A new to us 1997 Toyota HZJ80R Landcruiser

[p1michaud]

Rear bar and aux. fuel tank installation.

Managed to find where the camera was hidden...

Rear bar removed, looking a bit bare.

The rear coils and Poly Air Air Bags (more thoughs on these latter).

Out with the old, as you can see the red earth gets everywhere, a good sign this Cruiser has seen some country!

The rear bar and some details

 

[p1michaud]

Feels like Christmas in July as we unpackage the aux tank. :wings:

That's it for install pictures because the rest of the time was spent installing the rear bar and tank because we were running very very late into the day thanks to the delivery company...

 

[p1michaud]

Working out the bugs with rear suspension

Wow, time flies when you don't have net access but that's now been permanently resolved! I'm home for good and working out of the Brisbane office. :wings:

Since the install and trip to Innamincka, South Australia we have managed to get out and see this beautiful country a bit more. We have been using the cruiser at some of the local off road parks, they are great places to hone your off road driving skills and test out your vehicle set up before a longer trip. I'm continually impressed by the off road abilities of this big vehicle.

Well during the initial install of the long range fuel tank, rear bar, new coils and air bags there were a few outstanding issues to sort out.

1. They had installed and ordered the wrong coils 1" lifted heavy duty vs. 2" lifted that were already on the cruiser.
2. They sent two tire carrier swing out arms vs. a LHS jerry can holder and RHS tire carrier.
3. The driver's side air bag punctured approximately 100Km East of Innamincka.

I had purchased all the equipment from a company called Opposite Lock. They have been distributing off road gear for nearly 30 years in Australia. Before my second visit, I decided to do my homework.

1-The coils I chose were made by a company called Tough Dog. Again, they have a large following here in Australia and have been arround since 1985. After doing my research I phoned their technical support number and spoke to one of their suspension specialist. I really enjoyed speaking to him because he took the time to ask all the correct questions before recommending a coil. It was good to hear that he was on the same page as I was and recommended the same coil I was thinking of using. First problem resolved.
2-They ordered the LHS jerry can holder so that was not an issue however, when we tried installing it, things went south... The tech doing the work was, how shall I say this politely, less than a perfectionist... After a closer inspection I discovered that the bearing race was not fully seated. I let the tech work on if for a bit but after watching in a state somewhere between bewildered and frustrated, I had to step in and take matters into my own hands. I was a bit late reating because the tech managed to shatter the bearign race by using a huge puch and 4lb mallet to remove it. Anyhow, turns out there was a burr in the metal preventing the bearing race from properly seating, a bit of time with the die grinder and all was well. Fortunately the arm that we removed had similar bearings that we could salvage but not before the tech managed to put two good size chips in the bearing race while removing it from the old arm. What really got to me was the nice shop press with bearing specific adaptors sitting in the corner unused...:costumed-smiley-007
3-Finally during our trip we had to do a "bush mechanic special" repair on the driver site air bag. More details to come in our trip report mentionned above. Anyhow, I was not convinced that air bags were the proper solution but they had been thrown in for free due to several other issues during the install day. I was going to remove them completely but the mounting bolts for the "soft" stops inside the coil had to be cut out due to air bag air line I could not turn back. They were good about it and chucked in a new set of 2" raised bags to match the 2" lift in the cruiser.

I will say that Opposite Lock stood behind their product and have been great to deal with while resolving all these issue. I'm not convinced they will have a repeat customer though...

 

[p1michaud]

Snorkel related question for the Landcruiser gurus...

Can anyone tell me if there is a useful purpose to the snokel "mailbox" or "birdfeeder" type cover over the snokel head as seen here:

Underneath the cover, is the standard OEM Toyota snorkel head as seen here:

Photo credit: Hltoppr (Hope you don't mind)

The reason I ask, is that after a minor issue recently involving new rear springs and a garage door been too short I've been investigating the possibility of removing the "birdfeeder" cover. The only reason I have not removed it, is that I trust the Toyota engineers way more than my own engineering judgment. I'm sure they had design calculations and test data to support installing one of these, I can't take it off without undertanding why it was put there in the firt place and what effect it will have if any. For the record, no garage door or snorkel was harmed during the incident just a few scuff marks on top of the snorkel...:sombrero:

 

[CanuckMariner/Nomad]

Hi Pierre,

As for the snorkel head or snake head as some refer to them here, they along significantly more air into the air box as well as the ram air effect. Much better for highway or higher speed driving.

I also have the cyclone or pre-cleaner or can which I use primarily in the desert or sandy dusty trails following someone else. The cyclone does capture a significant amount of dust that would normally go into the air box. It is meant for slower speeds say 0-45 mph (0-70 kph). If one has the cyclone on during highway driving or higher rail speeds, you can hear it, quite loudly, as it sucks air into the air box. This sound tells me that the engine maybe starving for air, hence I use the snake head for higher speeds.

Hope that helps.

 

[p1michaud]

Hi Pierre,

As for the snorkel head or snake head as some refer to them here, they along significantly more air into the air box as well as the ram air effect. Much better for highway or higher speed driving.

I also have the cyclone or pre-cleaner or can which I use primarily in the desert or sandy dusty trails following someone else. The cyclone does capture a significant amount of dust that would normally go into the air box. It is meant for slower speeds say 0-45 mph (0-70 kph). If one has the cyclone on during highway driving or higher rail speeds, you can hear it, quite loudly, as it sucks air into the air box. This sound tells me that the engine maybe starving for air, hence I use the snake head for higher speeds.

Hope that helps.

Jan,
A few clarifications required. When you speak of "traditional" or "snake" type snorkel head I assume you mean like this one:

When you speak of the cyclone or pre-cleaner you mean this style:

Photo credit: Scott Brady from here.

In my case I believe it's a cross between the cyclone and ram air type. I'll get some proper photos this evening...

 

[p1michaud]

Snorkel head

Photo of my snorkel head:

From another angle, where the birds can feed...:elkgrin:

Cheers,
P

 

[CanuckMariner/Nomad]

OK, now I understand, your first photo of the bird feeder wasn't as clear as the last one. I have not seen this type before. I suspect you would still get the ram air effect but with no screening, you actually might get a bird in there.:elkgrin:

 

[p1michaud]

3 little buttons, is all it took...

Well I've just picked up the Landcruiser from ARB today. There was a promotion that was too hard to pass up on Front and Rear Air Lockers. Just a few additional buttons...

Now if I worked at this place, I would never get anything done...

They have a hydraulic test ramp that you can adjust from mild to wild. I tried 3 different combinations, open diff, rear locked, front and rear locked. Amazing to see and feel the difference in a controlled environment. After the first climb, we cranked the ramp up a bit move and took a video. I'd post it but it's way too large: 116MB.

 

[Redline]

Hooray for you and Triple Lock Mr. P, triple locked and all now :sombrero:

You're going to have to bring that Diesel LC back to N. American with you when you return (if you return?).

 

[ttora4runner]

Up load the video to youtube.

 

[CanuckMariner/Nomad]

Pierre, isn't it nice being in the land of plenty...plenty of 4x4 gear toys, nothing like it back here (specially in Kanukistan) and we are all green with envy! You know your container has to have room for more than just your personal gear and the 80, right?, eh?

 

[p1michaud]

Lockers are in and so are the new rear ring and pinion.

Last night was just a quick post to provide an update on the cruiser. Now for the full story.

ARB had an excellent promotion on their ARB Air Compressor (CKMA12), Tire Inflation Kit, Tire Repair Kit, Front and Rear Locker. I'd been waiting for the right time and then this promotion came up. Too good to pass up.

Now for the bad bit, when the tore down the rear axle, they found that the ring and pinion was badly worn. This cruiser only has 175 000 Km's on it so that was a bit of a concern. Once they put the locker in, they could not get a proper pattern on the gears, they were only meshing at the very tip for some strange reason. Anyhow, they completely tore down the rear diff and had a good look at all the bearings. No abnormal signs of damage or wear. After a lengthy phone discussion where we went over all of our options, I opted to drop in a new ring and pinion as well as a complete diff rebuild kit both from Terrain Tamer. They source OEM quality parts (from the same supplier used by Toyota in most cases) but offer much better pricing than Toyota. They also offer the most extensive maintenance or rebuild kits on the market period. I've used a few of their bering rebuild kits and they come with every seal, gasket, lock nut that you would need. Their belt kits, bearing kits, hose kits are perfect for the outback traveller. I'm not sure how well known they are over in North America but I'm very impressed with their products to date. The additional work on the rear diff turned out to be an unexpected additional cost but I'd rather discover a problem when the cruiser is in a shop having work done than half way up to Cape York. It was a bitter sweet discovery. :costumed-smiley-007

I will say that the crew over at ARB Coopers Plains here in Brisbane know their stuff and offer great customer service. They also back their products regardless of where you are in australia. In this country, this means peace of mind.

Cheers,
P

 

[p1michaud]

Video

Up load the video to youtube.

I'll have a look tonight and see if I can, thanks for the tip.

 

[heeltoe989]

Always been happy with my ARB Stuff that why I continue to buy it! :wings::smiley_drive: