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  • Image of Chevy/GMC Trucks 1973-1987: How to Build & Modify
  • Image of Chevy/GMC Trucks 1973-1987: How to Build & Modify

Chevy/GMC Trucks 1973-1987: How to Build & Modify

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$36.95
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Product Code: SA471
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Chevy/GMC Trucks 1973-1987: How to Build & Modify

Your Price:
$36.95
Currently out of stock
Build and modify your 1973-1987 GMC or Chevrolet truck in your garage with step-by-step processes to boost power, add curb appeal, and improve stopping ability, handling, safety, and more.

GM’s squarebody trucks are a solid, simple, and easy-to-find rig--and that makes them perfect for modification. They’re American classics, and they’ve become the hot rods of a new generation.

Veteran magazine editor Jim Pickering brings these trucks into focus, taking you through the aspects that make them so popular and modifications you can perform to put a modern spin on their classic looks. He takes an in-depth look at all the major systems in your Chevy truck and covers what can be done to them to turn your classic hauler into the modern hot rod that you want: a truck that’s fast, safe, full of curb appeal, and reliable enough to drive whenever and wherever you want.

Built in massive numbers during an 18-year production run, these trucks aren’t hard to source, but finding a good starting point and mapping out your plan are important. This book covers a lot of territory: how to find a good starter truck, LS-power builds and installs, slammed air suspension and coilover systems, automatic and manual transmission choices (including a 6-speed manual conversion), cooling system upgrades, safely adding a modern alternator to factory GM wiring, modifying a mechanical clutch pedal to use a hydraulic master and slave cylinder, making new fuel lines and brake lines to support fuel injection and big brakes, installing a 4-link rear suspension system, fabricating an under-bed mount to hide air suspension components, building exhaust, adding LED lighting, interior restoration, and more.

If you're building a squarebody truck that you’d actually like to drive regularly, you’ve come to the right place. There hasn’t ever been a more comprehensive, authoritative look at building a complete truck for street use that includes all the steps required to make it work.

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Build and modify your 1973-1987 GMC or Chevrolet truck in your garage with step-by-step processes to boost power, add curb appeal, and improve stopping ability, handling, safety, and more.

GM’s squarebody trucks are a solid, simple, and easy-to-find rig--and that makes them perfect for modification. They’re American classics, and they’ve become the hot rods of a new generation.

Veteran magazine editor Jim Pickering brings these trucks into focus, taking you through the aspects that make them so popular and modifications you can perform to put a modern spin on their classic looks. He takes an in-depth look at all the major systems in your Chevy truck and covers what can be done to them to turn your classic hauler into the modern hot rod that you want: a truck that’s fast, safe, full of curb appeal, and reliable enough to drive whenever and wherever you want.

Built in massive numbers during an 18-year production run, these trucks aren’t hard to source, but finding a good starting point and mapping out your plan are important. This book covers a lot of territory: how to find a good starter truck, LS-power builds and installs, slammed air suspension and coilover systems, automatic and manual transmission choices (including a 6-speed manual conversion), cooling system upgrades, safely adding a modern alternator to factory GM wiring, modifying a mechanical clutch pedal to use a hydraulic master and slave cylinder, making new fuel lines and brake lines to support fuel injection and big brakes, installing a 4-link rear suspension system, fabricating an under-bed mount to hide air suspension components, building exhaust, adding LED lighting, interior restoration, and more.

If you're building a squarebody truck that you’d actually like to drive regularly, you’ve come to the right place. There hasn’t ever been a more comprehensive, authoritative look at building a complete truck for street use that includes all the steps required to make it work.

Pages : 176
Size : 8.5 X 11 (inches)
Format : Paperback / softback
Illustrations : 487 color photos
Publisher : CarTech
ISBN : 9781613255162
Product Code : SA471

Dedication

Acknowledgments 

Introduction

 

Chapter 1: GM’s Square Years

An All-New Hauler 

Computerized Design 

One Truck for Them All

Plenty of Rigs 

 

Chapter 2: Getting Started 

Setting the Initial Budget 

Tools and Workspace

Finding a Rig 

 

Chapter 3: The Teardown

Pickup Box Removal 

Hood Removal

Grille and Front Fender Removal 

Engine and Transmission Removal

Cleanup 

Final Cleaning and Paint

 

Chapter 4: Suspension

Front Suspension 

Rear Suspension

Upgrades

Getting Low 

Complete Suspension Kits

Coilover Conversions

Air Suspension

Installing RideTech’s Air Suspension on a C10 

Setting the Frame on the Ground

Final Costs 

 

Chapter 5: Brakes and Steering

Stock Steering 

Steering Box Upgrades

Rack and Pinion

Factory Brakes 

Brake Pads

Brake Rotors

Flexible Brake Lines

Power Versus Manual Brakes

Rear Brakes 

Drum Brake Upgrades

Disc Brake Upgrades 

Selecting a Brake System 

Creating Brake Lines 

Master Cylinder

 

Chapter 6: Selecting and Building an Engine 

Available Engines

Small-Block Upgrades

LS Swaps 

Building a 6.0L LQ4 Street Terror

Performance Upgrade Selection 

LS Power Modifications 

 

Chapter 7: Installing an LS Engine in a C10

Oil Pans

Engine Mounts

Fitting the Engine in the Truck

Engine Accessories

Exhaust

Intake Manifold Selection 

Charging System 

 

Chapter 8: Fueling, ECU, and Cooling

Fueling

Fuel Injection 

LS Computer Controls

Cooling

  

Chapter 9: Transmissions

Automatic

Manual

Automatic Upgrades

Swaps 

Hydraulic Clutches

Driveline 

Speedometer 

 

Chapter 10: Rear Axle

Bolt Count

The 10-Bolt

The 12-Bolt 

Heavy-Duty Units 

Checking Gears 

Two-Tire Fire

Parts Selection

Swapping Gears in a 12-Bolt Chevy

Breaking in New Gears 

 

Chapter 11: Body, Trim, and Interior

Common Body Modifications

Reassembling a Torn-Down Truck

Body Gaps

Bed Reinstallation

Bringing OEM Paint Back from the Dead

Exterior Trim 

Weatherstripping

Interior 

Changing the Color of Your C10’s Interior

Gauges

 

Chapter 12: Lighting

Headlamps 

Turn Signals and Brake Lights

Dash Lighting

 

Chapter 13: Wheels and Tires

Wheels

Tires

Rubber Selection

  

Source Guide

Chevy/GMC Trucks 1973-1987: How to Build & Modify

$36.95

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