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88 chevy question.

73redblaze

73redblaze

1/2 ton status
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Jun 18, 2008
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Aptos ca
so im thinking about buying a 88 silverado but i have a few questions. first how big of tires can you run before breaking the front axle shafts and such? what breaks on these trucks since they arnt straight axles. how hard is is to swap a straight axle? do they use the same tranys and t-cases as older Chevy's? thanks guys. here some pics of the truck in question

chevy1.jpg

chevy2.jpg

chevy 3.jpg
 
They run a drivers drop t-case. As for the swap to solid axle, it can get pretty involved, and to run the stock t-case will require a drivers drop front axle like a Furd D60. Don't know on max tire size, but the weak points tend to be steering components and CV joints. The CV's don't like a lot of angle, and the steering is very different from the older styles that we are all used to.
 
hmm. yea i dont know if i want to swap a straight axle in it (iv seen it done in 4wheeler and it looks like a lot of work) but ford d60s are far cheaper than chevy d60s. there's 4 at the PNP for $200 each. for now i just want to throw some larger tires on it and have some fun. probably 36"s max. think she would hold up?
 
I think 36's would put the front end components right at their limits. It is also going to depend on the type of wheeling you are planning with it. Light trails probably won't be an issue, any serious torquing in heavy trails could cause steering failures.

It is still a nice looking truck, and I would take it for myself to use as a town driver. Not much would replace my Blazer for wheeling.
 
yea im not planning on beating on it to bad. its a good deal and i just sold my firebird so i have permission to buy a new toy.
 
I would do it, and probably just go to 33's on it myself. That nose is my favorite of all the over/under grill designs GM put out.
 
yea i think i will if he agrees to the price i want. its only 400 less than asking
 
I agree that 33s are the limit for the stock IFS on these trucks if you're really going to drive it off road at all. If you go any taller or hop up the engine at all, you're asking for a broken CV shaft. This usually happens when the truck starts bouncing around under heavy throttle on rough, hard ground, or if you turn the wheels all the way to one side and hit some bumps or get on the gas hard. You could snap a CV shaft or rip a CV boot or seperate the shaft from the diff, or even crack the weak aluminum diff housing in extreme cases.

These trucks do ride good on pavement. They must meet the needs of most owners, or GM wouldn't have kept this crappy setup for over 20 years now. I think as long as you keep everything close to stock you won't have a problem. You might even like the ride on dirt roads and stuff like that.
 
73redblaze said:
hmm. yea i dont know if i want to swap a straight axle in it (iv seen it done in 4wheeler and it looks like a lot of work) but ford d60s are far cheaper than chevy d60s. there's 4 at the PNP for $200 each. for now i just want to throw some larger tires on it and have some fun. probably 36"s max. think she would hold up?
Click to expand...

I'm throwing the B.S flag on that one. If they are Ford 60's and they are soooo much cheaper. Scoop them up and make some coin.
 
I just picked up an 88' a few weeks ago. I absolutely love this truck but I agree that this is not for wheelin'. I picked this up to tow my dune buggy so this is perfect for towing the buggy on light trails. This will also serve as my dune buggy's rescue vehicle since it's equipped with a 10k warn winch.The PO had installed a 2.5" Rancho lift and it clears 33"s no problem. Guess what my first project is? - Ripped CV boots! Actually one was ripped in half and the other simply slipped off. This is one of those K2500 Light duty. 14bolt 3/4 ton but 6 lug????? Hmmm... The one you posted has dual headlights.
mynewtruck.jpg
 
Merv said:
I'm throwing the B.S flag on that one. If they are Ford 60's and they are soooo much cheaper. Scoop them up and make some coin.
Click to expand...
give me the $200 down and $100 to pull them and il send them your way.
 
Merv said:
I'm throwing the B.S flag on that one. If they are Ford 60's and they are soooo much cheaper. Scoop them up and make some coin.
Click to expand...
heres the reason behind it. this local guy started a junk hauling co. called cheap hauling. he bought all Ford trucks mainly f-350s. all pre 90. at the peak of hs company he owned 46 trucks from sacramento to aptos (where i live). so he fired one of his employees and th employee gets angry. he starts going around slashing the tires on these white f-350s (there easy to find) causing him a bunch of trouble. so the guy starts his own junk hauling company called Got junk. he is putting this other owner out of business. so the guy sends all his non working f-350s to the pick n pull and sells the company. how do i know this? the owner of the original company is in all of my construction classes and complains about it all the time. now the pick n pull yard by my place is so full of these white f-350s they wont even accept them anymore
 
73redblaze said:
heres the reason behind it. this local guy started a junk hauling co. called cheap hauling. he bought all Ford trucks mainly f-350s. all pre 90. at the peak of hs company he owned 46 trucks from sacramento to aptos (where i live). so he fired one of his employees and th employee gets angry. he starts going around slashing the tires on these white f-350s (there easy to find) causing him a bunch of trouble. so the guy starts his own junk hauling company called Got junk. he is putting this other owner out of business. so the guy sends all his non working f-350s to the pick n pull and sells the company. how do i know this? the owner of the original company is in all of my construction classes and complains about it all the time. now the pick n pull yard by my place is so full of these white f-350s they wont even accept them anymore
Click to expand...

So there not the late 70's Kingpin. Then it's understandable. Thanks for clarifying.
 
RoadWarrior138 said:
I just picked up an 88' a few weeks ago. I absolutely love this truck but I agree that this is not for wheelin'. I picked this up to tow my dune buggy so this is perfect for towing the buggy on light trails. This will also serve as my dune buggy's rescue vehicle since it's equipped with a 10k warn winch.The PO had installed a 2.5" Rancho lift and it clears 33"s no problem. Guess what my first project is? - Ripped CV boots! Actually one was ripped in half and the other simply slipped off. This is one of those K2500 Light duty. 14bolt 3/4 ton but 6 lug????? Hmmm... The one you posted has dual headlights.
mynewtruck.jpg
Click to expand...

The truck you got must have one of those semi-floating 14 bolts. I have heard of lots of these trucks having CV boot problems on the IFS, especially on some lift kits that don't correct the CV shaft angle.

Looks like the one that Red Blaze posted pics of has a '94-'98 Silverado grill (and hood possibly) with the original '88 style headlights. These headlights are supposed to be better for visibility than the later ones, and they're usually cheaper to replace.
 
andyblack said:
The truck you got must have one of those semi-floating 14 bolts. I have heard of lots of these trucks having CV boot problems on the IFS, especially on some lift kits that don't correct the CV shaft angle.

Looks like the one that Red Blaze posted pics of has a '94-'98 Silverado grill (and hood possibly) with the original '88 style headlights. These headlights are supposed to be better for visibility than the later ones, and they're usually cheaper to replace.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I hear that the newer lift kits for these trucks are designed much better now. Definetely something I'm going to look into. Swapping in a full axle up front would be nice if I had the $$$. Too many projects in my life.
 
I had that 2-3" Rancho lift on my '92 Blazer K1500. Biggest POS mistake I ever made. Could have had a 4" subframe lift or a SAS by the time I was done a few years later continuously fixing the thing. Bah!

Best advice for half ton GM IFS from someone who's played that game? 33's at most and don't lift it. If you want it taller put a body lift on but don't go crazy. That front end is a POS. Especially an early version like that with the 2 bolt idler arm and all. Bah. Messing with the suspension gets you nothing but steering and CV shaft troubles.

I won't own GM torsion bar IFS again unless it's an uber clean diesel 3/4 ton or bigger Suburban or pickup. Even then I'm not going to mess with it.
Slap 285/75R16's on it and call it good.
 
thanks for all the advise guys but i cant get a hold of the guy anyhow. well now i knoe they are more trouble than there worth. il keep hunting
 
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