He Built HIs Own Extended Cab Pickup

He Built HIs Own Extended Cab Pickup PICKUPS Miscellaneous 17-4-29 Six years ago David Schlichenmayer, Burlington, Colo., beat General Motors to the punch by equipping his 1975 Chevrolet 3/4-ton pickup with an extended cab. That was a full year before GM came out with its own extended cab model in 1988. He did all the painting, body work, and mechanical work himself. "I built it after I came back with some friends from a deer hunting trip in the mountains," says Schlichenmayer, who built the pickup with the help of friend Dean Fisher. "It was a 12-hour drive and we just didn't have enough room. At the time, only Dodge and Ford made extended cab pick-ups and I didn't want either of them so I decided to convert my existing pickup. "Five people can ride comfortably. The two jump seats in back are from a Ford Club Cab pickup. I installed swivel bucket seats in front that I salvaged from an old Monte Carlo car and added a fold-down armrest that has a storage compartment at the bottom. I also lowered the floor pan to provide more leg room for the rear passengers. The extended cab is 21 in. longer than the original cab and the bed is 22 in. shorter than the old one. I couldn't find a cover to fit the shortened-up bed so I had to make my own. I also made my own running boards, sun roof, and interior trim, and cut carpet to fit. I got the rear side windows on the cab extension from a van conversion shop. "I also decided to beef up the pickup by adding a Gear Vendor's overdrive to the 4-speed transmission and rebuilding the 350 cu. in. engine to a 383 cu. in., which gave it much more power and torque. It has 365 hp and will easily pull a 20-ft. flatbed trailer. With the overdrive transmission I never have to shift out of fourth gear, even on mountain passes. I installed the overdrive at 90,000 miles and rebuilt the engine at 119,000 miles. The pickup now has 142,000 miles and still runs great." Schlichenmayer cut the back of the cab off just behind the door pillars, then cut 20 in. off the front of the pickup bed and moved it forward an inch or so. He used sheet metal to make a roof over the top of the add-on cab and welded it in place. A steel cross member was used to reinforce the back of the cab. To rebuild the engine, Schlichenmayer rebored it and installed bigger valves. He also replaced the crankshaft with one from a Chevrolet 400 cu. in. short block engine and added a supercharger for more low-end power. "The modified 350 cu. in. engine has a longer piston stroke for more torque and power. The overdrive transmission splits the gears and reduces the rpm's by 30% for longer engine life and better mileage." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, David Schlichenmayer, 1634 Frank, Burlington, Colo. 80807 (ph 719 346-5663).

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