Build my Wagoneer or buy another one built??

[ORIGSUV]

I have an `85 GW that I bought for $1000 a couple years ago. It was originally for my wife to drive to town when the roads were bad, so I did pretty mild mods to it and mostly maintenance.

I've put in a new transmission, new axle seals, all new brakes, new 15x8 Mickey Thompson rims w/ new Pro Comp 30x9.50 AT tires, and all the little things like a CD player, couple of trim pieces, battery, etc.

It hasn't run for about 4 months now since the carb went bad and I've been too busy to replace it.

Now, I want to turn it into a back-country explorer since we sold our little XJ and my Ford E350 4x4 extended length van is a bit too much for some of the trails.

The problem with the GW is that the motor has 100k on it's 1st rebuild (175k on the whole rig), and it was making a horrible knocking noise when the carb started going bad. The interior needs a bunch of little things like switches and the pwr window nylon straps ( I have them but it looks impossible to change them). The paint is crap and the wood stickers are mostly peeled off.

I've noticed that there are commonly GWs for sale in my area for under $3k that are already lifted and look pretty nice.

Older 4x4s are dirt cheap around here due to gas prices and the housing slowdown, so I'm wondering if it may be smarter and easier to buy another GW already modified and keep mine for parts.

And for another weird question: I have a `77 3/4-ton 4x4 Suburban with a 4" lift that runs 35s and has a newer 350 and tranny. It has serious interior needs such as all new door panels, seats, dash, and front doors. Plus, the AC is shot.

But, it has the 8-lug Dana 44 front and GM 14-bolt rear w/4.10:1 gears and limited slip. Transfer case is the NP203. Any chance the Suburban parts might come in handy in a serious Wagoneer build??

[HOOT]

Sounds like you need to drop all that Chebby running gear into that Jeep and wheel it. No use letting it go to waste. It all fits up in there with some modifications. You can buy engine mounts, axle perches but can you weld or have someone who could for you.
Or if you don't want to hassle with combining the 2 vehicles maybe trying selling them both off and buy you a waggy already built for cheap.
Those 4:10 axles will be hard to beat though.

[yoslvr442]

x2 on dropping in the running gear

[The PIG Smith]

I am not a Jeep Purist by any stretch of the imagination, as I own a ’93 GMC Van that I a want to use a donor for its 6.2L Diesel and 4L80E into my ’82 J10.
But, I am tired of the Chevy 350 in a Jeep…it’s been done a gazillion times.
But from what you have described, using your ’77 ¾ ton Suburban as a donor is a good idea.

You mentioned how bad the interior was in the Suburban and also how the interior in Wagoneer needs some help.
I will assume that the Wagoneer’s interior is in better shape, but you need to look at what would be cheaper to restore, the interior of your Suburban or Wagoneer.
Finding Wagoneer trim and interior pieces maybe a challenge.
Yes, BJ’s Offroad and ZM Jeeps have some trim and interior pieces and you may pick up some parts and pieces from members here that parting out rigs.
But, IMHO, trim and interior pieces for your Suburban are much easier to find and my guess cheaper.

Also, you mentioned that the Air Conditioning is out on your Suburban.
Once again, I am assuming the Air Conditioning is working in the Wagoneer and the compressor is in good working order on the Suburban.
But, if you swapped in a 350/TH400 (I am guessing it’s a TH400 for it’s a ¾ ton rig) and NP203 into your Wagoneer, you would be facing the expense connecting the A/C Compressor up to Wagoneer's A/C devices.
I know that with the heat of Prescott, Arizona, that A/C is a must.

I would suggest looking at three things

The cost of fixing the Suburban.
The cost of rebuilding the 360 in Wagoneer and other repairs.
The cost, time and effort of swapping the 350/TH400/NP203 and ¾ ton axles from the Suburban to the Wagoneer.My final thoughts: Fix the Suburban and wheel it in places that it will fit.
Keep the Wagoneer as a long term project or sell it to finance the repairs of the Suburban.

[FSJ-Earl]

Build the Waggy using the Burban axles! Get the 360 rebuilt, tired of seeing SBC in the place of a good AMC 360.

[ncchaos]

Thats all rubbish, sell the whole lot to me for $1000, you know to recoup your cost of the rig. I'll drag that old eye sore of a chebby out too. go get yourself something nice:thumbsup:

[jaber]

Keep an eye on the Prescott Craigs list also. I see interesting things there once in a while.

Welcome from Chino...

If the chebby has a 400 in it, the tail shaft and t-case adapter will go into your AMC case and the NP205 is a direct exchange. I did this swap in a chebby but it was a 350 tranny.

[shimniok]

If the fixes are easier than you think, I'd say give it a whirl. Otherwise maybe it makes sense to give yourself a head start.

Window flex tracks aren't super hard to change out.

What's wrong with the carb? They don't tend to just "go bad" ... usu when the performance/mileage degrades it is due to a specific, easily fixed issue.

Michael