McShank

My '88 Sunrader has wrap around split front windows which I think are plastic or plexiglass. Over time they have turned white with oxidation from ovehead and I don't know what product to use to bring them back to their original tint. Anyone have success doing this and what did you use. Seamus

Stamar, The engine from the Camaro is a '01 3800 Series II, they ran these from '97 to '02 in RWD for Camaro and Firebird only, the rest were FWD. I will know the MPG after a few trips but the Series II lists a 20% increase over the '96 in mileage, horsepower and torque, and the one I found has less than 10K miles on a GM factory rebuild. I hope this gives me reasonable mileage for power gained. McShank

I was looking for a part in a Phoenix, Az. junk yard today and they have a Toyota motorhome with the full floater rear axle, 6 lug front and 6 tires/rims if anyone is looking. Tires are probably shot but those rims are hard to find. Seamus McShank

More months have gone by and the temps have been breaking records, 116 yesterday. It has only gotten a few hours of attention a week but we are close to getting it back on the road. Fired up last weekend but still have a short list of items that have to be done; shift linkage, mount radiator fan and wire it up, find a replacement coil pack bracket that got broken, idle air. We've gone back to all 2001 components, throttle body, electric throttle pedal. The computer shuts down after 15 seconds because of theft prevention that needs to be circumvented. This has been a long journey but the end it near. I'll get pictures once my Sunrader is back at home. Seamus McShank

We've had July heat in May so things are inching along slowly. Mounts are complete, compartment is undercoated and painted. Engine/trans will be mounted today, then exhaust, intake and connections can begin. I'll post updated pics later. Seamus McShank

One week morphs into two weeks real easy. The Toyota parts are out (ad on Craig's list) and the V6/trans is sitting in place, not mounted yet just dry fit. Length of the drive shaft looks like a match, have to change cv nuckle. Mounts being made by Monday, exhaust after that Have to swap the mounting position of the alternator and ac compressor for ac lines but not very difficult. There's more room than I had imagined. I don't have any good pictures yet but will before this week is done. Possibility it will drive by the Saturday (but one week can morph into two). Seamus McShank

Now know there are no compatible intake systems that will work, so we are going with the relocation of the throttle body idea. We might get this started this weekend. McShank

Kweerone, No outcome yet. Most of the delay is due to loosing the mechanic and his garage space who first wanted to do the swap. With work I only have weekends free. I now have found someone who specializes in swaps, rat rods and trikes. There is one clearance issue not anticipated, namely the throttle body on this version of the Buick V6 extends out from the manifold too far to clear the radiator shroud. Considering remote mount slightly off to the side and some fabrication to connect. Also looking into compatible intakes from other years. One great piece of news is that upon close inspection the motor I got out of the wreck is a genuine GM rebuild with an id tag dated 2/15/11, practically brand new. If we get over the throttle body issue actual swap could start in two weeks and take about that long to complete. Gotta hurry up because summer is when we get the most time off to get on the road. Seamus McShank

Been much too busy with work to get anything done in the past few weeks. Engine and trans are out of the doner car and although I bought a 5 speed manual we may take the easier route and keep the automatic that came with it. Hope to get the 22RE and trans out next weekend. Seamus

BigDog, I replaced the Kohler with an Onan 2.8 in my Sunrader. The Kohler is a narrow upright design with engine on top and generator undeneath. You will have to enlarge the compartment because the Onan is wider than the Kohler. I cut more of the floor out and boxed it all in with plywood and sheet metal lining. The braces that the Kohler mounted to make a solid mount for the Onan, but I installed it from above by removing the cushion and plywood from the couch. This was erasier than enlarging the outside compartment door. It's so much quieter and was worth the effort. Seamus McShank

Derek, You're right, the S10 has a low 1st gear, plus the shifter lines up into a Toyota cab about the same as an S10 cab. A T5 from a Camaro would have the shifter at the end of the tailcone and would be too far back to comfortably reach. Seamus

This has been on my mind since the first trip with my Sunrader five years ago. Mostly tired of holding up traffic climbing hills and on mountain roads, my Toy has a few problems that need attention very soon and looking at the cost of upcoming repairs brought me close enough to jump into the swap. No turning back now, I bought a salvage wrecked '01 Camaro with a Buick V6 and a 5 speed manual transmission from an S10. This should be an easier fit than most other choices but time will tell. I'll take progress pictures and post them along the way. Seamus McShank

Dusty, I have an '88 Sunrader that came with a Kohler 2.5 installed in a metal box like yours. It was very loud, had difficulty getting parts so I found a used Onan 2.8 and switched them. I doubt you could find a running Kohler, but the Kohler was tall and not very wide and the Onan is wide and not very tall; I had to make a larger enclosure, seal it tight and line it with metal. Access is from above. I live in Arizona and did all that because I want to run my roof ac while driving in the summer heat. If you are looking for an easy way to charge your batteries while camping it is much less expensive to find a small generator like Maineah suggests. Seamus McShank

Maineah, Happy Holidays back to you from a New Englandah in Arizona. Seamus McShank

The problem is solved, though not understood. The switch was not bad, more out of adjustment. I turned the threads so there was more clearance between the trigger pin and the brake pedal and that did the trick. I used the "what works" approach to the two severed wires that did not look like stock wiring, and without tracing the origin tried to reconnect them one-at-a-time and discovered that everything works with one of them feeding the switch. Didn't do anything with the second severed wire. There is quite a pile of mystery wiring running everywhere under the dash that's not stock, and the emergency brake had severed that feed wire where it was snaked around and into the engine compartment. A few days of heat pads and neck message got rid of the pain I got from standing on my head under the dash. Seamus