I have a 76 Blazer with horrible cancer of the floors and rockers and basically everywhere else and I think I have found a body to do a swap with. The other body is from an 86 Blazer, will I have any issues swapping these? Is there any difference in the front clip between these besides grill and headlights? I thought I had heard that Blazers from like 85 and up had a slightly different floor and frame set up, is this true? Should I just try to get the frame from the guy too? If I get the frame too will I have any issues putting the 350/350/203 combo in or my 76 front clip on there or will it just bolt right in? Thanks for the help.
CK5
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Body Swap Question
- Thread starter kicker30
- Start date
Come on, someone has to know something about this.
Your 76 will have a different floor design then the 86 will. I believe 78 is the year they changed the floor design so that the rear passengers have a footwell, because of this the frames are different too. The rear kick-up is farther back on 78 and later blazers. Also the body mounts in the middle of the body (behind the driver's area) are different. The 76 will have mounts on the inside of the frame, the 86 will have outboard mounts.
The front clip between the two is totally different and you will need to swap the entire thing over (hood, fenders, radiator support, wheelwells, grill, and headlights). Your best bet would probably be to get the 86 frame as well then you can do some rust prevention to the frame before you swap everything over
The front clip between the two is totally different and you will need to swap the entire thing over (hood, fenders, radiator support, wheelwells, grill, and headlights). Your best bet would probably be to get the 86 frame as well then you can do some rust prevention to the frame before you swap everything over
Thanks for the info, I will definatly get the frame also. One more question though. Will the 76 front clip fit the 88, I know they look totally different but the 88 has been hit on the drivers front corner (frame is straight I asked about that) and the front clip is all bent up, so could the 76 clip be transferred to the 88?
And one more quick ?. The 88 had a tbi 350 and 700-r4 and I dont know what transfer case, how much trouble will it be putting in my 350/350/203 combo?
Im 90% sure it will all swap right over
Motor mounts are the same, but you may need to move the trans crossmember, the 700r4 is a little longer than the th350
jones
1/2 ton status
Check out the cowl area just below the windshield.'81-'87 cabs have the vented cowl and the older style is different.I don't know how to explain it but there is a difference the.Whether it's enough to be an issue IDK.
Thanks for the info. I think I m going to go ahead and get the body and frame and good fender he has, maybe the hood also if it isnt bent too bad from the wreck. Ill try it with my 76 front clip and if it doesnt work Ill sell mine and get the rest of the parts for an 81-91.
blazin_blazer
1/2 ton status
the 88 hood won't work on the 76-77 front end, in 73-80 the hood goes all the way back to the windshield, 81-up they have a cowl vent and short hood....your front cap will go on the 88 ...iirc you will have to put the 76 wipers in the 88 tub....you deff need the newer frame, all your stuff will fit it but as mentioned, it has different mounts than your 76....get the 88 frame & tub..all your stuff will swap into it
Another question reguarding this that I thought of while reading another thread. I didnt ask the guy Im going to get the body and frame from if he has the title, if not how hard is it going to be to get it registered? I have the title and all for my 76 but what if he doesnt have the one for this one? It isnt registered now but what if I registered it before the swap and then just didnt say anything?
lectric80
3/4 ton status
The difference is the wiper stanchions are taller on the newer body style to clear the cowl, where the old ones were short to sit under the hood lip. There may be some other minor differences as well.
As for titling, if he doesn't have the title find out if your state will do a lost title replacement. Many states will do this, and it allows you to show proof that you own the vehicle and then get a replacement title. However, the previous owner should have the title, many states make it illegal to sell a vehicle without a title. If you register it then swap you could run into some serious legal issues, and I would recommend against going that route.
