Figured I should start a thread on the newest addition to the family, a 1990 Chevy G20 Mark III Conversion van with tbi350, high top and a pin stripping job straight from 80s heaven. At least my 80s heaven. Picked it up a few weeks ago, only 70k miles; the underside of the body and frame our rust free but the steering and suspension bits have some midwest flavor. We currently have a 2005 AWD Astro van that was given a body/leafspring lift that has been to the mountains of New Mexico and the coast of Maine. It was a sort of a proof of concept; we had been hikers and backpackers and were thinking of finally getting into van road tripping and camping. The new bowtie will be the long-termer and we are super excited to start taking it around the country.
The interior is in great condition except for the faded carpet. I am not a big fan of the purplish seats that Mark III used for this, but damn, the driver's seat is the most comfortable I have sat in.
The plan will be to remove the middle and rear bench and build a permanent bed and storage while attempting to keep the look. So plan to keep as much of the wall and roof panels in place, or reused.
We, or I should say I, like to go "off road" and spend time roaming and camping the forestry service roads. I know the difficulty, but plan to lift a couple inches to get a little clearance, already started cross-referencing aftermarket springs with the factory length and spring rate, haven't hit gold yet. Not against going with spaces up front if that is what it comes to. The steering and suspension components will be replaced/upgraded first, along with some engine maintenance items. New X2 Power battery was the first thing installed.
it sits in the backyard, so won't be doing too much with it until the spring but will be collecting parts the rest of the winter. Have already learned a bunch from this site and plan to share what I learn along the way.