What did you do to (or with) your truck today.

[Just call me Sean]

I didn't find one in this section, so what did you do to or with your truck today? Let's hear about it. Let's see some pictures. I'll start.

Yesterday I changed the brakes and rotors, and while I was at it I found a destroyed ball joint. The control arm bushings were also bad which I knew, so I removed it to change it all out today.

[Just call me Sean]

Rebuilt control arm ready to go on.

[Grizz1963]

Cool thread to have here.

I too can play (a lot) if you let me.

I brought some used, clear indicator lenses for my truck.

In England we have side repeater lights, without them, the truck will fail its yearly roadworthy test.



30mm x 30mm



Hole drilled in the fender in 2006 when it failed the yearly test.

Bathroom silicone used to attach them








So today, I Bought some clear lenses and amber clones for it.



Will fit them as soon as they get delivered.

PS. Also drove the truck.

[Just call me Sean]

Those will look way better.

[Grizz1963]

So today was a rough one from a work point of view.
Busy
Started by 07.30 with online training.
Then from 09.00 more Teams based clinical trial review.
I also had a business review booked for 13.00

This stuff does my head in.

So my lunch hour was committed to my own mental health.

Based on looking under the hood on Sunday, I knew there were a few bits to be done.

K&N air cleaner, divides opinions



I discovered a long crack that had been partly repaired in the radiator cowl.



I was fortunate to be offered an upper half of one , price to be confirmed, same seller who has the steering wheel.



Screwdriver to the fore.

K&N filter undone and removed.



Can you say FILTHY DIRTY.

And rather large.



I also opened the other end to see if the throttle plate needed any attention.



Clean as a whistle.



I was also having advice from my good friend Ric Grassmick who lives in Arizona, and dailies and Autocrosses one of these trucks.
His day job is as an auto mechanic, so the right guy to speak to.

He also advised I look up the connector tube toward the MAF sensor at the divider plate, tooling for two potential caterpillars
These are a pair of very small resistor coils that may need cleaning.

He even sent a drawn diagram of what I needed to look for.

Looking up from the airflow straightener



I will get to these tomorrow in daylight,



Then back into the house.

Using Mr Muscle oven and grease cleaner to loosen the oil and grime the water ended up pretty soup-like.
Three repeats and some Fairy liquid, dishwashing soap and a couple of kettles of hot water saw it a lot cleaner and the water pretty murky.



Then put out to dry.



I got a K&N cleaning and oiling set, known as a “Recharger kit” from Euro car parts, and delivered to the local mechanics a mile from home.for £10.00 which was cheaper than anywhere else.



I will oil the filter tomorrow and reassemble the cold air induction kit.


Finally on my way home from picking up the oil, I saw a nice sunset.




More tomorrow.

[Grizz1963]

Following on

Cleaned my K&N air filter setup yesterday and oiled it today.
Made a quick random YouTube clip as I thought it may be helpful to people like me who have not done it before.

https://youtu.be/Y1MNY0ibuiY

Hope its useful to some.

[Grizz1963]

Rain seems to have dried up overnight, with much more predicted along with possibly some snow and cold for the weekend.

So this morning it was dry and not too cold, so by 07.30 I was outside to grab the opportunity to refit the air filter and check a few more bits out.

I was also chatting with Dennis in Missouri as he could not sleep, getting tips on the things to look out for and little things to touch on while getting this truck to an even better place than it already is.

Big old hole where the filter and ducting goes, it is also isolated to keep the truck getting cold air, rather than warm air from the engines heat.



Refitted and mounted in a way that has it hanging loose, rather than chafing against any of the body or engine parts.

Looks better, hopefully the clean will benefit the engine.



While I was there, I thought getting a record of these stickers that do not come off, would be sensible, as I will be fitting a replacement radiator cowl.





And identified another weekend job........

Can you guess.





Yup, drain the radiator, flush it well, and refill with fresh green stuff.

Along with the other jobs lined up for it, as long as I get some gaps in the weather.

PS. It is Friday after all.

[Just call me Sean]

I put on a new steering wheel cover.

[Grizz1963]

I am looking forward to refitting a standard wheel to my truck, the Grant item is both small and thinner, so your cover seems to make it nice and chunky.

I like that Sean.



So doing stuff on your birthday that makes you happy?


In my case, today was started off with a quick 6.45 minute School of YouTube lesson on how to remove the headlights, indicators and grille on an S10 Truck in 4’C or 40’F temperature without breaking anything, especially mounting tabs.

Reflection on the iPad screen is the very rough, English style Pebble Dash plaster on my 1921 built home.



Thought I would start with the passenger headlight as its fastening tabs are stuck between the battery and radiator core support and kinda tight for my large hands.



Good start...... bodgeworks always a good place to start.

The indicators, position lights etc may have been changed when the truck had its first UK MOT road test in 2006 where I know it failed due to the lack of side repeater lamps amongst other things.

I will fix these things as I discover them.



Lights out....

Followed by indicators.





Old and new indicator lenses.



And then BURGER !!!!

Indicator bulbs are “pinch pull” or whatever they are called, so the chrome bayonet items @rich had sent were not going to get used here.

Need to get some from the local motor factors.



Grille off and headed for the garage to take apart



So with the grille removed, the next job was to disassemble it it to its final component form for cleaning and processing.



20 years of life as we know it, on the grille that was apparently originally painted body colour in a matte finish has left it looking pretty sorry for itself.

Closer up.




As I kept disassembling, I found more and more bits I did not like.

To that needed bits of attention to get to a look I preferred.

More in a bit.

[Grizz1963]

After removing the grille, I noticed just how grubby and greasy the centre support was.



The bonnet/hood release cable looked like a challenge for about 15 seconds.



A 13mm socket and 3 bolts later......



Wire brush, white spirit wipe down, two coats of black primer, two coats of Stealth Black Wheel paint, JOB DONE.



Once the paint had dried, I generously applied some spray on White Lithium grease, which once reassembled clearly made the hood release work much more smoothly.
I also put some on the threads of the bolts before returning them to where they came from.



Refitted, release cable reconnected, looked loads better.

You will also notice just how clean the front slam panel actually is, almost no rust, just a bit of staining which could be polished away.



Interesting way the light and house shadow fell at the drivers door. Making the rear look distinctly grey and insipid



Another job that I decided to do today was to “FIX” the front grille badge, at least until I get around to ordering one from the USA or if I can get @craigrk to do a clever 3D print for me.

It had delamination of the gold leaf in the badge, as well as a crack.

Any fix would be an improvement imho.





Final result after about 5 coats.



Happy so far.


It is way past my bedtime.

A few more bits tomorrow for those following closely.

Weekend over too, thanks for checking in.

Later.

[Just call me Sean]

The steering wheels aren't very durable. If you find a nice one you might want to protect it with some kind of cover. Mine is ate up some underneath.

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by Just call me Sean

The steering wheels aren't very durable. If you find a nice one you might want to protect it with some kind of cover. Mine is ate up some underneath.

Ahhh, gotcha.

I am buying a used Blazer one for my truck and hope it will be in decent condition. It is $65.00 plus shipping. So I will be happy.
Same guy is selling me a top half of the radiator shroud as mine is badly cracked.



Final post for yesterdays work done.

When I bought the truck, the bonnet/hood was standing proud on the passenger side by about 8-10mm

The previous owner had told me he had repainted the drivers fender and hood, due to some paint damage and lacquer peeling.

This was not a problem for me, at 20 years old, the truck still looks better than may 3 year olds.

Dennis who has his body shop in St Louis, Missouri has worked on many of these S10 trucks back in the day, had told me these trucks had very little room for adjustment of panel gaps if disassembled or found not to be aligned.

So it was with trepidation I decided to give it a go, to see if I could improve the alignment.

Started with this.



Played with these.



You can see this side fender has been loosened and refitted.



This side got to go down a bit.



And this side keeps me happy for now......



Result.



Happy with that for now.


While cleaning up the stainless steel front grille embellishers I saw these markings on the rear.

The other one showed “top” to define which one fits where.

I am guessing an enthusiast at some point made these up for the truck.

They came up lovely with steel polish as well.



And finally, I had a few challenges from various people about the position of the K&N filter, with people freaking out that it was going to suck up tons of surface water.

So overdrawn on the pic, is where the filter actually sits inside the engine bay.





Not sure if I mentioned, the grille was delivered in a carpark last night, socially distanced and all that.

More as it happens.

[Grizz1963]

Thank you @PhilA for grabbing these Chrome Amber bulbs in Louisiana, USA.

Looking forward to getting them into the truck too.



Was in the garage today because I needed a bit of time after they announced redundancies to be effective mid February, and get is a waste of energy, so I went to remove some lights from the wall that will go into the carport until I get the planned LED units up.

Found this claxon style hooter in one of the C10 parts boxes. It may be fun in the S10




I also reassembled the front grille badge.

Looks OK like this.



Closer up.



Absolutely pleased with the outcome so far.

[Grizz1963]

Only one small thing done to the truck today.

It will split opinions, do I care??

Errrrmmm..... Nope.

Proud.

[Grizz1963]

Love the little parcels.

New side repeater lenses landed.

Too big again, do I drill the holes bigger or modify the lenses......




Indicator light bulbs landed too.

These amber units were ordered before @phila got me the chrome ones for the truck.

Can you see what is wrong.





Currently a big thing....

Showing asss.



Another thing I have looked forward to for over a year was to fit one of my custom cast gas pedals.

These will possibly split opinion.

50 years ago guys made these in shop, they were everywhere.

I always loved them, and to me this one, custom cast by my good friend Andy Martin in Terlton near Tulsa Oklahoma is even more valued as it reminds me of my road trips, friends here in theUK and also in America.

A certain nod to great memories.



Life is good, remember that gang.

[Grizz1963]

[quote author="@mk3rob" source="/post/2650641/thread" timestamp="1609660940"]Definitely get some rust protection on the underside. You can pretty much watch S10s rust!
Mine had 2 rear seats and I have to say you can ride with 3 people in proper comfort! I rode in the rear seat a couple of times after concerts etc when our lass drove and it was really comfy!
The ZQ8 stuff is really sought after and at times not so easy to get hold of so hold onto that! [/quote]


This is the trucks “build sheet” showing its whole DNA. What was put together to create it.

It seems to be pretty special, and I am both pleased and thankful to have been able to tick a box on my lust list.



Read and interpreted by some clever people out there

G80 and ZQ8 are posi track rear and sport suspension
G80 is the LSD, nice.
ZQ8 is a code and a trim package, so your truck is a ‘ZQ8’
They had a factory lowering kit, around 2in or so, springs and leafs. A tighter steering box and some other nice things. The Xtremes got the same setup but got a body kit and some badges.
This is kind of an aside since you're curious about rpo codes, but the guys who have the super sport S10’s look for the B4U code. SS trucks were the first to receive the ZQ8 suspension in 96 until they stopped the SS in 98. The ZQ8 then became its own trim package so to speak
That is the rear end. I think the codes that start with G are the gears for the rear. Not 100% but I think that's what it means. And G80 is a locking or semi locking rear end if I remember right.

GU6 = 3.42 gears
G80 = POSI limited slip
L35 = v6 4.3l vortec
M30 = 4spd overdrive transmission
ZQ8 = Sports suspension package



So living here in England poses it’s own challenges when owning a 20 year old American pickup truck.

Parts for one, and even maintenance as you cannot just drop it off at a local dealer to get things serviced or repaired.

Part of the pleasure than becomes figuring stuff out, researching, asking questions or guys like @pauly over for a coffee pretending you do not need their technical or physical expertise ( just how hard to hit a control arm, or whatever with a 5 pound hammer in winter)

Finding hard to get bits, gets harder when it is a slightly less common model too.


So my truck came with a set of Cragar S/S 2 piece, 17” in 8J wheels, including a spare, 255/45 17 Nankang tyres, all with almost full tread etc.
Perfect wheels for daily use.

But I did not like them, and always coveted the LQ8 5 spoke 16” 8J alloys some trucks came fitted with.

Actually do not recall seeing any in the uK on trucks, ever.

So I was looking out for alternatives, and had kinda settle and made peace with getting thick adapters and going with a set of Range Rover Mondials in 18” or a full set of 17” 7J BMW steels.

I was on an American FB S10 group, asking about tyre choice for the 7J wheels when I got a message from a U.K. based GMC S15 Sonoma owner...... Surprise !

He had owned his for some time, but during the whole 2020 COVID-19 shut down, had stripped it down and was doing a 1939 Willys shark nose truck rebody, he had sold all the body panels except the rear bed and still had a set of 4 LQ8 wheels, with some tyres fitted, tyres could be fried though.

Would I be interested in those as an alternative to the Mondials and BMW steels?

He had not realised these were my personal Holy Grail of wheels, as I was trying to do the truck justice as it is in such good condition. Adding originality as far as I could, with a few cosmetic tweaks,

We have spent about two hours on FB Messenger video (a first for him, he is 67 and not a techie) getting to know each other.

And of course agreed to me buying the wheels from him, not cheaply, but certainly a fair price I was prepared to pay.

Collection based on current lockdown uncertainty to be in the next three years or more.


Stock photos from Google.



And what my truck would look like.

I am super pleased, yes there are other options, other lols, and prettier wheels, but it’s what I wanted.




Looking at these in the USA, even the price per one, wheel plus tax, duty, real world shipping etc makes for an expensive transaction.



Even just the centre caps would not be cheap from eBay and once you get stung with tax and import duties on top of shipping, this was not the route I planned on going.

Just to give an idea of their cost to me.



And an afterthought, speaking of COVID-19





Later guys, back to day job stuff, Friday today.....

Weekend soon.

[Grizz1963]

Anyone remember this....l?






Got collected in the dark two weeks ago.


Ross runs a custom/insurance repair body shop.

I had asked him how much and if he would paint the trucks grille to Cody colour for me.

When he fetched the little caravan, he said he would paint the grille for me, free of charge.

So when I had disassembled the grille, he got it and some paint and said he would get onto it ASAP.

Pretty pleased he was doing it, as he has all the kit and materials on site, and could do it on the side.

Last night a bunch of pics landed, along with a message.


Prepped it.

Primer.







Then some colour coats.







First clear coat went on.




A few more clear coats to go on and some decent drying.

Then back to me.

Reassembled and Refitted.

Looking forward to the front end coming together, cleat lenses and side repeaters included.


So what can I do today to keep busy?

[Grizz1963]

Cuppa coffee, cookies.

Out of the house, brrrrr... chilly fresh.

So the key to keeping busy.



Every time I look up under the truck, I am amazed at how clean it is.

Keyway.



Not too impressive



I had been warned that the underslung spare wheel on these trucks could have a failure of their wind up, hanging mechanism.

So I decided that was a dry job I could do today.

20 years under the load bed would make most of us look a bit tired.

Wonder where this gravel could be from, Missouri, Norwich......





Washed and scrubbed.

Amazing, as a 16” wheel, how tall it actually is against the wheelarch.

[

Cold and wet, carried down to the garage and used a heat gun to dry it and warm up the steel.

Quick bit of a sanding and a wipe down, followed by primer, more drying with the heat gun.



Inside of the rim painted, did not bother with masking this side.



While waiting for the paint to dry naturally, I went up and crawled around again and greased up the cable, spring and mechanism with lithium grease.



After a coffee, I went to check the pressure, certain to be low.

Correct.



Pumped up to prescribed pressure.



And back to the truck.

Much better.

Fitted.



At least this made me feel that my day was not completely wasted.

Weekend over, again.

[Grizz1963]

Post man dropped by today.

Small parcel.

After all the various opinions and input on here and elsewhere, I decided that a white front placement lamp and an amber indicator would satisfy the jobsworth, anal and anyone else whose farts don’t smell.

So I ordered a set of “Switchback” lamps on Friday evening.



Tried them out, and impressed no end.



Once the colour matched grille is back, I will reassemble it and the clear lenses.

Should look good.


In the mean time I have also investigated colours for the ZQ8 wheels, they are often Silver, Anthracite and rarely gold with machined faces.

I really like this look.

Not sure how it will look on the truck I have.




Think about it.

[Grizz1963]

So part two of the new smile on the S10’s face reported.

Ross took the grille and the paint that the seller had supplied when I bought it to go paint it to body colour for me.


This morning I had to be in a shopping centre, so we met in the carpark and he responsibly handed it to me, before heading to work.



Massive improvement on where we started with the 20 year old grille.



Stainless central bars refitted.



So from this when removed..........



To this finish today.

Centre bar refitted, and looking at it outside, I was again pleased.



Grille refitted.



Clear indicator lenses fitted.



Headlights fitted.

BUT..........

Wrongly placed, will need to go redo them tomorrow. Missed a side tab that would seat them fully squarely.



1/4 front view.

[Just call me Sean]

My wife got me another S10 kit that I can use with the wave rider to replicate the truck. They are short beds so I need two to make a long bed. The Xtreme is in there for you Grizz.

[Grizz1963]

Thank you Sean,

Big grin here.


I have wondered if there are any extended cab models out there.

[Grizz1963]

Sleepless nights.........

Usually work or backache causes it.

Not last night.

Observation within minutes of posting on an S10 group on FB and showing mate @craigrk summarised below.

Had me wonder whether I would get it sorted.



Woke to this....

Photo taken while @pauly and I spoke with him herding his wild bunch over a muddy field



Day job kept me busy from before 08.00

Been thinking also where would I find a low level canopy to fit the truck.... something like this.






Around 11.00 I made a coffee and took it out to the truck.


Headlights fitted.

BUT..........

Wrongly placed, will need to go redo them tomorrow. Missed a side tab that would seat them fully squarely.



So with the drivers side light refitted and the passenger side still to be done, it became obvious how wrong it was.



Challenge if course was to get too lower tabs in, and push the two tabs through the holes in the front panel and slide home the two sliding retainers

Note the space, battery clamped in place......

So how do you get dozen into this slot without removing the battery?

Using the handle of a long steel fork, I twisted it so push/force the wiring and its sheath away, then gripping in a death grip with some extra long rat nosed pliers, I slipped the hole over the pin and then slid the slot down it. Home dry.



Job done, much happier, I think.



So I had to wait for the new battery to be delivered, then I could test the lights up front.

I also got onto another small repair job.

Specifically a redneck repair.

Unlikely to be guessed.

[Grizz1963]

Remember this.....??

Armrest come backrest when you go three up front.





So I removed it today.

Removed all the old manky, sticky foam and backing sticker in the kitchen.



This truck was originally a Missouri truck, so rather than use some flat sheet metal, I thought one of the license plates from Dennis seemed a better idea.



Cut and bent to fit the interior, and this will support the inside of the armrest.



And then glued in place using a couple of G-clamps, backing plates to keep it all in place a 5 litre jug of water, earmarked for the radiator flush and recharge, but perfect to keep it all tight while the glue dries overnight.



I am sure that this will make the armrest feel solid, rather than squidgy when I do use it, either as a rest or as a pivot when getting in or out the car.

Refit some time tomorrow when it is well dried.

[Grizz1963]

Perfectly timed delivery when I walked up to the house.



Unbolted the old battery.

Removed it.......

Found a puddle, and a small rubber mat.

Not good.

Anyone got a good battery tray to sell, or am I making my own ? Done it before for the C10 relocated battery



Plan is to remove the battery and tray sometime, clean up, weld up and seal and paint the tray.

After fitting the new battery of course the best part was starting the engine up, and testing the lights, and indicators.



Happy to say that they really look much better in real life.

Money and time so well spent.

Indicator.



After 11.00pm methinks its bedtime.

Thanks for checking in and all your comments.

Later.