hey all im new to the forums and diesel world kinda but not to machanices or electrical....im buying a 2003 chevrlet suburban 4x4 1500 im wanting to swap a 2003 duramax motor and trans in with rear and front ends now ive seen it done but no one shows help on what had to be done im wondering if theres any write up on it and will all the wiring be plug in like the yukon that was done cause im using same year stuff and i know ill have to get 2500 leafs and springs and do a body lift any ideas who i can call or go to or read at thanks all
new project
- Thread starter Subdiesel03
- Start date
Talk to this guy, THEFERMANATOR. He put one in a suburban. I imagine he can give you a few pointers.
I would reccomend starting with a 2500 SUBURBAN so you can get the 9 1/4 front axle to begin with, and also the 8600 GVWR front end. I swapped mine into an older body style, but the newer ones are alot easier. Eric THETDIGUY at DP does these out of his shop. The 1500 platform is doable, but alot more work from what he has said.
so its better to have a 2500 then the 1500 makes everything easier?
where would i start to look for full vehicles with motor and tranny im in az and the junk yards out here dont carry diesels or atleast the ones im aware of
where would i start to look for full vehicles with motor and tranny im in az and the junk yards out here dont carry diesels or atleast the ones im aware of
I lucked out and found mine on CRAIGSLIST. Just look around is all I can say. Donors can pop up anywhere.
If you are serious about doing this project here is a list of AZ wrecking yards you could probably call. http://www.usedwreckingyards.com/arizona/10.html
yes im serious about doing it does it matter if i get a 1996-2001 suburban 2500 and do i need to match it wtih same year donner or no? and if i get the 90's not a 2000 or 2001 will i have to change motor mount brackets like reweld them cause its older truck from newer motor? cause i found a few 2500's im going to look at this weekend saw some donnor vehicles my dads friend can get through acoution salvage wrecks so just need a lil info on what i need ot get to do thsi the right way
Hard parts wont be a big issue in the transplant. However, for electronics sake, its easier to swap a motor/trans into a vehicle thats close to the same year. Older body styles can be done but may require a some modifying to make gauges, hvac controls and such work.
Stick with an 00 or newer body style, you WILL thank yourself. The older 94-99 body style is a B!TCH to get everything squeezed into. The 1500's use different mounts and such, so an 01-02 2500 SUB will interchange easily with an 01-02 DMAX/ALLISON. Or if you go with an 03+ go with an 03+ donor. If you go with a 2500 SUBURBAN for your project you can transfer most all of the DURAMAX/ ALLISON parts over as well as raditor support and such. I ould also look for a 2500 SUBURBAN with 3.73 gears, or make sure your donor is a 2500HD so you can transfer the differentials over to it. THETDIGUY said his first one had 4.10's and didn't drive that nicely even with 285's for tires. He said it was a blast to hotrod, but the lower gears caused some harshness to the shifts.