Miss Safari 2003

[Captn. Crunch]

Say hello to my new darling. 123,000 miles with full leather, 3.73’s and a G80 rear. Can’t wait to get wrenching!

[Snowgeek]

Oohh! Man I looked for that combination for quite some time..... I never did find it. Hey what transfer case is going in that thing? Can’t wait to se the progress.

Ryan

[Captn. Crunch]

Hey Ryan
It is a sought after and elusive combination that I was happy to find. I was looking at two vans, this one and the same yr. astro. The astro was quite a bit cleaner underneath but the GT4 and G80 swayed me. Especially the GT4 because that’s whats in my 99 and Ive got a pretty good chunk of change tiedup in the Torsen equipped cast iron front diff that’ll be getting swapped over. The G80 will probably end up on EBay but I will give it a chance to see how it acts in concert with the front Torsen. I imagine I’ll end up back with the twin Torsen I’m running now.
I’m doing the np236 swap. I’ve already done that swap in mine and Rinny’s so why get away from what you know. If EVERYTHING works out I’ll be upgrading to the np246 to go along with the modified body lift explained here

https://www.astrosafari.com/viewtopic.p ... 7&t=118657

First on the list is corrosion control but I’m excited. My 99 is so rusty Ive stopped any and all work/mods and entered hospice mode

[Snowgeek]

Wow that van and his concept of lift is amazing. I don’t offen get Astro jealousy but man that thing does create that feeling!

I will be excited to see your progress and your experience lifting the rig that way. Seems like there are a lot of positives to be had in regards to suspension and steering.

Ryan

[racrx7]

Congrats on the aquistion 3.73's eh? Lucky lucky. Not the most popular option. I swapped my rear 3.42's out for 3.73's. Much improved acceleration with my 255 BFG's. Picked up a 3.73 ZR2 front axle cheap, but the housings are cracked. Gears are good tho. Gonna get an S10 front axle and swap the gears out. I want to use the front axle disconnect feature from the S10 setup...Until I get around to doing the Dana 44 SAS swap.

[Captn. Crunch]

Congrats on the aquistion 3.73's eh? Lucky lucky. Not the most popular option. I swapped my rear 3.42's out for 3.73's. Much improved acceleration with my 255 BFG's. Picked up a 3.73 ZR2 front axle cheap, but the housings are cracked. Gears are good tho. Gonna get an S10 front axle and swap the gears out. I want to use the front axle disconnect feature from the S10 setup...Until I get around to doing the Dana 44 SAS swap.

Thanks and yes it was a good day on the used car lot. There was an 03 astro rite next to this one who’s undercarriage was as clean as a whistle with cloth interior. I was gonna go there til I read the RPO stickers.
I also was looking at the disconnect but the torsen I’m running in the front diff acts totally different from an open carrier. I’m worried about gear wear due to being loaded from only one side so I’m sticking with the two solid axles