The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop S10 chassis with twist

I know this topic gets beat up regularly but I have a question that I'm sure someone here will either have an answer for or at least make up something really convincing.
Is the frame on an S10 generally the same as the Astro van? The reason I'm asking is that I have access to a really straight van for a very reasonable price. The only disadvantage that I can see is that the van body may be a beast to lift off of the chassis. Any input would be appreciated.
Bob

Totally different setup, the Astro just has a frame stub under the front quarter or so of the van, the rest is like unibody from there to the back.
Steve

could it be used like a camaro subframe

That's kinda what I'm now wondering. I was thinking of splicing the front end into my existing chassis. The rear spring setup is apparently a composite (non-metallic) leaf spring. Very odd.

I wouldn't advise using the Astro. There's going to be alot of issue with the steering and engine mounts. The steering box mounts almost verticle on those, due to the short amount of space from the column to the box. It also has a drag link that connects from the pitman arm to the center link and 2 idler arms, which is a major source of steering slop on those vans. Another issue is that the engine is offset to the right (for steering box clearance) about 4". There would be some major alterations needed to make it work on a truck. Using an S truck or Camaro sub would be much better and easier.

good in fo thanks

There's a build here that uses an Astro clip mated to original frame. Maybe will help. Good luck and have fun
Dan

Thanks for all the advice. I'm going to have to think long and hard on this one. The truck shown in the clip looks great but it would be nice to know the hurdles such as longbox55 mentioned. It looks like I've got some puzzling ahead of me.