1988 1500 frontend upgrade

[newyorkjets00]

i just got a 1988 1500 has the 4 square headlights.. what do i need to upgrade the frontend to the newer style 1500?

mine



like this one..

[dubmission82]

pretty much everything you see on the picture plus the filler piece under the grill and the corners pieces behind the bumper

[2LNBLKTOP]

You can get that grill and crystal clear headlights, clear turn signals and clear corners. from any truck magazine for like $230 in a kit. I beleive that bumper is advertised in there to but that's not really on the cheap side.

[1badgmc]

You'll need the grille, all 3 bumper filler pieces, 2 (inner?) bumper mounts, headlamps, parking lamps, sidemarkers and pigtails for the new 9006/9005 bulbs for the headlights.

You can get that grill and crystal clear headlights, clear turn signals and clear corners. from any truck magazine for like $230 in a kit. I beleive that bumper is advertised in there to but that's not really on the cheap side.

You can, but I wouldn't want the sh!tty headlights that come with that kit and I'd be worried about the fitment of the grille too.

[wtf6316]

I did it long back in 98. what 1badgmc said is what you need. you can but the whole kit with billet installed from jbm at sporttrucking.com or peice it to gether from ckresto at http://www.latemodelrestoration.com/Chevy-Truck. it is worth it for a new look. but i like the 4 headlights with the new grill now for something diff and might do that.

[newyorkjets00]

so the grills just swap out? what are the bumper filler pieces?

[1badgmc]

so the grills just swap out? what are the bumper filler pieces?

The piece that fills the space between the bumper and the bottom of the grille. It's attached to the grille. There are 2 others at the back of the bumper that are attached to the fenders in front of the wheels.

[newyorkjets00]

kinda hard to understand. i know on my s10 94-97 had its own parts then 98 and up where different. and you had to swap the core support and everything else out to get a 98+ if you had a 97..
but on the 1500 i see there are more different front ends for years. when did they stop making them with 4 headlights 88-? i guess ill learn as i go with the upgrade.

[1badgmc]

The quad headlights were '88-'89. The '88-'93 grilles were the same for the entire run besides the change to composite lights in '90. In '94 the grilles were updated a bit. Those ran through '98.

[newyorkjets00]

so what year frontend is that i posted? what type of headlights and turn signals does he have? crystal clear

[1badgmc]

so what year frontend is that i posted? what type of headlights and turn signals does he have? crystal clear

'94-'98. Notice how the center bar is fatter and more rounded than the one on your truck.

Those are just some sort of aftermarket diamond clear lights. They're not stock.

[newyorkjets00]

so i take my whole front end off.. and buy a 94 front end, it will bolt up?

[1badgmc]

With the parts list I gave you in my first reply, yes.

[newyorkjets00]

do you just cut the old headlight wiring and splice in the 9006?

[1badgmc]

That should be it.

[94_c/1500]

Actually, that grille is only '94 to '98 on 1/2 ton trucks. 3/4 and 1 tons had it from '94 to '00. Another thing to keep in mind is alot of trucks had sealed beam headlights.


I like your current setup, just needs cleaned up.

[newyorkjets00]

thats not my truck just one of the net.. havent picked mine up up yet, i dont like the 4 headlights.. wana upgrade it to the pic i posted.

this is my truck that i totaled last week...

[dubmission82]

i think you got the wrong picture

[newyorkjets00]

what do you mean wrong picture?

[someotherguy]

Some of the details that get overlooked beyond the parts list that was posted, you also need the 2 bumper brackets that go to the frame rails - from a '94-'98. They're a little bit longer to allow that new filler strip under the grille to fit right.

You can splice in the new headlight connectors or just get the front light harness from a '90-'94, a small amount more work but a clean install with no hacking.

Something else you'll discover if that '88 has the original core support is that it won't have the correct holes, screw clips, or slots for the new style filler strip, but you can overcome that with a little work too.

Richard