Which Year of the S10 Chassis

[57ToyBox]

I'm gonna do a FULL Chassis swap on my 57 Chev Panel Van and seeing as I'm gonna go to the expense I might as well go 4x4.

Any suggestions on a year 4x4 S10 chassis?
The wheel base on my Panel is 114.5 inches
Four wheel disc would be preferable

Correct me if I'm wrong, this is what I've learned about the S10.

Regular cab short box - 108.3"
Regular cab long box - 117.9"
Extended cab short box - 122.9"

Compliments of Ad-engineering

1982-1983 No spare tire winch built in / No ext. cabs available / Spare tire x-member must be removed.
1985 Fuel Injection begins on the 2.8L V6 means different fuel lines.
1988 4.3L V6 with EFI introduced means different fuel lines.
1989 Rear ABS introduced
1991 Turbo charged AWD GMC Syclone introduced
1994 ZQ8 Sport Suspension package introduced / New body style introduced
1996 Four wheel ABS available on all S10's
1998 Four wheel disc brakes
1999 S10 Extreme introduced
!! DO NOT USE ANY ZR2 FRAME OR AXLE. BOTH ARE TOO WIDE !!

[Sinisterspeed]

Sounds like good info, I'll be watching this. Still trying to decide if I want to do another MII front end and camaro rear, or just go find an S-10 and build a whole new chassis for a body swap.

[GRIMSS]

For the TF trucks 55.2-59 the s-10 is not the best choice. They are better for the AD truck 47-55.1. The thing is they are too narrow. If going 4x4 you may look into blackdiesel's build he went from 4x4 to 2x4. It may tell what frame he had under it when it was 4x4. It had a very nice stance. I'm thinking a square body short bed but may be wrong.

[57ToyBox]

Thanks Jared
I'll search Blackdiesel's threads

[waybad]

when you say narrower,, do you mean frame or track width? I think the frames are pretty close! not for sure,, from what I have measured the (4X4 track width) actually the outside tire width on a 1988 s10 4x4 with 265/75/15 8" rims is 71",,, my 55 second,, is 71 1/2 outside width with 215/,,,,, 15x7 ralleys in more info that I might be missing please fill me in! TC

[GRIMSS]

Here is a s10 rearend centered under a 55 sub I parted. You be the judge.

[waybad]

Thanks Jared for posting those pictures,, one question though,, are those wheels S10 wheels? if so,, they have something like a 5-6 inch back spacing,, so if you went with a 8 inch wheel, there would be up to 3 inches per side,,, wider,, if that makes any sense??? also,, the rear track width is narrower than the stock front (I'm pretty sure???) ,,its late here,,

thanks again for your time!
TC

[rog540wag]

For what its worth, i have done three 47-53 AD trucks on 2wd s-10 frames. They work great in my opinion, but i wouldnt use one under anything newer than 54 because of the tracking width. But with a four wheel drive chassis and the right wheel in my opinion it would work great. Just remember the blazers are not a good choice, use a truck for the doner frame. Good luck!

[GRIMSS]

Here's more pics. Here's my panel with the same s-10 rearend, 2" spacer on both sides, and 20" dodge steel wheels. The wheels are 8 or 8.5 and around 5.5 - 5.75 offsed from what I remember (been a while since I looked). I can still go with wider 2" per side and still get full drop with the 35" tall tires.

[waybad]

Originally Posted by rog540wag

For what its worth, i have done three 47-53 AD trucks on 2wd s-10 frames. They work great in my opinion, but i wouldnt use one under anything newer than 54 because of the tracking width. But with a four wheel drive chassis and the right wheel in my opinion it would work great. Just remember the blazers are not a good choice, use a truck for the doner frame. Good luck!

I'm thinking of doing a front clip type conversion instead of a complete frame swap,,, only reason is,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, it's free

thanks again for posting the pictures!!!

[blackdiesel]

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=321380 heres a build thats right up your alley.

[waybad]

Thanks,, I followed it while he was building it,, a very well done truck!
I want to get away from the buggy ride that the front leaf spring gives!!
I really dont want to have a lifted truck either,, something along the normal ride hight with a better ride with the ability to off road a little,,
I know I'm not normal,,, just want to be a little different
Thanks TC

[57ToyBox]

Originally Posted by blackdiesel

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=321380 heres a build thats right up your alley.

Never would have thought of that. (A Jeep p/u )

I'm still undecided and not sure which way I'm gonna go in order to convert to 4X4.

[55metalmonkey]

before you completely discount the s-10 idea, a 96/ newer s-10 ZR-2 or 95 s-10 highrider (pre zr2) has a wider track width than a standard s-10 by 2-3"
Just FYI

[57ToyBox]

Originally Posted by 55metalmonkey

before you completely discount the s-10 idea, a 96/ newer s-10 ZR-2 or 95 s-10 highrider (pre zr2) has a wider track width than a standard s-10 by 2-3"
Just FYI

Thanks man. I'll keep that in mind.. I'm still researching the hell out of this.

[55metalmonkey]

I have a 95 Highrider, if you want I could go out and measure it, but I'm sure google would be more accurate than me crawling around on my driveway, When they jacked them up in the factory they put on wider axles for stability.
I found out the hard way when I bent one out 4x4ing. none parts stores knew or could tell me that they were wider. I had to go to GM and thats when I found out. surprizingly GM OE was cheeper than aftermarket