1991 Cummins Suburban

motomech

Adventurer
This sounds good, but experience has proven it not to work as expected. The wheel & tire still came off. Tore up the rotor and caliper in the process.

To tell the truth im at 50% on this one. One actually snapped the caliper in half and let the tire/axle assembly go, and the other got me off the trail enough for a truck and trailer to get me the rest of the way home.
 

Spur

Adventurer
Sorry I haven't been around to contribute to the thread. I just got back from a trip. My buddy and I drove through Death Valley to Yosemite in his '97 Dodge 2500 Cummins. Started in Vegas and ended in Oakland. Little tip: don't plan on an early start the next day when you meet in Vegas. We camped in some really amazing places. Drove some really cool trails. Had a great time. Saw a lot of dirt and rocks.

Getting closer to starting on the swap. Lots of small details to work out. The biggest one is the tranny, t-case combo. Like all projects, the budget is ballooning as I write this. I need to make some cuts in some of the extras I want. I can always do them later. The money that would be spent on these non-essentials is going towards upgrades in the suspension, steering, frame, and axles. I think it's the smart choice.

On the chopping block:

1. 25 gallon water system with filtration and heat exchanger (using 5 gal cans for now)
2. paint job (instead of professional paint job, going to DIY roll the roof to fix some surface rust)
3. Custom front bumper and winch (again, maybe in a year or two)
4. Custom sliders
5. Upgraded interior lighting and off-road lighting (not essential, maybe later)

Thanks for all the input. It helps a lot. Without forums like this, it would be darn difficult to research these things.
 

Spur

Adventurer
How did you look for suburbans...I've been looking for similar as you (here in the PNW) and found a bunch...I know you've already found your donor, but if anyone else is thinking of searching for stuff like this, use www.crazedlist.org - I popped up a bunch of links for 'Suburban 3/4'

http://portland.craigslist.org/clc/cto/1246352403.html
http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/cto/1246490767.html (6.2 DIESEL!)
http://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/cto/1246886927.html

I use crazedlist a lot. Very useful. Right now I'm using it for the Dana 60 search. If anyone has a line on a good one, let me know.
 

roostercruiser

Adventurer
i have a 87 burban and its a 3/4 ton and a manaul tranny. i would love to put a cummins in it. i cant put an avatar there are to big pixels. ive seen only couple other burbs with manual in it. i would like to put a 5 or six speed in one day. heres my truck
 

Attachments

  • 0315091157.jpg
    0315091157.jpg
    45.4 KB · Views: 368
  • Roland's Burbie.jpg
    Roland's Burbie.jpg
    352.5 KB · Views: 292
  • 0414091342a.jpg
    0414091342a.jpg
    61.3 KB · Views: 257

roostercruiser

Adventurer
Sorry I haven't been around to contribute to the thread. I just got back from a trip. My buddy and I drove through Death Valley to Yosemite in his '97 Dodge 2500 Cummins. Started in Vegas and ended in Oakland. Little tip: don't plan on an early start the next day when you meet in Vegas. We camped in some really amazing places. Drove some really cool trails. Had a great time. Saw a lot of dirt and rocks.

surface rust)
3. Custom front bumper and winch (again, maybe in a year or two)


i found my warn 8274 winch and bumper together on craigslist for $200 they are out there.
 

Spur

Adventurer
I'm at a crossroads. The project is scheduled to start next week, but I'm not sure I'm going to go through with it. The budget has ballooned out of control and is running about 10k more than I originally thought it would be. For the kind of money I'm going to spend on the suburban, I could find a used Sportsmobile. Not sure it really makes sense at that price point. If I had the facilities and the time, I would do more of the work myself, but I have neither. Having somebody else do all the work adds up real quick. Plain and simple.

I'll have to do some soul-searching this weekend.
 

Spur

Adventurer
I thought about it long and hard. Another option might have been more practical, but the Suburban is the vehicle I really want. All systems are go. Both the Suburban and the Dodge were dropped off at the shop yesterday. A couple months and a few wheelbarrows of cash later, I should have the truck of my dreams. Look for updates in a few weeks. :wings:
 

redthies

Renaissance Redneck
I just sold my 89 burb and miss it... good choice in the cummins burb over the sports no-bile!:sombrero:
 

Spur

Adventurer
So a small update:

The engine from the Dodge has been pulled and all of the components are arriving in the next week or so.

Parts that I decided to go with:

- Boyce Dana 60 frontend with 4.10s, ARB locker, and warn premium hubs
- ORD/Tuff Country 4" lift with greasable bushings
- ORD Crossover steering with a ported box to allow for a future hydro upgrade
- TN Diesel motor mounts, nv4500, bellhousing, clutch, hydraulics, etc
- National Luna dual battery kit with Die Hard Platinums
- Full autometer gauges with pyro and boost

Here's a pic of the beast. (it tipped over their engine hoist :Wow1:)


july_30_023.jpg



While the motor is pulled, it would be a great time to install any mods or upgrades. I haven't been able to decide what I want to do. It's going to get a general "freshening." All of the hoses, belts and leaky gaskets are getting replaced. I've thought about new injectors. I'm not looking for wild horsepower. I'm more concerned with mpg's. In the future I'd like to upgrade the turbo, but it's not in the present budget.
 
Last edited:

ntsqd

Heretic Car Camper
"Killer Dowel Pin"?

ORD or Autofab steering box brace?

oh, and a friend bought a complete '96 6BT. Palleted weight was 950 lbs. according the shipper's scale.
 

Spur

Adventurer
KDP is definitely getting taken care of while the engine is pulled.

ORD steering box braces (both the weld on and the bolt on).

950 huh? I've always heard they're 1100 pounds. I wonder if that includes accessories?
 

ntsqd

Heretic Car Camper
His had the usual accessories still bolted on (PS/Vac, Alt. etc.). I don't recall if it had a flywheel on it.

At 950 that puts a 6BT only 100 below the high estimate of a Land Cruiser 2F gasser......
 

Spur

Adventurer
Anybody know of a really high-quality, high-flow fuel sending unit? In order to do the rear shackle flip, the tank needs to get pulled. Since it's such a PITA to pull a tank, I want to replace the sending unit while it's apart as preventative maintenance. $100 now as opposed to hours of labor down the road seems cheap.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
185,534
Messages
2,875,623
Members
224,922
Latest member
Randy Towles
Top