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BBYHUMR 06 Re-build

BBYHUMR

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This will not only be my first post but also the start of my ‘build’ (rebuild) thread. I have worked in the auto industry for roughly 20 years starting as the low man on the totem pole by mopping shop floors. I eventually worked my way up to be an express service technician for a local BMW/Mercedes shop before becoming a main line tech for the same shop. After moving to Texas I decided to move to the office side of things and again, began as the low man at a Ford dealership writing express oil change services before working my way through the ranks to drive manager. Eventually I moved onto the body shop side of things prior to my current role as a catastrophe insurance adjuster. This project will be something for me to tinker with during my week off each month and to hopefully teach my daughter a thing or two about wrenching and the satisfaction that comes along with doing it yourself.
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I recently picked up an 06 H3 from our mail carrier. It had been involved in a collision with a post during an ice storm a couple years ago and just sat in their driveway ever since. She had it inspected by our local mechanic who told her the valve cover was leaking & had shorted out the #5 coil, all of which she openly admitted to me and provided me the prior receipt from the inspection.

After eventually getting it started with a completely dead battery I limped it the 2 blocks home and parked it in the driveway for the repairs to begin.
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The following day my helper and I went about replacing the valve cover gasket, the spark plugs and the #5 coil. All of which I had pre-ordered prior to bringing the rig home. Once I got it home I found out during the time it’s been sitting the #1 & #2 coils had also failed due to water/oil intrusion. I have since ordered a full set of coils along with a replacement battery that are waiting for my return from assignment in Iowa.
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The next 3 days prior to my departure were spent cleaning the inside of the rig. Our mail carrier lives & worked on a dirt (caliche) road. If you have never tried to clean caliche I hope you never have to. It is a nightmare to try to get rid of even with cleaning products – no you cannot just ‘wash it off’ with a hose.
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I will be returning home to continue the work toward the end of July and hope to have another update at that time.

The other part of this build is other than the replacement body panels I hope to pay for the majority of the components using points from my hotel/airline/rental car memberships – relatively easy to do when you live in hotels for 3 weeks a month.
 

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alrock

El Diablo
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Welcome to H4O! Looks like a good project with a good start. Glad you have a great helper, it's always fun when the kids get into it.
 

BBYHUMR

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Thank y’all for the welcome. Yes, hopefully she will be able to get more and more into it as her age progresses. She’s already very mechanically inclined and constantly “fixes” our dining room table with some of my old tools. She’s been asking me during our nightly FaceTime conversations when I’m coming back so we can “work on the truck”.
 

BBYHUMR

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Well as promised, I got back from my rotation in Iowa last Friday. The family and I went to Broken Bow, Oklahoma for a weekend get away when I got back. Wednesday I took a trip down to Dallas to a few junkyards and picked up all the parts I needed minus the grill. Also stopped by Decatur on my way home and picked up a set of 7” headlight adapters from a fellow H3 owner.
Today my helper and I got to work getting the new (to me) parts put on.
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Finished off the day by getting the wiring and relays set for the replacement headlights. Just need to pick up a half dozen spade connectors to attach the harness to the relays.
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Also went through and pulled off the running boards as I’ve never been a fan of them and cranked up the torsion bars an inch to get closer to level between the front and rear. I may go higher eventually but will have rear shackles and tires installed before getting too “Carolina squat”

Before:
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And after:
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Of course my helper was plugging along the whole time stealing the nuts and bolts and wrenches I was using.
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Even helped clean up afterwards (a large accomplishment for a 5 year old)
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All in all it was a productive week. Also got the remaining ignition coils and battery replaced, still have a bit (super minor) of a hesitation like it wants to die after deceleration which may just be a matter of the gas that has been sitting in the tank for the past two years or some build up on the MAF or throttle body or a lazy o2 sensor, but she runs flawlessly otherwise, no valve or lifter noise, no knocking - quiet as can be.
 

BBYHUMR

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Got back from my last rotation and came down with covid so lost a few days worth of work which resulted in a relatively unproductive week off.

Was able to get the headlight’s wired up and working. Found out I was using a double ground (ground from harness & ground going to battery from relays) which was keeping them from working. Once I removed the ground to the battery my self made harness worked just fine.

I started tinkering a bit with the fog lights that came with the headlight kit however I was never able to come up with a surround to take up all the extra room in the bumper opening. Has anyone had any luck with their conversion to cover up the ugly gaps? If you did what did you use? I know there is someone online selling a trim kit but last I heard he was either out of stock or not returning emails so looking for alternative options.

Went ahead and changed the engine oil while I had the time and had some healthy clumps of sludge come out. Immediately after the oil change I had a crank no start issue. Started off with the normal cleaning of MAF and throttle body both of which were nasty. Problem still persisted afterward so finally found my old scan tool and found error codes for intake & exhaust cam sensors – pulled both out and uh yeah they were nasty.
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Cleaned them up and cleared codes, started the truck, ran very very rough and had to feather the throttle to keep it running. Died again so plugged in my code reader again, found same codes present so I decided to order a replacement set of cam sensors. Threw them in and cleared codes again, truck idled much better and gave better throttle response but after shutting the truck off it would give me another crank no start issue until I cleared codes then the truck fires right up with no issues. However, once I shut it off I get the same thing, crank no start. I finally decided this was due to all the gunk inside the engine and am hoping it will resolve itself once I get a few oil changes done.



Spent a couple hours after this degreasing the engine bay. The vehicle had a valve cover gasket leak when I bought it that looks like it had been leaking since the truck was new. Got it mostly cleaned up for now before heading out to NJ for assignment. Believe it or not, this is much better than it was before!
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I am certainly considering engine options at this point. When I bought the truck it had difficulty running due to failed coils and the engine internals were relatively unknown however the price was right even if it needed an engine. After changing the oil and seeing all the clumps coming out of the oil pan the engine replacement is certainly moving up the list of next steps. I am a realist and do not expect this engine to recover to the point it can be considered reliable. Wife has already told me she wants me to put a v8 in it so the investigation into a 5.3/6.0 swap begins….
 
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BBYHUMR

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Minor update.

After coming back from assignment in NJ (for those of you who live in NJ, all I can say is i'm sorry) I was able to source a replacement aftermarket grill. Fitment was okay, both ends toward the turn signals needed some persuasion to attach to their tabs correctly. Even with this i still have some very minor fitment issues with the hood gap but nothing terrible, photos are before fitment adjustments took place. I think part of my fitment issues were from it being an aftermarket part and likely some due to the collision. For what it is i'm happy with the result though.
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Started working on building a fog light bracket although once installed I was less than thrilled with the outcome so back to the drawing board on that, however I did get the wiring run and connected so the DRL & turn signals inside are working correctly.


I went out on a whim regarding my occasional crank-no-start and found the cam actuator solenoid was clogged up and missing a screen as well. Quick order one of those and now the truck starts up just fine.

My assistant apparently misplaced the connector from the harness to the right side turn signal so ended up searching around for a replacement just to find out it's included with the discontinued harness only. Found a $10 socket pigtail from autozone that fits the housing with minor modification however I haven't wired it up yet in hopes I can still find the connector - if anyone has one of these they're willing to part with i'd be happy to discuss further!!!
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Let the wife drive the 3 around our block a bit. Haven't taken it on the highway yet since it's pending an alignment and wanting to do a suspension shake down on a lift but it handles as you'd expect it to so far! Next things on the list is back to the drawing board on the fog light brackets and trying to source a fender liner for the right side. Once that is completed then it will be ready to go for state inspection here in Texas and hopefully be legal to drive around. Getting excited to have the old girl back on the road (legally).

Still ongoing with research on a V8 swap as i'm sure the life span on the i5 is closing in. I believe I have the technical side of things sorted out, just need to start sourcing parts and a good sound power plant that wont break the bank (even if needing a rebuild). I will likely do the wrap on the truck prior to pulling the motor though unless the i5 gives up it's last breath prior to then.
 

BBYHUMR

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Well not much of an update but a biggie nonetheless.
@Korby7 came in clutch with the missing light socket with some outstanding packaging!
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After a quick tire pressure check and fill (they were down to 10psi per tire) I went down and get the state inspection and registration completed as well!
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Big shoutout to @Korby7 for the light socket. Saved me 4 hours of driving and a half tank of gas to drive to Dallas to overpay for a light socket.

The old girl is back on the road!
 
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BBYHUMR

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Just another minor update as I’ve been trying to save hotel points for the past couple rotations so the wife and I can go out of town for our anniversary in December.

I had previously fixed the passenger front sunroof drain but after my last rotation in Florida I came home to a soaked driver front floorboard so decided it was time to update the driver side as well. After removing the factory drain I was able to get a few ounces out of the drain hose (this is 4 days after the last time it rained.
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Pulled the plug and found the forbidden goodness inside of it.
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No wonder it wasn’t draining.

This was a fix from an H3 member I found on YouTube. No it’s not a “factory fix” however for my area where we get 4-5” of rain in a single overnight storm this seemed like a more effective method of keeping the water flowing so to speak. Basically you use some 1/2 rubber flex tubing (found at Home Depot/lowes/ect) and run it direct from the sunroof to the floor. No joints to block water flow or create areas of resistance
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It locates near the park brake release cable on the driver side. This area is protected by the fender liner to keep most of the dirt and debris out of it.
I did this “fix” on the passenger side back when I got the truck and have had a dry floorboard since then!
On the rear drains I just cut the nipple off behind the liner. They were not having issues with draining (and I ran out of tubing) so we will see how long snipping the nipple works or doesn’t.
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That is all for now. I’m back in Florida until at least Thanksgiving so hopefully once this rotation is over I’ll be able to make some more progress on the rig.
 

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BBYHUMR

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Well, not much going on this week since hurricane season is officially over and i'm working from home which means no hotel or airline points to be used toward the truck. Hail season wont begin until early next year so the next couple months will likely be slow moving unless the wife decides to splurge on some of my 'wish list' items for Christmas. Been talking with a fellow member about some misc pieces I need for the rig who is in the process of getting a box big enough to ship the items out which will hopefully be around Christmas.

Also in some mild manner negotiations with an older (99-06) Tahoe Z71 down the street for a possible 5.3 swap option but likely nothing will come of that until at least the new year. If it comes through I will likely go the route 06H3 did on his swap and sell off the unneeded pieces of the truck to try to make up some of the purchase price difference before selling the remaining carcass for scrap. Body appears to be in relatively decent shape other than the impact to the driver side rear end which appears to have broken the rear axle but haven't done much investigation into the interior or power/drivetrain yet. Should have the garage cleared out from my summer projects by then which would allow it to live in the garage while parts were being scavenged off it which would also make the wife happy to not have a 'lawn ornament.' Engine will get a rebuild with at least new seals/bearings/rings at minimum, may go a tad deeper with a cam or something but that's still to be decided if we can make a deal on the truck as a whole and how salvageable some of the parts are off it for resale.

After looking the truck over there are a few deep scratches and dings that will require a bit of body work as well before applying the wrap so I may take that project on during some of my time off this holiday season as well if the weather stays agreeable.

Hopefully i'll be able to make some movement on this thing after the Christmas bonus comes in and we get through the holidays.
 
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BBYHUMR

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Progress made. The wife and in-laws came through with a couple rolls of wrap for the Hummer project as well as some rear shackles for it as Christmas presents. The rear shackles will probably wait until I can find a set of used/cheap 35’s so the rig doesn’t look too much like it skipped leg day.

The small one and I made some progress on the wrap. It is by no means professional, however it works for what I need and am pleased with how it’s going so far. Certainly learned a few things in the few panels I’ve done and am getting better but the positive/negative radiuses we have on like the wheel moldings are a bit of a headache. The rest is relatively easy if you’ve tinted windows before though.

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Working from home for the next week then will have my week off and will hopefully make a bit more progress.
 

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BBYHUMR

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Took the H3 for a short drive to the local vet (about 10 minute drive) for some shots and meds for the puppers, got it up to 70mph and my big German shepherd loved all the room in the back. Just wish the back window would roll down

More progress was made before the snow hit on the wrap. I still have yet to do a bit of minor body work on the driver front door before I wrap it and I realized I needed about 10 more feet of vinyl to do the roof but otherwise progress is certainly being made. Looks like I forgot to take some more pictures but I have everything done other than the driver front door and roof. Even the wife said it makes a huge difference.
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Excuse the pre clean up mess in the photo.

The window tint arrived the day before I left to North Carolina so I should have that wrapped up early next month when I get back along with the rest of the wrap.

I have been googling options for the shaky mirror fix and have added that to my list of fixes as well, I think one of the previous owners glued them together - unsuccessfully mind you, because the mirrors will not rotate in but the head shakes like they’re at a rock concert.

Have also been having some good conversations with Jamie who did the wiring and some programming support for Chris ( @06 H3 ).

The Tahoe fell through on negotiations but there are a couple GMC Denali’s with bent frames in my area that I may pick up one of to sacrifice for the engine replacement then sell off the misc other unneeded pieces to try to recoup some of the cost.
 

BBYHUMR

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Just a little something to keep the updates rolling. Finished getting the moldings installed and got the front grill secured.
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Yes it’s dirty, we got some light rain this morning which was just enough to make the dirt show a bit more.

I also spent some time on my headlight wiring, I found my battery kept getting drained after a couple days meaning I had a small draw and since the lights were the only real change it’s had electrically I figured I must have crossed a couple wires somewhere. Sure enough, found I had a constant 12v sent to the wrong terminal. Decided to rip everything out since I wasn’t terribly happy with how the first run went (I’m ocd). Snapped a single picture of the wiring on the bench prior to doing final wrap of the wiring to support the path I wanted it to take. Relays are mounted on the driver side apron and grounded right next to them. I was able to re-use a connector from a harness I had laying around so everything is completely plug and play and can be reversed if I ever choose to do so.
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Excuse my messy work bench.

Also decided to get some tint on the front windows. I will be doing a second layer on all the privacy tint windows as well as at least one extra layer on the sunroof, maybe two. I almost feel like the front windows aren’t dark enough but the wife loves them so I guess they’ll stay that way……for now.
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Will likely lay some 50% on the windshield once it eventually gets replaced plus maybe a double 5% visor strip.
I have extremely sensitive eyes……..🙄 and like my privacy.

Still need to finish wrapping the driver door and roof but wanted to make some progress other than just wrapping the outside. Also ordered the tint for my lights as well as some led bulbs all around.

The thing really needs some black wheels now….if anyone is shopping for me I’m willing to be open to options….as long as they’re black and under 20”.

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Still have steps to make but I’m happy with how it’s come so far!
 

BBYHUMR

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Driver side door is done and back together.
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Just have the roof left to do and the wrap will be finished.

My light tint and LED bulbs arrived today so got some of that knocked out as well. I know this is a hit and miss subject for many but the bright red taillights against matte black everything else just didn’t look right to me.
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Still need to do the passenger taillight but both of the front side markers are done already. Will need to order another roll (only ordered a little bit in case I hated how it looked) to do the front turn signals but still liking how it’s coming out. Even got the wife and helper approval with dirty hands to match!
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