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Curious about possible body swap

5K views 11 replies 9 participants last post by  ryanh2012 
#1 ·
I've been toying around with an idea lately and want to know if I'm crazy or if it could work. I was thinking that instead of doing a sas and an engine swap would it be easier/possible to just pick up a junkyard car and swap the xterra body onto the junkyard chassis and drive train.

I realize that this would require heavy fabwork but I know the ford broncos had a 104" wheelbase which seems close enough to the X. With the bronco you would have aftermarket support, a v8(if it would fit which isn't likely), and the rest of the drive train for the price of just doing an sas depending on what you buy. If you could pick the right donor vehicle with a little luck I feel like it would just be relocating body mounts and chopping up the frame and body in the right spots.

I was just curious if I'm crazy or what I figured someone would have some input.
 
#4 ·
I think it would Cost more money than it's worth if ur looking to 4x4 ur x there's more than enuff parts out there than to have a great set up. If u just love the way the xterra looks but would like a more suitable 4x4 off road truck than have at it but I personally not buy any meeans a off road expert would leave it a x and make it the best x u can.
 
#5 · (Edited)
Honestly putting the engine and SAS on the X would be alot less headache and Fab Work. Moving the body onto another vehicle will require ALOT of re engineering for safety sake. E

Im 99% sure that nearly EVERYTHING on the bronco will not mount up meaning alot of cutting and rewelding and re engineering. You will have to make the truck safe for yourself while using it on or off road.

RIght now you already have an engineered platform that needs some "upgrading"

They put body mounts and Shock mounts etc... Where they put them for a reason... or at least Id like to think they do and thats what they are getting paid for lol.

There was one member on here who swapped Xterra Body to Xterra because it rolled over and I think it took him a week in his car garage of all places lol.

IMHO your better off doing the SAS and engine swap but if you have all the tools and a blue-tipped wrench with some perseverance then anything is possible.

I disagree with Xterror on this one. I believe the Bronco is actually thinner than the Xterra. IU think the Body of the Xterra would actually be larger causing alot of issues with handling and looks.

Bronco
Wheelbase 92 in (2,337 mm)[4]
Length 151.5 in (3,848 mm)[4]
Width 68.5 in (1,740 mm)[4]
Height 71.6 in (1,819 mm

Xterra
Wheelbase 104.3 in (2650 mm)
Length 178.0 in (4522 mm)
Width 70.4 in (1788 mm)
Height 2002-04 4WD: 74.2 in (1884 mm)

I can already see the ride will change quite a bit because the Broncos heel base is 92 inches where as the Xterras is 104 inches.
 
#6 ·
If i was going to do a body swap to something else it would probably be one of the 85 toyota pickups or 4 runners. The 85 had the sold axle in the front. The specs are close, but again width is less.

174.6 in long
66.5 inches wide
103 in wheelbase
 
#7 ·
Alright that's what i figured but it sounded like a cool idea to be able to buy the whole thing in one big package. I've seen people swap bodies from truck to truck like they did with an 80s f250 onto a dodge frame on powerblock and wondered if it would be possible.
 
#9 ·
I new a guy that put a tacoma body on a chevy 2500 frame. I wasnt really that much into cars back then so other than knowing it looked awesome I couldnt tell you what all he did to get it all going. Going with an older full sized frame might work out if you really wanted to go that route. trucks with roughly the same wheelbase as the x would be the late 70's model bronco, 69 through early 70's model k5 blazers. I think some of the broncos up into the 80's had the same wheelbase, but you need the width to be the same or wider. Not sure about the width of any of the trucks above. The problem with doing a swap to these frames would be fitting the engine into the bay on the x and most of the older trucks despite having a fairly large v8 still only had about 200hp. there are tons of mods that could be done to gain power on the older engines and they would probably be cheaper and more available than any mods you could do to the x, but with the added weight of the larger frames your going to end up with a slower truck unless you do the mods.
 
#10 ·
You know, I agree with all the easier to sas your x. BUT, if you have the abilities to create something like that and do it to the point where it's safe for you (in b4 when I die I want to go out in a ball of fire and take as many people as possible with me!) to be comfortable in, then by all means make it. You only live once, do what you want, just don't be stupid with it. I want to be my own ball of fire, not go up in yours.
 
#11 ·
We do complete custom chassis and body swaps all the time. Done correctly, they are not that bad at all. The trick to it is, finding just the right donor. In this case I'd start with an early 80's Toyota PU or 4-runner (like mentioned earlier). It already has strait axle, it's similar in size (but a little narrower, so you can run wider wheels and tires), and the aftermarket is huge for them. There's also many bolt in kits for different motor options too. If you're serious, take lots and lots of measurement, before you ever turn a wrench on it.
 
#12 ·
I wasn't seriously planning this it just caught my attention. I knew most of the problem with it would be find the right donor vehicle.
 
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