New to 4x4 scene, 95 Montero Ls

Forceinducted

New member
Hi to all,

Just recently purchased a 1995 Mitsubishi Montero LS couple of weeks ago. Paid only $1500 for it, 136k miles, engine runs strong with working A/C. The body is in a good shape no body rust, some surface rusts from the front and rear bumpers. Under body as well is in good shape no rotten frame just minor surface rust since Illinois has salt during winter. The Montero has some flaws like passenger window behind the driver door doesn't go down, minor leak from the oil cooler line behind the grille, climate control doesn't lit(any solution?) as well as the right front wheel indicator light from the instrument panel & compass light(fixed changed bulbs), Tachometer doesn't work too(might be no good, anyone know how to resolved this?), power locks doesn't work and driver door can't open from outside, but will open once you opened it from inside(solution?). The 4x4 works great. I'm very excited having this truck, I've always wanted to have a truck like this(but really want the 97-00 body) since I was a kid and this has been my dream truck for decades and now dream has been accomplished. I am very happy with it and I'll make my adventure dream come true with help from you guys. I am very happy to share it with you all. Hoping to learn more during my stay on here. :)

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Future Plans:

*Maintenance, Change belts and fluids(in process) anything else I should be checking?
*Lift, Big wheel and tire setup(thinking about 15x8 0et 35x12.50) but for the meantime I'll use 15x8 0et 32x11.50 without a lift(will fit right?)

I saw body lift kits from seller "xpajun" on ebay, are they any good? Have you guys tried that kit? I'm planning to get that when I'm ready to lift the truck.
 
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SoCalMonty

Explorer
Welcome to the fold!

Roger Brown (4crawler off road) sells body lift kits for a fair price. You can safely do 2" without any modification, and then very minor adjustments to do 3". For 33's, 2" would be adequate for sure and look right. Sounds like you got a fair deal too, these trucks will run damn near forever with proper maintenance. Enjoy!
 

Forceinducted

New member
Welcome to the fold!

Roger Brown (4crawler off road) sells body lift kits for a fair price. You can safely do 2" without any modification, and then very minor adjustments to do 3". For 33's, 2" would be adequate for sure and look right. Sounds like you got a fair deal too, these trucks will run damn near forever with proper maintenance. Enjoy!



You can run 33x10.50/15's with zero lift. And what's with all of the stickers on the side?


Thanks guys for the kind words and technical help. Very helpful. :thumbup: Yeah, I saw that 4crawler online 3 days ago, it's a little confusing to me on how to place an order on that site (I used to use click add to cart sites) will check on it again.

As for the stickers and chrome vents on the fender, I got the Montero with all that (picture taken at the time of buying, previous owner looks like into hunting hobby, that sticker looks like branch of trees with leaves, it also has steering cover with moose drawing on it :)), took out the fake vents already as soon as I came home but the stickers are still there, it's hard to remove on this kind of weather it breaks apart whenever I peel it so I'll wait summer until weather gets warmer and will use heater blower on it so it can be easily removed. Don't like that big stickers on both sides. :D

Can't wait to finish the maintenance already so I can proceed on modification... :)
 

off-roader

Expedition Leader
Yeah, I saw that 4crawler online 3 days ago, it's a little confusing to me on how to place an order on that site (I used to use click add to cart sites) will check on it again.
Yeah, unfortunately it's like that because he's an engineer. i.e. in my experience, most engineer types I know (myself included sometimes LOL) prefer to have a menu of options they can mix and match to their specifications versus pre-built/pre-configured solutions.
 

Forceinducted

New member
very nice bud. I like that color.

Also nice S2k you have there

Thank you sir! Me too I like that color, is that rare for this model?

Yeah, unfortunately it's like that because he's an engineer. i.e. in my experience, most engineer types I know (myself included sometimes LOL) prefer to have a menu of options they can mix and match to their specifications versus pre-built/pre-configured solutions.

Oh I see, I knew there's something on that website. :D Yeah that's very useful what he did on his site, especially if you wanted to go different options rather than having only one and fixed. Btw I have a question for you sir off-roader, since I think you went different set of tire/wheel setup, (saw your replies to other members when I was searching about montero on google and brought me here on expeditionportal.com and later decided to register after seeing a lot of Montero guys on here :) ) here's my question, I am looking to buy wheels and tires after doing all the maintenance, sizes are 15x8 0et with 32x11.50 KM2, do you think sir it will clear on all corners without rubbing anything? I prefer meaty setup though but not planning to lift the truck yet. TIA
 

off-roader

Expedition Leader
Oh I see, I knew there's something on that website. :D Yeah that's very useful what he did on his site, especially if you wanted to go different options rather than having only one and fixed. Btw I have a question for you sir off-roader, since I think you went different set of tire/wheel setup, (saw your replies to other members when I was searching about montero on google and brought me here on expeditionportal.com and later decided to register after seeing a lot of Montero guys on here :) ) here's my question, I am looking to buy wheels and tires after doing all the maintenance, sizes are 15x8 0et with 32x11.50 KM2, do you think sir it will clear on all corners without rubbing anything? I prefer meaty setup though but not planning to lift the truck yet. TIA

Glad you found the place. Also be sure to check out 4x4wire for even more detailed information.

To answer your question... I don't know for sure. I know 32's in general fit without any modifications on a Gen 2 so my suggestion would be to ask the shop to confirm fit. Even if they don't have the correct wheel it would be easy enough to use any other rim and then adjust based on the difference in the 2 offsets if any.

Whatever you do, don't let them tell you it doesn't fit without actually trying them on. They will probably say it won't since they all seem to look at the same chart that says the max tire size w/out modifications are 31" tires. FWIW, 33's will fit without any kind of suspension or body lift required.
 
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jeep-N-montero

Expedition Leader
Glad you found the place. Also be sure to check out 4x4wire for even more detailed information.

To answer your question... I don't know for sure. I know 32's in general fit without any modifications on a Gen 2 so my suggestion would be to ask the shop to confirm fit. Even if they don't have the correct wheel it would be easy enough to use any other rim and then adjust based on the difference in the 2 offsets if any.

Whatever you do, don't let them tell you it doesn't fit without actually trying them on. They will probably say it won't since they all seem to look at the same chart that says the max tire size w/out modifications are 31" tires. FWIW, 33's will fit without any kind of suspension or body lift required.

32's are smaller than 33's, so yes they should fit.
 
Glad you found the place. Also be sure to check out 4x4wire for even more detailed information.

To answer your question... I don't know for sure. I know 32's in general fit without any modifications on a Gen 2 so my suggestion would be to ask the shop to confirm fit. Even if they don't have the correct wheel it would be easy enough to use any other rim and then adjust based on the difference in the 2 offsets if any.

Whatever you do, don't let them tell you it doesn't fit without actually trying them on. They will probably say it won't since they all seem to look at the same chart that says the max tire size w/out modifications are 31" tires. FWIW, 33's will fit without any kind of suspension or body lift required.

Glad you found the place as well. This is a great site for all things expedition/overlanding related. Many members on this forum do not even own a 4wd vehicle. Some of my favorite builds on this site are the 2wd expedition vehicles. It is much different than other websites which I like. Other websites like Pirate and the Wire are more geared toward Rock Crawling but base upon your location I think you found the right home. Make sure to look at other brands subforums on this site because their are many fantastic ideas on this site for modifying any expedition rig. Also don't forget to read the articles. Scott Brady always has great articles.

Spence
 

Forceinducted

New member
Maintenance parts for the Montero are finally here. Some minor parts were bought at a local auto parts store. Anything else I'm missing?

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Took it all out,

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This is all what included in CRP/CONTITECH Timing Belt Kit With Water Pump manufacturer part# PP259LK1 Cost around $158-$170

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Timing Belt

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Water Pump, Gaskets, Pulleys, Seals & Hydraulic Damper

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Manual & TB service due stickers
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Ready-Rad Radiator

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Lower & Upper Radiator Hoses

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Radiator Cap & Thermostat

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Thermostat Ring & Water Outlet Gasket

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Power Steering & Alternator, Fan Idler Belts, Coolant

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I'll do the All fluids change probably in couple of weeks or so. And tune-up. Hope this truck lasts long now :D
 

jlocster

Explorer
It's common practice when changing the timing belt to replace the front crankshaft seal and update the crankshaft bolt since you'll have the front of the engine apart.

Also, you'll need this o-ring for the rear of the water pump housing:

MITSUBISHI MD 030763 O-ring, Under Plenum Coolant Passage Tube to Rear Water Pump Housing

I don't know if the 3 liter engines require this gasket but the 3.5s do:

MITSUBISHI MD 308723 Gasket, Water Pump Housing to Thermostat Housing
 
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