Round to Square Front Clip

[Primer70]

Well I just swapped my 73 Suburbans clip out for a front clip of a 86 Chevy truck. I thought that some people might like to what it takes to do this, everything I found on line did not show what it takes so I took pictures of my swap.

The unsuspecting Suburban.

The 73 front clip pulled off.

The plastic screen, weather strip & wiper mechanisms need to be removed now.

Now time to mark out where the cutting for new hood hinge holes & bolts need to be.

Here's where I had to add metal for the hood hinges, I added some support also, it seemed a little flimsy without it.


Test fitting the hinges.


With rubber.

[Primer70]

Now it's time to drill holes for the wiper mechanisms, plastic screen & cowl. I forgot to take pictures of the drivers side wiper mechanism hole, it had to be enlarged to fit the longer mechanism.

After hoes drilled in the right spots I installed the cowl.

Next is to put the clip on.

Here you can see where I had to enlarge some of the holes to get the clip lined up.


Now the fenders are shimmed & bolted down.

[Primer70]

Next is the hood. I drilled a hole in the firewall & used a new hood release cable to be able to open the hood.



The front body mounts had to be cut off & welded on in the right place along with cutting the frame for the bumper.

Drilling holes for bumper.


Ta Da! It's on.



Next is to wire up the headlights & turn signals. I kept the wiring harness from the old clip to do this, the bulkhead connector is way different & wires will need to be spliced. I did no get pictures of this, it's not that hard to do though if you can do this clip swap.

[seanconnery]

I'll tell you what I like about your swap the most....the hood with the ornament! I think just to be different you should leave that on there. the fender-to-door line looks really tight too. Nice job!

[TexasJeff]

Wow awesome job, I am not a big fan of that swap but you did it right. I can't wait to see it with paint.

[YOLO]

nice work. it looks good. how long did that take?

[N2TRUX]

Very nice write up. Do you have any more pics or details to add? I might copy this to the FAQ forum.

I have to say I am sad to see the ol girl with the new clip. I just love those round headlights.

[cochino12]

good info there, I like the newer clip.

[Square84]

man i would have traded you i got a 90 sub but want a 73-78 style sub

[68GMC454]

wow is that all it takes.. i thought it was alot harder than that.. nice job on it i like it.. i like the round headlights, but i like the 80's square lights to..

[toomanytoyz]

Good Job on the Swap & Wtite Up Also.............

Rick

[Primer70]

Originally Posted by YOLO

nice work. it looks good. how long did that take?

It took me about 10 hours, mostly by myself. Seemed like it took for ever, lots of measuring & figuring out how to make it bolt on just like it does the newer body style. I bought the clip from a guy who already had it pulled off so I had no idea what the 81 up firewalls look like. Luckily the guy that owns the shop two doors down has a 81 up truck that I was able to look at for references.

[Primer70]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

Very nice write up. Do you have any more pics or details to add? I might copy this to the FAQ forum.

I have to say I am sad to see the ol girl with the new clip. I just love those round headlights.

I'll take some more pics & post some more information on things I encountered that I had to overcome during the swap. I won't have time to get to it for a few days, the wife has plans already for me this weekend.

[trout]

good right up brung back from the dead

[justinburnett]

I can appreciate a good job, even if I feel like you destroyed a beautiful vehicle.

[craazy22]

Bro good write up..I unlike many here love that swap, I hate the round lights on a square body, imo it just don't flow right, I think once painted its gonna look sweet.
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[79gmcclassic]

got any pics of the burb before the swap?