1970 GMC LQ4/4L80E by Roz

[Roz]

First off, this is one of my very first posts on the forum. I am mesmerized at the amount of information on this site and how eager everyone is to assist! I look forward to my stay here. I hope in due to time, I'll be able to contribute as I learn about these trucks.

I purchased my 1970 GMC 1500 about a month ago. I knew from the get-go it would have a late model engine swapped into it. I've had countless LS powered vehicles in the past, the latest being a "cam-only" C5 Z06. The best I can tell, the truck has been restored at some point, but it isn't a show-truck, it's a great cruiser. Speaking of which, I drove it 2.5 hours home the day I bought it!

The plan is to swap a LQ4/4L80E into the GMC. I'm aiming to have the truck to the point where I can drive it anywhere at anytime. Last weekend, I picked up a 2004 GMC Sierra 2500HD that a tree fell on. The Sierra currently runs/drives and has lots of good donor parts for the swap! The original plan was to use as much of the Sierra's AC components as possible, but it looks like most of it will be useless at this point. I also intend to use the hydroboost and any other odds/ends I can retrofit.

As of today, I've only began ordering/gathering parts for the swap. The donor truck is a 4x4, so I have the parts to convert the tailshaft and extension housing. I just ordered Dirty Dingo slider mounts and a stand-alone harness from Texas Speed as well as Doug Thorley 1-5/8" headers. I've got the majority of the parts for the fuel system also. As a bonus, I'm going to go ahead and order a 224R cam and probably swap the hideous truck intake to either the Holley hi-rise or the Edlebrock Pro Flo.

Hopefully, by next spring, I'll have the truck's engine fully swapped with functioning AC as well as have it 5-lug swapped and a set of wheels on it.

For those of you that are interested, stay tuned. The main purpose of the thread is for a place for me to gather my thoughts and track my progress as well as hopefully get a little input along the way. In the up-coming weeks, I'll begin the swap with the intention of getting the basic swap under my belt. I'd like to have the truck back on the road running and driving by Thanksgiving. Then I can begin the tedious process of getting all the gauges to work, figure out the AC.

Pics of the truck for reference:







The donor truck