Joinin' the Montero Club with a Gen 2.5

[transalper]

Nice write-up. It's great to see all the work you're doing!

I had an 89 Montero years ago and did many of those mods. Rear platform. Dual bouncy seats. ARB rear. One of my fondest Offroad memories was crossing the golden crack in moab with that thing with a lot of skeptical jeepers watching. I ended up doing an engine swap (my one and only) to keep the thing on the road.

Sent from mobile device. Pardon the brevity.

 

[SoCalMonty]

PM'd you...I need parts off that Montero!!! Are you going back today or tomorrow? Let me know. I'll bring my 12mm.

What is the name/address of the yard? I'm gonna head up there tomorrow. I have a lot of tools if you need me to bring anything.

If you can remember if it had these parts, that would be helpful...I need the pass side CV shaft, the bracket that holds the fuel filter, front skid plate, some ball joints, tie rod ends (trail spares)...a few other things I can't quite recall.

 

[eurosonic]

So whats the deal with the bouncy seats? are they more comfortable than the seats in my 98 2.5gen? Is the driver side manual or automatic? Ive heard someone mention them before

 

[Imnosaint]

Great story, great find. I've read somewhere that bouncy seats are a love 'em or hate 'em deal. And I'm relieved to find I'm not the only one who showed up 12mm short.

 

[SoCalMonty]

And I'm relieved to find I'm not the only one who showed up 12mm short.

...I see what you did there... LOL!

 

[off-roader]

So whats the deal with the bouncy seats? are they more comfortable than the seats in my 98 2.5gen? Is the driver side manual or automatic? Ive heard someone mention them before

Usually found in LS' youll find them more comfy off road to a limit. I.E. not as good as the MasterCraft aftermarket suspension seats you probably saw at the San Mateo Expo but certainly worth it if you can find them and don't mind switching them over.

One downside is they're not available with power seats and you can't simply swap the bases over...

 

[SoCalMonty]

Usually found in LS' youll find them more comfy off road to a limit. I.E. not as good as the MasterCraft aftermarket suspension seats you probably saw at the San Mateo Expo but certainly worth it if you can find them and don't mind switching them over.

One downside is they're not available with power seats and you can't simply swap the bases over...

Safe to assume that since the bouncy seats are not the "premium" seats, they aren't found in leather? Mine was OK in the Gen1, but if you're on the heavier side, I found my weight (225) soaked up most of the available travel in the preload, not leaving much to absorb bumps.

 

[jlocster]

Thanks all...I was pretty stoked yesterday when I found them. I've only read about them before so I have no idea about their effectiveness or operation. Have to defer to off-roader on that one. I believe Grasscat has a set in the rig he's currently trying to sell, so I'd be interested to hear what he has to say. I'll take better pics of the suspension mechanism when I have a chance this weekend.

I can tell you this though, they are super heavy. They also appear to be regular manual seats, leather in my case, just connected to a different base. This means, like off-roader already mentioned, they aren't compatible with power seats.

SoCal, I'll pm you in a bit with details about the yard, unfortunately I won't be able to join you this time around, but next time, it's on!

 

[SoCalMonty]

Thanks for the info! I am hoping to be there around 11am. I should be there a couple hours.

 

[off-roader]

Yeah I bought a set from a fellow 4x4wire Monty owner (SewerRat) a few years back. Found I couldn't use my electric driver seat with them so elected to continue using the non-bouncy seats for now. May switch to the bouncies if I upgrade to corbeau seats.

 

[SoCalMonty]

Just wanted to let the CA folks know...there's a 94-96 SR at the U Pull It yard in Sun Valley and the rear axle (locker) is still on it. Engine and driveline are gone. There's also a '93 SR w/ ~136k miles, engine and trans are still there.

jlocster, thanks for the heads up! It was a long drive for me (73 miles each way!!!) but I went up there today. From the green SR, I pulled the skid plate, passenger window regulator, passenger seat (mine was bent in an accident), trans cooler, rear cargo light (mine was broken) and some switches and bulbs. From the silver SR I pulled the fuel filter bracket (mine didn't have one, the filter just hangs there...lol!).

I needed the passenger CV axle, but unfortunately, the people who pulled the driveline used a torch and and just cut metal everywhere...the CV axle was torched in half. The last laugh is on them, though...when I drained the trans cooler, the trans fluid was *BLACK*. Odometer read 207k.

 

[jlocster]

That's great SoCal, sounds like an excellent haul...glad you were able to make it!

 

[off-roader]

Sounds like you might have scored a few items...

A few things to know...
98-00 3.5l models w/ the winter package have 4.2x:1 air locked r&p and a larger 9.5" rear ring gear
94-97 SR's have the 4.6x:1 air locked r&p's and again the larger 9.5" rear ring gear
92-93 SR's have the 4.6x:1 r&p but the smaller ring gear (unsure about a locker availability but if pushed to say, I'd say no).

 

[SoCalMonty]

Sounds like you might have scored a few items...

A few things to know...
98-00 3.5l models w/ the winter package have 4.2x:1 air locked r&p and a larger 9.5" rear ring gear
94-97 SR's have the 4.6x:1 air locked r&p's and again the larger 9.5" rear ring gear
92-93 SR's have the 4.6x:1 r&p but the smaller ring gear (unsure about a locker availability but if pushed to say, I'd say no).

I was under the impression the early Gen 2 (92-93 SR) had 4.88's, 9" ring gear, and the locker was an option (I don't know what package it was offered with, but possibly the 4.88 ratio was included with that package?). I should have looked but I was in a hurry to get out of there.

I don't know about the gears, but I've seen a couple posts on the Wire about people pulling 1993 rear ends with the 4.636 and locker.

 

[off-roader]

The 92-93's had the lower powered 3.0L engine so their rear R&P gears are physically smaller in size (although the ratio may be the same).

The 94-00's had the more powerful 3.5L engine so their rear R&P gears are physically larger in size (again the ratios were either 4.6x:1 or 4.2x:1).

In terms of what can be swapped in, so long as the ratio is the same and housing/assembly fits, it can be swapped in place of the original setup.

I know a lot of owners swap in the mid 90s rear end because they fit and the ratio although not identical is close enough.