Best All-time Chevy Express Mods
Chevrolet Forum members weigh in on the best things to add to the last great full-size van.
Long after Dodge and Ford went to newer platforms, Chevrolet is sticking with the Express full-size van. Though some might criticize the choice, nearly anyone can buy a van on virtually any budget. However, some folks don’t do the new-vehicle thing, and neither did thread starter Teammuir1. He picked up a red 2006 Express 3500 with the 6.0 V-8., which was an ex-work van, with some upfitting stuff in the back.
“Repainted the interior,” he begins his thread. “The Van was used, of course, for work so the interior was trashed.”
After the clean up, he turned to the forum to see what fellow members suggested for mods.
StanVan weighed in, suggesting, “creature comforts. A stereo system was first in mind for me. One with a large video display, mainly for a backup camera … Thanks to another member here, I got clued in to a neat camera. It replaces the high mounted brake light lens.”
Another van-fan, Twscarp, showed some pictures of his mudflaps. They’re a dealer item, but they help keep rocks off the sides of the van, so many think they’re worth the cost. Especially since Teammuir1 has such a unique color!
Running boards come up as a necessary mod, especially for those who are vertically challenged. StanVan shared a few pictures of his, adding, “the passenger side does show it going just past the rear side door.”
Artie1 weighs in with quite a list of things to change, many of them easy to do. First, he suggested swapping the stock steering wheel for a leather one from a Suburban or Silverado. Or a wood/leather one from an Escalade if you’re feeling fancy. He suggests a rearview camera in the license plate frame, and suggests a pair of transmission coolers if towing is in the cards.
His most interesting suggestion is, “heated/cooled powered front seats from a Saab 9-5”. A Saab? For those that don’t know, GM owned Saab for a few years, and numerous parts crossed over. He doesn’t mention if this is a bolt-in swap, so keep that in mind if you like the idea of heated seats for your van.
The best suggestion for what to do about adding a tachometer came from Artie1, who suggested an inexpensive OBDII dongle coupled with the Torque Pro app for Android. It can pull and display everything from engine rpm, to load, voltage, various temperatures, and etc. Anything the van has sensors for can be displayed.
The thread is still going strong, and is in the 60-plus page range currently. For anyone wondering what modifications they should make to their Chevrolet Express/GMC Savana, this is a great thread to follow.
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