Is there spec info posted anywhere on you're tan K30(?) that you ran in UA? After watching some videos I'd love to know about the motor and exhaust set up.
Thanks!
Thanks!
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.
Ultimate Adventure 2015 Truck
- Thread starter nvrenuf
- Start date
ran the past UA2016 as well.
Fwiw, I found this - http://www.drivingline.com/articles/killer-k30-offroad-designs-latest-chevy-truck-build/
I now have questions about the cage.
What's going on with the "A" pillar bars? There appears to be a second leg branched off from about dash high that's plated / gusseted to the main leg. With the cab cut like that, did you tie the firewall / front of the cab to the cage to keep it from moving around too much? I'm doing a full top conversion on my K5 and looking for ideas on bracing the body to the cage to keep it from folding in on itself.
I now have questions about the cage.
What's going on with the "A" pillar bars? There appears to be a second leg branched off from about dash high that's plated / gusseted to the main leg. With the cab cut like that, did you tie the firewall / front of the cab to the cage to keep it from moving around too much? I'm doing a full top conversion on my K5 and looking for ideas on bracing the body to the cage to keep it from folding in on itself.
cool article, love the truck even more now.
How do you like the 4.88's with the 40's?
How do you like the 4.88's with the 40's?
I gotta keep moving today so I'll try to limit the book for now but keep asking questions if you have them.
The article probably specs it but it's a takeout 6.2L L98 Escalade engine with a Tilden U4-ish cam package and full VVT and DOD delete so it kind of became a LS3 with truck accessories and a manifolds. Exhaust is stock manifolds (just because they fit easy, long tubes would be awesome but will have to be custom on this truck), dual pipes and a couple flowmasters that i think are 40s. It's too loud sometimes, especially on the highway. We put a Rugged intercomm system with headsets in it and that made it much more enjoyable to drive. We set a car alarm off in a parking lot in Ridgecrest when I started the engine...
The double A pillar is due to the lack of a door bar system of any kind. We tied the engine cage into the main cage section with a tube running through the wiper motor hole so it comes in about mid span on the A pillar and I figured doubling up the pillar like that would really help it resist flexing when the shock hoops push on it. Normally we'd like to have a horizontal door bar picking up that load and sending it back into the rest of the cage system but this truck needs to have an open door opening so no door bars. It's also a much stronger A pillar in roll over protection than it would be if it was just the straight tube running to the nerf bar system. It used up some foot room for getting in and out which I don't like but overall it's a good compromise. There's a short section under the front of the cab with some frame boxing also since that area is the hardest to make strong.
The 4.88's and 40's work well together. Cruise RPM is 3K-ish depending on what you call cruise speed and takeoff performance feels good. Off road, the Magnum fixes any gearing problems that could pop up. We looked at 4.56's but one of our guys here ran it and thought it was just a little doggy on the street even with a healthy smallblock so 4.88 got the nod. This truck does have a relatively loose convertor for a trail rig, it probably would be called a 2200-2400 RPM I'd guess? We got it from Jimmy's 4x4 and I think it's one they spec for U4 stuff from TCS. The trans is a Rancho Drivetrain TH400 and it's all I could ask for in driveability. Shifting is perfect, no matter what RPM or throttle position. We wanted relatively simple and light and the aluminum engine, TH400 and Magnum system shaves quite a bit of size, weight and complexity off from some of our big block, 4L80/doubler trucks. It's still not a lightweight overall but it's way better than it could be.
That side shot in the 2nd post is from a fully packed road day so that's all our gear and equipment for the trip. I would have liked to have had a camp chair along, otherwise we were good and sitting on a log wasn't that bad.
The article probably specs it but it's a takeout 6.2L L98 Escalade engine with a Tilden U4-ish cam package and full VVT and DOD delete so it kind of became a LS3 with truck accessories and a manifolds. Exhaust is stock manifolds (just because they fit easy, long tubes would be awesome but will have to be custom on this truck), dual pipes and a couple flowmasters that i think are 40s. It's too loud sometimes, especially on the highway. We put a Rugged intercomm system with headsets in it and that made it much more enjoyable to drive. We set a car alarm off in a parking lot in Ridgecrest when I started the engine...
The double A pillar is due to the lack of a door bar system of any kind. We tied the engine cage into the main cage section with a tube running through the wiper motor hole so it comes in about mid span on the A pillar and I figured doubling up the pillar like that would really help it resist flexing when the shock hoops push on it. Normally we'd like to have a horizontal door bar picking up that load and sending it back into the rest of the cage system but this truck needs to have an open door opening so no door bars. It's also a much stronger A pillar in roll over protection than it would be if it was just the straight tube running to the nerf bar system. It used up some foot room for getting in and out which I don't like but overall it's a good compromise. There's a short section under the front of the cab with some frame boxing also since that area is the hardest to make strong.
The 4.88's and 40's work well together. Cruise RPM is 3K-ish depending on what you call cruise speed and takeoff performance feels good. Off road, the Magnum fixes any gearing problems that could pop up. We looked at 4.56's but one of our guys here ran it and thought it was just a little doggy on the street even with a healthy smallblock so 4.88 got the nod. This truck does have a relatively loose convertor for a trail rig, it probably would be called a 2200-2400 RPM I'd guess? We got it from Jimmy's 4x4 and I think it's one they spec for U4 stuff from TCS. The trans is a Rancho Drivetrain TH400 and it's all I could ask for in driveability. Shifting is perfect, no matter what RPM or throttle position. We wanted relatively simple and light and the aluminum engine, TH400 and Magnum system shaves quite a bit of size, weight and complexity off from some of our big block, 4L80/doubler trucks. It's still not a lightweight overall but it's way better than it could be.
That side shot in the 2nd post is from a fully packed road day so that's all our gear and equipment for the trip. I would have liked to have had a camp chair along, otherwise we were good and sitting on a log wasn't that bad.
Great answer, thanks! Now I'll let that soak in and go home to a real monitor, stare at the pics more and see what other questions I can come up with. 
I've been into street rods, muscle cars OffRoad trucks & automotive stuff in general for all of my life. I've seen a lot of good work & a lot of good trucks. Very rairly anymore do I get a hard on for a rig. This one is one of the few. It broke the boring mold. I'm sure it helps that I'm in the middle of a square body build but still. As far as I'm concerned this truck is the square body bench mark. It's also going to be responcable for the removal of most of the top of my Suburban.
@Stephen ok, new videos UA = new questions LOL!
The UA video showed several trucks struggling with cooling system problems in the extreme heat but there was no mention of your K30, any issues? Do you have the "typical" aluminum radiator w/ electric fan set up? Just curious, if you've found good recipe for modified motors vs streetable dependability for square body trucks. So many people fight this gremlin it would be nice to have a "go to" set up, if needed.
After rereading your previous response, I just caught the roll cage thru the wiper motor hole - are the wipers just for looks or have you found an alternative to the weak factory wiper motor?
The UA video showed several trucks struggling with cooling system problems in the extreme heat but there was no mention of your K30, any issues? Do you have the "typical" aluminum radiator w/ electric fan set up? Just curious, if you've found good recipe for modified motors vs streetable dependability for square body trucks. So many people fight this gremlin it would be nice to have a "go to" set up, if needed.
After rereading your previous response, I just caught the roll cage thru the wiper motor hole - are the wipers just for looks or have you found an alternative to the weak factory wiper motor?
We didn't have any cooling problems. We're running a griffin replacement for that truck with the "LS" swap (I hate that term since the vast majority of "LS" engines are truck motors but that doesn't really matter now) with 2 16" spal fans wired into the factory computer to activate. In the worst heat it sometimes wanted to turn on the 2nd fan sometimes and that was about it. The trans runs through the radiator and out to 2 pretty good size (7x15-ish) CBR coolers with 2 little spal fans on each one. The fans are probably 6" dia. It runs all #8 lines and I think RDE does some internal porting to help with fluid flow. We never really fought trans heat on the death valley day, it was worse when we got caught between gears on the trail. There were a couple times I shifted the T-cases up anticipating higher speeds on the trail and then we end up lollygagging along and the truck wants to either move out or be in low gear due to the kind-of-high stall speed on the convertor. The solution was pretty easy, just shift the T-cases to a lower gear. When the fans are running on the trans coolers we can work the truck hard and not build much heat so it's not that hard to take care of.
Funny thing with that trip is that we parked a tow rig in Reno and ended up driving south over 395 in the night and about froze our asses off on the way to ridgecrest. We had most of our clothes and our parkas on and it was still damn cold at road speed as we crossed the mountains. Then we were in triple digits the next day. Crazy contrast.
The wiper motor is inside the cab on the passenger side now and it works OK and not much better. We couldn't get the leverage the same so it doesn't like to wipe a dry windshield but anytime it's wet it does a good job. More power would be reassuring but it does the job. Much better than manual wipers, I can tell you that!
Funny thing with that trip is that we parked a tow rig in Reno and ended up driving south over 395 in the night and about froze our asses off on the way to ridgecrest. We had most of our clothes and our parkas on and it was still damn cold at road speed as we crossed the mountains. Then we were in triple digits the next day. Crazy contrast.
The wiper motor is inside the cab on the passenger side now and it works OK and not much better. We couldn't get the leverage the same so it doesn't like to wipe a dry windshield but anytime it's wet it does a good job. More power would be reassuring but it does the job. Much better than manual wipers, I can tell you that!
That thing is a beast. Seen it at the last few BBes
Stephen, what's the wheelbase?
115"
What brand/model type of aftermarket headlights?
