Well i own a 1984 S-10 longbed that is 2 wheel drive.I want to turn it into a 4x4 with a diesel engine.Right now i have a NP203 trans case a friend gave me and i can get the TH400 trans that it came off of for $100 and it was rebuilt in 98,i also have a Gm 14Bolt FF axle form my uncals old 1984 chevy C30 dump truck.I just have to pull it out.I also have a mid 70's Chevy Suburban that is 2wheel drive with a GVW of 8600lb i can pull what i want off of it that was his two.And for the timing being till i find a diesel i want i will bolt a small block form one of the two in to drive it.I will start this in the spring.Right now iam lookign up and reading all the info i can find.I am open to all ideas.I am thinkign a Dana 60 for the front axle.For brakes iam going with Gm's Hydroboost braking and all wheel disk.Now for the suspension iam nto sure what to do so ideas would be grate,and well for lift i want something where i can still use the bed but still beable to take it out and go where i want it to go.Time is not that big of a deal i plan on getign the parts frist well most fo them.Also would it be a good idea to get another frame and build it up and then bolt my body up to it.As for the rest of the truck body wise and so on it will be redone and restored to better then factory.Also does anyone know of someone taht makes wider fenders and bedsides for a frist gen S-10.Well thanks for any and all help you can give and iam open to all ideas and yes i will use the search botton to look up as mush info as i can.So thanks for reads.

If i were you i'd just take that suburban.....it would be a much better start and you could do the 52" front/56" rear with an ORD shackle drop like i did. Just cut the back half of the roof off and walla... a very capable off road machine with a ton of bed room.

ok They were my uncal's he died awhile ago and well no will.And all of the trucks are 2 wheel drive and all of them have been siting for abotu 10 years outside unlike my truck.The suburban and dump truck are parts only bodys on bolt roted and well will never see the road.Thanks for the ideas

Does anyone have any advice or ideas?:confused:

search some, building a s10 isnt much more dificult than building a ranger or toyota or jeep.

i'll make it easier for you...
hanneman fiberglass fenders
rancho 44044s
63" chevys
203/205 doubler

if you already thought of all that, then be more specific in your questions.
if you dont know what i'm talking about then search and read and read and read some more till you do, dont ask about what i said because they should be common knowlage to anyone on this board

What engine are you thinking about swapping in? I also agree with Jeff that you need to be a little more clear and specific with what your questions are.

OK i want to beable to take my truck offroad and beable to go just about anywhere i want but still beable to use it as a truck and load things in the bed.I am nto sure what would be a good lift with out going over borad and i plan to use full size axles form a Chevy.I think my best bet for a suspension will be for a 4 link set up front and rear.What iam lookign for is advice on all the above.I am lookign to be pointed in the direction.Thanks for all your help.

so is the question how do you design a 4 link? because there are books published on the subject, not to mention a huge number of threads on here and elseware on the internet. no one can sum it up in one post.

is the question how many inches should you lift it? depends what you want to use it for, my S10 is sitting about 10" above stock 2wd, it clears 35s with very little fender trimming. i still use it to move when i moved into my new apartment, used it to load axles in from the junk yard, use it to cary camping gear to the trail or lake. but that's what I need a truck for. my friend has a 01 ram that easily clears 38s, he uses the bed to transport parts and dirt bikes, hell he even loaded his samarai in it for a short trip to hollister. for him a fullsize on 38s isnt too big to use as a truck.

ask specific questions, you'll get specific answers and experiances

P.S. dont venture into Gen 4x4, they will tear you a new one for asking lame questions like this, but it seems that the chevy section, which i dont frequent too often, is a little more laid back

First off if you still want to go with a diesel then you are gonna have a hard time fitting it and also plumbing the whole truck for it. My advice would be to forget the diesel engine and go with gas. Gas is better of road for EVERY application, mud, rocks, sand, etc. Second, running fullsize axles on an S10 will make it difficult to drive on the street so if you go full size then it is probably gonna be a dedicated offroad truck. I would say that the easiest (meaning less of a headache) way to go, if you want to keep it streetable, is to swap in a sbc and jeep wrangler axles. You will probably happier with this and can do more then if you had a diesel.

Well i did a search onlien for 4 link suspsion and caem up with what looks liek a good article http://4wheeloffroad.com/techarticles/suspension/131_0306_link/ on 4wheeloffroad.com.Now my questions is what would be a good all around lift and tire size for all around offroading but not be over kill and still streetable?As for a diesel engine what are the pros and cons of oen for offroad use?And thanks angin for all the help!

as for the 4 link, the way petersens said to do it is one way, but definately not the only way.

here's how i figured out what tire size/lift to run, i looked at who i was gonna be wheeling with, tires ranging from 33" mudders to 35" boggers, so i bought 35" MTRs. then i put the tires on the axles and rolled them under the truck. lifted the truck to where looks like a good height for the tires. i didnt want to trim my fenders too much so it sits a little higher than nessisary, but when i have some cash i'm gonna get some 37" MTRs and cut the fenders.
in my opinion, and only my opinion, 35-37" tires are a good size for a midsize truck that will be wheeled hard but still driveable.

for the full width comments, my buddy has a 87 4runner on full width chevy axles and 36" swampers, it was his daily driver, untill he had to drive an hour each way to work, then he bought a beater DD.

diesels are cool and all, kinda the trend lately, oh its a diesel, its cool. but i agree i wouldnt want one in a wheeler. too heavy, only revs to what, 2500? hard for most people to work on, expensive to get HP out of (cheap if you have a newer motor, but newer motors are expensive so back to HP being expensive). on the other hand, diesels do make a ton of torque and are cool as hell and you could pull just about anything.

Ok well here is kinda a update well i took the option stick off my uncals dump truck.Come to find out it has a GVW of 10,000 so 5 tons.It has a 5.7 a 350 stock which seems a bit odd to me but it says it is a heavy duty modle in the chassis identification page in my LMC catolog.And the the 14 bolt FF axle in it has a 4.10.So far looks like a few good parts to use off of it.

A 6.2L isn't any harder to swap in than a 350. Seems like the Cruiser and Jeep guys are picking up on this too. OTOH, it sounds like you have 2 parts trucks with 350s already.

That dump truck - dually? If so, that's the narrow cab & chassis axle - roughly 4" narrower than the one in the Suburban.

OK so what are you geting at?ANd what would be the pros and cons of a 6.2 or 6.5 diesel?

What am I getting at? You could put in either engine.

6.2/6.5 Pros:
- good low-end torque for crawling
- runs at any angle (unlike a carb)
- usually better fuel economy
- has same bellhousing pattern as an SBC.

Cons:
- ~200lbs more than a SBC
- bigger radiator required
- dual batts a must
- not so good for mudding
- getting poo-pooed on by the PSD and Cummins folks
- fitting a turbo could be iffy with the S10 body
- A TH400 makes a 6.2/6.5 much more gutless than it really is

ok then what about a Cummins 4BT.And i take it the reason a diesel is not good for mudding is the lower rpms?

I have a diesel that will fit if you want a cheap one.... its a 2.3 L Mercades.... runs fine and would be more simple than some to plumb. mating it to a TH400 would be a chore though... but on the bright side you could put a mercades emblem on the front of the S10

Well i made another post just about engines but looks like they both got mixed up.Does anyone know how i could put them both together?Also does anyone more if exterior cages are legal on the road?And if you need to ask what start i live in i live in Toledo,Ohio.Thanks for all your guy's help!!!

Anyone know or can help me find out?

Ask a state trooper or go to DMV and see if a exo-cage is illegal.