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Anyone with reg cab on a suburban frame?

jp0863

jp0863

1/2 ton status
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clovis, ca
Been wanting to do a crew cab on the suburban frame with a small flatbed, but the non-smog crew cabs are hard to find around here. Which of course got me thinking.. What about a regular cab on the suburban frame and a longer flatbed.. Anyone done this or have pics of this? I tried searching, but to no avail..
 
Why don't you cut the back of the burb off and graft on the back of a regular cab in its place?

Botta bing botta boom, crew cab on a suburban chassis.

You could even leave a couple extra inches in there for rear passenger comfort.
 
Put 64's in back while maintaining the factory front hanger position for the rear springs and shift that axle half a foot back and you'll have more tire clearance.
 
Buddy of mine did that on his sub.

Worked out not bad after be built proper rear cab mounts.
 
I know someone in NH that put a decent 2wd pickup cab on more than one 3/4 ton 4x4 Suburban he bought cheap, due to a lot of body rot...he just put the rear cab mounts off the donor pickup on the Suburban frame in the right spot,and modified the floor tunnel so a body lift wasn't required to clear the transfer case,and made a flatbed for them..

Since my '85 Burb has now rotted the rockers and bottoms of the doors off it since I bought it in '09,I am tempted to start sawing it up and just make a yard buggy/plow truck out of it..pipe dreams that likely wont happen,but fun to think about..doubt it'll ever see the road again,sadly..someone with more ability and money than me could save it still--but I'm done trying to restore things that need a lot of body work..

I had to kill about 1000 wasps living in one front fender in it yesterday--almost got stung trying to put a battery in it to start it--the poison ivy vines are growing all over the plow frame,time to move it!.I decided I'll wait a few days until it drops below 95 degrees to mess with it..
 
There's only 2" of wheelbase difference between the burb and a longbed pickup.

So I don't see the point of a regular cab on a burb frame.
 
jp0863 said:
Been wanting to do a crew cab on the suburban frame with a small flatbed, but the non-smog crew cabs are hard to find around here. Which of course got me thinking.. What about a regular cab on the suburban frame and a longer flatbed.. Anyone done this or have pics of this? I tried searching, but to no avail..
Click to expand...

Looking at the sheet metal, a Suburban behind the front seat is exactly the same length as a regular 8' bed. The axle is pushed forward 2 or 3 inches, but the length is the same. So a truck cab on a Suburban frame will give you...a normal 8' bed from a LWB truck.

If you're looking for 4 doors, chopping up a Suburban isn't a bad idea. Or you could leave the bed enclosed and just run a normal Suburban.
 
Response to Blazinzuk ...

Its a cheap way to get a nice pickup ,that was the reason the guy I know did it..bought a 2wd pickup with a blown motor cheap,and a rotted out 4x4 Suburban and married the two together...he sold one at high profit and used the other for himself to tow and haul firewood..
The only time you'll notice the 2" shorter wheelbase is the turning radius is slightly better than a long bed pickup..
 
diesel4me said:
Response to Blazinzuk ...

Its a cheap way to get a nice pickup ,that was the reason the guy I know did it..bought a 2wd pickup with a blown motor cheap,and a rotted out 4x4 Suburban and married the two together...he sold one at high profit and used the other for himself to tow and haul firewood..
The only time you'll notice the 2" shorter wheelbase is the turning radius is slightly better than a long bed pickup..
Click to expand...


You Eastern guys got it tough.

Frames out here don't rust away. EVER
 
Frames on square bodies here usually take 10+ years longer to rot away than sheet metal...average life span of a door,fender,rocker panel here is 5 years,unless your really anal about washing,waxing,spraying drain oil inside them,and unfortunately I didn't do any of those things..

I see many more of the "new" style '88 and up trucks with severe frame rot,even the 2000's and newer are already rotting to death here..

Check this one out--a dam shame!..its one of several I've seen on craigslist ..

Chevy 454 Big Block Dually K3500
 
campfire said:
$200 for a smog-exempt crew cab? That seems ridiculously cheap, even if it is missing an engine. :eek1:
Click to expand...
I know, right? I have a factory fresh crate motor in my garage. Too bad it's on the other side of the world....
 
I called the guy in Petaluma, but no answer and no response back.
I've also called a few others in CA, but they seem to disappear quickly. I'm letting the kids decide what they want to build and build it together.. I like the crew cab idea, but my oldest boy wants a flat bed for the ranch (he has autism so it helps him when I let him get his hands dirty). Reason I was asking for reg cab pics is to show him, because he's not able to imagine what it would look like.
 
Hi, do you have any build pictures? I have an '84 Suburban, badly rusted out in each back corner, have been thinking of cutting just behind the second row seats and grafting the rear of a regular cab onto it. Then adding a flat from there back.
 
RichVernon said:
Hi, do you have any build pictures? I have an '84 Suburban, badly rusted out in each back corner, have been thinking of cutting just behind the second row seats and grafting the rear of a regular cab onto it. Then adding a flat from there back.
Click to expand...
This is a 9 year old thread, all but the last poster are gone and even that one hasn't been on for 2.5 months.
You could go on his profile and look at his build thread but you need to be a paying member to access those threads
 
imiceman44 said:
This is a 9 year old thread, all but the last poster are gone and even that one hasn't been on for 2.5 months.
You could go on his profile and look at his build thread but you need to be a paying member to access those threads
Click to expand...
Big ray was on yesterday . . Just saying :deal:
 
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