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Hey all, new member here!
I've had my conversion van a couple of months and I figured I should share what all I've done and my plans for the future. I bought this conversion van with the sole intention of making a cool roadtrip vehicle with some attitude. So far the van has Pacesetter longtube headers (part number 70-2267)
that were for a Silverado of the same year and a 3 inch exhaust leading to a Magnaflow 12599. The exhaust after the muffler just dumps out the side before the rear wheels with some el cheapo chrome tips. The exhaust still needs some adjusting; it doesn't quite sit where I want it to and I might actually change it to a through-body exit after the rear tires. Immediate future plans include switching from a 4l60e transmission to probably a 4l80e, as my transmission isn't happy. I also have on standby a Brian Tooley Racing stage 2 LS2 cam that will be going in it. I'm waiting on that because I need to get the transmission sorted first. I intend to lower the van. I'm still deciding on what wheels I am going to get as it partly depends on how much I can lower it without extensive work. I will add more to this later and am looking forward to what you all think.
What I ordered
Freshly installed, no smashing required, a perfect fit
Last edited by HurkTheVan; August 28th, 2018 at 2:30 PM.
Reason: Adding pictures and part numbers
I love the idea of trick exhaust, but I can't justify doing it at this time. I've had mine just over a year, and it's the first V8 I've had in many years. And the last V8 I had, I did Cherry Bomb glass packs (pre emissions van). I miss the sound.
And welcome! You'll find that most of the posts here are for advice, but there are a couple of us who are in build mode. I'm a bit slow these days, but do check out my thread (below), and one other that comes to mind;
Exhaust was the first thing I did, the previous owner thought it was an adventure van, took it off road, and mangled the exhaust and some other stuff. I also figured, if anyone cared, that I would post what headers would fit as I couldn't find a straight answer and took a guess. After I did exhaust, I changed out the head unit and was in the process of shopping for more audio stuff when my transmission decided to stop working properly. I will give it a stronger transmission and much higher stall converter to handle my abuse as I hot rod it more and more.
If you're hot roddin' it, I'd make sure of the rear end. I liked the idea that the Express is known as a good tow vehicle, but the best diff you can get stock is a limited slip, that isn't all that good of one, as LS differentials go. I'm looking at a street locker to overcome the lack of a LS.
I was looking at what I could do. Looks like the best options are locking diffs or swapping to something custom. I want to change the gear ratios so I'll need to figure something out because the stock limited slip won't be happy with what I'm doing lol. Also, your van is rad. The last van I had was a Dodge and I did a full camper treatment on it. Too bad Dodges rust like nothing else. This one should treat me better
Thanks. I'm just about done with the major stuff, except for putting it all back in! I had to take it all out to let the dealer replace the rear A/C evaporator (warranty, thankfully). And I'm keeping it out an extra week to help a friend move. My next camp out is 10/5 through 10/8, so I have a little time.
As for the diff, finding out what you have is key. The most reliable way to do this is to take your VIN to a dealer and have them decode it. Online VIN decoders usually won't go into much detail about that. The decoder at the top of the page (under "Tools") is handy, and will tell you stuff you may not know. It may say if you have the LS or not, and should tell you the ratio. It all depends on how radical you want to go.
I know it's a limited slip already, not 100% sure on the ratio or the specific diff yet. I am right next to a dealer so I could probably check the vin soon.
hello friends i am new i have a 2011 5.3 rwd and i need your valuable knowledge i have clunk noise when take off gas and put again and i want a recommendation from headers you can send the invoice to my email 😂😂😂😂😂😂
August 28th, 2018, 12:58 PM
Headers on my 2003 1500 +other plans
I had to take it all out to let the dealer replace the rear A/C evaporator (warranty, thankfully). And I'm keeping it out an extra week to help a friend move. My next camp out is 10/5 through 10/8, so I have a little time.
