Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

carpainter · 10-20-2008, 09:13 PM

Okay, so I got this '85 S10 4x4 Blazer on the cheap and I want to make a race car out of it. You know, 350 chev v-8, stuff like that. Has anyone on this board lowered a 4x4 Blazer before. If so, what do I need to do and how do I go about it?

corn · 10-20-2008, 11:09 PM

Hmm, never tried that before. Crank down the front torsion bars & a set of blocks maybe? Really, no clue here. Sounds like a cool project though.

68C15 · 10-21-2008, 06:15 AM

2wd's have coils up front. either swap to drop spindles or change springs but with a 350 it may not be needed.
do a flip on the rears. put the axle above the leafs.

or you could do like wicked mayhem did. LOL

"thanks for the compliment and concern. the leaf springs are not broke, i cut them myself for a lower ride height and tack welded them to the frame so i have a nice sports car feel to it. and i took the torsion bars out up front. i am a professional suspension installer, no need to question my doings."

carpainter · 10-21-2008, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 68C15

2wd's have coils up front. either swap to drop spindles or change springs but with a 350 it may not be needed.
do a flip on the rears. put the axle above the leafs.

I had a two wheel drive S10 for parts so I could swap out the front suspension. The only problem was that they were nothing alike. The 4x4 has the torsion bar front suspension that is completely different. It wouldn't even come close to matching up. Like Corn said, I thought about cranking back the torsion bars to see if that would lower it. I've never done that before so any opinions / suggestions would be appreciated. I probably will do a flip on the rear springs.

corn · 10-21-2008, 05:24 PM

I think you can get drop "keys" for a 4X4 too. Oh BTW, are you keeping it 4 wheel drive or getting rid of all that when you convert to V8?

BarryB · 10-21-2008, 05:25 PM

I wouldn't crank on the torsion bars to much, because your ride wil be crap. I have heard of drop spindles for blazers. But am unsure of what years and such. take your old 2wd s10 frame shorten it and set the blazer body over on it. That would be alot of work.

P.S. what kind of motor was in the 2wd S10?? I am in need of a set of stock front springs from a standard cab 4 cylinder truck.

corn · 10-21-2008, 05:29 PM

I also found this online...

The Torsion Bar Trick has become pretty notorious among the lowered blazer community. Apparently I didn't write the instructions thorough enough for a lot of people. Here is the more detailed revision:

Before you start (at least a day in advance) you should soak both ends of the torsion bars with a good lube like Lithium or WD-40. Driving around on bumpy roads will help work the lube into the mating spaces.
1. Jack up the front end and place jack stands securely under the frame so it is well supported. The front tires must be up off the ground enough for a jack to get under the tires or control arms for a later adjustment.
2. Take off the front bump stops. They must be removed or the truck will sit on them. (it should be a 9/16 nut).
3. At the crossmember (where the rear of the torsion bars stop) unscrew the 2 adjuster bolts. Remove these completely.
4. Use a two jaw puller (can be rented at Auto Zone for about $40.00 deposit) to lift the torsion bar adjuster arm (or key) up off its support block, so you can remove the blocks out of the rear hole in the crossmember. Then slowly let the puller back down to release the pressure.
5. Use a hammer and drift tap to pound the torsion bar towards the front of the vehicle. If you cannot get them to tap out you can remove the 4 bolts holding the whole crossmember in place and tap the crossmember toward the REAR with a sledge hammer, until both adjuster arms fall out. For some of you the exhaust might be in the way, You can use a jack to hold the pipe up out of the way.
6. You should be able to slide the bars forward a few inches to 'disengage' them from the control arm hole. Use a jack to lift the wheel/control arms up until until the tire just about tucks into the wheel well.
7. Place the key back onto the torsion bar exactly the way it came off (you may have to reinstall the crossmember first) or just pull the torsion bar back into the key hole. Make sure you reinstall the adjuater arm keys UPSIDE-DOWN. Make sure the shape of the key holes match up with the torsion bar shape before you tap them back in place.
8. If done correctly the support blocks should go back in with the keys sitting just above them.
9. Then put the torsion bar bolts back into the blocks and tighten them all the way up. MAKE SURE YOU ANGLE THE BLOCKS AND TORSION BAR BOLTS DIRECTLY TOWARDS THE KEYS, IF NOT THE BLOCKS WILL SLIP.

Once both sides are done exactly like this, you can let the front end down and see how you did. You should be able to bounce the front end down a few inches before it bottoms out.
You can now screw/unscrew the adjuster bolts for final leveling out or lowing even more. You should be able to adjust from a 5.5" to a 6.5" drop.
The ride quality suffers is a bit bouncy due to lack of suspension travel left. Also the stock shocks are too compressed to function at all. Drop shocks will help and pancake bump stops will soften bottoming out.
I have done my best to explain this whole precedure, but if you still have trouble, you can post questions here in the suspension forum. GOOD LUCK!

carpainter · 10-21-2008, 07:07 PM

I got rid of the parts S10 once I got everything off it I thought I needed. The 4x4 stuff is gone so it is basically a two wheel drive with 4x4 suspension now. I think I'll take it to school and have my students help me with the torsion bar lowering process (thanks for the info Corn).

corn · 10-21-2008, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by carpainter

I got rid of the parts S10 once I got everything off it I thought I needed. The 4x4 stuff is gone so it is basically a two wheel drive with 4x4 suspension now. I think I'll take it to school and have my students help me with the torsion bar lowering process (thanks for the info Corn).

No prob, let us know how it works!

Pyrotechnic · 10-22-2008, 04:13 PM

GM did this from the factory with the Syclone/Typhoon back in the early 90's. It was just a 4x4 truck that had a AWD transfer case and was lowered.

mekdad · 10-22-2008, 05:25 PM

Ya, a 4x4 lowered with a factory turbo.

10-20-2008, 09:13 PM	#1
carpainter Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Zanesfield Ohio Posts: 119	Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer Okay, so I got this '85 S10 4x4 Blazer on the cheap and I want to make a race car out of it. You know, 350 chev v-8, stuff like that. Has anyone on this board lowered a 4x4 Blazer before. If so, what do I need to do and how do I go about it? __________________ Robert Newland Auto Collision Instructor ASE Certified Auto Collision PPG Certified Automotive Painter 1971 Chevy C10 Short Bed 350 Four Bolt Main / 350 Turbo

10-20-2008, 11:09 PM	#2
corn Registered User Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: here Posts: 5,789	Re: Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer Hmm, never tried that before. Crank down the front torsion bars & a set of blocks maybe? Really, no clue here. Sounds like a cool project though.

10-21-2008, 06:15 AM	#3
68C15 blood type; Retumbo Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: next to my reloading bench Posts: 10,269	Re: Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer 2wd's have coils up front. either swap to drop spindles or change springs but with a 350 it may not be needed. do a flip on the rears. put the axle above the leafs. or you could do like wicked mayhem did. LOL "thanks for the compliment and concern. the leaf springs are not broke, i cut them myself for a lower ride height and tack welded them to the frame so i have a nice sports car feel to it. and i took the torsion bars out up front. i am a professional suspension installer, no need to question my doings." Last edited by 68C15; 10-21-2008 at 06:19 AM. Reason: must... have... coffee

10-21-2008, 05:24 PM	#5
corn Registered User Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: here Posts: 5,789	Re: Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer I think you can get drop "keys" for a 4X4 too. Oh BTW, are you keeping it 4 wheel drive or getting rid of all that when you convert to V8?

10-21-2008, 05:25 PM	#6
BarryB Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Blountville, Tn. Posts: 3,904	Re: Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer I wouldn't crank on the torsion bars to much, because your ride wil be crap. I have heard of drop spindles for blazers. But am unsure of what years and such. take your old 2wd s10 frame shorten it and set the blazer body over on it. That would be alot of work. P.S. what kind of motor was in the 2wd S10?? I am in need of a set of stock front springs from a standard cab 4 cylinder truck. __________________ We could learn a lot from crayons... Some are sharp; some are pretty;and some are dull. Some have weird names; and all are different colours;but they all have to live in the same box. You may be only one person in the world, But you may also be the world to one person. * Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once. Two rules in life. 1. Never sweat the small stuff! 2. Everything is small stuff! Last edited by BarryB; 10-21-2008 at 05:28 PM.

10-21-2008, 05:29 PM	#7
corn Registered User Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: here Posts: 5,789	Re: Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer I also found this online... The Torsion Bar Trick has become pretty notorious among the lowered blazer community. Apparently I didn't write the instructions thorough enough for a lot of people. Here is the more detailed revision: Before you start (at least a day in advance) you should soak both ends of the torsion bars with a good lube like Lithium or WD-40. Driving around on bumpy roads will help work the lube into the mating spaces. 1. Jack up the front end and place jack stands securely under the frame so it is well supported. The front tires must be up off the ground enough for a jack to get under the tires or control arms for a later adjustment. 2. Take off the front bump stops. They must be removed or the truck will sit on them. (it should be a 9/16 nut). 3. At the crossmember (where the rear of the torsion bars stop) unscrew the 2 adjuster bolts. Remove these completely. 4. Use a two jaw puller (can be rented at Auto Zone for about $40.00 deposit) to lift the torsion bar adjuster arm (or key) up off its support block, so you can remove the blocks out of the rear hole in the crossmember. Then slowly let the puller back down to release the pressure. 5. Use a hammer and drift tap to pound the torsion bar towards the front of the vehicle. If you cannot get them to tap out you can remove the 4 bolts holding the whole crossmember in place and tap the crossmember toward the REAR with a sledge hammer, until both adjuster arms fall out. For some of you the exhaust might be in the way, You can use a jack to hold the pipe up out of the way. 6. You should be able to slide the bars forward a few inches to 'disengage' them from the control arm hole. Use a jack to lift the wheel/control arms up until until the tire just about tucks into the wheel well. 7. Place the key back onto the torsion bar exactly the way it came off (you may have to reinstall the crossmember first) or just pull the torsion bar back into the key hole. Make sure you reinstall the adjuater arm keys UPSIDE-DOWN. Make sure the shape of the key holes match up with the torsion bar shape before you tap them back in place. 8. If done correctly the support blocks should go back in with the keys sitting just above them. 9. Then put the torsion bar bolts back into the blocks and tighten them all the way up. MAKE SURE YOU ANGLE THE BLOCKS AND TORSION BAR BOLTS DIRECTLY TOWARDS THE KEYS, IF NOT THE BLOCKS WILL SLIP. Once both sides are done exactly like this, you can let the front end down and see how you did. You should be able to bounce the front end down a few inches before it bottoms out. You can now screw/unscrew the adjuster bolts for final leveling out or lowing even more. You should be able to adjust from a 5.5" to a 6.5" drop. The ride quality suffers is a bit bouncy due to lack of suspension travel left. Also the stock shocks are too compressed to function at all. Drop shocks will help and pancake bump stops will soften bottoming out. I have done my best to explain this whole precedure, but if you still have trouble, you can post questions here in the suspension forum. GOOD LUCK!

10-21-2008, 07:07 PM	#8
carpainter Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Zanesfield Ohio Posts: 119	Re: Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer I got rid of the parts S10 once I got everything off it I thought I needed. The 4x4 stuff is gone so it is basically a two wheel drive with 4x4 suspension now. I think I'll take it to school and have my students help me with the torsion bar lowering process (thanks for the info Corn). __________________ Robert Newland Auto Collision Instructor ASE Certified Auto Collision PPG Certified Automotive Painter 1971 Chevy C10 Short Bed 350 Four Bolt Main / 350 Turbo

10-22-2008, 04:13 PM	#10
Pyrotechnic Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 3,930	Re: Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer GM did this from the factory with the Syclone/Typhoon back in the early 90's. It was just a 4x4 truck that had a AWD transfer case and was lowered. __________________ 1977 GMC Sierra Grande

10-22-2008, 05:25 PM	#11
mekdad Registered User Join Date: May 2008 Location: Filer, Idaho Posts: 416	Re: Lowering an '85 S10 4x4 Blazer Ya, a 4x4 lowered with a factory turbo. __________________ you never know what you can do until you have to undo something you have done!



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