Attention: TDR Forum Junkies 
So, I've had this 73 340 Duster for ever, not a thing in the drive train is original- long story. Anyhow, I stopped by to see an old friend this past weekend and he tells me his neighbor got a trade-in offer of $4500 for his 02, OC, long bed 4 X 4, Cummins. He told me the truck was used for work and has a dumper insert in the bed, but wasn't rusty or too badly beat up, and he thinks it's an automatic. So I do a drive by not getting out to do a close up look. I'm thinking for $4500 I could flip it, double my money at least and add profits to what I have already put away for stuff I need on the Duster. 
Then the next day at work "pop" an idea that I had thought of before and joked around about with a few fellow CTD guys, but never really considered, seemed to merit a bit more thought with the potential of an inexpensive Cummins and trans:-laf The more I thought about it the more it seemed like not so bad of an idea. I could even swap the diffs from the 02 to my 99 and end up with dual piston calipers in the front and disc rear instead of the blasted drums. And, god knows what other parts I could swap along the way. End up parting the 02 out or even selling it "as is" and make the $4500 back and maybe even some more too boot.
So, like back in the day, roders made "gassers" by sticking a straight axle out of a van under the car and a big honkin engine under the hood.
Well you see where I'm thinking of going: snatch up the 02, pull the eng, trans and all electronics then make an "oiler" out of the Duster.
I've looked under the Duster's hood and based on the space available without measuring the engine in my truck to see if there's any possibility of a fit - I doubt even if it would fit that the front frame section would last, nor would the torque boxes stand up to the Cummins' torque and lastly the torsion suspension would fold on the first speed bump.
So then I figured I could lop off the front frame section, fab some frame rails up and run them from the rear frame section straight up to the front, then after figuring out the engine/trans fit lengthen the sheet metal on the fenders behind the wheel house and mid hood then I'd be able to reuse the rad support, front bumper etc from the Duster concealing the inter-cooler and radiator from the 02.
I figure an edge comp, set of twins and some Mach7 sticks, plus minus about 3200 pounds less weight than the truck should put me down the 1/4 mile in the low 11s as a starting point. But the neatest thing would be driving a diesel powered street legal freak-mobile around town and seeing the looks on the faces of people expecting to see a pick-up or bigger vehicle then see "an old Duster???" Priceless :-laf
It's a far fetched idea, odd, would certainly take some fabrication, metal/body and interior work to pull it off, but I like to be different and the more I think about it the more I like it.
Here ya go I'll call it the "Franken-Oiler".
Then the next day at work "pop" an idea that I had thought of before and joked around about with a few fellow CTD guys, but never really considered, seemed to merit a bit more thought with the potential of an inexpensive Cummins and trans:-laf The more I thought about it the more it seemed like not so bad of an idea. I could even swap the diffs from the 02 to my 99 and end up with dual piston calipers in the front and disc rear instead of the blasted drums. And, god knows what other parts I could swap along the way. End up parting the 02 out or even selling it "as is" and make the $4500 back and maybe even some more too boot.
So, like back in the day, roders made "gassers" by sticking a straight axle out of a van under the car and a big honkin engine under the hood.
Well you see where I'm thinking of going: snatch up the 02, pull the eng, trans and all electronics then make an "oiler" out of the Duster.
I've looked under the Duster's hood and based on the space available without measuring the engine in my truck to see if there's any possibility of a fit - I doubt even if it would fit that the front frame section would last, nor would the torque boxes stand up to the Cummins' torque and lastly the torsion suspension would fold on the first speed bump.
So then I figured I could lop off the front frame section, fab some frame rails up and run them from the rear frame section straight up to the front, then after figuring out the engine/trans fit lengthen the sheet metal on the fenders behind the wheel house and mid hood then I'd be able to reuse the rad support, front bumper etc from the Duster concealing the inter-cooler and radiator from the 02.
I figure an edge comp, set of twins and some Mach7 sticks, plus minus about 3200 pounds less weight than the truck should put me down the 1/4 mile in the low 11s as a starting point. But the neatest thing would be driving a diesel powered street legal freak-mobile around town and seeing the looks on the faces of people expecting to see a pick-up or bigger vehicle then see "an old Duster???" Priceless :-laf
It's a far fetched idea, odd, would certainly take some fabrication, metal/body and interior work to pull it off, but I like to be different and the more I think about it the more I like it.
Here ya go I'll call it the "Franken-Oiler".
= Ashton Maduro 50's tasty and mild. Note link in my signature "Truck Caught Smoking" :-laf
