Silverado going in for a makeover. what to do?

[Chad4000]

Oh, and with 37" tires I would gear it. Probably 4.56 or something. I usually do the math and figure what gearing will get me closest to the factory gears/tire combo to maintain performance and fuel economy. I am guessing your gas mileage sucks with 3.73 gears and those tires.

Very much so.. probably 9mpg down hill with a tail wind...

[Chad4000]

Rear lockers are a good idea. Once had a 2WD pickup with a limited slip in the back that easily left behind stock 4WD rigs that had no lockers/limit slips. Especially in slick conditions muddy dirt roads. Put in a good mount for a Hilift jack.

But adj shocks, on board air, and such are for rock crawlers, not full size rigs, IMO.

K.. so lockers at least in the rear seems to be popluar...

good to hear I dont really need the rest of that stuff...

[Chad4000]

I think that winch might actually be a bit small for a rig that size. It's not just about the weight of the vehicle and all of the gear but the added effort required if it is actually stuck in something like mud or snow.

do we agree on warn though? thinking 15000lbs? how big can I go before I cant lift the thing? lol.. as in from like the truck bed, to the rec hitch.. etc.

[Post Toastie]

K.. thats good advise.. dual batt system. (not sure why I hadnt thought of that). I suppose google the process? or any good tips?

Not something I've done myself, I would think you could find the process online.

I'm going to disagree with sniper7 on the 4.10 gears. My truck has 3.73 gears with 265/70/17's and it seems just right. You're 37" tires are a different story...

[Chad4000]

Not something I've done myself, I would think you could find the process online.

I'm going to disagree with sniper7 on the 4.10 gears. My truck has 3.73 gears with 265/70/17's and it seems just right. You're 37" tires are a different story...

yeah I was considering maybe even 4.56.. I am actually thinking my milage would improve (like ray mentioned)

[h2so4]

I had a similar chevy for a while- 6in lift, 35in tires, etc.
You should have tons of room for an on-board air system. not only is it great for wheeling, but running tools and helping take care of others vehicles as well. tons to gain on on-board air- will only sacrifice some weight- but in that hog of a truck you wont notice.
I wouldnt go past 4.11 gears unless your gonna make it a true off road machine. I liked going fast in my truck and i think the high gears will limit that. the 6.0 should have the low end to help off-set any gear ratio issue.
Rhino lining is way heavy- not worth it imo.
Install a sweet holster or gun stash location within reach of your seat! maybe even one for passenger!

[Aloha_Shooter]

Go all out ...

[Ronin13]

LOL!!

I was seriously considering bumber too.... what is the best?

I couldn't tell ya now- back when I was trying (keyword trying) to learn from my buddy how to fix up trail rigs and all that, he had a custom made bumper for his F250... but that was about 8 years ago and the custom bumper guy moved to TN.

[hurley842002]

i wouldnt put in the 4.10 gears if they aren't already in there. they are nice but with that motor you are going to really start sucking gas. do you have locking diff on there? if not I would invest in that.
maybe an in-bed gas tank with pump like a lot of diesels have. if it is a true BOV then you definitely want lots of gas capacity.

Actually going to a lower (numerically higher) gear, is going to help mileage, as your engine doesn't need to work as hard to get things going. I'd make gears/locker/armor top priority if it were me.

[sniper7]

Actually going to a lower (numerically higher) gear, is going to help mileage, as your engine doesn't need to work as hard to get things going. I'd make gears/locker/armor top priority if it were me.

didn't know that, I wasn't really thinking about how big the tires are. I just know my 2003 silverado 1500 had 4.10 gears with standard tires and I got about 2-3 mpg less than my buddy with a 2004 exactly the same with the 3.73