The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Panels 'N Burbs I have a dilemma hoping for advice

Hi all,

I have a serious dilemma,I have this 1953 suburban. (I will post pics soon it is still under a tarp at my sister in laws I have yet to bring it home.) The suburban is complete. The P.O. took the body off the frame to build a new frame from a caprice, when I got it I put it back on the original frame and towed it home. (the caprice frame was not for sale)
so Long story short I have an all original 1953 suburban with original glass, original seats, almost no dents, easy body work no foreseeable rust, it does have some funky colors and flowers painted on it but that is an easy problem to solve.
Here is my dilemma, I also received leather seats and a ton of ideas of what else I could do with it. I bought it with the dream of building a "light modified" suburban with upgraded seating and upgraded suspension and drive train. but I am now torn I have a PREFECT candidate for a total restore, but I am really wanting something that me and the family (all 6 of us) can cruise in and enjoy. I want to make it a driver that we can all enjoy going to ride ins and car shows but then again it almost seems like I would be committing a sin to do that to an all original burban. the motor is stuck and I don't know if I can get it running or not but I need help at this fork in the road.

Now I know all the common responses like "it's your truck do what you want" but seriously I am torn I would like to modify it, but my heart is telling me to restore it, although I am not sure I have the amount of energy or patients for a project like that. I am looking for opinions from both sides of the fence. so please let me know what you truly think. I have even thought of trading it to someone who wants an easy restore so that I won't feel so bad about modifying it.

Thanks in advance for you thoughts.

I truely think it won't take an ounce more time, energy or money to restore than to modify, prolly less cuz there's no backyard engineering involved .... a well restored 53 burb should "cruise" fine for ocassional event runs, and the family will get an education about transportation history from a time when going someplace didn't mean getting there in an automatic climate controlled arm chair

Bill

Hey 38 Tow,
Bill is 100% correct. Your family will love it and truly have an experience that few get these days. To have been given the opportunity to bring back to life a piece of history doesn't happen everyday. A restored Burb is a thing of beuty and can be used to cruise and for family trips etc. With the right components it will do what you need. It may not cruise at 80-90 but will get along just fine. A friend(who has several old cars)wife has a great saying' "It is amazing how much of America you can see driving 45 mph" Best of luck with your project. And remember you can always modernize it later, it is only original once. Be well, Richard(trying to bring a '46 back to life)

Best thing to do is go to the GALLERY and look at the different suburbans that you see. I have three suburbans (not in the Gallerys) and they are in poor to good shape. I would love to have had a mint condition burb to start my project, but I did not. I am going stock, but no means correct. It will have some modifications, but it will look stock to most that see it.

Once you repaint it, rebuild the engine, re-upholstered it and make any modifications or add any options that were not original to the suburban, then it's no longer original. Any Suburban can be restored, just look at some of the projects the guys have started from. Unless you are going to show it, minor modification will not take away from it's originality. When you sell it, the new owner can take it back to original if he wants. since it's been off the frame and has flowers painted on it, I think you are at a point of doing it how you wish.

Put some pictures of it on the bolt and let us see what you have. With that said, start making a plan. Take an inventory of what's missing or needs to be replaced. Take photo's of suburbans you like, Read these pages and do some research by using the SEARCH FEATURE of these forums. Go to car shows and see how few show up and admire what each owner has done to them. Bring your family into it early, make them part of the project, even though you will be doing all of the work.

Here's a SUBURBAN that I like. But there are many more that like too, it's where your heart is and will you complete it no matter which direction you choose. I am sure that there are others that would disagree with me, but that's just it, this is just my process of doing a project. Each of us have our own opinions, so I am glad you asked for mine!

I have kept myself busy with helping out these forums to keep me active in the project, even though I have not been able to work on it for two years. Now that my shop is near completion, I will start working on it. good luck!

Seeing as you don't want the standard answer about it being your truck..., all I can say is what I did to mine. I left most of it original or slightly changed. Safety is a big concern, particularly with the whole family going for rides. If your heart is telling you something, pay attention to it. You will likely be happier with it in the long run.

Sounds like you have some engine and running gear work to do, how about update the running gear but do the body and interior stock. That way you can run the family around in it but take advantage of the rare stock pieces you have.

Or sell those seats and the stock frame and go for it with the nice body!

Personally I wouldn't put a load of people in something that only had two doors up front. From a safety point of view, that would be my concern. On the other hand they are a true thing of beauty from the past.

That is one thing I always have a hard time with also 38tow. I hate to butcher up a an all original vehicle, but I would like to have modern luxuries at the same time.

I have come to the conclusion that "I" prefer a modern vehicle for the luxury rides.
I think that restoring the way it was seems to give me more joy when showing off. When you get in and drive an old car, you start to feel that it is a lot of work to drive that old car. And to think that you went through all that work and your driving an old car.

But people seem to notice and have more fun when driving in that old vehicle.
A quick story... I found a survivor car (1940 Chevy 2dr Sedan) and got it running. I took it to my mom's house and pretty soon Mom, another Uncle and Aunt decided to take it for a spin. We drove out to another Uncle's farm (We took the old roads) and took him for a ride too. We all had such a good time with the reminising of the old days (those were the days). After that one ride, several years later, I still get asked about that car (I sold it shortly after to a guy who drove it 900 miles home), and the conversation goes back to that day we took it for a ride and how much fun it was. I sometimes wish I still had that car just for those rides, and I wonder about the story that guy who bought it has about his trip.

Not as many people remember a ride that feels like the late model car in the driveway. Everybody remembers that ride, and the car, that brings memories back from another time and era.

It just seems that so many of the older vehicles are "modernized" and they loose a certain appeal at the car shows. I want to see the "real" thing with its original wheels.

What ever you choose, enjoy it. It will still be a lot of fun.

Builder

39 tow,

We had the same decision to make when we first bought our '52 Chevy 1/2 ton pickup. I wanted to chop, lower, and add a 350 Chevy V-8. Fancy paint and all the trick stuff. A long time friend stopped by and told us that this truck had so many original parts that it would be ashame to "modernize" it. He said there weren't many original vehicles left out there.

I took his advice and the proof came at the last car show. A young man came by with a highly modified '52. Beautiful paint, roaring new engine, fancy suspension, all the new bells and whistles. He stopped by our truck (in ancient chipped patina) and said he was so sorry that he went the way he did. Six years and tens of thousands of dollars over budget he had a truck that was one of a kind but it no longer portrayed the era gone by.

As the comment above echo, go with your heart but there will not be many originals in the future. My vote is do a mild restoration and preserve history. Your family will enjoy that old ride with stories for future generations.

Mitch

I won't get in the back seat of a two door car, but it has more to do with stiff tired bones than safety...

There are lots of two-door cars on the market, I don't see the rear seats in a Suburban being significantly different egress wise than most of what is on the market today.

38 tow...from the purely practical/monetary side understand one thing...those original seats are worth their weight in gold...easily $2-3k to right buyer. Times are tough you know.

I have been down this road in both ways. My first restoration was a 46 1/2 ton P/U.

I restored it to its original state except for Patricks 3.55 rear end and 8 volt battery. It was a great truck, but fragile when it came to I-95 speeds and braking ability.

My second was another 46 with a 350 and auto transmission. It ran all day at turpike speeds but I missed the originality.

My 3rd and fourth vehicles are the results of my experiences with the first two.

The 3rd is a 1941 1 Ton Long Bed pickup that will appear totally original until you get up close, look at the dash or raise the hood.

It will have a stock Chevy 350, 700R4 transmission, 3.73 rear end, updated brakes with dual master cylinder and modern gauges.
It could be put back to its original state if one choose to do that. This will be my daily driver.

My show/fun truck is a 1946 Chevy Suburban School Bus with tailgate, not panel doors.

This Suburban will have updated brakes, split system with disc brakes upfront behind artillery wheels, 235 engine, 4 speed transmission (out of the 41 1 ton), 3.42 rearend, 12 volt electrical system, original dash and insturments with higher pressure oil gauge graphics, and seating for 8 as it came from the factory. This vehicle could also be put back 100% original status if you desired to that sort of thing.

Heres the bottom line: If you get too radical with the vehicle and then need to sell it you have 2 problems.

The first is that you have to find someone who likes it.

The second is finding some one who likes it and has the funds to buy it.

Original trucks will always appreciate in value while hoped up highly modified ones do not.

Keep it original except for safety and minor mechanical upgrades and you can have the best of both worlds.

One final point. When you arrive at any destination in an older truck everybody smiles and has fond memories of the days past when the roads were full of your now rare vehicle. You do not always get that same reaction with rat rods, low riders and extremely loud highly modified vehicles. You will probably not spend as much money either.

Dave Murray

I

I take it that you are a person that also would not get in an airplane, train or bus
ron

I kept our 59 original for 4 years. I had a dream of modernizing it mechanically but keeping the original look. Finally last year we replaced the front clip, engine and transmission. It now drives much better, stops much quicker, turns more easily and gets me 20 mpg. I DO NOT miss the old drivetrain and soon will not miss the old split bench seat. It looks stock until you open the hood.

My opinion (for what it's worth) is if you have something in as good a condition as yours it would be a hard choice to do any irreversible mods. There are lot's of ways to make it safer and more efficient without cutting any steel.

I wanted to be able to drive ours constantly and anywhere. This meant a more radical mod. In it's old condition my wife couldn't drive it. Now she loves to drive it even over her Cadillac. I can cruise on the interstate and the only people that know it's not stock are the few car guys like us. Most people just smile and wave. Looking forward to see what you do.

Thank You all for your advise. I truly do appreciate it. You all have given me plenty to think over. I don't want to do very much as far as modifying goes I was just thinking upgrade to the interior and drive train.
I would like to take my family on cruises and maybe even take it coast to coast so.. I guess the real question remains as to if I totally restore it I am stuck at 45, in uncomfortable seats. if I upgrade the brakes then I might as well upgrade the engine to a new six or eight cylinder. I think once I start to "improve the ride" I may as well go ahead and "improve the interior" while I am at it.
Then again maybe I will just rebuild the engine (seems doable) and restore it completely.
I am not a man that can make these decisions
just kidding I will eventually get to figuring it out I have a bit of time until I get started (a month or so) I am still getting the 38 tow truck up and running. once I do I will run it around town as it is and then start the 53. thanks any more suggestions keep them coming I am still trying to decide.

It sounds to me that you want to drive with your family, apparently with some comfort, even. I am in the same situation, I love the looks of my '57 Burb, but driving is the main thing for me, so I really enjoy my Camaro front clip and 250ci engine. And I get parts at the local parts store...
Well, this is not too hard to do without "butchering" anything. You can "modernize" enough for comfort without anything being visible:
~a small block is easy to swap in with a 4-speed auto: I know it is cool to see the countryside at 45mph, but 70/80mph on the highway is good too, you can actually get somewhere; remember that the kids can get bored quickly, imagine going 45!
~then you need better brakes, maybe on the straight axle, but a front clip (Camaro...) gives you this and power steering/power brakes, more comfort; just make sure the stock back is in good condition.
~aftermarket A/C is pretty much invisible inside the truck; get a modern radio that looks like an original (Custom AutoSound...) and speakers under the seats; a bit of insulation...
And there, you keep the outside all stock-looking (paint, wheels, mirrors...) and you can actually drive comfortably anywhere with the whole gang; nothing that cannot be undone if you do not do a front clip and even if you do, you could always find another original chassis if one day you want to go back to stock.
Go ahead, drive your heart out! And when I get somewhere, people do smile and talk to me of their memories, because unless you kneel in front of my truck, you cannot see it is modified at all.

I say keep it stock related. Keep the straight axle, drop it and add lowered springs if needed. install a 250 or 292 engine, but front mount it so you can go back to a 215 or 235. Do custom padding on the seats, i did on my 55, different foam cut in triangle shapes to support the front and allow ssofter foam for your bottom. Upgrade the rearend to a 3.55, it will cruise 65-70 easy, more if needed with a 6 cyl.

Just remember to move a little while turning and it will drive fine.

Devin