Pissnoma
- Thread starter Kellyex1450
- Start date
Chancegoodman
Active member
What do you think the “S” stood for?
4xFoorOffroad
Active member
I remember a video of a 4x4 conversion on an Astro using that. Not a horrible vehicle for a camping van.
Kellyex1450
Well-known member
Turboyota-
"Things I’ve learned about S-10’s. 1. S-10’s are shitty
2. Companies that make S-10 products supply poorly-engineered shitty parts"
^^^This is why I own a GMC Sonoma.....
"Things I’ve learned about S-10’s. 1. S-10’s are shitty
2. Companies that make S-10 products supply poorly-engineered shitty parts"
^^^This is why I own a GMC Sonoma.....
Kellyex1450
Well-known member
Moving on to the rear
Kellyex1450
Well-known member
Kellyex1450
Well-known member
Where did I go wrong? My driveshafts cost more than the truck 1,900$, the truck was only 1,500$. How could could I of saved money here? The place did a great job and price is reasonable to me. I just think i should of found junkyard driveshaft in the configuration i needed and altered the lengths at the driveshaft shop.
Kellyex1450
Well-known member
Kellyex1450
Well-known member
The Pissnoma finally took its maiden voyage—semi-successfully.
I’ve had a Grand Canyon trip planned with my family for six months, and from the beginning, it was my goal to take the Pissnoma on this adventure. I pushed hard in the final weeks leading up to the trip, and got it road-ready just two days before we left for Arizona. Right up until departure, I had what felt like a hundred moments of doubt—wondering if I’d actually make it or questioning whether taking this thing was even a good idea.
The main struggles before the trip were bleeding the brakes (still running that ABS octopus), linking up the manual transfer case conversion, and replacing the front inner axle seals. But we made it out of the driveway.
The drive out to Arizona was surprisingly drama-free. The steering felt vague and wander-y, and the engine would creep up to 230°F on grades in the 110°F desert heat. Within the first mile I could also tell the shocks were valved way too stiff, but there was no time to address that.
There were two big test days planned for the truck. The first was the Grand Canyon loop. Everything was going well—until it wasn’t. After finishing the South Rim loop, we stopped for some Navajo fry bread in Cameron, AZ. I left the truck idling in the 108°F sun while we waited for our order. About 15 minutes later, we hopped back in, engine temp at 220°F—nothing alarming. I pulled out to merge onto the highway, gave it a good stomp to find a gap in traffic, and heard the fan clutch roar to life. A second later, I heard a weird noise from the engine bay and smelled coolant.
I ignored it for a moment (bad idea), but the temp kept rising—240°F, 250°F… I found a safe place to pull over just as it hit 260°F. Popped the hood—coolant everywhere. After a quick look, I found the culprit: one of the fan blades had broken off when the clutch engaged hard and punched a hole in the radiator. Perfect.
We called AAA chase. I ordered a new radiator, fan, fan clutch, coolant, oil, trans fluid (thanks to the integrated cooler), belt—everything except the lower radiator shroud, which was obliterated in the process. My wife, kids, and I got to enjoy 2.5 hours of roadside Arizona sauna before the tow truck arrived. I knew we were in for an awkward ride when I saw the Black Ice air freshener swinging from the rearview mirror of the tow truck.
Next morning, I hitched a ride to Flagstaff, picked up the parts (shoutout to my $120 Uber), then spent the day in parking-lot-mechanic mode. All in all, the repair cost about $500 in parts and a healthy portion of my pride—but we were back on the road.
The second test was Broken Arrow Trail in Sedona. I almost bailed on it—I didn’t want to risk another repair day while on vacation—but we went for it. And it was awesome. Broken Arrow is one of the most beautiful trails I’ve ever done… aside from being swarmed by the ever-present Pink Jeep tour convoys covering the landscape like lice on a neglected child's scalp.
The ride home was smooth, though I noticed the engine temp creeping up more easily. Hopefully that’s just due to the missing lower shroud.
All in all, it was a great trip. I’ve got a long list of things to fix and improve, but I’m way behind on house projects, so I’m putting the Pissnoma on a light-duty break for a while—just small stuff for now.
This was a super fun project that took longer than I expected, but I’m proud of how it turned out.
Big thanks to Turdbro for letting me use his shop and lending a hand along the way!
I’ve had a Grand Canyon trip planned with my family for six months, and from the beginning, it was my goal to take the Pissnoma on this adventure. I pushed hard in the final weeks leading up to the trip, and got it road-ready just two days before we left for Arizona. Right up until departure, I had what felt like a hundred moments of doubt—wondering if I’d actually make it or questioning whether taking this thing was even a good idea.
The main struggles before the trip were bleeding the brakes (still running that ABS octopus), linking up the manual transfer case conversion, and replacing the front inner axle seals. But we made it out of the driveway.
The drive out to Arizona was surprisingly drama-free. The steering felt vague and wander-y, and the engine would creep up to 230°F on grades in the 110°F desert heat. Within the first mile I could also tell the shocks were valved way too stiff, but there was no time to address that.
There were two big test days planned for the truck. The first was the Grand Canyon loop. Everything was going well—until it wasn’t. After finishing the South Rim loop, we stopped for some Navajo fry bread in Cameron, AZ. I left the truck idling in the 108°F sun while we waited for our order. About 15 minutes later, we hopped back in, engine temp at 220°F—nothing alarming. I pulled out to merge onto the highway, gave it a good stomp to find a gap in traffic, and heard the fan clutch roar to life. A second later, I heard a weird noise from the engine bay and smelled coolant.
I ignored it for a moment (bad idea), but the temp kept rising—240°F, 250°F… I found a safe place to pull over just as it hit 260°F. Popped the hood—coolant everywhere. After a quick look, I found the culprit: one of the fan blades had broken off when the clutch engaged hard and punched a hole in the radiator. Perfect.
We called AAA chase. I ordered a new radiator, fan, fan clutch, coolant, oil, trans fluid (thanks to the integrated cooler), belt—everything except the lower radiator shroud, which was obliterated in the process. My wife, kids, and I got to enjoy 2.5 hours of roadside Arizona sauna before the tow truck arrived. I knew we were in for an awkward ride when I saw the Black Ice air freshener swinging from the rearview mirror of the tow truck.
Next morning, I hitched a ride to Flagstaff, picked up the parts (shoutout to my $120 Uber), then spent the day in parking-lot-mechanic mode. All in all, the repair cost about $500 in parts and a healthy portion of my pride—but we were back on the road.
The second test was Broken Arrow Trail in Sedona. I almost bailed on it—I didn’t want to risk another repair day while on vacation—but we went for it. And it was awesome. Broken Arrow is one of the most beautiful trails I’ve ever done… aside from being swarmed by the ever-present Pink Jeep tour convoys covering the landscape like lice on a neglected child's scalp.
The ride home was smooth, though I noticed the engine temp creeping up more easily. Hopefully that’s just due to the missing lower shroud.
All in all, it was a great trip. I’ve got a long list of things to fix and improve, but I’m way behind on house projects, so I’m putting the Pissnoma on a light-duty break for a while—just small stuff for now.
This was a super fun project that took longer than I expected, but I’m proud of how it turned out.
Big thanks to Turdbro for letting me use his shop and lending a hand along the way!
Kellyex1450
Well-known member
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