SONICMASD
Adventurer
Out of nowhere and after just 5 months of ownership, I decided to sell my beloved first Montero: The General Li. A lot of cool work was done on that vehicle which is chronicled in the build thread, but now it's time to start a new build thread for my new-to-me Montero.
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5/26/16 - Speaking with Toasty, I learn that he has a 98 LS that he just picked up in a trade for his Mighty Max Crawler and is looking to sell. So I take a look at it and decide that even though I've already put in a good amount of sweat and $ into The General Li, this new rig simply has too many advantages to pass up.
This new rig shall be know as Black Betty and here are the specs:
Pros:
98 Gen 2.5 LS
4.9 AWD Conversion
Manual AISIN hubs
Rear Factory Air Locker, Front Detroit Locker
OME Rear Coils
KYB Gas-A-Just Shocks all around
Front Suspension Seats
Bluetooth Stereo
Trailer hitch and trailer brakes installed
Currently sitting on 35x13.5x15 Toyo MTs
Mechanic owned for last 40k
Timing belt service, cooling system, tune up, valve stems all done 40k ago
Lower ball joints done recently
Cloth seats are all in good shape, not all torn up
The Cons:
200,750 miles - but it is up to date on maintence (timing belt, valve stem seals, cam seals, etc. done at 160k)
Dirty Interior - nothing a few hours of work can't fix though
Broken Door Lock Actuator
2nd Row seats won't tilt forward
Power Mirrors don't work
Rear Defroster doesn't work
Tierods and Idler Arm are bad
Cracked passenger side exhaust manifold
No Moonroof
Transfer case shifter fulcrum has disintegrated
Rocker panel damaged on passenger side
Front fenders bashed in with a hammer to clear the 35s
Mud flaps gone to clear the 35s
Rear bumper has some damage, it backed into something
Rear locker can be engaged any time the switch is flicked since it was a home install - ANY time, like even on the highway at 80mph
Here is what she looked like when I bought her:
![IMG_3566.JPG IMG_3566.JPG](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280965-e3f2ebba9d0bc7176e83e107696e1016.jpg)
![IMG_3567.JPG IMG_3567.JPG](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280966-adf9b36cf569875233a818afb610b10c.jpg)
![IMG_3568.JPG IMG_3568.JPG](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280967-d06d0733072e50e3e42f5f06612327ef.jpg)
![IMG_3600.jpg IMG_3600.jpg](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/267/267893-76470d864867927c8c9fd334e07c67fb.jpg)
![IMG_3608.jpg IMG_3608.jpg](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280968-66e73aa3ae6867817f4c8aac3fddd124.jpg)
So by going from a 97 SR to a 98 LS I'm losing the moonroof, nicer trim, and white ball transfer case shifter. And most importantly I'm losing 40,000 miles because the General Li is at 161,000. But I like the look of Gen 2.5s more and I'm getting a lot of performance upgrades that would take me years and thousands of $s to eventually get to like the re-gearing, OME coils, and front locker.
First things first, I removed all of the add-ons off the General. I'm swapping the JAOS skid plates, bullbar, offroad lights, and ladder.
The General is looking more like a Sergeant now:
![IMG_3629.jpg IMG_3629.jpg](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280969-2ee71d5b3fce05ab3e72632571b6a033.jpg)
------------------------
5/26/16 - Speaking with Toasty, I learn that he has a 98 LS that he just picked up in a trade for his Mighty Max Crawler and is looking to sell. So I take a look at it and decide that even though I've already put in a good amount of sweat and $ into The General Li, this new rig simply has too many advantages to pass up.
This new rig shall be know as Black Betty and here are the specs:
Pros:
98 Gen 2.5 LS
4.9 AWD Conversion
Manual AISIN hubs
Rear Factory Air Locker, Front Detroit Locker
OME Rear Coils
KYB Gas-A-Just Shocks all around
Front Suspension Seats
Bluetooth Stereo
Trailer hitch and trailer brakes installed
Currently sitting on 35x13.5x15 Toyo MTs
Mechanic owned for last 40k
Timing belt service, cooling system, tune up, valve stems all done 40k ago
Lower ball joints done recently
Cloth seats are all in good shape, not all torn up
The Cons:
200,750 miles - but it is up to date on maintence (timing belt, valve stem seals, cam seals, etc. done at 160k)
Dirty Interior - nothing a few hours of work can't fix though
Broken Door Lock Actuator
2nd Row seats won't tilt forward
Power Mirrors don't work
Rear Defroster doesn't work
Tierods and Idler Arm are bad
Cracked passenger side exhaust manifold
No Moonroof
Transfer case shifter fulcrum has disintegrated
Rocker panel damaged on passenger side
Front fenders bashed in with a hammer to clear the 35s
Mud flaps gone to clear the 35s
Rear bumper has some damage, it backed into something
Rear locker can be engaged any time the switch is flicked since it was a home install - ANY time, like even on the highway at 80mph
Here is what she looked like when I bought her:
![IMG_3566.JPG IMG_3566.JPG](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280965-e3f2ebba9d0bc7176e83e107696e1016.jpg)
![IMG_3567.JPG IMG_3567.JPG](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280966-adf9b36cf569875233a818afb610b10c.jpg)
![IMG_3568.JPG IMG_3568.JPG](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280967-d06d0733072e50e3e42f5f06612327ef.jpg)
![IMG_3600.jpg IMG_3600.jpg](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/267/267893-76470d864867927c8c9fd334e07c67fb.jpg)
![IMG_3608.jpg IMG_3608.jpg](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280968-66e73aa3ae6867817f4c8aac3fddd124.jpg)
So by going from a 97 SR to a 98 LS I'm losing the moonroof, nicer trim, and white ball transfer case shifter. And most importantly I'm losing 40,000 miles because the General Li is at 161,000. But I like the look of Gen 2.5s more and I'm getting a lot of performance upgrades that would take me years and thousands of $s to eventually get to like the re-gearing, OME coils, and front locker.
First things first, I removed all of the add-ons off the General. I'm swapping the JAOS skid plates, bullbar, offroad lights, and ladder.
The General is looking more like a Sergeant now:
![IMG_3629.jpg IMG_3629.jpg](https://expeditionportal.com/forum/data/attachments/280/280969-2ee71d5b3fce05ab3e72632571b6a033.jpg)
Last edited: