Worlds Baddest suburban??

[Colorado Ron]

Looks like the burb that made the magazines is up for sale!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CUSTOM-Cummins-Diesel-Powered-Expedition-4x4_W0QQitemZ220144092266QQihZ012QQcategoryZ6155QQ ssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[overlander]

Everyone knows that the the Suburban that Pierce Brosnan drove in the movie "Dante's Peak" had to be the best and baddest ever!


I also learned another important point from that movie.

Life Lesson #234: If you ever find yourself trying to escape from a erupting volcano, and you have the choice of getting in a Hummer or a Chevy van, ALWAYS choose the Hummer.

Same holds true for the choice of a Defender or Chevy van, as long as the Defender's tires aren't inflated to 80 PSI.

[Shovel]

Everyone knows that the the Suburban that Pierce Brosnan drove in the movie "Dante's Peak" had to be the best and baddest ever!

.

Heck yeah! Drive it on molten rock and it keeps on working! And such good a/c that the floor itself could be melting and nobody's really all that uncomfortable!

[adventureduo]

That thing is a beast.. i dont think it's a $40k beast tho.

[teotwaki]

It is a sad story that I often see. It's a super "custom" vehicle that is incomplete and flawed yet the owner has an inflated sense of the vehicle's worth. He even admits that he is sick of working on it.

Some admitted flaws as well as others that are hinted at:

"MY LIST FOR SUBURBAN: If I were to keep this vehicle, I would do the following, in roughly this order:

1. Build front inner wheel wells. Mud and crap gets all over engine compartment and wiring and electrical system.

2. Have dash board painted dark, flat finish to reduce windshield glare. Clean up wiring under dash?

3. Make steps to lower egts and water temp while towing heavy loads. Mechanical cooling fan? Additional radiator under chassis with cooling fans, high flow exhaust manifold, water injection, 4.10 or 4.56 ring and pinion gears.

4. Hot Rod style heater/air conditioner unit with new control panel and make up custom A/C refrigerant hoses"

[dirtysouth]

$40k for a vehicle that has rust on it, not for me but they say a sucker is born everyday. :)

[ujoint]

That sub has soooooooo much work in it. I would hate to know how much $$$ has been dumped into it. It's a rig that you don't build and plan to sell anytime soon.

[durango_60]

That rig is very sweet, the owner must be active in our local hockey league as I have gotten plenty of time to crawl around it in the parking lot. The fit and finish is nice, but not perfect, I'm sure he has more money than any of us can imagine invested but I can't see paying 40k+. Then again, all it takes is one person who sees the value and ebay is a good place to find them.

[xcmountain80]

That was in a offroad mag a couple years ago, It is pretty nice well I mean for what it is, I'm sure it's been driven hard.

Aaron

[Dirty Harry]

That rig is very sweet, the owner must be active in our local hockey league as I have gotten plenty of time to crawl around it in the parking lot.


It belongs to Drew Barber from Avalanche Engineering.

[parallax_ca]

i have been thinking of buying this vehicle (not at 40k but less)
any advice?
i am thinking of taking the tiger provan body i ahve on a 4wd c2500 gm gas reg cab chassis and flipping her over >> reasoning is this
1. both have same wheelbase (131" approx)
2. i wanted to have a diesel (cummins ideally) expedition vehicle and something a bit brawnier than just the 3/4 ton chassis (this is more 1 ton correct?) (that conversion could run 8-10k by time get truck and then install)
3. the other stuff is costly (say tires 2-3k , suspension, gps, rebuild of engine, tranny, etc., 1 ton axles etc. >>

so given that i would be spending a certain amount to build up a 3/4 ton platform, does it not make sense to start here ?
thoughts, opionions?

my other thought is to by a f550 (4wheel disc brake, bigger capacity) but 7.3l auto and if and when the powerstroke dies, pop in a cummins then?? (i have not had seriously bad experinces with the 7.3l non-turbos and what little i did was not too expesnive (500 starter yeah expensive but, an injector is 60-70 each (vs duramax at 1000 (yes 1k) each ouch!!)

the f550 would require massaging the tiger body

i have to do things to the tiger body anyway to beef it up a bit and drop in diesel appliances but a good chassis is the key/foundation for me

so... again, thoughts, opinions (for what it is all worth)
one advantage i have is that the CDN dollar is pretty high (realatively speaking) for once so i am in a good position (for once) buying in the US!!

thx
gord in the great white north (muskoka ontario)
pls. cc to parallax@vianet.ca as i am not on this site every day

[Schattenjager]

Gee - just think of all the places you couldn't go in this monster rig... :(

[Nullifier]

All that work and he is using milk crates to stow gear in the truck :xxrotflma I'm always amused at where people chose to cut corners.

[parallax_ca]

i really i am not a "purist" i guess from most expedition vehicles (ie tent on top of the cab) but thought, hey people are discussing that f650 with a huge camper body, then a f550 or this suburban chassis with a tiger/provan rv body is actually MUCH smaller and more nimble >> anyone with some helpful advice while looking at this suburban ?
so this is not that agile?? (for what i would do i woudl think it is) southe america, mexicao, us, canada, nothing major serious offroad, down to the beach, thorugh towns, backroads, offroads (not major serious mud or rock crawling but...)

or any comments/advice about going to an f550 with 7.3 powerstroke (over the cummins) instead??

being a newbie i am looking for advice from the experience crowd and hope that some day i will be out and about with my own experience

anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
thx

:)

gord in the great white north

[Ryanmb21]

I would not buy that vehicle. Just my 2 cents.

[parallax_ca]

ok, i hear you
but why ??
jsut trying to udnerstand
since i need a 1 ton chassis and a cummins automatic, then i need to add a winch and other "stuff" i can see how it will add up quick

please expand WHY yuou say you would not buy this burb even if you were to jsut use the cahssis only (since we need more of an RV setup (kitichen, bath facilities etc., a roving cabin)

i hope you will expand as all i am getting is just more "don't do it" >> being a newbie i may be missing something >> he has taken off road from what i understand and it performs well enough
i know my definition of off-road may be different from others (whihc is great, be a small world otherwise!) >> we just need something that is a bit better than stock chev 1994 c2500 regular cab 4wd gas >> must be
1. diesel (want to have one fuel like the earthroamers are)
2. 4wd,
3. driveable by my wife
4. able to hit the hightways without killing us (ie not topping out at 50mph)
5. get reasonable mileage (at least better than gas),
6. have worldwide availability of parts (well enough in case broken down it is fixable (i.e. Cummins vs. a powerstroke, that kind of thing)
7. Can go “anywhere” >> now my definition of anywhere is NOT Antarctica!!. Rather tour North and South America, go down most roads, some off-road but not serious rock/dune/mud crawling. Rather lets go down this forest trail or this semi-open road, or to the beach etc.

much as i like the earthroamer __ WAY too big >> now that is BIG to me vs this suburban (it is not any bigger than a standard pickup with a long bed >> many people use those off road!) so this is my take on a smaller earthroamer >> smaller than the "eco-roamer" elsewher on this site but similar goals vs. tent camping

sorry for being long >> really hoping to be educated as to why this particular one is a bad idea >> seems most things i would need to do have been done, just need to "re-body"
thanking in advance

dumb gord:)