Engine/Transmission (1994 - 1998) Cab swap

[JVankuren1]

Has anyone ever changed the cab on there truck? I'm buying a '94 4wd 5spd with 100k and no options, but the body is pretty dented up and rusty, I also have a '97 2wd with 316k and a bad auto trans but the body is in great shape and it has every option so I would like to swap the cab and box. I have a lift. Thanks, Joe

 

[JVankuren1]

There both reg. cab long bed.

 

[Missouri Mule]

Should be able to do it. Don't know what is involved beside un bolting the body bolts, wiring system, trans linkage, steeing shaft,vacuum lines... .

The bed will be the easiest to do.

Trading out the trans mite be easier.

 

[HBarlow]

I have some old friends who are brothers, roofers, Chevy owners, shade tree mechanics, and old car guys. I've seen them swap out cabs on Chevy trucks of the '80s a couple of times. Several years ago one of them bought an old Chevy dually pickup in good mechanical shape but with a trashed cab on it. They pulled a good cab off a Chevy 1/2 ton pickup and put it on the dually frame. The result was the only Chevy C1500 dually pickup around.

It should be a simple job if you carefully disconnect and label every wiring harness and individual wire as you remove it.

Ford dealers do it everyday on new 6. 0 or 6. 4 Fords. It must be easy!

 

[surfbeetle]

... Ford dealers do it everyday on new 6. 0 or 6. 4 Fords. It must be easy!

:-laf Too damn funny LMAO! You will need to check the wiring for each truck to see if it is the same. You may need to swap the pcm and harness if they're different.

 

[JVankuren1]

Yeah I went out and took a glance to day and it looks pretty straight forward. I think the radiator and intercooler might have to come out and some misc. battery cables,grounds and connectors. I need to lift the carpet in my auto to see if the hole is there for the 5spd. and 4wheel lever. I also need to switch the pedals. quite a task but better and cheaper than a whole lot of body work. Thanks

 

[surfbeetle]

You can get underneath the see if the holes are there. I doubt that they will be there. What I think that you will find may be either an access plate or a stamp marking for one. If not, you can use your cab that has the stick to make a paper template and then transfer it to the other cab and use a body saw to cut a hole. Shouldn't be too bad compared to the rest of your job. It would be cool to see some before and after pics when you're done.

 

[rkressg]

I did this with an old Chevy, we actually changed body styles just to complicate things, from an old '77 truck, we put a cab from an '85. It was not perfect, but we made it fit (had to cut a hole in the floor for the transmission, but that only took a few seconds with the torch.

Things should be fairly close (at least close enough). The hardest part will be pulling off all the front fenders and getting all the crap out of the old cab (if you want any of it).

 

[budnate]

keep in mind cabs are optioned diff... . you may need to move your harness from the old cab to the new one... . with a couple guys who know how to wrench its usually a 2 day job. we had the doors off and used 2 - 4x4's through the cab cut slots for the cab seam whers the door rubber goes, we used 2 little genie hvac lifts to lift the 4x4's slid out the frame with everything in place, switched stuff around, cleaned up the firewall all nice and set it back on the frame... . changeing the cabs is easy its all the little crap that is unhooked that takes time to get back nice and clean. well worth the hassle to have a nice tight an clean cab again

 

[JVankuren1]

Nevermind, I bought a X cab longbed 5spd. w/180K miles,More like I rescued it. What a wood chuck when I drove the truck home I notice it wouldn't build more than 7lbs. of boost and smoked ALOT! I knew it had a 100 plate and everything forward but this was bad. I pulled the air cleaner off and it was so dirty the turbo had sucked it concave. What a jerk so I put my AEM brute force on it off my old truck now it Hauls *** and has 18lbs. of boost.

 

[surfbeetle]

18 lbs of boost is still stock boost, with the TST #5 kit, I got the boost elbow and I have 40 lbs boost. With that much fuel going in, I think you'll want more boost.

 

[JVankuren1]

Yeah that is next,boost elbow,4k Gsk and valve springs.

 

[Grumpy John 4x4]

cab

Lot easier to fix your existing cab, I cut mine off with a sawsall! Junked the doors! Cut below the rear window and the front pillers, had the body shop weld a new one, plus different doors,truck bed! Also fixed a couple of dents the the left and right fenders and small dents on the left and right side of the hood, plus they painted the whole truck! Yes I rolled it, dam near died out in the Ca-Nev desert, cracked 7 ribs, collapsed lung and a broke back, yes Im back at again! only 67 years young!