S10 - Take Two

Patrick said:

I may have an s10 radiator on the shelf, new, that will be cheap because i am sick of looking at piles of stuff. I definitely have some s10 of this era stuff that I would much rather pass along to you than just dump on craigslist

I may need to schedule another trip northeast.  Been meaning to wander up to Summit again sometime and see if there is anything cool in the discount section.  Not to mention, I wouldn't mind seeing the 57 again before it sells.  I'd love to have it, especially since I have a tribute build in my head that doesn't require a grille or bumper, but I'm not really in a position to buy something like that right now.  Not sure if I have anything in the stash you'd be interested in, but I'll take a tour of my garage soon.

Did a bit of looking online.  Looks like either dexcool mixed with green coolant, or very aged dexcool.  Either way, will definitely need to flush it.  I'm leery of selling the engine at anything more than a core price, too.  Too bad the heads are iron.  If they were aluminum, I could do a little experiment and see how much I could sell it for at the scrapper if I separated out all the clean and dirty aluminum, and iron/steel, and sold it that way.

Ran out into the garage this morning for a tire pressure gauge, and saw a puddle coming out from under the truck.  First thought was foundation issues due to all the rain we've had, but thankfully it was just brake fluid.  Looks like the lines are leaking from under the hood where one of those plastic brackets holds them next to each other.   At least now I know why the brakes are soft.  Think I'll pass on registering the truck.  With where they are, I don't want to deal with replacing them while the engine is still in the truck.

eastsideTim said:

Finally, a quick pic of the underside.  Southerners, look upon it in terror.  Michiganders and northern Ohioans, look upon it in envy:

 

More accuracy has never been spoken. I'm in OK and that looks absolutely horrifying. Like if it was free I wouldn't take it. 

Pulled it out of the garage for a bit more cleaning and futzing around.  Hadn't picked up a coolant flush kit yet, so that'll be for a different day.  If the gauge is to be believed, it actually has 60 psi oil pressure at cold idle.  Kind of makes me want to be stupid, keep the 4.3, and see how much boost it can take.   Thankfully, that thought passed quickly enough.

I did prop one of the Z06 wheels up, just to get an idea how it might look on the car.  I think it works.

Coolant flushing day.  Don't drink the forbidden root beer.

Took quite a while to get the water to run clear.  I just left the tap water in the system.  If the truck is together when the first freeze hits, I'll make sure to drain some out and add antifreeze.   The radiator is still pretty crusty, so if it gets used, it'll need a vinegar bath.

z31maniac said:

eastsideTim said:

Finally, a quick pic of the underside.  Southerners, look upon it in terror.  Michiganders and northern Ohioans, look upon it in envy:

 

More accuracy has never been spoken. I'm in OK and that looks absolutely horrifying. Like if it was free I wouldn't take it. 

Ohio resident here, looks pretty dang solid to me!

The radiator is full of what happens if you have Dexcool and a coolant leak and you're too indifferent to fix the coolant leak.  Dexcool turns to gunk when it gets oxygenated.

The coolant leak is most likely cracked intake gaskets.

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

So I should put a pretty low price on the engine, then?  
 

Supposedly, someone is coming to get the truck cap in a couple days.  After that, I'm not sure of the next step.  There is a good chance I'll need to tear down a donor vehicle in my garage, so disassembling the S10 before then seems like a bad idea.  If the ground drys up some more, I might shuffle it into the backyard and put it under a cover for a bit.  I should also try to figure out if any of the interior trim is worth selling.  Most of it is intact, except for some cracks in the dash cover.

I've started looking into factory driveshaft options, too, as I am considering things like engine setback, and possibly shortening the frame.   I think a RWD 2 door blazer has the shortest, so I may keep an eye out for those turning up in a junkyard.  I do want to wait to buy anything until I have a donor, and know what engine/transmission combo I'm going to use.

Got our first recoup, and some weight reduction.

Cap sold for $100.  With a little luck, we might zero it out or even go negative. 

That cleaned up nice! Love those 90's graphics. 

What is stupid about boosting the 4.3 again? Just watched Tony Angelo do it on Stay Tuned. Looked like a hoot! (until it blew up)

In reply to maschinenbau :

The blow up bit is a big part of it.  Also, I haven't found any real success stories using the spider injector setup and boost, so it becomes a decision between going carb'd(and dealing with all the fun tuning for boost), finding the relatively rare conventional EFI hardware from an older 4.3, and getting bigger injectors, although I'm not sure if the old intake and newer heads are compatible, and finally, dropping over $1000 on the marine intake manifold setup.  Carb is likely the "easy" route, which is probably at least partially responsible for the 4.3's reputation for self-dismantling.

There's a chance Faster with Finnegan used the spider injectors on their Astro, but I can't remember.  I'll have to check.  EDIT:  They used the marine intake manifold.

The drivetrain is probably decided on.  I made a deal on a 5.3 V8 donor with terminal rust.  I just need to work out logistics and beg for some help to get it home, as it can't be driven, except maybe on and off a trailer.  
 

Planning on running to HF today to get an engine hoist to replace the one I lost a ways back in my storage fire.

There is a company that sells the injector spider with larger injectors, just can't remember who at the moment.

The marine intakes are getting expensive now, used to be a cheap option.   LS is the better way to go.

In reply to 81cpcamaro :

I think another budget killer with the marine intake is you still end up needing to spend the money on bigger injectors, too. 

Nothing photo worthy happening, but I've been cleaning out the garage in anticipation of the engine donor arriving in a week or so, and have sold the S10's center console.  $25 more recoup!

eastsideTim said:

Pulled it out of the garage for a bit more cleaning and futzing around.  Hadn't picked up a coolant flush kit yet, so that'll be for a different day.  If the gauge is to be believed, it actually has 60 psi oil pressure at cold idle.  Kind of makes me want to be stupid, keep the 4.3, and see how much boost it can take.   Thankfully, that thought passed quickly enough.

I did prop one of the Z06 wheels up, just to get an idea how it might look on the car.  I think it works.

 

That looks EXTREMEEEEEEEEEE!

Today was pick up the donor day!   wae and 84FSP did most of the work, while I bs'd with the former owner.  2004 Chevy Trailblazer EXT with an aluminum 5.3 V8 for $800.  Has the G80 RPO code, so presumably a gov-lock rear differential.

Engine runs like a top, transmission seems to be perfectly fine, though we could not drive it much, due to the the trailing arm brackets detaching themselves from the driver's side of the frame.  I couldn't let the others do all the work, and since this was my dumb idea, I did some of the crawling around under the truck to attach ratchet straps between the rear axle and the running board brackets, so the wheel wouldn't be buried in the fender.

Getting it onto the trailer was still a bit of an adventure, and we damaged one of the tires, so that reduces recoup a bit, but this thing is pretty nice.

Getting it off the trailer went much more smoothly, and it handled the (very slow and careful) 1/8 mile drive into my garage beautifully.  If the frame wasn't in such sorry shape, I'd love to daily it over winter.

Tomorrow, I'm going to try to check all the electronic gadgets and see what works before we start tearing it apart.  I should probably do a little research on if there are any oddball items that are light and small, and worth a decent amount.  Also, with the interior in the condition it is in, I should check to see if there is a viable market in the south for non-sunbaked trim panels.  May commence a little dismantling tomorrow, but the hard work is reserved til after Halloween, when I can dedicate the garage bay completely to the job.  Also, a side project came home today, too, and I may play with it a little.

Oh yeah, I need to grab a few credits on HPTuners, and disable things like security, before we yank the engine.

First recoup from the Trailblazer.  There's a penny and a dime stuck in the center console.  Makes me wonder how much more I'll find once I remove it.

Ebay and FBM research is also showing me what I need to be focusing on.  Mostly interior trim and electronics.  I am guessing that is because it is old enough OEM stocks are pretty much gone, but there are so many still on the road that the aftermarket is filling in on more common failure points like headlights, taillights, window regulators, etc.  I'll still pull some bigger stuff, but will likely try to sell it locally, while easier to ship parts will go on Ebay, where prices should be high enough to make up for the selling fees.  The hood may stick around and serve as a source of spare sheet metal.

Money found in purchased vehicle counts as reduced purchase price, not recoup.

AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) said:

Money found in purchased vehicle counts as reduced purchase price, not recoup.

LOL of course there is a rule for this being GRM 

84FSP said:

AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) said:

Money found in purchased vehicle counts as reduced purchase price, not recoup.

LOL of course there is a rule for this being GRM 

After a little more digging around in the car, the purchase price is now $799.74.  

Ohhhhhhhhh

You may not be able to do a torque arm with that rearend.  The center section is magnesium and mortals like us cannot weld anything to it.  All Trailblazers with 10 bolt rears (anything not an SS) had the magnesium center.

I mean, check with a magnet to be sure, but I am 99% confident.

Even the Ironman Stewart stadium trucks, which used magnesium Dana 60s, -bolted- the suspension mounts to the center.

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

I'll definitely check to be sure, but as I understand, the 5.3 V8 uses the standard 8.6" 10 bolt, instead of the oddball 8.0" in the 6 cylinder model, so hopefully it's still an iron center section.  Oh yeah, it also has the GT4 RPO, so it should be a 3.73.

How about doing something similar to the GNX rear suspension?

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

It's not magnetic, so presumably it is magnesium.  At least that means it should be a bit lighter than the iron on in the other S10.