“Terminator” Gen 2.5 Build

[maximluchnik]

Alrighty, well I finally picked up a Gen 2.5. Have been actively looking for several months now and finally picked up this beautiful 2000 Montero Endeavour. I initially limited my search to the holy grails, ‘94-‘96 SR and ‘98-‘99 winter package bcs of the rear locker. Well, here I am with a non-locked Montero. The SRs I saw were all either in need of major work or out of my budget.

The purpose of this build will be to get a capable overlander that can get out of its way when SHTF, while also being a decent daily driver, because let’s be honest, it’ll spend 80% of it’s time on pavement. I will be trying to maximize traction (lockers, gears, MTs) and minimizing weight. Soo probably no huge metal bumpers or heavy skid plates. They have their place, but in my experience and the terrain I’ll be facing in the PNW, they do more harm than good, other than looking cool ofc ?.

Looking forward to this build

Here are some pics from the ad:

 

[maximluchnik]

The good:

180k miles, clean title

Loads of recent maintenance including:
Timing belt w/ water pump
Cam seal
All belts
Valve cover, intake and EGR gaskets
Thermostat, plugs and wires
All fluids changed (axles, tcase, oil etc)
New shocks
Alternator
New tires (but those are gonna get dumped pretty soon)

Decent condition for it’s age. Never been seriously offroaded from the looks of it.
Endeavor package


Cons:
Key fob not working
Moon roof not working (motor works but glass doesn’t move)
Small dent on rear quarter panel
Leather seats aren’t in the best shape

Lots of small electrical gremlins and odds and ends:

Not working:
Left headlight out
Accessory outlet/cigarette lighter
Power mirrors
Remote key
Rear wheel dash lights
All but 1 speaker not working
Intermittent dome light (works when in “ON” mode)
Crank bolt unknown, probably has not been replaced
Rear driver side inner door handle
Antenna does not go down
Passenger heated seat
Cruise control

 

[maximluchnik]

03/24/2022:

Before I start modding anything, I wanted to get a feel for how the Terminator would do stock. I continue to be amazed at what these 25 year old rigs can do stock! The monty did really well, got stuck a couple times in the mud. Simply putting it in 4LLC and rocking back and forth did the trick, and this is on highway tires!

 

[maximluchnik]

03/25/2022

Picked up some 17” wheels off a TRD 4runner. Forewarning, if you want to run Toyota wheels on your gen 2, the bolt pattern matches up but not the hub bore (106mm toyota vs 108mm mitsu). You’ll either have to bore the wheels out by 2mm, or run wheel spacers, which is what I did.





Also, obligatory sidestep delete:

 

[maximluchnik]

03/25/2022

Got new tires mounted and balanced. They were takeoffs off a 2020 Gladiator Rubicon with 300 miles on them, Falken Wildpeak MT01 in 285/70R17, or roughly a 33x11 if my math is correct.

They look pretty good imo, especially considering it’s on stock springs and torsion bars. They rub sometimes, if the steering wheel is at a certain angle, a minor torsion bar crank should solve that.

 

[maximluchnik]

03/26/2022

Put the monty through it’s first serious test in years. Got stuck in the mud for hours, had tons of fun. Definitely needs a winch or just a better driver ?.

 

[maximluchnik]

03/28/2022:

Did some minor electrical work on the monty today. Replace left headlight bulb. Replaced fuses to fix ACC outlet, cigarette lighter and power mirrors as well as cruise control. Currently working on programming a new remote key, fixing fog lights and passenger heater.

 

[maximluchnik]

03/31/2022:

That about should bring it up to date. Next major steps are installing Lovells springs (raised height, medium duty) and cranking up the torsion bars a bit. Also, purchased a set of TRE air lockers front/rear and compressor. Will be installing that as soon as I can get my hands on some 4.9s…

 

[DenTar]

Curious to see if you figure out all of those electrical gremlins. I have a 2001 Limited that has a short to ground somewhere taking out my dash lights and the right rear light.

Great looking truck. The wheels look great, too.

 

[Symmetry 4WD]

03/31/2022:

That about should bring it up to date. Next major steps are installing Lovells springs (raised height, medium duty) and cranking up the torsion bars a bit. Also, purchased a set of TRE air lockers front/rear and compressor. Will be installing that as soon as I can get my hands on some 4.9s…

Awesome machine, and congrats!
That is going to be one helluva weapon with those lockers???
Those wheels look good too!

Interested to see where you take this!

 

[maximluchnik]

Curious to see if you figure out all of those electrical gremlins. I have a 2001 Limited that has a short to ground somewhere taking out my dash lights and the right rear light.

Great looking truck. The wheels look great, too.

Yah. I’m 100% new to diagnosing/fixing electrical issues. I got a like new factory service manual from another member of the community. Waiting for it to arrive so I can work on fixing the rest.

 

[maximluchnik]

Awesome machine, and congrats!
That is going to be one helluva weapon with those lockers???
Those wheels look good too!

Interested to see where you take this!

Thanks! Really enjoying watching your build coming together on youtube. Keep it up!

 

[maximluchnik]

04/03/2022:

Did the white ball transfer case shifter upgrade. My old one (red ball) was completely destroyed and had trouble shifting into/out of 4WD:



^^my old “red ball”, completely exploded.


Also, relocated my seat heaters and USB port while I was at it:

 

[maximluchnik]

My TRE lockers have arrived. Now just have to track down some 4.9s out of a Montero Sport….

In other news, my front diff started leaking all of a sudden. Hopefully I can hobble it until I find those gears. ?

 

[maximluchnik]

Non-disconnect 4.9s are in the house!