Suburban build out guidance and opinions

[brushogger]

I know you already have this truck and it's probably paid for, so take this for what it's worth as it's just my opinion. I'd price out the cost of the mods you're talking about, and figure out how much time and money it will take to uprade the drivetrain. I believe you'll find you're money and time ahead by selling your current truck and buying a similar year and mileage 3/4 or 1 ton version as a starting platform. I think the heavier axles and brakes would be worth it. In these parts there is little difference in the price of the k1500's and k 2500's.
I have a 99 Burb and I love it. The IFS has never been a problem.

 

[gm4x4lover]

My truck actually has a 12 bolt limited slip with 4:10 gears. Just fine for 33s for gear. Strength is important. Lets not forget that a 3.0 is prety hairy. 3.5 in my understanding requires at least one locker and 35 inch tires. Also I am concerned about the weight that these axles will need to carry! A fully loaded burb setup to run for an extended trip will be pretty heave. As for lift I have 4 inches right now, and am planning on at least 6 total.

Why would it have a 12 bolt? My suburban usually weighed in at 8600 lbs. I all ways carry lots of fluids, water, tools, and spare parts. I never had a problem with the weight being an issue. A rear locker will help out alot as will sliders.

I dont really have alot of pic's pf my burb but this video should give you an idea of what i do with it. My burb shows at 2:40 in the video.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8rcb0yAkMM&feature=related"]YouTube - 20090614104217[/ame]

 

[gm4x4lover]

I know you already have this truck and it's probably paid for, so take this for what it's worth as it's just my opinion. I'd price out the cost of the mods you're talking about, and figure out how much time and money it will take to uprade the drivetrain. I believe you'll find you're money and time ahead by selling your current truck and buying a similar year and mileage 3/4 or 1 ton version as a starting platform. I think the heavier axles and brakes would be worth it. In these parts there is little difference in the price of the k1500's and k 2500's.
I have a 99 Burb and I love it. The IFS has never been a problem.

Gm had nothing but problems on the front of the 93-00 k2500 and k3500. The common life span of these brakes is in the neighborhood 25k. Its not uncommon for them to crack and heat blister the rotors at the same time. At least with the half tons 50k is achievable. I also dont the think the front brakes provided much more braking capacity as over heating of the pads is common. Given the use and type of vehicle with the size tires that are going to end up on i cannot see how swapping in a 14 bolt makes sense. Plus the 3/4 tons dont ride nearly as well.

 

[bajajoaquin]

...My burb shows at 2:40 in the video.

YouTube - 20090614104217

Really? The preview says it's a 2:38 video.

 

[gm4x4lover]

Did you watch it? Mine shows 5:14. actually it shows 2:38 until you click it.

 

[brushogger]

Clean Burb Build

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=50335

 

[Rot Box]

If I was building your Suburban....:bike_rider:..... I would keep the IFS, but try to find a way to use as many of the front end components that come in the high gvw 2500-3500 trucks as possible as they are beefier. I don't think you mentioned the brand of lift kit, but some are better than others. You may want to look into ways to improve whats there like those cool torsion bar keys shown in the other thread that eliminate the drop brackets--very cool.

Then I would preform every major maintenance pm item and replace worn parts with top quality items and keep a very detailed log of everything you have done. I would add a massive transmission cooler and a temperature gauge as your half-ton transmission will be working extra hard with larger tires and all the gear. I would also carry specific tools that work with your vehicle I know some of the later GM's used a lot of torx head screws and other oddities that could be hard to find in the middle of nowhere. Remember these trucks are old now and everything gets worn throughout time.

For the rear axle I would go all out with a full floating 14 bolt--cheap, easy, cheap and nearly indestructible oh and cheap. Hopefully you can easily (never actually tried it myself) swap the front over to 8 lug. Gearing wise the beefier front diff (heavy2500-3500) and a rear 14bolt axle with 4.10 gears already in them from the factory could kill two birds with one stone.

I'm just thinking out loud here but that's the direction I would head....

 

[Judoka]

Nice!

I noticed right off the the 90 ? GMC burb, (just sold mine...boohoo) had a solid axle. You can tell just watching the hood through the trees. I think I will just do this in two phases. First, put the 600 or so bucks into the front end that is very needed. Then put the 14 in there, then D60 front next year. This way I can use it for now to just camp, and when I am ready to run a long backcountry treck I will build up the front. Gotta use her now, and dont have the 3500 or so to cut to the chase. I will most likely go overkill anyway like I di my Jeep and lock up front and back and drop Atlas T-case 5.3 reduct in. For now she stays on 33s and IFS.
Thank you everyone who chimed in! Great to see everyone helping out.\
ON ANOTHER NOTE.. I picked up a roof rack today that is perfect for the Burb, 4.5wx6' long... for $100 including mounting hardware. Took about an hour to set up. Money saved for SAS!

 

[Zatara]

The best IFS stuff for GM is made by Cognito motorsports.
Get the steering upgrade parts they sell and drive happy.
As far as the IFS in general, DO NOT let people tell you it's not capable off road. It's not for rock crawlin or other extreme off road use but for 90% of what most EXPO types do it's perfectly fine.
Remember, most all Toyotas and other expo vehicles use IFS including tacomas, 4runners, tundras and land cruisers from 98 on up.

 

[gm4x4lover]

Thanks, I love the solid axle chevy's.

I still don't see the need to up grade the rear axle? You really aren't buying you self anything in particular. If you were going to run 37's i would see the need but if you were going to stop at 35's the 10 bolt is plenty strong. KIS keep it simple

 

[Vindex Injuriae]

I've had good luck with the front suspension on my 96 K2500 truck. Currently at 140k & I've not had any breakage issues at all. I don't have much experience with the 1500's and can't vouch for their durability.
The ride is way better than a comparable Ford or Dodge 2500/3500 - I've had both.
I normally run 285/75/16, used one set of 305/70/16, currently back with 285 MSR's on a 16x7.
I was stationed in upper North Dakota for several years & the truck saw a lot of highway miles in 4wd, I've towed a variety of trailers cross country, run trails across the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, hunted and lived out of it, you name it. I've put a new motor and trans in it, but the suspension has not been an issue.

I've replaced the shocks & brakes but the remainder is stock. I also run dual Ranchhand bumpers and until last month, a Warn M12000 sat on the front. That's a lot of extra weight, yet no problems. The right foot dictates a lot when it comes to the life span of anything.... common sense and technique are free too!

 

[Judoka]

I decided to take my time and build this puppy right. I will probably run it as is forr a year or so since I am not planning anything too radical for a while. I decided to save my money and set this rig up like my Jeep was; LOCKED and ready to ROCK! Overkill is the best way to evplain it. Part of this decision is because I sold my Wagoneer today and found a pair of Dana 60 axles. Given a few months and I will have her ready for average expedition stuff and ready to make the Overland Expo in Southern AZ in April. I think a year and I will build the suspension out. If anyone is interested I can start a thread for the build. I just started to set up the first phase this week. Found a very nice safari rack for...$100 yesterday! 3 rattle cans of primer, and 3 of paint later, looks new! Mounting it tomorrow if weather holds. Oh, wait, this is Phoenix, it always holds.:elkgrin:

 

[85CUCV]

When I first got my 85 cucv (K5) I swore I would not put a bunch of money into axles..................Well I ended up swaping in a 6 lug 14bolt SF from a 94 light duty 3/4ton. This meant cutting and welding in new perches and shock mounts. In your burb any 6 lug 14SF would bolt up directly. The 4X4 versions are 3 inches wider then the 4x2. I used a 4x2 converted to disk brakes and run a 1.5 spacer. A full float would be stronger, but compared to a 10bolt the 14SF is a massive 10 bolt on steroids (ie axle bearings and shafts). I am much more confident running a detroit in the 14sf then trying to in the 10 bolt.

IIRC the 3/4 burbs of that generation ran a 8 lug 14SF from the factory.

You would have to reweld perches and shock mounts on a 12bolt to make it work.

Find a 6 lug 14sf from a 4x4. You should never have problems. It will be the least expensive option. And it is bolt in.

After saying all of that. With my generation of K5 if I would have saved money going to 8 lug 1ton to begin with. Oh well. It works fine for what I do.