New from Virginia

[joedarr33]

Hey guys, i am new to the forums.
My name is Joe
im 19
I live in Front Royal, Va
2003 chevy trailblazer i6 LTZ
Fully loaded. heated leather seats
paid 4700 for it
has new tires
130k miles


The tb is used as my "family vehicle/offroad/camping/hunting" well eventually will be used for off road i use my 91 toyota ATM but am in the middle of getting rid of it

any ways so far i havent done much

I got the roof rack from a buddy for cheap and it has served its purpose
Also i got some HUSKY floor liners off of ebay for $75 thats the front back and cargo area
I have two BAJA lights that i am going to mount on the back of the roof rack to serve as a back up light and to use when gutting deer or to work on something.
also have a cb with a loud as pa speaker, just need a whip
going to take the side steps off soon

Current Problems
front sway bar end links
the steering wheel DIC controls dont work....


In the near future-
DEbadge
paint chevy symbols black
3 inch liftmeister lift
1.5 wheel spacers
31-32 inch tires (havent decide on which tires exactly)
4-5 lights on the roof rack
rear shackle recovery
box for cargo area
hilift
power inverter

In the later future lol-
BDS shocks
z71 springs
89 front springs
Maybe customize a front bumper

[NC_IslandRunner]

Move the cosmetic stuff to the bottom of the list, you will need shocks when you lift so move that up, and with all that lift you can go with 33" tires if you like depending on Gearing. Looks like you got a really good idea what you want, just don't forget to have fun doing it! & Welcome to the forum!

[joedarr33]

so if i get liftmeisters lift without anything else what can i fit ? the 3' inch lift. I would be happy with just a 31 or so as long as its aggressive. And thanks! i have been stalking the forums for about a month now and have gotten alot of great ideas
I realllllly want a roof top tent. more then anything lol

[NC_IslandRunner]

You will need the 1.5" spacers to clear the upper control arm in the front. Without the spacers you can only go 30.5" tires. So lift & spacers needed for 31~32" tires

[joedarr33]

ok.


Does anybody have any ideas on how to hang or mount a bow in my cargo area? i cant really think of anything. lol

[dvanbramer88]

Put it on the floor in it's case? But seriously, Bass Pro and others have those over the seat sling type mounts for bows and long arms.

[4angels]

welcome

[Trail X]

Ah, a fellow Virginian. Glad to have you. I'm down in Roanoke. Just moved.

[Opeth]

Welcome.

[joedarr33]

well today i baught a firestick 4ft with the adjustable tuner....which i have no idea how to tune it in haha


ALSO- i have 2 shackles that i want to some how have as tow hooks up front on a stock bumper set up.... has anybody done this ? if so how ?


James- I have been down there a few times when i use to trade cars all the time lol i have actually been looking at your trailblazer ALOT lately... i want it so bad lol. I reallllllly want a roof top tent, but my mods will be cheaper for now. I plan on doing the Police academy this time next year so i have to have around 5-7 grand in the bank before then to be able to pay for bills and for my wife, my daughter, and my self to live off of. Let me know if you ever want to build one and sell it ill be ALLLLL over that lol as long as its not as expensive as the new ones.

also i need front sway bar end links...
ALSO my lower DIC controls dont work... i got some from a junkyard.. they dont work either or something else is wrong idk

Tomorrow I plan on putting my rear BACKUP/WORK lights in. I got them for 5 bucks and really just wanted something to give me some more light while gutting deer on the farm or messing with buddies vehicles at night.

Btw im a Former GM worker. I was an apprentice at a local dealership and have noticed that alot of the things that went wrong on the trailblazers that came in, are what all the people on here complain about lol.

[The Roadie]

ALSO- i have 2 shackles that i want to some how have as tow hooks up front on a stock bumper set up.... has anybody done this ? if so how ?

There's nothing underneath the OEM bumper strong enough to install shackle mounts to except the frame rails. It's where the optional tow hooks mount to, actually they mount to the bottom of the long bolt that mounts the reinforcing bar to. The reinforcong bar is only a stamped (or hydroformed) sheet metal piece, not designed for a pulling load. You'd have fabricate a thing like the OEM tow hooks, and mount to the bolt. Probably need a longer bolt, too. You might consider just buying a set of those, unless you have easy access to the fabrication tools you need.

ALSO my lower DIC controls dont work...

Can you explain more?

[joedarr33]

the lower buttons on the bottom of the steering wheel both left and right do not work. i press them and nothing comes up. the buttons do not have lights lit up behind them or anything. I got some other buttons from a junkyard (not sure if they were good or bad) and they didnt work either. Id really like to have them but i am pretty stumped at this point. Only thing i could think of is maybe the cluster ?



As for the shackles. I have been contemplating just making my own front bumper since i have access to a welder and a pipe bender. But i havnt quite found the design that i like. For now i might just rig up a way to get those shackles on there and have them sturdy enough to pull me out if need be. (ill reinforce it and all)

[The Roadie]

The radio control buttons are OK and the four lower DIC buttons are the only dead ones? Assume you have a voltmeter and can check signals if I guide you to the harness locations? The way the buttons work is that the entertainment buttons are like a potentiometer with discrete resistors, and the buttons choose what voltage from that resistor ladder to send to the BCM. The BCM has the A to D converter to measure the voltage and send a data bus message to the radio which command was selected.

The DIC controls are digital, not analog. Each switch has a separate signal, pulled up by a resistor in the gauge cluster, and grounded by the switch in the steering wheel. These signals (four switch contacts and ground) each use up a conductor in the clockspring in the steering column. You can check the signals at the gauge cluster, but the clue that your lights are out as well points to the ground as the point of failure.

Added: Here's a crappy pic of the schematic.

[joedarr33]

I am absolutely HORRIBLE and trying to do schematics lol
you say it goes to the radio ? the radio has been taken out a couple times recently because there were cd's stuck in it and im pretty sure they took it apart to. so maybe they messed with something ? maybe i should try another radio?

BTW this is the only thing i have found so far to hold my bow in the back. and is half assed!! ugh

[v7guy]

Welcome aboard,

You'll find a thread on here about building your own quick disconnect end links if you do a quick search. They screw together and are cheap to make.

[Trail X]

The radio control buttons are OK and the four lower DIC buttons are the only dead ones? Assume you have a voltmeter and can check signals if I guide you to the harness locations? The way the buttons work is that the entertainment buttons are like a potentiometer with discrete resistors, and the buttons choose what voltage from that resistor ladder to send to the BCM. The BCM has the A to D converter to measure the voltage and send a data bus message to the radio which command was selected.

The DIC controls are digital, not analog. Each switch has a separate signal, pulled up by a resistor in the gauge cluster, and grounded by the switch in the steering wheel. These signals (four switch contacts and ground) each use up a conductor in the clockspring in the steering column. You can check the signals at the gauge cluster, but the clue that your lights are out as well points to the ground as the point of failure.

Added: Here's a crappy pic of the schematic.

I guess this is just semantics Bill, but those switches aren't digital, are they? As in, they are not sending a digital signal... they are merely grounding a voltage from the DIC.

My initial reaction to his problem is that the ground is bad. That's a solitary point of failure that would kill all 4 switch functions and their lights.

[bartonmd]

Welcome aboard,

You'll find a thread on here about building your own quick disconnect end links if you do a quick search. They screw together and are cheap to make.

Yep, its the last or second to last page in the QD thread in the MDB Fabrication vendor forum on here.

Mike

[dvanbramer88]

I am absolutely HORRIBLE and trying to do schematics lol
you say it goes to the radio ? the radio has been taken out a couple times recently because there were cd's stuck in it and im pretty sure they took it apart to. so maybe they messed with something ? maybe i should try another radio?

BTW this is the only thing i have found so far to hold my bow in the back. and is half assed!! ugh

That's why i like the case on the floor. Does it swing at all? I wouldn't like my sight box slamming into the seat like that.

[joedarr33]

I guess this is just semantics Bill, but those switches aren't digital, are they? As in, they are not sending a digital signal... they are merely grounding a voltage from the DIC.

My initial reaction to his problem is that the ground is bad. That's a solitary point of failure that would kill all 4 switch functions and their lights.[/quote]


So how would i fix the ground ? well first off where do the grounds usually go bad on these things?





As for my bow. i drive pretty normal and it doesnt really swing to much. Im thinking about using two poll that expand in the back windows and some vel-cro straps to hold it. But idk where i could find some expanding polls. But that would work for guns and a bow or anything else really as long as it holds pretty well.

[joedarr33]

Getting the MV50 ONboard Air system and an Peak 800w power inverter on Thursday.
And possibly getting some quick disconnects soon i need them anyway

So this weekend-
Hook up rear working lights
hook up onboard air
hook up cb
hook up power inverter
instal alternative fuse box that i have had laying around since my last build

Pretty excited !