas for building on the backseat but making it removable for putting a baby seat in when we need it, I'm all ears.



Kinda a crappy picture, but looks like space is going to be one commodity that will be in very short supply...



Found this nifty little built-in shelf under the dash. Not quite sure what to do with it yet.



So today I finally got the chance to take a look under it more in-depth. (It was one of those weeks last week) Found out why it's so loud. Not only does it need a new muffler, it doesn't even have one at the moment. After where the pipes join together, the pipe ends. Further down the line, the part I thought was the most amusing, the final bracket is still holding the end of the tail pipe. There's a big gap of nothing in between. No cat, no muffler, no pipe to speak of. So it looks like I have my first real step here.



Input, questions, etc. welcome. Helps get the creative juices flowing. :elkgrin:

 

[blaz]

First thing I would do is see what gear ratio and motor it has. If it has a 4.3L motor and 3.73 gears then you will be fine with 33's. If it has a 2putt8 and 3.08 gears then 31's would be the max I would go. I have been looking @ 32's for my 2nd gen blazer. I will see what the future holds because the 31's I currently have are performing well. 3" body lift on the first gen blazers usually clear 31's. If you want to go bigger there is a 2.5" lift from rough country that just came out. Lots of research before each mod will keep you and your bank account happy.

GoodPost up questions and of course pics of the mods!

Good Luck,
Paul.

 

[whistle pig]

Nice little truck you got there for small money. I would take care of any maintenance issues first. Plugs, oil, front, rear diff, transfer case and tranny. Once your certain of the reliability of it then start the fun stuff. 3'' body lift, some 33'' tires, maybe some cheap pro comp shocks, and then go wheel the hell out of it!!! I've always liked that body style 4 door blazer. Pretty tough little trucks. Through a cheap powertrax no slip locker in the back for tracktion and you'll have a lot of fun with that thing for not a lot of money! good luck

 

[98dango]

You can clear 33 9s with 3" of lift and a little trim I had 34s with a 3" body and some tweak ran that til i did the sas. If you have the 4.3 your good if it has the 2.8 keep looking use this as a daily and find some thing else.

 

[Zimnij Volk]

Man, you can sure tell I was tired when posting this, I forgot to mention that it's a 4.3 Vortec with 3.73 gears. The nice things is, my first truck was the same. Is there a significant difference in the V6 Vortec of '94 than of '97? I can't think of anything right off hand...

The interior swap is very temping. Especially thinking of doing it and using an S10 bench seat to free up the space where we can fold down the 2nd row.... Although I wonder if that would be enough room in the middle, even if the middle person IS a toddler...

 

[98dango]

the 4-3s are different but the same. injection is different but intake down they will swap

 

[Rot Box]

Cool! :bike_rider:

I've always had a place in my heart for those. Can't wait to see what you do with it.

 

[Zimnij Volk]

Boy am I in for it if I decide to stay with this thing.

It's losing favor with the wife real quick as I'm finding the problems. I haven't really had much time to get into it, but the rust (Although non-existent on the frame) has found other places to take hold. The bottom of the doors are rusted out worse than I thought and will have to be replaced. The engine is starting to act up in more ways than one. The most concerning is after about 15 minutes of highway driving it shifts high and chugs hard, vibrating the entire vehicle, when climbing any hill. When parked I can walk around and smell gasoline. Also, I can't fill the tank over half or it leaks like a sieve. The window's crack has now spidered out and will have to be replaced. And the PW motors in the front just died, the rear looking like they're next. There's probably more that I'm forgetting...

Is this sounding like a lost cause to anyone, or is she just starting to convince me to get rid of it?

~ Micheal

 

[WCO]

When I was single I would have said play with it, but being married has definitely changed my out look on things (or the wife has told me that my out look has changed ;-) I'd personally say to get out of it, as for not much more money you can get a lot of rig (ie cherokees, or a little more 4runners, or used contractor rigs for cheap) If you're like me, its not the rebuilding an old vehicle thats fun, its the building to what you have in mind, and using it that is the fun. Go online and get an idea of the cost of ALL the parts you need to get it back to stock running condition, and weigh your options. Remember, a wife saying "i told you so" is approx $1,000 in todays value

 

[Zimnij Volk]

Just a bit of an update.

I've gotten some quotes to get some work done. A place called, "The Quiet Place" will do all the work on my exhaust, welding the pipe, cat, and muffler all for $304 or so. Very nice price compared to the others I was getting.... Tune up is $173 at the same place... I'll need a tranny flush as well... I think that's over $100 as well. I'll be glad when all this is done. It's getting more and more used to highway driving. I think it just wasn't driven enough and started to get choppy.

 

[chilliwak]

Any updates on your rig Zim?:ylsmoke:

 

[Zimnij Volk]

Not too many more things really. I replaced the bulb in the break lights and now that it's getting nicer out I'm getting ready to break out the sander and puddy to fix some rust holes. They're much worse than I had thought. Looks like I'll be replacing the front fenders afterall. The rear is still in good enough shape to be sanded down and coated with bedliner. Which will be the fate of most of the lower part of the truck... Mostly because that was the plan already. I think I got the idea from Red and his Suburban build when I had my 91 GMC Suburban...

 

[Zimnij Volk]

Well, the new exhaust is coming in hopefully by the end of this next week here. Fluids are getting changed out soon. New headlights. I found an 85 CUCV I'm tempted to get up in Appleton... It's liftpump went out and he broke a breakline just 2 days ago then called it quits and wants to sell it. It's got some rust, but he's got replacements to be welded in. It's tempting to switch projects, seeing as I've always wanted one, and it's being let go for under $1K. But I can't have 2 projects. Thoughts on how much to sell the Jimmy for? And if I should do it or not? I'll throw in some pics of the prospective vehicle...

 

[gmcpimpin]

Hmm seems like your having trouble handling the currect S15 Jimmy project. I wouldn't pick up a K5 Blazer 6.2 because if you don't have experience with the injection systems and glow plug systems it can be a nightmare.

 

[chilliwak]

If you do go over to the new project make sure you research it carefully so that you dont get the same kind of suprizes:Wow1: that you did with the Jimmy. Take the new truck for a long drive and get a third party oppinion so that you can get the whole picture. Generally people say the old 6.2 is tough as nails, although there can be a problem with the vibration dampner coming loose and then wrecking the crankshaft. Keep us informed about your purchase/project and post lots of pics. Good luck, Chilli.