My Father-In-Law picked this up for me yesterday (i'm in afghanistan right now) for 1500$

22r rebuilt (dont have pic, but its clean and runs like a top)
5spd
2wd







I have a 81 4x4 pickup thats all hacked up and am planning to swap this motor and body (the 2wd) onto the 4x4 frame and drivetrain.

Should I expect to have to fab body mounts and such or will the 2wd body swap right onto the 4x4 frame?

 

I believe the transmission tunnel is slightly different..almost hate to see that thing get swapped over..very clean 2wd and with gas as high as it is I would love that for a DD.

I will forward this thread to TrekkerPaul, he might have more knowledge about the body mount issue etc..

 

Thanks for the reply, I have another question, I tried searching for an answer but with no luck.

As far as the steering, can i just use my stock 4x4 push pull setup and connect the power steering lines from the new motor (out of the 2WD truck) to the 4x4 p/s box or would I need to get a high-steer kit and use the 2wd IFS p/s box?

 

dont do it!

 

why you say that?

 

its beautiful

 

HaHa. Thats what my wife told me. I have been considering leaving the 2WD alone and just putting a little work into my 4x4 and using it for strictly offroading. i used to DD my 4x4 but its a pain in the backside to DD. It's a good off-road rig and is capable but it rides rough and of course without the roof and doors its hot in summer (I live in TX) and don't even think about driving it in the rain. UGH. Here's a picture of it.



As far as the 2WD is there any way to lift it 2-3 inches to give it some more ground clearance. What kind of front suspension is on these 2WD's?

 

you can use your stock push pull, but if you can afford it I would go with Hi steer..It is a night and day improvement over the stock junk.
YOu need a steering box and mount off an IFS 4WD truck, the 2WD is not compatible.
the 2WD's use a Torsion bar suspension, i think you can crank them and use ball joint spacers but am not positive
BMcEL's 81 is slightly lifted, 3" BL 32x11.50 , But I like the look of his truck:
https://www.yotatech.com/members/bmc...0&ref=gnr-next

Throw a lunchbox locker in the back and go for it...

edit: an thanks for serving BTW..What branch?
I spent a few years falling out of planes and Helicopters in the army..

 

Thanks for the reply's. I'm in the army, Artillery.

 

I never was able to find ball joint spacers for the pre-'84 2WD suspension.

You can modify the '84-'95 2WD long travel kits to fit pre-'84 with some moderate fab skills, but the kits are big money. You could also do a solid axle swap.

I did a 3" body lift and cranked the torsion bars until it sat level...for now. SAS is in the works. I've taken it through some pretty nasty trails as-is though. Impressive for an old 2-by.

Good luck and good looking truck!

 

you will get arrested for molestation if you hack up that pristine truck! I'm not a big fan of 2wd trucks, but that thing is too perfect to use for parts on a wheelin rig!

 

haha. yeah im starting to lean towards just fixin this 2wd up till its perfect. (2 of the fender wells have rust as well as some around one of the body mounts) and it needs new seat/carpet/minor interior work. i dont think i could forgive myself if i jacked the body up crawling the rocks.