Chevy & GMC Vans

I have been following your build up like a mini series- I cant wait for the next installment! Can I just "Tivo" it and skip to the end? Just kidding- Great work!!!

2tailfins wrote:I have been following your build up like a mini series- I cant wait for the next installment! Can I just "Tivo" it and skip to the end? Just kidding- Great work!!!

Thanks tailfins

Now I'm back at work, progress will slow a bit!
Anyway, all fabricated brackets painted withchip resistant matt black paint. Then smeared in rustproofer and bolted on.





This is a view from behind the edge of the front bumper. Looking sexy eh?



This is the galvanised battery tray.



Oh, and a sneak peek of my 20" and 18" wheels bound for my custom Camaro!! :notworthy:



Andy.

Andy, beeen watching and alot of work your doing to this van,nice.Does your van have the v6 or a v8?
Just wondering

s10-den wrote:Andy, beeen watching and alot of work your doing to this van,nice.Does your van have the v6 or a v8?
Just wondering

Hi s10-den.
It's a V6. No V8 route for me this time

It's almost confession time! I have been building a custom 86 camaro for over 10 years now! Inbetween having kids and a full time job and building this astro van and maintaing everybody elses, and looking after elderly parents (late eighties). Here is a sneak peek of one of the wheels on the car





This is a slightly out of date photo now, but the windows are all in (tinted limo black ), and all the lights. I'll get another photo of it now in a few days time











So, you see, I'm not just a van man

Andy.

Confess thy son,and free your mind from this burden which you have kept hid from your Astrosafarian brethren

Cool car Andy, I take it that is your favourite colour

andyfanshawe wrote: Oh, and a sneak peek of my 20" and 18" wheels bound for my custom Camaro!! :notworthy:



Andy.

Chrome IROC Rims Shout CHEVY Performance on Any Chevy vehicle....!! ....

Couldn't resist 'em Darren. Look gorgeous.

Back to the van.
This weekend was to get rid the front of the silly front wing holes in the A post. They have been drilled and self tapping bolts put in that are sloppy. Plan is to replace them all with captive M8 threads.
Like this



Square hole cut out



New plate with welded on captive nut positioned with duct tape



Tack welded in



Finish welded



And painted black



Lower one



Then the important bit. Fully rustproofed under the welds from inside the A post.

Very time consuming, but important.

More to come.
Andy.

looking good andy!
Danny

Thanks Danny

Finally got the front fenders/hood to fit properly and all gaps are even. All captive nuts in place and working well with stainless fasteners. Joined front of fenders to front gfx/bumper with a custom bracket that also holds the entire assembly to the inner wheel arch to stop any flexing. Photos later. For anyone who has removed and tried to put back the earlier dash with all the wiring attached to it,.....well,....I'm not going to
There is absolutely no reason why the wires can't be left behind when the dashboard is removed, except for the digital dash loom that is on multiplugs anyway. So,.......

Here is a view of the wires roughly where they would be above the steering column



And here is a view of the wires tucked nicely behind the metal bracket attached to the firewall. The rest of the wires have been rerouted behind the windshield demister vents. Luckily I have only had to cut 9 wires and lengthen 3.



The drac unit has been removed from behind the dash and relocated and attached to the pedal box metalwork. The defroster channels will be attached to the firewall also. All I have to do now to remove the dash is to disconnect the 2 digital instrumentation plugs and pull the dash forward.

More photos later.

Oh, dashboard design?................. More rounded pod in front of the driver (modified old one) and another identical pod on the other side with a TV built in, but behind a smoked panel. I will then join the 2 together with a curved section that will house the flip out head unit properly rather than sticking out too far.

Andy.

Soddin' work and soddin' teenagers..................There thats said it. Feel better now. :yay:

Has there been any progress on the Astro? Has there heck. After spending hours with the 4 camaro headlights, I have now decided that it does indeed need 8 after all. Only ordered 4 from Socalli V8 though. Where can I get 4 more in the UK without having to bother poor Darren? Found a 1997 breaking on ebay. £60 for all 4 lights. Yeah, I know, a bit steep, but beggars can't be choosers. They should be arriving tomorrow hopefully, and I can try to get the front end complete.

I'll try to get a sketch of the light arrangement posted up.
Andy.

Here is a rough schematic of the light setup at the front.
The small white lights above the rectangular units are white LEDs (audi A8 is it?). The yellow are amber LED beacons.
The whole lot will be covered by a black phantom grille that will completely close when the van is parked (shutter style). That'll be fun designing and building!



Andy.

Heres the wiring that I have rerouted under the windshield vents. It is all tiewrapped to the firewall just below the windscreen. Far tidier than the factory ever did.



In this shot you can see the stereo head unit power wires and antenna wire exiting from the demister vents in the middle of the van.



Dash redesign next.
Andy.

nice andy looking good man
Danny

Thanks Danny.

I'm now fed up of the transmission leak! When the van is continously moving and being parked in different places, the drips aren't really noticed. But when it's parked up in the same spot for ages, it all builds up fast.

Plan was to remove trans x member and all rear brackets/mounts and get a clear view of where the damp spots are. Then replace the rear driveshaft seal, the speed sensor seal and the extension housing seal as well. Just to make sure

Heres the x member removed



Here are 2 views of the rear of the trans with all brackets removed. Pretty damp under there.





Heres the extension housing and speed sensor removed



This is what you see when it is all clear



Rear seal just about to go in.



Then all back together. Time will tell if it is solved!

Andy.

Haven't followed this in a long time, you are really making some progress. I'm really interested inthe camaro even though 3rd gens are my least fav, paint looks really sweet. I saw a 3rd gen locally here with a set of 20 Irocs all around, looked okay, car just wasn't set up to have the right look with them.