2001 Mitsubishi FG637

Nath

New member
G’day All,
Been floating around for a while but 1st time posting
History
About a year and a half ago I purchased a 2001 Mitsubishi FG637, 128,000klm, it had been used as a hunting vehicle in the Northern Territory so had a custom aluminium tray, boxes and fuel tank, the single wheel conversion had been done, also the interior had been changed to vinyl and DVD players in the back head rests (nifty for the kids)

Plan
Over the last year I’ve added Sherpa 17000lb winches front and rear, custom bull bar/bash plate to suit and light bars, compressor and tank, cut the dog cage off the top, added rear box protection, extra battery box, in the rear box a 95l waeco fridge on slide and another draw opposite for generator chainsaw, recovery gear, tool kit etc. also a lick of paint to tidy her up and may more bits n pieces
Being time poor, I am having my slide on camper made, steel sub floor with 180l of fresh and 90l of grey under, aluminium/timber frame pop top with double bunk up front and 2 double bunks down either side for tribe of kids (one of the bunks sliding out to create more room inside), diesel heater as well and an electric split system, 95l waeco fridge (yes, another one, cold beer and steak are important) instant gas hot water service with a shower tent to the rear, awning out the side with the slide out kitchen.

Future
My intentions for the future, will be front diff locker, another look at the suspension (mods have been done by previous owner) and maybe a brake boost, radiator my need to be increased in size due to big bastard winch/bash plate blocking most of the air flow. Roof rack for spare tyres, snorkel.

Question time
My question is one that seems to bounce around a bit, rims and tyres….. I currently have 16.5 inch rims and running Michelin xzl 255/100r16 tyres, these do not run well at low pressure I have been told and bugger all tyres suit the rim size that are legal with the weight of the truck (gcm 7500kg). So I need to decide on what direction to head , I do believe whatever way I go I lose diameter and top end speed, 100km is fast as she will go with the current diameter, 85-90km more comfortably. This is not a cheap purchase and certainly one I did not budget $6000 plus for (I will need 6 as if I damage a tyre I don’t want to head straight home)
Are max trax any good for a vehicle this size?
Anyone have a digital copy of the 97-2001 owner manual?
Your thoughts and recommendations?

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Fugly

Adventurer
G'Day! Nath,

Welcome to the madhouse ...
Mate there has been a lot of discussion on here aboUt tyre and wheel types and sizes..
Just a matter of searching the threads...some of the more experienced will chime in here....
As for your question about the Maxtrax they are rated at 4t each when used in a bridging situation
hope this helps.....

By the way you have a nice looking rig.....

Cheers Fugly...
 

Aussie Iron

Explorer
G’day All,

Question time
My question is one that seems to bounce around a bit, rims and tyres….. I currently have 16.5 inch rims and running Michelin xzl 255/100r16 tyres, these do not run well at low pressure I have been told and bugger all tyres suit the rim size that are legal with the weight of the truck (gcm 7500kg). So I need to decide on what direction to head , I do believe whatever way I go I lose diameter and top end speed, 100km is fast as she will go with the current diameter, 85-90km more comfortably. This is not a cheap purchase and certainly one I did not budget $6000 plus for (I will need 6 as if I damage a tyre I don’t want to head straight home)
Are max trax any good for a vehicle this size?
Anyone have a digital copy of the 97-2001 owner manual?
Your thoughts and recommendations?

Sorry but you can't have 16.5" rims and be running 16" tyres as they wouldn't be sitting on the beads. Those tyres should run real well at low pressure as that was the tyre of choice for years doing beach work.
You could go 17" rims by Goanna Tracks and run their Trailmaster 37" Tyre but these are heavy steel rims and a Heavy tyre (look good though) and yes expensive. You could re gear your transfer case to keep your speed up ( also at an expense). Search is your friend here as I did a thread on that a while ago and they are still going well and are getting to the stage of paying for them selves (just in fuel saving let alone wear and tear on engine and gearbox).
GCM ( Gross Combined Mass) really has nothing to do with tyre being legal you need to working with GVM ( Gross Vehicle Mass ) but take all into account.
Yes there are a lot of threads already about tyres and choices so some searching is advisable.
Also I have posted up a link for my drop box account which has a PDF manual available. Again searching should bring this up.
"Alan" (on this forum) has had tracks made for our heavier vehicles similar to Maxtraxs. Chase him up. There is also a thread on that here on the forum.

Welcome to the forum,
Dan.
 
Last edited:

Amesz00

Adventurer
Hi mate, who told you the XZLs don’t like low pressure? They should like that more than everything else.... your truck looks fairly light ay? If it is and goes offroad lots then tbh the wheel setup you’ve got on it is probably pretty right. The old 4.2s love a turbo too, makes sand and hills a whole lot easier.
Nice truck and camper btw.
 

Nath

New member
Sorry but you can't have 16.5" rims and be running 16" tyres as they wouldn't be sitting on the beads. Those tyres should run real well at low pressure as that was the tyre of choice for years doing beach work.
You could go 17" rims by Goanna Tracks and run their Trailmaster 37" Tyre but these are heavy steel rims and a Heavy tyre (look good though) and yes expensive. You could re gear your transfer case to keep your speed up ( also at an expense). Search is your friend here as I did a thread on that a while ago and they are still going well and are getting to the stage of paying for them selves (just in fuel saving let alone wear and tear on engine and gearbox).
GCM ( Gross Combined Mass) really has nothing to do with tyre being legal you need to working with GVM ( Gross Vehicle Mass ) but take all into account.
Yes there are a lot of threads already about tyres and choices so some searching is advisable.
Also I have posted up a link for my drop box account which has a PDF manual available. Again searching should bring this up.
"Alan" (on this forum) has had tracks made for our heavier vehicles similar to Maxtraxs. Chase him up. There is also a thread on that here on the forum.

Welcome to the forum,
Dan.

G'day Dan,

yes, sorry my mistake, they are 16's.... am i right in saying they are bloody hard to source?

cheers
Nath
 

Nath

New member
i know it needs a turbo but really hesitant, was trying to keep it simple. i'm heading over to South Australia Robe/Beach port/Carpenters Rocks over Christmas to see how she handles sand, i have been under powered there before and burnt a clutch out, i feel that on my way back will be organising one as i drive :smiley_drive:
 

Aussie Iron

Explorer
G'day Dan,

yes, sorry my mistake, they are 16's.... am i right in saying they are bloody hard to source?

cheers
Nath

Yes they are hard to source (Michelin xzl 255/100r16 tyres). Now you need to know the width of the rims. If they are 8" or wider then there are a lot of different tyres that will fit. I run 315/75x16" ,only in the 35" range. Some 325/85x16s may be able to go on 8" rims that you would need to check, they are in the range of 37".

Turbo-- "yes you will need that". Totally different vehicle with one on, I'm still in the experimenting stage (getting there) and if you weren't in a hurry I will get it really sorted well in the long run. There are a few kits out there that seem to work well.

There is a lot of info on this site that will be of interest to you as you try to get things done on your Canter, but if by chance you can't find what you are after then ask as someone will probably know.

Dan.
 
Hi. I have 2000 fg637. It only took a couple of drives to work out that it was grossly underpowered in standard form, it would start to back peddle about a k from any hill of consequence and became a mobile chicane for other road users...including cyclists!!!��Turbo is a revelation in driveability both on and off road. It's not cheap (4.5k- unless you have the required skills)but these trucks are at the cheaper end of the scale anyway. Watch install clearances to cab as we have rubbing and contact issues mainly under 4wd conditions on some of the pipework, may be different /better on a dual cab.
 

Nath

New member
Hi. I have 2000 fg637. It only took a couple of drives to work out that it was grossly underpowered in standard form, it would start to back peddle about a k from any hill of consequence and became a mobile chicane for other road users...including cyclists!!!��Turbo is a revelation in driveability both on and off road. It's not cheap (4.5k- unless you have the required skills)but these trucks are at the cheaper end of the scale anyway. Watch install clearances to cab as we have rubbing and contact issues mainly under 4wd conditions on some of the pipework, may be different /better on a dual cab.

can anyone recommend any one in Victoria/Melbourne/Dandenong/Mornington Peninsula?

cheers
Nath
 

Aussie Iron

Explorer
Clearance issues with Dual Cabs are worse as with a single cab we can route some of our pipe work to the rear of the engine. Not as much room back there on a dual cab. Can't help you with a source in Victoria but I would talk to "Alan" on site here or at Outback Accessories in Seaford.

Dan.
 

4x4coaster

Adventurer
looks like your camper is well advanced so this might be too late but I would definitely recommend using a diesel powered water heater. you will have plenty of diesel on board, the heaters use stuff all fuel to heat the water and diesel is a lot cheaper and easier to use than LPG. It also means your LPG cooking gas lasts longer so you don't need to have such large gas bottles.
good luck with it all!
 

unkamonkey

Explorer
I suppose it depends where you are camping at and what time if the of year. I would go out to camp in the desert after filling up my fresh water tank about 1/2 of the way with cold water. Fire up the water heater in one morning. After about two days in the sun "I don't need no stinking water heater".
 

Nath

New member
I suppose it depends where you are camping at and what time if the of year. I would go out to camp in the desert after filling up my fresh water tank about 1/2 of the way with cold water. Fire up the water heater in one morning. After about two days in the sun "I don't need no stinking water heater".

lol

the sub floor will not be closed in for a while so it will be possible to consider such options.

cheers
 

Daz b

New member
G'day nath I've got a similar truck to yours I just got back from 3 months away and considering a turbo also l live on the Mornington peninsula if you have any luck with the turbo we might be able to a good deal if we get 2 I've got a few photos on my profile Daz b if you have any questions shoot me message and I'll give you a call cheers Darren
 

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