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Old 09-24-2014, 02:39 AM   #1
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My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

How my Van sits as of 9/24/2014



I been lurking on sportmobile forum for awhile and gathering as much information before each of my mods. Whats a great place full of knowledge and friendly people!

So my story starts with my self being in the restaurant and bar industry. I needed a vehicle that I could haul supply's and food. I went out and found my self a 1994 Toyota Previa that offer a ton of cargo room when the seats where all taken out.



The business grew and we got busier. I constantly found myself exceeding the Previa's factory payload capacity so it was time for a bigger more heavier duty hauler. At the time I also had a 2001 Toyota 4Runner that I used for bad weather driving (living in the pacific northwest its bound to happen) and hauling my boat. I decided to sell both cars and get one that could do both. After months of looking i found my self a very nice used 2010 Express AWD that previously had a full body wrap on it. It was a long 5 hour drive from Portland, OR to Port Angeles WA but totally worth it! Some pictures from the first day we pick her up.





First impression I got from driving her back was how comfortable the ride was and how big this van really is! I never had such a large vehicle before. My first mod was adding a tow hitch to make sure I could move my boat around if I needed too at the time. Went online and place a order for a Curts tow hitch , and a plug and play wiring kit.




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Old 09-24-2014, 06:42 AM   #2
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Re: My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

thats a good looking van! the wheels and tires look nice and meaty
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Old 09-24-2014, 10:44 AM   #3
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Re: My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

At that time we i was working part time a local stereo shop, so I took advantage of my discount and decided to upgrade head unit, speakers, alarm with remote start and some sound deading.











For Sound deading i Used two hush mat bulk packs and a layer of jute padding on top of the hush mat. Coverage of the hushmat was almost 100% . What a night and day difference that made. Its like being inside your house.





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Old 09-24-2014, 10:49 AM   #4
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Re: My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

Got Limo tint on the rear windows and legal for the 2 fronts. At this point people thought the van belong to the FBI and was used for surveillance haha



When I bought the van the tires where pretty much dead. I tried to ride it out as long as I could but kept getting nails due to the tires being bald! I occasionally snowboard and being in the bar industry I need to make sure I'm there to open the doors even if we get 4 feet of snow. I was not also a fan of the factory chrome hub caps. So i started to gather parts and did a mild lift to fit the 265/70/17 Good year Duratrac's on Fuel Trophy wheels. The Offset of the new Fuel wheels are defiantly more aggressive then the factory stock wheels.

Before


After












I'm pretty happy with how everything turned out. Some future mods i want to do:

Chrome package headlight conversion with HIDs (anybody know the best place to order these parts)
Front Bumper Mounted Light bar
Build out interior with more audio upgrades and mild camping amenities
Spare tire mount on rear door (is it possible to keep the factory bumper ?)
Full roof rack with LED light bars
Ladder (no idea where to get one?)


Took the Boat out last Saturday one last time before putting her away
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Old 09-24-2014, 10:55 AM   #5
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Re: My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

Quote:
Originally Posted by shenrie
thats a good looking van! the wheels and tires look nice and meaty
Thanks Shenrie!
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Old 09-24-2014, 03:23 PM   #6
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Re: My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

You mention the "HID" headlights as a future possible mod...
You might enjoy some research on the LED headlights. As i mentioned in my build thread these are quite amazing for daily use. They really add some What-The-Heck kinda comments because the bulbs themselves are different looking, and they light up the roadway with nice _WHITE!!_ light.

Ours are the ones at this link, you will find them on eBay for ~$150+ or so.

Your rig is looking great!
Thom
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Old 09-24-2014, 11:18 PM   #7
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Re: My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

Quote:
Originally Posted by accrete
You mention the "HID" headlights as a future possible mod...
You might enjoy some research on the LED headlights. As i mentioned in my build thread these are quite amazing for daily use. They really add some What-The-Heck kinda comments because the bulbs themselves are different looking, and they light up the roadway with nice _WHITE!!_ light.

Ours are the ones at this link, you will find them on eBay for ~$150+ or so.

Your rig is looking great!
Thom
Thom your build tread was what inspired me to get my van and lift it! We should organize a Northwest van meet soon ! lol
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Old 09-25-2014, 01:32 PM   #8
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Re: My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

I just love the look of black vans! Nice work!

Count me in for a NW meetup... I want to see a Chevy AWD van up close.
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Old 09-25-2014, 03:33 PM   #9
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Re: My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

Have you (or Thom & Carrie too) had any issues with the lift? I assume that once you replace the front keys and get the height dialed that it is imperative to get it aligned? With the mild blocks in the rear are there any driveline angle issues or anything else to worry about? The lifts look great! I'll plan on doing the same to mine once I figure out if I have adequate clearance to get in the garage or not.
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2009 Express AWD, CCV Top & 50-ish home build. Daily driver/camper/kid hauler
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Old 09-26-2014, 12:22 AM   #10
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Re: My First van build Progress! 2010 Chevy Express AWD

Quote:
Originally Posted by rockbender
Have you (or Thom & Carrie too) had any issues with the lift? I assume that once you replace the front keys and get the height dialed that it is imperative to get it aligned? With the mild blocks in the rear are there any driveline angle issues or anything else to worry about? The lifts look great! I'll plan on doing the same to mine once I figure out if I have adequate clearance to get in the garage or not.
On the front end don't turn the keys all the way up. We did that in the beginning and the ride was super stiff ! So turned it down one notch and ride was great!

On the rear end I used the skyjacker shocks part number H7017. The upper mounts on the stock shocks is a tie bar style while the after market shocks just had a loop. I had to cut out the stock shocks and used the factor tie bars for now until i get the correct ones in. They work but its loose right now. I called skyjacker and they sell tie bars that i had to order which I'm still waiting for. I'll let you know how the fitment is when i get the new tie bar in.

The factory rear shock upper mount



what the aftermarket shocks look like



this is what it looks like with the stock tie bar mounted to the new shock. Its loose as we speak until i get the aftermarket tie bars in.



I took my van to the Line up shop up here which all they do is suspension and alignment work. The tech said when it came in it was all out of wack but he manage to put everything back into spec. He said any higher and there wouldn't be enough adjustment to put it back to spec. Let me know if you have any more questions!
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