Who's used Autoworld mounts on a 73-87 Chevy?

[Niki]

OK, I'm really thinking of repowering a 4x4 Crew Cab Chevy. I have a Complete 92 W250 5 sp that has already been converted to an AA NV4500. I've talked to Autoworld before, and they say they place the motor set back, you just have to trim/dimple the forewall a bit, and they give you a template to notch and box the front crossmember. Has anyone on here used their stuff, and does it work as good as it sounds? Also, I had a question about Hydroboost brakes. The Crew Cab I'm thinking of doing it on I think has hydroboost brakes, my Cummins has a vacuum pump. Will a 97-98 steering pump bolt right up and run the GM hydroboost w/ no problems? Thanks

 

[DVolk]

Who's used Autoworld mounts on a 73-87 Chevy ?

I have not used there mounts .



I have mounts that fit gm pads with poly urthane incerts or use the day star mounting pads as seen on jack-it.com for performance GM stuff



yes you have to trim the body weld in the transmission tunnel area and trim the very front crossmember and remove tthe second one and add anouther member .



The power steering pump will work fine on hydraboost you just "T"



the return lines the vaccume pump you use for your heater controll stuff then only or other vacume assocries .

 

[Niki]

Thanks for the info DVolk, do your mounts put the engine foreward or backwards at all? Do you have any pictures of them? These are SOswalts Mounts, right? I'm deciding between these, autoworld and just slotting the bolt holes and using stock firstgen mounts like PKirby did. Anyone on here use autoworld mounts???

 

[DVolk]

Who's used Autoworld mounts on a 73-87 Chevy ?

yes those are Scotts mounts , they move the engine forward , i do have pics of the mounts ?



I thought i -mailed pics to you if not give me a address to send them to sinnce im dumb and cant post on here or my goofy digital cam system wont let me do it



I do have a transmission block i built that is needed and a complete cd i send along with instructions

 

[tlgdiesel]

I have first hand experience with their mounts, doing a conversion on a 1982 gmc. I had already built brackets to use the chevy mounts and put poly inserts in them. I talked to Ken about some other items I needed. He questioned about mounts and I told him what I planned on. He then precided to tell me how he had gone that route and that they would not last.



Ken talked me in to buying their mounts. I received the mounts and templet sometime later. I installed them and the engine wasnt even close to being square to the frame rails. I had to cut the brackets that mount to the motor apart and reweld them in the proper configeration. I finally got the truck completed and started driving it. After that I soon found out their mounts are pure JUNK. They move excessively. I pulled the engine and put their mounts in the scrap pile where they belong. I am now running the chevy problem free.



Ironicly my boss I just started working for has been using the chevy mounts problem free in his conversion since 1996 and just had to replace them.

 

[Niki]

Thanks. Their conversions on the website look nice, but all I hear is bad stuff from people that have bought things from them to do their own conversions. I may just end up doing some experimenting on my own. I want the motor as far back as I can get it without having to hack my firewall, for weight distribution and room for intercooler, fan, etc. I want to use a stock clutch fan and a second gen(or thirdgen) intercooler, and whatever radiator fits. What if I made some sort of bracket so I could use second gen mounts? Don't they sit right on top of the frame? I heard they stick out wider than the frame, would there be any way to make some sort of bracket that stuck out wider, then triangulate it into the side of the frame?

 

[DVolk]

Who's used Autoworld mounts on a 73-87 Chevy ?

Whom ever sells mounts reguardless of whom ever it is going to say there mounts are top dawg of the neighbor hood .



I can tell you that the mounts i use and get fit right the first time are made out of thick material .



You donot have to fight to center the trans and t-case like alot of pure stock stuff ive worked with .



The fire wall mods are very slight and not noticible from inside the cab , or the engine bay , you make 4 minor slices or so to the hem were the floor pan and top of the cab are welded then is simply folded flat , no structural damage done , but some frame cuts and cross member mounts are absolutely necessary with any mounts used for now .



Simply put if you dont trust the welds add a gusset or two to the mounts .

 

[CValiquette]

Let me know how it goes. I've talked to a couple people about this swap but I haven't talked to anyone who's actually done it. I have a 75 Chevy lifted 12" that I'm gonna try and do it with when I get back from Iraq. I've also heard you either have to trim the frame to fit the a/c compressor if you're still gonna use it or buy a top-mount bracket from Cummins. I have the p/n sitting around here somewhere if you need it. I heard too that a 2 or 3" body lift will sure the firewall issue.

 

[DVolk]

Who's used Autoworld mounts on a 73-87 Chevy ?

A body lift would help a littel but what you gain and the extra stress

and binding on the steering colom isnt worth it , if i was to do that id only go a 1" at the most , the mod is very slite and dose nothing to the truck and cab , if a person wants to screw around and cut and weld you could use a chevy medium cab cab section and have no issues .



You have to remove one cross member and add a new one and notch the crossmember you leave in place for balancer clearance .



and you have to notch for ac , or relocate it , and if your useing a early cummins you need to grind a liottel for the vacume boost diaphram ,next to the power steering pump

 

[CValiquette]

A body lift would help a littel but what you gain and the extra stress

and binding on the steering colom isnt worth it , if i was to do that id only go a 1" at the most , the mod is very slite and dose nothing to the truck and cab , if a person wants to screw around and cut and weld you could use a chevy medium cab cab section and have no issues .



You have to remove one cross member and add a new one and notch the crossmember you leave in place for balancer clearance .



and you have to notch for ac , or relocate it , and if your useing a early cummins you need to grind a liottel for the vacume boost diaphram ,next to the power steering pump

Yeah I heard of a guy getting away with just pounding the hell out of the firewall with a sledge. You're right, the angle on the column is ridiculous, but as far as the stability of the cab, the front clip and core support are welded to the body and braced to the firewall with steel tubing. My truck had the body lift when I got it so I'm just gonna leave it.

 

[DVolk]

Who's used Autoworld mounts on a 73-87 Chevy ?

I guarenty you dont have bang the hell out of the fire wall to

make room just fold the seam back were its welded a couple of minor

cuts on thesea, on the transmission tunnel portion of the cab and its done



with the cab and nose welded up your going to have fun doing a install



if you can pull your nose off the truck

 

[CValiquette]

Yeah I know. My buddy fixed the body and frame for me cuz he owed me a lot of money and that was his payback. The wheel wells aren't on the truck anymore and I can still pull the core support if I just cut the weld on the driver's side. No biggie.

 

[Niki]

DVolk and SOswalt,

Do your mounts allow you to keep the Dodge/cummins clutch fan?

 

[SOswalt]

Yes,I'm using 2nd gen fan !

 

[DVolk]

Autoworld mounts on a 73 -87 chevy?

Im running a stock fan as well ,



I even made a fan shroud for the top of the radaitor from a old metal one i had and a peice of sheetmeatal i had in my scrap pile

 

[towner]

please turn on your spellcheck you guys gave me a headache trying to read your spelling

 

[F8LDOSE]

How can I get a set of these mounts that you say fits good? Going to put a 5. 9 in a 89 suburban.