96 2wd to 4wd conversion

[GoToGuy]

If I did a 2 wheel to 4x4 conversion( at one time I was going to drop a Denali suburban on a HD 2500 Duramax )I believe a frame swap , lower end. Axles , suspension, mounts for body, engine placement. No welding. A bolt on conversion. Using any and all factory parts, locations, placements.
No having to reinvent the wheel, just pulling parts off the shelf , like your own factory custom order.
With GM you can do creative mix and match to get what you want.

 

[Nad_Yvalhosert]

If I did a 2 wheel to 4x4 conversion( at one time I was going to drop a Denali suburban on a HD 2500 Duramax )I believe a frame swap , lower end. Axles , suspension, mounts for body, engine placement. No welding. A bolt on conversion. Using any and all factory parts, locations, placements.
No having to reinvent the wheel, just pulling parts off the shelf , like your own factory custom order.
With GM you can do creative mix and match to get what you want.

If you swapped in a IFS 4x4 frame, you'd need the complete an entire donor truck.
Separately you'd need:
New or fully rebuild your transmission with a new (4x4 tramsmission) output shaft
Additional wiring harness to control the t-case
Additional wiring to control the front diff actuator
OBDII PCM, and flash at a dealer
4 new wheels/tires as 5 lug 15 won't fit 6 lug 16
Matching rear (hard to find) 2wd 2500 6 lug rear axle
Matching gear ratios in axles

You got 4-5 thousand bucks?

 

[Nad_Yvalhosert]

There is a company that sells bolt in leaf spring mounts for 2wd trucks. They're like $400 last I looked.
They use Square Body front leaf springs, and you'd have to find a front axle, but they're like $300ish.
Fabricate a divorced transfer case with a couple short driveshafts, but you don't have a fuel tank in the way, drill a hole in the floor for a t-case shifter and there's no replacement wiring or reprogramming necessary.
Then you could find a 5 lug Ford Dana 44 with a driver side pumpkin or a Square Body 6 lug (with 5 lug to 6-lug rear adaptors)
This might only be $3 grand to get you a 4x4 out of a 2wd.

 

[Nad_Yvalhosert]

O.P. get the 96 2wd, drive it sparingly, keep it washed. Cheapest, easiest, wisest choice.

 

[GoToGuy]

The complete idea was I had a lead on a rolled HD Duramax Denali, 4x4 with low miles. And my mom wanted to sell her 98 suburban with " all the bells whistles". That was serious plan notes, measurement's. And then my mom traded in sub for a Silverado Duramax. Poof.

 

[Nad_Yvalhosert]

The complete idea was I had a lead on a rolled HD Duramax Denali, 4x4 with low miles. And my mom wanted to sell her 98 suburban with " all the bells whistles". That was serious plan notes, measurement's. And then my mom traded in sub for a Silverado Duramax. Poof.

So, 400 Suburban body on a late model diesel pickup chassis?
That's gonna be an even bigger fabrication nightmare. Wiring communication to gauges, getting the engine, radiator, condenser, and intercooler to fit in a 400 engine bay... that's gonna require a genius.
Or a Roadkill level of hackery. Best of luck to you!
I want to see the progress.

 

[62barsoom]

So, 400 Suburban body on a late model diesel pickup chassis?
That's gonna be an even bigger fabrication nightmare. Wiring communication to gauges, getting the engine, radiator, condenser, and intercooler to fit in a 400 engine bay... that's gonna require a genius.
Or a Roadkill level of hackery. Best of luck to you!
I want to see the progress.

Mom saved him.

 

[62barsoom]

If you swapped in a IFS 4x4 frame, you'd need the complete an entire donor truck.
Separately you'd need:
New or fully rebuild your transmission with a new (4x4 tramsmission) output shaft
Additional wiring harness to control the t-case
Additional wiring to control the front diff actuator
OBDII PCM, and flash at a dealer
4 new wheels/tires as 5 lug 15 won't fit 6 lug 16
Matching rear (hard to find) 2wd 2500 6 lug rear axle
Matching gear ratios in axles

You got 4-5 thousand bucks?

New? What's that? Man I'm a junkyard man. 2500 rear why? It's a 1500. If I wanted to do it bad enough I'd do a slice on the frame. An NP 149 transfer case and matching front differential. Easy mod to hang it. Ain't nothing a gas axe and a little determination can't make happen. I'm an ex mud bog racer. We were 6th on the indoor circuit in '91. Ran a Allston pro gas chassis which we built out of a box. A 590 ci Rodak with 14/71 blower. Started with a 6 cly 69 Bronko, with an alcohol drinking mouse motor. Next with a the same frame we put in Eldorado front ends on both ends cause we kept breaking crap. Made our own transfer case with 2 rows of #60 chain. Had a Samurai body on it. Still the mouse motor but blown. Not my first rodeo. You never know what an old farmer might do. But this pretty girl will me unmolested and the work horse will handle the snow.

 

[Nad_Yvalhosert]

New? What's that? Man I'm a junkyard man. 2500 rear why? It's a 1500.

Because O.P. wants his 5 lug 2wd to become a 4x4. But OE GM trucks are 6 lug.
A 2500 2wd is a 6 lug.

Seeing that the spring perches are specific: 2wd 1500 matches 2wd 2500, 4x4 1500 matches 4x4 (6 lug) 2500
AND
If O.P. wanted matching wheels
or at least matching bolt patterns
perhaps matching brake systems
or even matching gear ratios...
Therefore O.P. ought to be putting a 2wd 6 lug axle on a 2wd Suburban as it's a bolt in swap.

Thats why a 2wd 2500 rear axle makes sense.

Now, if O.P. wants to solid axle swap in a 5 lug Ford axle, he MIGHT just keep the OE rear axle, but he'll have mismatched bolt pattern and mismatched wheels

 

[Nad_Yvalhosert]

An NP 149 transfer case and matching front differential. Easy mod to hang it.

Hang...? A front diff on a 2wd frame?

Or were you referring to his Duramax swap?
How are you gonna put an AWD T-case with its 27 spline input shaft onto the Allison tranny's 32 spline output shaft?