Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800 (Truck Norris!)

[Fair!]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800 (Truck Norris!)

Project Update for June 5, 2015: Wow, been a few months and we've finally gotten around to some updates to Truck Norris. A nagging "CEL" has been repaired, the truck was custom dyno tuned (which fixed a bunch of issues), we got yet another new windshield (freagin rocks!), and some busted lights were replaced. Let's cover it...

CUSTOM DYNO TUNE AT TRUE STREET

So Truck Norris has been running progressively worse for months, and we've had a Check Engine Light since we put the headers and new exhaust on. I know why, and we knew it would happen, but I figured I'd get the truck custom tuned at some point to work with the mods that it has (cold air + full length headers). The state inspection finally ran out, and I had to get it tuned before it would pass again, so I finally called the folks at True Street Motorsports and got an appointment to bring it in a couple of weeks ago. These are the guys that have tuned our 2011 Mustang GT so well, and we send all manner of cars and trucks their way for EFI tuning.



As I try to do when getting work done by any outside shop I made them a list of the mods we knew the truck had, the problems we were experiencing, how we used the truck, and sent a copy via email when we scheduled the work + left a printed copy on the front seat to make sure they knew what we had and needed. I asked them to fix the CEL, dyno tune the engine/air/fuel/spark, up the line pressure in the automatic trans (it was slipping a bit), see why it had crappy fuel mileage, calibrate the speedo for these 20" tires, and see if they could tame the cold start hunting idle. They also knew to tune for cheaper 87 octane fuel, daily driving and hauling around heavy loads from time to time. I wasn't looking for a race tune, just a good safe street tune. The current state of tune on the motor was a total mess... but they did their magic!



As you can see from the dyno sheet above there were some issues with the (before) stock tune when coupled with the K&N cold air and ARH headers, plus our custom exhaust. A previous owner had installed a different set of headers (craptastic and leaking Edlebrock shorties), a janky exhaust, and the K&N cold air... tens if not hundreds of thousands of miles ago. After so many years of abuse the actual air filter element was old, dirty and had a big hole in it (which I hadn't seen - doh!). They called before they replaced the filter, which I thanked them for finding, then did a base line pull. They said the fuel trims were off by 25%, with the engine running lean and the computer trying like mad to get it all sorted via the O2 readings.



I daily drive this truck from home to work, then it gets used in deliveries, and our mixed but consistent city/highway fuel mileage had been steadily dropping from around 14-15 mph to 11-12 mpg of late (I log every fuel fill up and calculate the mileage over each tank), so I knew something was wrong - even considering the speedo was off by about 8% due to our tire height change from stock. After the custom dyno tune the engine picked up 13 whp at the peak, but more importantly it RUNS 100 times better. I've been driving it for about 2 weeks and it is an entirely different experience.



Sure, it only makes 260 whp and 300 ft-lbs at the tires, but its literally the weakest 5.3L engine GM ever made and was only rated at 285hp at the crank, stock. It also has racked up over 245,000 miles. I'm just happy that it still runs, holds most of its fluids inside the engine, and gets me to work every day without fail. After the re-tune it feels a lot crisper on throttle, the transmission isn't slipping, and the idle speed is rock solid, hot or cold.



They only had the truck in for tuning for a day, and the fuel level was low after they were done, so I filled up the tank on the way back from True Street. After driving all over town for about a week and a half, it had gone through 19.55 gallons of 87 octane. With the speedo now calibrated (which hurt our numbers) the truck still managed 15.65 mpg on that tank, compared to 12.73 mpg on the previous tank (and the trend of 11-12 mpg had gone back for months in my fuel log). Lots of people drove the GMC over that week, including me, Brandon, Brad, Shannon, and one of our customers Marc - who all had driven it before, and each remarked at how much better it ran and drove. Good stuff.

NEW WINDSHIELD - NUMBER 3!

Over the time we've had this truck it has had a few rocks fly up at the windshield. It gets driven around Dallas and Ft. Worth to pick up and drop off parts from our various machine shops, platers/coaters, and other vendors. Often times it is driven in heavy traffic, through construction zones, you name it. I bought this truck with a giant crack in the windshield, which I had the folks at Titan Auto Glass replace last year. It was nice having a new windshield, as all of the tiny pock marks, chips and cracks become even more noticeable after you replace it with a perfect new piece of safety glass.



The new windshield wasn't in the truck for THREE WEEKS before it was ruined. I was driving on GBT going 70 mph and a big 18 wheeler kicked up a huge rock and POW! It popped the front glass on the passenger side and I watched as this fixable chip progressed into an 18" long crack over the next 30 minutes of my drive. GRR! Just figures.




Once again, the new state inspection was looming so I had a good excuse to get the windshield replaced. And Jason's 8.1L GMT800 truck just had a huge rock impact in it's front glass also, so we called Titan and they brought two identical new front windshields and changed them both the same day.



We pressed the "easy button" and called Titan to do their thing. Both GMT800 trucks had brand new, quality replacement windshields within about 90 minutes. We will also replace the huge, gaudy front "Vorshlag.com" windshield banner with something new.

OTHER UPGRADES + ANOTHER SWB GMT800 AT VORSHLAG

Most GMT800 trucks came with running lights in the USA, as part of some Daylight Running Light safety program. The trucks either came with the main headlights on during daylight or with small clear lenses that illuminate inside of the amber parking lights.



Well this truck had the smaller Daylight Running Lights, and one was burned out when I bought it. This is super common in the GMT800 series, as my 2002 1500HD had the "cyclops" look for the entire time I owned it (and after trying a new bulb it wouldn't work). Come to find out these trucks often had this light bulb sockets burn out, with some crappy GM wiring or metal fixture in the socket that would always get friend - usually on one side. If you know what to look for you will see hundreds of these GMT800 trucks with one DLR that is always out.



When we replaced the front lights and grill last time I had hoped to fix this issue with new bulbs, but of course that wasn't it. So I ordered the light bulb socket above (ACDelco LS94 Daytime Running Lamp Socket) for $16, and asked our guys to replace it. I also ordered a pair of 3157 style LED bulbs to replace the old ones. I looked for something better than the standard incandescent bulbs and decided to try some "super bright" LED replacement bulbs that were "very white". There was an amazing number of these cheap LED bulbs available with anywhere from 12 to 68 "SMD" LEDs on mounted onto a cluster that mimics the 3157 bulb's shape. Most were $1-2 each, almost all of them shipped from China, and the customer reviews were generally TERRIBLE. I picked one of the 68-SMD units that had 3.5 stars, which was relatively high for these units, for $2.15 for the pair.

It turns out that the bulb socket wasn't bad, and Brad was able to repair the stock socket with a little fiddling (one of the connectors had been mashed down and wasn't making contact). They installed the two LED 3157 bulbs, and, well... they look awful. Nothing even remotely approaching "white light", instead its much more "blue" and just turrible. So if you learn anything from this it is: check the socket to see if it can be fixed, and don't buy these cheesy LED bulbs.



One of our fabricators, Olof, picked up a GMT800 Short Bed Short Cab Chevy a few months back and it looks pretty slick. He bought the truck with the mods shown and it is riding on OEM Chevy 20" truck wheels, is lowered several inches at both ends, and has a Chevy 4.8L V8 under the hood. He's already replaced the steering rack and done some other repairs, so I'll include any updates to Olof's Chevy in the Truck Norris thread when I do updates from now on. Of the 10 people that work at Vorshlag, 3 of us own GMT800 trucks now (me, Olof and Jason).




Last but not least is a Raptor vs Truck Norris comparison. One of our friends (Nathan) picked up this 6.2L Raptor from our local Ford sales guru Corey White and it is damned nice. But, the interesting thing is, Truck Norris gets better fuel mileage, weighs a crapload less, and costs about 1/10th of what the Raptor did. And our GMC has wider tires... so there!

WHAT'S NEXT?

That's all for this time. We still have lots of little things to tweak and update, and someday I'll get around to drop spindles up front and a C-notch kit out back to get MOAR LOW.


With a current inspection sticker, custom engine tuning, and a new windshield, Truck Norris is looking better than ever

Thanks,

[EdL]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

...Ed's '03 GMC 3500...

FYI...My truck is a 2005.

You should fact check before posting.

[Fair!]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

Project Update for Jan 22, 2014: Not a big update here, just a long overdue front end makeover for our shop parts hauler, Truck Norris.

2003-UP FRONT GRILL UPGRADE + NEW HEADLIGHTS

If you've read the previous installments you know that this 1999 GMC Sierra has an aftermarket front grill which I hate. This has been the most embarrassing part on this truck since we acquired it, and I've had to look past this eyesore every time I drove it. Instead of making this the first modification, we've instead been focusing on performance and suspension maintenance and upgrades. Now the the truck goes, stops and turns better we can finally spend a little time and money on the front end.


Left: Before, with the hideous aftermarket "billet" style grill and chrome '99-02 surround. Right: After, with the '03-06 grill + new lights

I just couldn't take it anymore. The 1990s era "billet grill" that some previous owner installed was just too tacky and had to come off. I really would have preferred to get a 2003-06 GMC to start with, but this truck we found was such a good deal and it was the rare short bed / single cab / 5.3L / RWD package that proved very elusive to find. So I settled on this 1999 with the intent of upgrading to the '03-06 front end at some point.


The only difference in the 1999-2006 model GMC 1/2 ton was the front end; finding the SWB model was tough

I searched the land of interwebs for a deal, high and low, but finally settled on getting the non-chrome '03-06 reproduction GMC grill from fleaBay for $99 shipped. This was considerably less than many other sources, once you factored in shipping. And I skipped the chrome, as I am not a fan of that super shiny coating. The more chrome removed from this truck the happier I am. This unit is a grey outer section with black horizontal bars, which matched the base model Sierra of that 2003-06 model run.



We also picked up new headlights and turn signal lights, with new bulbs, which came to about $80 shipped. The factory headlights were all foggy and half the bulbs were burned out, and the parts were too cheap to replace rather than polishing the old surfaces. The "GMC" emblem is a closely guarded product that you can only buy new from GM, so we got one from a local GMC dealer. Even with our wholesale account it was still $65, ouch! But there's nothing else I'd rather have to fill that hole in the grill, and it sets off the front of the truck well.

The old billet looking aftermarket grill will be for sale on CraigsList later today, if you have to have one. Asking price: fifty bucks. These things sell for $300+ new.



Olof handled the grill and headlight swap in under an hour. This 2003-06 GMC Sierra grill bolted on without any issues on this 1999 model GMC. If you look closely you can see that the angled lower edge of center section of the new grill doesn't quite match the rounded opening of the lower 1999-02 bumper.



You can see the difference side-by-side with Ed's '03 GMC 3500 at left next to Truck Norris with the '03 grill and the 1999 lower bumper, at right. The rest of the parts totaled over $400 for the newer lower bumper, lower fascia, fog lights, brackets and all the rest. Shipping was the major killer there. So I punted, took a gamble, and tried the new grill with the old bumper. Didn't know if it would work, or if it bolted on, how it would look. In the end it is hardly noticeable, and its a shipload better than before.

Ideally I will go to some local body supply place like Certifit (who doesn't list prices online and doesn't ship) and pick up the non-chrome '03-06 lower bumper and fascia parts, soon. The body colored fascia piece will need paint (dilemma - do we stick with this champagne color?) and the steel bumper piece will need powder coat. The plan is to have the chrome bits all powder coated the same charcoal grey as the wheels, so at least we know where that is going.



While we were doing the grill swap Brandon got a shot of the fat Taylor 409 Spiral Pro Race spark plug wires, shown above. You can see the American Racing Headers full length stainless headers in this shot as well. We sell all of this stuff, so if you see something you like, give us a shout.

WHAT'S NEXT?

We had a freak cold snap and wicked ice storm a few weeks back - not something we are used to in Dallas. I had fun hooning around in Truck Norris on nearly deserted roads that day, but I admit there was some difficulty leaving from a stop light on ice with the "one wheel peel". A limited slip differential upgrade needs to happen soon, then we have some other tuning work that needs to be done. The engine is running rough at idle when its cold, so we need to track that down.



There are some other small updates that are bugging me, like the fact that we don't have a mic on the Alpine head unit, so I cannot do hands-free calls. That's a safety issue that I am going to see fixed, and soon. I'd love to rebuild the trans and stick in a hotter LSx motor, but with 8 vehicles now I have to stick to a tighter budget than ever on the GMC. Everything in its time.

Thanks for reading,

[Fair!]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

I'm surprised you wouldn't want the yukon Denali front end? Projector low beams with 9005 (high beam) bulbs, clear lens appearance, smoother looking bumper cover.

Several people have suggested this same front end, but that Denali front grill and headlights just don't suit my personal taste. The headlights are a little too "JDM" and the egg crate grill seems too busy. This is a popular upgrade to GMC trucks, though.

[HIDGolf]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

I'm surprised you wouldn't want the yukon Denali front end? Projector low beams with 9005 (high beam) bulbs, clear lens appearance, smoother looking bumper cover.

I think these SUVs also had hydroboost instead of vacuum for the brake booster.

[Fair!]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

continued from above

The original front calipers were already a twin piston sliding caliper but we had to upgrade those as well as the slider assembly, to move them and the pad outboard 1/2" to match the 1" larger diameter of the rotor. We went through several more sets of front brake pads before finding the right one for that (multiple pad shapes and thicknesses). As we also found there was a substantial brake hose change as well, which the forums neglect to mention.

I asked Kyle to mock up the front and rear discs and calipers first before we started chasing after the correct pads. Of course this is our shop truck and I wanted it to be a bit more "showy" so I ordered the red powder coated Powerslot versions of the calipers/sliders as well as the slotted/drilled/zinc plated Powerslot versions of the rotors. It is a little blingy but hey, that's part of the upgrade path on our shop truck.



That's the dimensions on the front and rear rotors we went from and to, above. The front rotors on the typical 4 wheel disc GMT800 were this 12.00" diameter x 1.18" (29mm) thick 6-lug unit. The 13.00" x 29mm front rotor were picked up plus the matching caliper slider brackets and new front calipers as well. Going up a full inch in diameter is huge. Maybe we could have used the old front calipers (although they look fairly different) but with 240K miles I wasn't going to chance it, so instead of rebuilding the old stuff I got the matching '05-06 13" rotor's calipers. On the rear there was a tiny rotor diameter increase but the later GMT800 SUVs had that much thicker rear rotor, going from 20mm to 29mm thick. These SUV rear discs were also equipped with twin piston sliding caliper instead of the normal single piston units, so we got these calipers plus the matching slider brackets.

I suppose we could have gone Centric Premium rotors for a few bucks less per corner, but it wasn't much more cost to bling it up a bit with the "Powerstop" versions. The Powerstop rotors are slotted and drilled (and the holes are heavily chamfered) and included a silver "clear zinc" electroplating over the entire rotor surface. I'm not so keen on the drilled holes part, but a plated rotor is nice, as it doesn't immediately start to rust on the hub face and other areas where an unplated cast iron rotor would (just look at the old rotors at the top of my post). These are all fully rebuilt calipers so they have new dust boots and caliper seals, and came with the pad retention clips. And they look purdy...



The mock-up of one front and rear corner (see above) with the rotors, slider brackets and calipers went well so I had the guys move ahead and order brake pads. Lots of deliveries later... three sets of rear pads and two sets of front pads is what it took to get the right shape and thickness, and we noted the part numbers to use. We ended up with Brembo ceramic pads which stop quietly and work dead cold.


Left: The rear dust shields need to be trimmed or removed to clear the larger calipers. Right: Front brake flex hose was totally different

A few other things needed to be changed for a 100% perfect brake install. First thing I noticed when I looked at the rear calipers and rotors was a pinched dust shield. Since the twin piston caliper is longer the normal "cut out" section for the old caliper was too small. I had the guys just trim the old dust shield to fit the longer rear calipers, but if we were to do this again we would order new OEM rear dust shields from the later SUV we robbed the rotor and calipers from. Next, I had a feeling the front brake flex lines might be a tad short, which became obvious on a trial run checking lock-to-lock turning. The 13.0" front disc versions of these flex hoses were several inches longer and routed completely differently on the control arm, so we got new lines from the later front disc/rear drum 1/2 ton truck and they bolted on perfectly. The guys then bled fresh DOT 3 brake fluid through the system and off we went on a test drive.


Left: New rear with thicker 13" rotors and upgraded twin piston calipers. Right: Upgraded front 13.0" (+1.0") diameter Powerstop rotor and caliper

Ryan noted a "long pedal" on the stops during his test drive but this truck always had a long and mushy pedal, so the new set-up might be suffering from a worn out master cylinder. We will swap to the later SUV master cylinder and see if that helps alter the hydraulic proportioning for the extra rear caliper pistons that were added, but it could just be a crappy 240K mile master cylinder showing its age. The pedal is finally firm, just a little long on travel. The truck STOPS VERY WELL now, with smoother and shorter stops than we've ever seen. Very happy with the results after a week of driving it, too.


The shop truck as of December 3rd, with the new 13" slotted/drilled/plated brake rotors and red Powerstop calipers

All told we spent around $700 for all of the parts, which included new rotors, calipers, sliders, pads and lines. Installation would take about 3 hours of labor, if you had all of the right parts to start with (which we didn't this first time, heh). This brake upgrade was considerably less costly than the cheapest BBKs we could find, and the fit and function was perfect. If anyone is interested we might offer this brake system upgrade for other GMT800 trucks like our's. After we do the SUV master cylinder update (near future) we will see if the pedal shortens up a bit, at which time we will offer this kit for sale.

WHAT'S NEXT?

So I've been sticking this "What's Next" section in all of my project posts lately... what is the next mod, event, planned repair, etc? Well this truck still needs some repair work, and the budget for upgrades to this truck is getting tighter, so its hard to say what the next thing will be. The new windshield we installed back in May took a solid rock hit at 75 mph on the GWB Turnpike less than 3 weeks after it was installed and cracked badly, so that needs to be re-replaced, yay. The rear drop shackles that somebody previously installed are still sticking and clunking within 2 days of being greased, so we have got to look at that.



I'd still really like to get lower the altitude a bit more with drop spindles, new rear springs and a C-notch kit installed on the frame, and for some light towing it has to get some helper air bags... it just snowballs from there. That set of upgrades is going to keep getting pushed back until we do some more pressing repairs. The drivetrain is starting to show its age, and with over 240,000 miles it should likely get some attention before we throw any more optional upgrades to it. The 4L60-E 4-speed automatic transmission is giving me hints that it needs a rebuild, but we will try a trans fluid and filter change first. And the 5.3L motor is just feeling a little tired. This 1999 model had the earliest and least powerful (1999-2003 5.3 made 285 hp) version of the 5.3L "LM7" V8, so almost anything newer would be an upgrade (even the smaller 4.8L made the same 285 hp from 2004-2006). I'd really like to get a fresh longblock into this truck, and it would be really nice to use an all-aluminum 5.7L LS1 block from a Camaro or Corvette while we're at it (350 hp) for a power boost, too. Honestly I have a lot more plans for this truck than there is money to pay for them, so we'll just deal with issues as they come.


Left: The larger 13" diameter rotors still look small inside 20" wheels. Right: An aluminum LSx longblock would save 80+ pounds

The biggest hangup I still have is the hideous aftermarket front grill insert, which has to go. As I mentioned earlier I want to upgrade to the later 2003-06 GMC front grill, which means a new bumper and lower fascia are needed as well (the lower shape of the GMC grill is different from 2003-2006). And all of the lights on the front (headlights, turns, fogs) on this truck are frosty and/or broken, and with the replacement bits are so cheap we might as well upgrade those at the same time. We can get all of this from the aftermarket for fairly cheap, except for the GMC logo which you can only get from a dealer. I have the new GMC logo (which was missing on this truck), just need to spend another $350 or so to get all of the rest of the new front end parts, then the plastic lower fascia will need paint. Then I'd have to decide if we are going to keep this body color (that I hate), or respray the whole truck in a different hue? That's an expensive decision so I will keep kicking the can down the road in the mean time.

Cheers,

[Fair!]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

Project Update for Dec 6th, 2013: Long time without an update on Truck Norris, our single cab short bed "parts runner" and all-around Shop Truck. The little GMC has just been motoring along fairly well since August, with most maintenance items being minor or just ignored over that time period. We've put several thousand more miles on this truck, picking up parts from various suppliers and running things all over town. A few little cosmetic updates were done in the recent months but the brakes were getting worse. We finally did something about that in late November. In this series of posts I used pictures both that I had taken (which are generally pretty poor) plus pictures Brandon took (which look 10x better), in case you notice the difference. Anyway, let's get caught up on the GMT800 Vorshlag Shop Truck project.


This is the "Before" shot showing the old wheels, chrome side molding, "sun shade" rain deflectors and no window tint

COSMETIC UPDATES

We did a number of small cosmetic upgrades and repairs work on the truck, including: new window tint added, removed all of the chrome side molding and badges, and removed the adhesive residue from old trim and a new removed set of "sunshade" side window rain gutter shades. The chrome side molding looked ugly and always bugged me, so that had to go, as did the cheesy (and broken) drip rail sun shades around the doors.



Once the side trim and sunshades were yanked off there was some serious double-sided foam tape that had to be removed, too. This adhesive was strong and a total PITA to get off completely. We tried soaking the stuff with a number of chemicals ("Goof Off" worked the best) and then pushed the goo off with a plastic scraper, but had better luck with a heat gun. Once the adhesive got hot it was easier to remove, just messy. Be careful and don't concentrate too much heat near the paint or you could burn the finish. The "SIERRA" badge and some dealership badge came off of the tailgate and the "SLE" badges came off the sides of the cab, too. Lots of elbow grease later the adhesive residue was finally gone and the truck had a lot less chrome, and looks a lot better. I still cannot stand the ghetto grill, but that's a future fix we will have to tackle.


As of October the truck lost the chrome side molding, rain deflectors and got some window tint

Jason made a big, obnoxious "Vorshlag.com" windshield banner decal and we installed that right before the new windshield was cracked. Later we took the truck to our friends at Soundscape Car Audio in Plano, who installed new window tint on the side and rear glass. They use a CNC plotter to cut the tint perfectly and the installation was both fast and flawless. When it comes time for better speakers we will take it to these guys for that work as well.

BRAKE SYSTEM UPGRADE

The truck's brakes were one thing we couldn't keep ignoring, as they were pretty well shot by about September. Stopping briskly with four badly warped rotors on brake pads worn down below the "wear indicators" made for dash shaking, nervous stops in traffic, and this only got worse when the bed was loaded with hundreds of pounds of machined parts. We had to replace these old brake rotors and pads, but while we were at it I wanted to try to sneak in a brake upgrade, so I started some research.


The old brakes were worn out and a bit undersized. The picture above is of the old 12.00" front rotors

First I looked at the Baer "Eradispeed" GMT800 brake upgrade options. With their kit we could upgrade the front to a 14" rotor with just a spacer for the stock calipers and pay $505. Basically it was $500 for two rotors and two brackets, meh. The Baer rear kit is a 14" rotor as well, with what looks to be the same twin piston calipers we used below, for $1295. Ouch, that's $1800 for what amounts to little more than a rotor upgrade and the same twin pot calipers we eventually went to out back. Then it was time to look at what StopTech makes for this truck. Whoa, pretty... they have BBK for the front which uses 2-piece 15" rotors and their aftermarket 6-piston calipers, but it is a staggering $3595.... just for the fronts! I didn't find a Stoptech rear brake upgrade kit but at those prices I'm sure they make one. That's a little too rich for our parts runner.

So the aftermarket Big Brake Kits (BBK) out there were too blingy and too costly, so I did some research looking for more cost effective, OEM based brake upgrades. We thought about using Gen I CTS-V 4-piston Brembo calipers but that would have entailed a lot of fabrication and I couldn't find any decent 14" or larger 6-lug rotors that would work without major modification or expense, so we scrubbed that.

I was really hoping we could find a way to upgrade to the "Best of the GMT800" series brakes and do some quick and easy bolt-on parts swapping, which is what we did. I went to the GM truck forums to research... AHH! My eyes...!!! I cannot un-see some of the atrocities of bad taste that I saw there. So much noise, not much tech. After reading hundreds of posts mentioning brake upgrades (99% of which was garbage) I found a few potentially useful tidbits, then I poured through electronic parts catalogs where I found a pattern. I took some gambles and pulled the trigger on a number of OEM brake parts that should be better than what we have at both ends of the truck, yet not so expensive that they would break the bank. Once the new rotors and calipers arrived and we could then to test fit the various pieces and see if they really "bolted right on".



As you can imagine, the half ton GMT800 series of trucks was made in very large numbers. The trucks were produced from 1999-2006 and the SUV versions (GMT820) extended all the way until 2009 (Hummer H2). GM continued to develop this chassis during it's long model run and the brake system received several tweaks during that period. Since this chassis was produced in many wheelbases (short cab/short bed like ours + extended cab, and crew cab with two bed lengths) and formats (truck, Tahoe/Yukon, Surburban/Yukon XL, Denali, Avalanche) there was a variety of brake rotors and calipers used.

This GMT800 was the first GM 1/2 ton truck with 4 wheel disc brakes and 4 wheel ABS, which was a welcome addition. The 3/4 and 1 ton GMT800s had excellent brakes from the beginning but the 1/2 ton versions were a bit lacking from the start, with some improvements along the way. The major difference in the 1/2 ton and 3/4 + 1 ton trucks was the difference of 6 lug vs 8 lug hubs, so these 1/2 ton trucks cannot easily upgrade to the "big truck" 8-lug brakes. But we did some digging and found out what works.


Left: The old single piston rear caliper is shown next to the dual piston version. Right: Note rear rotor thickness changes

For the rear the later SUVs (Tahoe/Yukon) went to a thicker 13" diameter ventilated rear disc (from 20mm up to 29mm thick) and from a single piston sliding caliper to a twin piston sliding caliper. From what the interweb forums say this "all just bolts on", but as always I was very skeptical. Turns out it mostly did swap over, with some small tweaks and changes to the backing plate dust shields. We had to order new calipers and sliders to go with the correct thicker rotors, of course. The thicker discs and new calipers made for a tricky brake pad selection, though, as the pad shape is the wider and there were two thicknesses of the pads to choose from. It actually took ordering 3 different sets of pads before we got the right stuff, due to one mis-boxed set from one of our wholesale suppliers.



The front brakes were a bit trickier to upgrade, but we got it handled with a few extra parts deliveries and several pad test fits. From our catalog searches we noticed that there was a larger diameter front rotor available on the last 2 years of GMT800 truck production, going from 12.0" to 13.0" in diameter with the same 29mm thickness. This larger 13" rotor was only on the later trucks that had rear drum brakes, which GM reverted to for some unknown reason. We assume to make up for that rear drum brake "downgrade" they upgraded the front brake diameter - hey, it is fine by me, as it gave us a significant bolt-on front brake upgrade.

continued below

[Fair!]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

Continued from above

FORGESTAR WHEEL + TIRE UPGRADE

One of the many hideous "upgrades" done to this truck by a previous owner, something that I had to consciously overlook when I purchased it, were these nasty 20" chrome wheels. The wheels alone nearly made me walk away from this purchase, but I knew this would be "an easy fix", so I ignored them. I also knew these would be easy to sell when I was done with them too. The Sumitomo tires it had were looking pretty crusty, so I knew the wheel and tire package would be one of the first things we replaced. It didn't quite work out as quickly as I had planned though, as other repairs to our shop truck took precedence.



Over the past few months I've had a growing number of tire problems. First there was already a rear tire starting to go to cord before I purchased this thing. It was just starting to blister when I bought the truck, but quickly turned to steel belts. Then I had a recurring flat on the front, shown above. Luckily Ryan had some old 20" truck tires he gave me to use until I could find the right wheels. We eventually swapped on two of his tires to replace the old leaking and corded mess that was on this truck (the front tow was out - that was fixed early). Even after I had ordered the Forgestar wheels a third tire problem reared its ugly head! During the front Bilstein 5100 shock install, Kyle found that one more old Sumitomo tire had cords separate and it was now trapezoidal in shape when view from the front. On went the spare and I wore the Cone of Shame while driving.


The spare went on after tire number three failed on this truck - the old Sumitomo HTR is absolute junk.

From day one all I really wanted to use was a Forgestar wheel, as this is one of the two brands of wheels we work with and sell (D-Force being the other). Sure, we could get anything from our wholesale Discount Tire and TireRack accounts, but that wasn't the same thing as showing the wheels we custom design on a daily basis for our sports car customers. D-Force had nothing in a 6 x 5.5" bolt circle, and Forgestar told me the same thing. None of their 18", 19" or 20" wheels had enough meat on them to fit the large 6 lug bolt circle used by the 1/2 ton GMT800 trucks (the 3/4 and 1 ton trucks used an 8-lug pattern). But I kept bugging the Forgestar folks, and eventually one of their guys remembered a wheel they made for another 6-lug vehicle, only sold to the Japanese market. It was 20x9" wheel in an offset that could work for us, according to our calculations. It was an F14 fourteen spoke style wheel, just like on our TT3 Mustang, but they had never used it on a GMT800. Still, we were confident in our measurements and I was willing to give it a try, so we got the custom set on order.


The new wheels were much lighter, but that tall 20" diameter tire is one heavy mofo! (39.4 pounds)

They only had the wheels in raw aluminum form, so we got the set of four coming and powder coated them here, using our local powder coating shop that has done many sets of wheels for us. I liked the anthracite finish with the flat clear coat on the new 18x12" Mustang wheels so much that I had the GMC wheels done the same. I spec'd out a set of General Grabber tires in 275/55/20, which were a far cry from the Michelin tires I wanted, but also cost about half as much. Hey, we all have budgets, and most of mine goes into growing the company or building the handful of our sports car project test mules... so the "shop truck" is last in line. These General tires did have excellent reviews on TireRack though, and I made sure to avoid Sumitomo HTR's that kept falling apart before.



The tires were mounted and balanced (with stick on weights and aluminum tape - the only way we do it) and the finished weight for the wheel and tire was almost 6-1/2 pounds lighter per corner. They aren't super light, but they are a 20" wheel with a massive 40 pound tire. These new wheels and tires coupled with the newly installed Bilstein 5100s made for a world of difference in ride comfort, handling and traction. We still need to do something about that "one wheel peel" differential, but this was a big step in the right direction.


Current look of the truck with the new wheels, tires, shocks. Needs less chrome & MOAR LOW!

The wheels really look good, and Forgestar liked the image above so much they featured it on their Facebook page this week. Once we get a final price from those guys, we will feature this set of wheels as well as many of the other parts you've seen us add to our shop truck (ARH headers, Bilstein 5100s) to our website under a new "GMT800" section.

INTERIOR CLEAN-UP + STEREO UPGRADE

I am no audiophile, but the old Alpine head unit in this truck had seen much better days. Half the printed text on the buttons were worn off so I had no idea what some of the buttons did. Half of the display's back lights were burned out too. Since it had no Aux input or USB ports, and lacked Bluetooth support, I was stuck with CD's (what are those?) and FM radio (crap). This old Alpine unit was at least 10 years old and needed to be replaced.



After doing some research I ordered another Alpine unit from Crutchfield, a 2013 model called the Alpine CDE-135BT. This model was made with a CD player (I almost bought the version w/o the CD), integral Bluetooth support (not an add-on module), and was made to work with Android based phones (perfect for my Galaxy S4; they also have one made for the iPhone/iPod). It also had native Pandora support, with buttons on the head unit for Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down, as well as Aux input port and a USB port on the front. I almost never listen to the radio, but stream music via Pandora channels most of the day. Kyle handled the new Alpine install and it works great now. We kept the small sub-woofer box mounted behind the seat as well as the aftermarket amp mounted to the floor under the passenger seat. I really like hands-free phone use in vehicles, especially with GPS based navigation working so well on the GS4. I've added a dash-mounted suction cup GS4 holder, too. Eventually I will mount this lower on the dash instead of up top - the phone gets really hot sitting up there in the Texas Summer sun.



Olof cleaned up the interior of the truck as well, and it looks 100 times better. The entire front bench seat was removed, the interior was vacuumed then the carpets were shampooed and vacuumed again. The plastics were all given a rub-down with Armor All and it all went back together clean. So much nicer inside now - no more coffee stains on the seats or carpet, the door panels are not covered in grunge, and I am a happy driver. The leather wrapped OEM steering wheel still needs to be replaced, so I am looking for a different OEM wheel unit from another GM truck to swap in.

HOW DOES IT ALL WORK?

With all of this round of updates, this little truck is now a LOT more fun to drive, and now I willingly choose the GMC over the 2013 Ford F-350. Before this round of mods that wasn't the case - the blown shocks, crappy tires, nappy interior, FM-only radio, leaking header, ghetto muffler, chrome wheels and iffy tires meant that it kind of sucked. I kept telling myself "Hey, it as a cheap "cash truck!", so it will have some rough edges", but that brand new F-350 dually sure was a lot nicer to driver.

Now the GMC rides smooth, doesn't shake-and-rattle from the crappy tires, I've got Bluetooth music and phone, real stainless full length headers, a quiet yet decent exhaust note, and it is finally less embarrassing to look at (wheels). Still needs a bit more cosmetic work, but the foundation is there. Now, when I have a choice between driving the F-350 and the GMC, I take the short wheelbase GMC (again - it is 6 feet shorter). Which is good as the GMT800 gets better fuel mileage with the 5.3L gas motor (running on 87 octane) than the crew cab dually diesel, driving this one keeps the miles off the new tow vehicle, and it is infinitely easier to park and navigate through drive-thrus than the big dually.



If you want to see more of the behind-the-scenes pictures of this work on our shop truck, go to the Project Gallery for this GMT800 and browse to your heart's content (link).

WHAT'S NEXT?

The ride height needs to come down a good bit more before I will be truly happy. Why? Vanity. I know, it is a "shop truck" but it still has to look good, to reflect the kind of work we do at Vorshlag, ya know? We aren't a "we work on boring stock trucks" kind of shop - we work on sports cars for a living. So we will make this at least look a bit sportier with an upcoming 4/6 drop. I've got the McGaughy's parts picked out (2" front drop spindles, 2" lowered front coil springs, 4" de-arched rear leaf, C-notch frame kit, etc), just need to let my budget recover. We will add helper air bags to the rear to help compensate for when I load up the bed with a pallet of parts, too.

And the brakes need to be replaced and maybe even upgraded too. If we can find an OEM 13-15" diameter 6-lug front rotor we will make a custom BBK, and might go with the bigger twin pot rear brakes from the Suburban. The newer '03-07 GMC front grill surround, headlights, fog lights, and bumper I mentioned in my previous post are still coming, eventually. Once the exterior is looking better we'll add some Vorshlag graphics in a classic "shop truck logo" kind of theme for the doors. All in good time.

Thanks,

[Fair!]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

Project Update for August 6th, 2013: Another 10 weeks of driving the GMC "Shop Truck" and I've had two flats, the starter took a crap, and I cracked the F'in brand new windshield - but we've made a lot of repairs, updates, and improvements along the way. We even tackled some new development for the GMT 800 chassis, like the custom-fit Bilstein 5100 shocks, and with Forgestar's help we developed a custom F14 wheel that fits this truck perfectly (never before used on this chassis). We also added a new Alpine head unit and built a kick ass custom stainless exhaust system.

CUSTOM STAINLESS EXHAUST SYSTEM ADDED


Left: Old Edlebrock shorty headers and ARH Long Tubes. I freagin' HATE shorties. Right: Ghetto old exhaust had fallen off aft of the Series 10 Flowmaster.

The leaking Edlebrock headers were driving me nuts, and the ghetto exhaust (half of which had fallen off in some swamp, I assume) sounded terrible even if you ignored the "CAK-CA-CACK" leak. So we ordered a set of American Racing Headers 1-7/8" stainless long tubes made for the GMT800 chassis, but decided not to use their Y-pipe or cats. We planned on making our own header-back exhaust in house. The standard ARH Y-pipe normally included was a dual 3" into single 3" system, to match the factory exhaust routing, and that just wasn't ... custom enough for Vorshlag's shop truck. Remember: we're trying to show off products we sell as well as the custom fabrication work we do, so a completely custom exhaust was built instead.

After ordering the long tubes... well, we got busy at Vorshlag. Our own cars don't get worked on until the shop slows down, and it didn't slow down for months. So this beautiful set of headers sat around for a few weeks while the service shop was buried in race prep/suspension/fab/repair work (we've since hired another tech, our third, and he's helping pick up the load). I kept driving the exhaust-leaking-truck to drop off and pick up parts, but then the starter began to flake out. At random times the truck would just not crank at all, it took a whack with a hammer to free up the solenoid, then it would work for a day or two more. Looked like the original starter, which lasted 236,000 miles, so we picked up a new Bosch unit for this 5.3L V8. But to get in there to change it, the old headers had to come out. Now was the perfect time to do the new exhaust...


High flow catalysts keep the nasty exhaust gases in check and keeps the truck street legal.

A second reason we kept putting off the header install was a busted exhaust stud. When the starter finally died The True Death, we sent in Ryan to get the broken exhaust manifold stud out of the head (located right at the firewall, of course), which was a bit of a chore. It had broken off flush to the head ages ago and two easy-out bits broke before he went to Plan B. This was when he welded a nut to the end of the broken stud, then carefully ... turned... it... out. Beautiful - no threads were damaged and the guys went on to install the ARH long tubes.



These new full length headers went on and the new starter was installed with new ARP LS1 12-point header bolts. Instead of keeping the standard "ball and socked" exhaust flange which comes on these ARH's and most other aftermarket headers' collectors (which can cut down some exhaust flow), Ryan cut those off. Then he installed a pair of our U.S.-made, all stainless 3" V-band flanges to the collectors. This gives a smooth bore at the header to exhaust junction, thus no exhaust flow restriction. Behind these he added some 3" mandrel bends made of more U.S.-made 304SS tubing, two 3" high flow cats, and a bunch of bends to get the routing over to the passenger side, which has more room than the driver's side (where all of the fuel and brake lines run + the fuel tank is located).


Round case MagnaFlow XL 3-Chamber Mufflers - just turned out to be too big for the space we had.

The plan was for the twin 3" tubing to run back to a pair of MagnaFlow 3" stainless XL chambered mufflers, mounted side by side just behind the cab, then out to the passenger side and exit just in front of the right rear wheel. We had ordered two round case 3" in/out 3-Chamber XL units, but they ended up being too long and had too much girth... hehe, that's what she said. So we went back and found some "suitcase" style MagnaFlow XLs instead.


Square case MagnaFlow XL 3-Chamber mufflers fit side-by-side in the space we had and still have great flow and sound.

These MagnaFlow XL mufflers are relatively new and look quite nice, but most importantly they are priced right. These are not the typical MagnaFlow fiberglass packed straight-thru mufflers, but have routing and chambers for a different sound, and could potentially last longer - who knows? I wanted to hear how a pair of these XL's sounded behind an LSx V8, and that's what this truck has (5.3L "LM7" V8 with aluminum heads and iron block). To me, it sounds like a Flowmaster... which means it sounds good. And these XL mufflers are made of real 304SS, and not a lower grade (409?) "stainless" like the still-painted Flowmaster series 44 mufflers. I think these are going to be a great muffler for us here at Vorshlag and we are going to keep a handful in stock for custom exhaust work.




Surprisingly these are both very light mufflers, with the suitcase XL units came in at under 9 pounds each. Cool. One of my unstated goals on this truck is to keep it as light as possible, and we have been dropping pounds here and there along the way.


Left: Here you can see the "H" style crossover tube added, to equalize pressures in both pipes. Right: Both tips exit ahead of the RR wheel.

The final exhaust sounds great - more like an LS1 powered muscle car - but isn't obnoxious at all and the noise level in the cab seems to be cut in half. The entire system is now tucked up above the frame, so if we lower the truck a LOT it won't scrape, like the truck had done on the old muffler. The starter is new, the headers are higher flowing and leak free, the manifold leaks at the header are gone, the exhaust is now 100% 304 stainless steel so it should last forever, and the finished system looks damned good. The Vorshlag crew swapped in some red Taylor 10.4mm spark plug wires and put new Bosch plugs into the heads while they were in there. This truck runs better than it ever has - pulls strong at all RPMs and it easily turns the old, crusty 285mm tires into billowing plumes of smoke!

As you can see, we chose a side exit for both 3" diameter exhaust tubes and decided to forgo any chrome tips or other fancy end treatment - just the raw 3" stainless tubes, cut at an angle to match the lines of the body. This side exit was done to minimize the length of the system, simplify the routing, and to keep from having to do the over-the-axle bends needed to exit at the rear. The rear axle area is going to get tight if we lower the truck more, and the necessary bends always restrict flow. We actually got busy during the install, so Ryan temporarily had the exhaust stop at the end of the mufflers. A couple of weeks later when he had half a day to finish, he made the exhaust tips and added another poly-isolated hanger for that aft section.



We make custom stainless steel, mandrel bent exhaust systems like this for sports cars every week. It isn't the cheapest solution, but it always fits better than Off The Shelf kits. Of course Vorshlag has a keen eye for minimizing weight and making the system route perfectly, so each system we make is lighter and better flowing than virtually any OTS system.

CUSTOM BUILT BILSTEIN 5100 SHOCKS

Many of you know we're a Bilstein / Bilstein Motorsports dealer. If you don't, read this Press Release talking about the shocks we sell. We're adding more Bilstein parts to our website every month, but we still have a lot more to add. Anyway, Bilstein makes a wide variety of OEM replacement monotube shocks and struts. This GMT800 is a 2WD version so it has a double A-arm front suspension with a steering rack, coil springs and regular "divorced" shocks (not a coil-over style). The rear is a leaf sprung solid axle with two traditional shocks also.

The ride on this truck was obscenely bad. After 236K miles it shakes, rattles, and rolls over the slightest bumps. The front suspension arms looked okay, but the tie rods were looking ratty and should be replaced soon. By far the worst offender in the suspension were the shocks - and we knew that one or more was shot. Turns out three of them were blown.



New Bilstein 5100 monotube shocks went on the Vorshlag Shop Truck. 5100s feature huge 46mm pistons and silver bodies.

We did some searching in our Bilstein dealer database and found that they made the regular "Sport" (yellow) monotube shocks (with 36mm pistons) for this model/year/configuration of GMT800 truck, but did not have the heavy duty "5100" (silver) Bilsteins with the larger 46mm internal pistons that I wanted. There are a LOT more Sport offerings for OEM shocks than 5100s. We faced the same dilemma on my 2006 Dodge 3500, and I was stuck with Sport Bilsteins when we replaced those (they still rode well). But now that we were a Bilstein dealer, I wanted to push further and see what we could come up with.



Jason took measurements, made some calculations on the proper stroke and body lengths, took into consideration the OEM shock end mounting arrangements at both ends of each damper, dug through our dealer catalog, and ordered up some 5100's based purely on dimensions. The ends were "very close" but we had to drill out one "eye" to fit a larger bolt on the rears, the clevis ends had to be slightly modified on the fronts, but these 5100's eventually fit perfectly at both ends. And man, was it worth the extra effort!



The difference in the ride quality on this truck was Night and Day. Freagin' amazing... it was skipping over bumps and rattling my teeth out before, and now the ride felt smooth yet firm. So glad we went the extra mile and got the 5100's to fit. And while they might need to change when/if we lower the truck more than it already is (it has a stock front height, 2" rear drop shackle), these don't cost a fortune and we can chalk that up to a Test That Worked.

Continued below

[Fair!]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

Project Update for May 14, 2013: So I've put another 5 weeks of use in the GMC and really like driving this lighter, smaller "full sized truck" compared to the big 3/4 and 1 ton trucks I've used in the past to pick up parts and such. And we added another truck to the Vorshlag stable, as our custom ordered F-350 arrived.

NEW TOW VEHICLE: 2013 F350 DUALLY

This new F-350 truck arrived a few days before a NASA race being held in New Orleans, about 2 weeks ago. With only 100 miles on the odometer we hooked it up to our 36' enclosed trailer and towed our race car and all of our gear 1200 miles to New Orleans from Dallas and back, and it performed flawlessly.



This "twin-scroll" turbocharged diesel dually is going to be under warranty for quite a while and is staying very stock, but I'll update this same thread if we do anything to it along the way (maybe a little less chrome would be nice). This truck rides, stops and goes VERY well for such a gigantic vehicle, but parking it SUCKS. It is nearly 6 feet longer than the little GMC 1500. As promised I have done very little commuting in the F-350, with 1400 of the 1500 miles logged so far with the trailer attached (there's this slick application that tracks each mile logged with each unique trailer).

MORE REPAIRS TO TRUCK NORRIS

Anyway, back to the GMC 1500. We finally had some time a few weeks back to get it up on a lift and look at a few things. Quick oil and filter change was performed, and an inspection of the exhaust was done. Wow, yea, the exhaust is a mess. Sounds like ass and looks worse.



There is a Series 10 Flowmaster rusting away in the middle and the rear section is simply missing. The Edlgebrock mid-length headers are leaking badly because one exhaust manifold stud is broken off in the head. New ARH stainless long tubes are on the way and we will replace all of the exhaust with new, stainless, mandrel bent tubing. Dual 3" with some mufflers and all that.



There's a missing bump stop in the rear and the shocks are garbage, which we will of course replace. This truck could have some better stopping power, and we are looking at some OEM options to upgrade both the front (GMT900 13" rotors/calipers) and rear (1/2 ton Suburban larger 6-lug discs and twin pot calipers). More on that when we have time to order parts and put them on this truck.



This truck has been a Texas vehicle for most of its life, but there were a few obviously rusty bits: both chrome bumpers show some corrosion and the aftermarket trailer hitch was pretty frosty. The hitch was likely spray-painted black at some point but it was long gone, yet the rust turned out to be only superficial. We had our preferred powder coating shop bead blast then powder coat it gloss black, then reinstalled the hitch. Now it looks better than it did new, and won't rust further.



The owner of Titan Auto Glass came by a week ago and swapped in a brand new, Candian built windshield (not the cheaper, east Asian import unit) to replace the pock marked, chipped and cracked OEM windshield. As usual they did a great job and this is probably one of their most popular vehicles to work with, so the cost was pretty low. Huge improvement in visibility!



Two pet peeves from the interior that were bugging me included the center console/jump seat lid that was broken and the loose yet plain jane rear view mirror. The original center console lid was busted at the hinge, which is apparently a very common flaw - so much so that there are plentiful and cost effective replacement lid covers with a stronger hinge and upgrade materials. Gone is the old cloth covering and in comes the later model style faux-leather lid cover. And the old mirror was replaced with a new unit that has an exterior temp gauge and built in compass. This was available on later model and/or upgraded interiors, and it is something I'm used to having. Now I know which way I'm going and how hot it is, when I get lost.



So after measuring the aftermarket (and did I mention ugly??) 20x8.5" wheels that were on this truck, and seeing how much room we had to push inboard for the replacement set, we were thrown for a loop when Forgestar said they couldn't make a wheel with the required 6 x 5.5" bolt circle. They just don't leave room for these big bolt circle truck wheels. Dang... Really bummed me out, as I wanted to show off some wheels we sell. We noted that an 18x10" or 19x10" wheel could fit on either end, but tire choices were very limited for "truck" load rated tires in those widths and diameters. I noticed that there were lots of 17" sizes, and few 18" sizes, and almost ZERO truck tires in 19" diameter. But then in 20" there were tons of choices. This comes from the fact that the factories that build full sized trucks have skipped 19" sizes and gone from 15->16->17->18->20" OEM wheels. So we looked at TireRack, since we are a dealer for them...



This BBS wheel above is really slick, and it is what we've all agreed looks best among available options in the price range I picked. It comes in an 18x9" and 20x9" size, and honestly... after looking at both and driving a similar truck that just went from 20" to 18" wheels, we've decided that we will stick with the 20" version. It just looks better on a full sized truck, and heck, the OEM wheels for the GMT900s are 20" diameter anymore. But I'm going to wait to replace the wheels and tires until after we're done with the suspension/shock/brake updates, as much as that pains me.

WHAT'S NEXT?

Suspension updates and repairs are needed, as the shocks and some bushings are just worn out with age and miles. The right front tire was worn badly, rotated to the left rear by a previous owner, and it was just getting down to cords a few weeks back. I "borrowed" some old 20" tires that Ryan had pulled off his Dodge truck, and they put them on the back for now, replacing the worst two tires on this GMC. This is a stop-gap measure until we get time to work on the suspension - otherwise it will eat the new front tires quickly. The plan is to replace the front control arms, which come with fresh bushings and ball joints. Then go for a drop spindle up front to lose a little altitude. The plans for the rear are more complicated... it is already lowered 2" or more with a drop shackle, but this isn't the right way to do it. It needs a tiny bit more drop and then a bit more spring rate, which we will do with a pair of adjustable air bags (for when we load the bed with parts or tow with it). Bilstein 46mm piston monotube 5100 shocks will be used all around, once we have the lengths set.


The newer 2003-2006 GMC Sierra front end is another planned update/repair

Of course the exterior needs a little TLC... which I am working on as well. As much as I dislike this color I am not going to change it, just plan on a little PDR work to be done at Heritage Collision in Sherman, TX. That nasty billet front grill insert and rusty front bumper that are bugging me the most, so I will work on that next. I've done some research and the OEM 2003-2006 GMC 1500 front end (shown above) is what I like the best, and it all swaps over fairly well. Differing from the 1999-2002 Sierra in several ways it has a reshaped bumper, Paint-To-Match lower valance, round fog lights, and a grill surround and insert with a bit more edginess to it. The headlights and turn signal/parking lights are all the same but these 1999 units are all frosted with age, but brand new stuff is SO inexpensive that we will just replace rather than polish the old bits.

So that's all for this time. Just a few quick cosmetic repairs and some small updates. More to come.

[Fair!]

Re: Vorshlag Shop Truck - 5.3L SWB GMT800

Project Update for April 2, 2013: I have been using this truck to commute with and haul parts around for a week now and really enjoy driving this so much more than a giant 3/4 or 1 ton truck. It is easier to park than any vehicle I own, it stops well, and can lay rubber down for 100+ yards (the guys at Vorshlag are all hoonigans and bad influences - I would never do this myself, officer!). These blingy 20" wheels are bugging me to no end, and the tires are crap, though. We will get to those at a later date - for now we're too busy to mess around with the wheels.


Yes, the 20" chrome wheels are ugly. Yes, the "smoked" tail lights are silly and the tail gate latch looks broken, and is

Since we have been super slammed here at Vorshlag and just had our busiest month in the existence of the company, I haven't dumped the truck onto our techs for the "full inspection" and listing of repairs needed just yet. But it needs a full head-to-tail inspection, due to the mileage. Oh, did I mention this truck has 233,000 miles? Yea, that is a lot but it runs like a top, doesn't leak a drop, and everything works. Well, almost everything. Other than a quick wash and a 22 gallon fill up of the cheapest 87 octane gas at the pump (woohoo! My first vehicle in years that takes neither premium unleaded or diesel!) it has already been driven hundreds of miles on "parts runs" without a peep of trouble.

But there were a couple of little things that I couldn't stand or that need to be fixed quickly, so 30 minutes of "repairs and mods" have now been performed (today).

FIRST ROUND OF MODS

The most ridiculous item that someone previously added to the truck, that had to be "updated" for safety, were the "blacked out" OEM tail lights. I don't know who but some moron started the trend where they convince people to spray paint over the brake and running lights. This greatly reduces the sight distance to the back of the truck at night, as the tail lights are almost impossible to see. Also, the brake lights are very hard to recognize during daylight hours. OEM replacement tail lights were on my "short list" before I either got pulled over by the police or was rear-ended in traffic. No, these weren't aftermarket "smoked" lenses, but painted over OEM lenses. (facepalm)



Here's where the "mild modification" bug started. Instead of getting the replacement GMC Sierra taillight assemblies I went with the 2003-2006 Silverado assemblies instead. They look subtly different, a newer design, and more a little more pleasing to me. I updated the headlights on my Dodge to a design 2 model years newer and it really stood out in my mind, I dunno... subtle little changes like this are just one of those things I like to do sometimes. Anyway, the OEM replacement style 2003 Silverado housings (pictured above) were purchased online for $100 for the pair and included new bulbs and wiring harnesses (fleabay). This made it super easy to install onto the GMC, as it all just bolted and plugged right in (the GMC bulbs and sockets are slightly different, but since these housings came with the fully wired harness and bulbs it was a 10 minute install).

The new tail lights look factory but are... newer than the truck and not what the GMC came with. Just a little update, but it looks good - and the brake and tail lights are much easier to see now, too. I like the look and the fit was perfect. Still exploring 3rd brake light upgrade up on the cab, which is also "sprayed black" and invisible. Apparently there's an updated 2005-06 OEM 3rd brake light housing that has LED lighting for both the brakes and a bed light? I dunno, need to find out more about that. I would have liked LED tail lights but the aftermarket units made for these trucks just looked so cheesy. When the OEM does LED lighting it looks right, but somehow the aftermarket almost always screws this up.



Anyway, another repair visible in the picture above is the new rear tailgate latch assembly and surround. The stock unit was broken, having a missing plastic clip that goes to the pull cables that operate the latches on the actual tailgate perimeter. I could have just bought new clips for $2 but I "splurged" and spent less than twenty bucks on an all new latch assembly. Parts for these trucks are so damned cheap! These tail gate latch assemblies were available from a number of sources for as little as $8, but I went with a known good brand for the latch handle assembly at $18.86 shipped (p/n 77488, Dorman), which came with the new color coded right and left clips. The old latch was a little clunky but the new one operates "smooth like buttah". The old tailgate handle surround had a broken clip so for another $4.59 (shipped) a brand new plastic surround was picked up and it went on in seconds. The latch assembly took all of 5 minutes to install, too.

So that's my first week of ownership and updates to this truck. Not very spectacular changes yet, just sharing in case you have one of these trucks that might need these same updates or repairs. The next round of mods should get a bit more interesting.

Thanks,