Resurrecting 1964 G10

Hi everybody I wanted to share my project on this site and keep everybody updated with the progress. I found an ad on the internet for a free '67 G10 van. I called the guy and went to look at it, turns out to be a '64?, maybe some of you will be able to tell me better. Story is he bought it back in 1980, drove it for two years around Alberta, and then parked it in Quebec in 1982. It's sat since rusting away, and he doesn't have the heart to scrap it or see it rot any more, so he offered it up to a good home. It comes with a 1968 van for parts, so I'll take what I need off it and list any unwanted items for sale.

I'm hoping to get it back to my place in one piece, completely gut it, do a full body restoration, and I plan on installing fuel injected 5.3 liter Chevy truck engine with a 4l60e transmission. Power disc brakes are a must, I will be making some brackets for the front axle and probably swapping the rear end for a G80 locking rear diff out of a Chevy truck with disc brakes. I'd like to try to sort out some type of power steering system. Not sure of what I'd like to do for an interior yet, just going to concentrate on getting everything running for now.

I took a few pictures with my cell phone when I was out checking it out, as you can tell both vans are in rough shape, it's going to be a challenge, but I love restoring old vehicles, so I will be having lots of fun. This will be my first vintage van build, so if anybody has any constructive criticism, or ideas for me, any input is appreciated.

Thats cool that you are saving that van man !

Welcome to VV!!!!

Welcome!
Kinda looks like you have a 66. Get it out of the mud and that funk washed off and lets see what ya got!

Welcome to Vintage-Vans!!! Congrats on your find!!!

Wow!

Welcome to the club! The wider grill on the first gen indicates 65 or 66, the holes for backup lights indicate it is likely a 66.

Way to go for saving the ol girl. You have your work cut out for you, but it appears you do have a decent place to start.

ANy q's or if you need parts, just post here. You have friends here!

Also check out vcvc.org

You can get disc brake brackets from M1dadio, no need to try and reinvent them yourself

Thanks for the welcome everybody! I'm bringing the van home this weekend, I'll be able to clean it up and see exactly what I've gotten myself into. My guess about the age came from what I read on wikipedia, it said 64-65 had antennae on the passenger side, 66 had it on the drivers side. And apparently 64 didn't come with seat belts but the 65 did. I didn't see any seat belts in it, and the antennae hole is on the passenger side so I assumed it was a '64. But now I see what you mean by the wider grille on the front so I guess somebody needs to update the wikipedia article haha.

I also haven't looked at the ownerships yet, but the current owner says they state it's a '67... I thought the '67 was a second gen van? The ownerships apparently match the vin on the van. I've got some figuring out to do for sure before I get the title transferred over to my name.

I do know that the floor is rotted all the way through the van, are there any aftermarket suppliers that sell stamped steel floor panels? Or is this something I'm going to have to fabricate?

It's defiantly not a 1967 model so if it is registered as a 67 model that's a problem that you will have to fix. As far as I know there are no replacement floor panels for our vans. There are a few replacement patch panels for the 1968-1970 2nd gen models on eBay that are listed as 1964-1970 but they have the place for the side marker light & they didnt start putting them in the rear corners till 1968. I would suggest that you try to find a parts van or depending on the condition of the one you just bought if it needs a lot of rust repairs just find another one & use your current one for a parts van. If it has bad rust in the floors there is a good chance that there will be other rust issues. The gas tank will more than likely be bad also. Maybe it won't be to bad once you get it cleaned up.

Chargerboy when you get ready to put the 5.3 i can give you a few tips. My 64 has a 5.3, we'll it will be back in a soon as I paint it. Bob

Handyvanman, thanks for the info about the body panels. It took a while to dig around but I located them. I know I'm in for serious rust repair, unfortunately up here in Ontario it's difficult to find anything classic thanks to all the salt on the roads around here. I'm always on the hunt for a good restoration project and I've never come across any vehicles with solid bodies like you lucky lads down south can find. I took bodywork at the college here in Ottawa a few years back to learn the tricks of the trade, so metal fabrication isn't a big deal for me, although I hate figuring out ways of replicating stamped floor pans.

I've got the '68 van for parts, there's no restoring that one, but around here these vans are so rare I would rather spend the extra time welding and save the first gen van. The frame is solid, there is no gas tank (I'll be going with small fuel cell for cold starts and propane tanks to run it) but the body is rotten to the point where opening the back doors flexes the sides of the van, and the roof is collapsing. I sure didn't want it for a turnkey vehicle though, I love grinding rust



pan58head, thanks alot for the offer for help with the engine swap, it's going to be a couple months before I'm ready to do any install, but it's good to know as I'll be scratching my head when I'm trying to figure out how to clean up wiring harnesses These motors are a dime a dozen around here, 225 bucks for any year, any mileage at the local pull your own parts junkyard, and they even warranty them for a month or so! Just out of curiousity, what transmission and gearing are you running, and what's your fuel mileage like with that engine? I have one in my 2001 suburban, 6200 pound 4x4 with 3.73 gears and the 4l60e transmission, and I can squeeze 23 mpg driving it gently on the highway. I'm planning to use 3.08s and get better than that with the van.

chargerboy wrote:the body is rotten to the point where opening the back doors flexes the sides of the van, and the roof is collapsing.

I'm not saying that saving this van can't be done, but if the body is that far gone, you may be better off in the long run finding a less rusty body elsewhere and having it shipped to you.

That being said, you did get these vans for free, so I think if you have the time, tools and energy to do major rust repair, go for it!

you can probably cut up that 2nd gen and use it to fab parts for the 1st gen. If you need floorboard peices, rockers, door frames, roof peices or anything else like that there is a guy near me parting out a rust free 2nd gen van that I can put you in touch with and he can cut out parts and ship them to you. PM me for his number if you need it

charger sorry to say haven't had it on road yet. Not sure if my mileage is going to that great, I forgot to mention that I have a wipple supercharger on the motor. As for gearing , I have a super t10 four speed with a 9" ford with 3:50 gears. Should be fun lots of motor with manual brakes and manual steering , what could go wrong. When you get ready to do the swap I can tell you what you need for oil pan, exhaust manifolds, I can also hook you up with a guy that shows how to mod the harness !!!!!!!! Bob