Turbo 350 to 700R4 question.

[Jiggity76]

I guess I should intro the truck/history. I've had the truck for about 11 years now. Bought it locally. 87 GMC High Sierra 4X4 long box. White with red interior. 5.7 tbi with the turbo 350. Quad shock option, vinyl floor, factory A/C, manual window/locks, dual tanks, factory cruise, tilt wheel.

Truck ran ok when I first got it but then started to smoke about 2 yrs ago. Took it took the GM garage and they said that #1 cylinder had hardly any compression, motor shook a little when idling. About the same time, the driver's door started to catch the front fender and after looking underneath one day, tons of rust (live in Iowa). Noticed all the cab supports, floor pans, cab corners, rockers, area above the rear wheels were completely rotted. The frame is somehow in really good shape. Still has a lot of it's factory coating on it, no cracks anywhere. Frame around the steering box is perfect as I've heard this is a weak spot. Brake lines look good too. Thought it would be a fun project for me and my buds.

Right now truck is a frame with the 91 Burb drivetrain in it, factory aluminum 8 hole wheels on 31 inch tires. Rims also came from the 91 parts Suburban. The truck has a 2 inch suspension lift on it when I bought it. Looks like your from Oklahoma City HotRodPC, I was just down there getting the last of the rust free parts that are going back on the truck, a good rust free driver's door from a guy on CL from Tuttle, OK. I also bought a 85 rust free 2WD truck from Fayettville, AR for the box, cab, inner fenders, tank supports. I bought some rust free fenders with the factory mounted antenna from a guy out in Seattle, WA for the truck. Bought some bumper guards from him too. Found an amazing OEM tail gate from a guy here in Iowa. He bought a new 85 black Silverado and after he got it home two weeks later, he put the tail gate up in his garage loft because he put a truck camper in the bed. Tail gate hasn't seen the light of day for 32 years! Still has the factory paint and GM tag on it. Since it wasn't exposed to our salty winter roads, it has perfect seams. The truck will be multi-colored with all the different parts until I can afford to paint it. It will have a tan hood, cab, and bed. Front fenders and passenger door will be white. Tail gate will be black.

Just trying to get the truck back together again and make it reliable/drivable and worry about making it pretty later. I will post pics when the truck is done. I don't remember about the spacer, I'll have to get back on that. I sold the turbo 350 already so can't look at it. I dropped the transfer case and then pulled the motor and tranny out of the Burb as one unit then bolted the transfer case back on. Front drive shaft is what's holding me up right now, the rear drive shaft bolted right up easy.

 

[HotRodPC]

hmmm well, I probably have 90% of what you needed. Can I ask or if you want to PM me, if it's a private thing, what you paid for the cab and doors? I'm in a bad financial mess at the moment for some medical issues. I've got a complete rust free Silverado power window and locks cab with doors I could sell. Someone on here, can't remember who now, was going to come down from the rust belt this summer and I thought they might be interested in this one. I didn't want to let it go but it appears I'm going to have to, so I'd like an idea of what I can realistically can get out of it.

 

[Jiggity76]

I'm sorry to hear about your situation. No, I'm not shy about money. I paid $500 for the whole truck. The truck was complete except for the interior. It was missing the seat, dash pad, gauge bezel, and door panels. Wasn't too concerned about it since I'm using it for body parts and I'm using the Burb and my original truck for interior stuff. The truck does not run and you can tell it sat outside for a long time. It had a really banged up tail gate but again no rust. The driver's side quarter panel behind the rear tire has a dent. The front left fender also has a small dent. Again, no rust at all just a little banged up. It has a perfect underside, still has the original tan overspray on the cab supports, floor pans and such. The underside supports for the bed are also perfect with tan overspray from the factory. Mine were rotted out and the bed was collapsing on itself. Once I figure out how to post pics, I will. The guy I bought it from also wanted it out of his yard in a bad way, his wife gave him a ultimatum. I also had to pay for the fuel/food for the trip down there. My dad helped me with his Super Duty diesel and trailer so I probably have about $750 to $800 into the whole purchase. Goodnite all, talk to ya later!

 

[HotRodPC]

You did real good on that purchase then.