jalopyjordan
New member
Very cool little rig! Im totally Diggin on the spitfire and FB as well!
1988 Samurai Tin Top.
- Thread starter Toyman01
- Start date
Toyman01
Adventurer
Well, the only major work done is swapping the factory gears back in. It handles the highway sections much better now. I'm seriously considering going from a 33" tire down to a 29" or 30". The 33s are great in the nasty stuff, but are overkill for 95% of the driving I do. I'm still thinking on that one.
I did take it camping this past weekend, at a state park about 50 miles from home. 4 people, two canoes and all the necessary gear. The little beast did a pretty good job though it could use more HP.
I did take it camping this past weekend, at a state park about 50 miles from home. 4 people, two canoes and all the necessary gear. The little beast did a pretty good job though it could use more HP.
Toyman01
Adventurer
This morning was a pretty day. Rather than going and playing in the woods, it was time for the Samurai to get shorter.
Big tires are fun, and the 33" tires on the Samurai would get me anywhere. I literally have not been able to get it stuck since I bought it. Unfortunately, driving it on the road was somewhere between terrifying and exhausting. The wandering, the bump steer and the swaying was just too much for a long distance vehicle. The 33" tires had to go, along with some of the lift.
That's what happened today. Enter the newer and improveder Samurai.
Here's a before shot.
The tires have gone from a 285/75R16 to a 235/75R15. Or to put it another way, from 33" to 29". I also went from a mud grip to a all terrain. That should get me 90% of the places I want to go and the winch can drag me the other 10%.
I also went from SPOA to SPUA which dropped it almost 4 inches. It's much more stable on the road and 95% of the bump steer is gone. So far I'm pleased. Tomorrow I'm headed to the woods to put her through her paces. We see how she does.
Big tires are fun, and the 33" tires on the Samurai would get me anywhere. I literally have not been able to get it stuck since I bought it. Unfortunately, driving it on the road was somewhere between terrifying and exhausting. The wandering, the bump steer and the swaying was just too much for a long distance vehicle. The 33" tires had to go, along with some of the lift.
That's what happened today. Enter the newer and improveder Samurai.
Here's a before shot.
The tires have gone from a 285/75R16 to a 235/75R15. Or to put it another way, from 33" to 29". I also went from a mud grip to a all terrain. That should get me 90% of the places I want to go and the winch can drag me the other 10%.
I also went from SPOA to SPUA which dropped it almost 4 inches. It's much more stable on the road and 95% of the bump steer is gone. So far I'm pleased. Tomorrow I'm headed to the woods to put her through her paces. We see how she does.
Scott Brady
Founder
Nice work. Those little trucks are super capable with just a rear locker and good tires. The winch will take you the rest of the way
I did exactly the same thing with mine; it came with 31's on it, and SPOA. I went back to a SPUA, and put it on 29's. Mostly happy with it, although oddly enough, the steering is worse after going back to SPUA. Just haven't taken the time to sort it out...
I really gotta get my tintop restoration project going. I love my softtop, but I have a pristine tintop body sitting in a buddy's barn, and another softtop chassis just begging to meet...
Cool truck.
I really gotta get my tintop restoration project going. I love my softtop, but I have a pristine tintop body sitting in a buddy's barn, and another softtop chassis just begging to meet...
Cool truck.
Toyman01
Adventurer
Sunday I headed to the woods with my 15yo son and we put the Samurai through the paces. Mud, dirt roads, interstate, pretty much a little of everything. It's a much more versatile vehicle, but we did run into a problem. The YJ spring conversion pushes the front axle forward about 1.5". With the vehicle lowered, that was causing a binding issue with the steering linkage when the suspension was compressed.
To fix that, I dropped the springs, drilled the spring perches and moved the axle back 1". That solved the steering issue, but now the axle is hitting the oil pan instead.
This is apparently a common problem when a 1.6 engine is swapped into a Samurai. The fix is usually a 3+ inch lift or modifying the 1.3 pan to fit the 1.6 engine. I'm leaning more toward modifying the 1.6 pan to clear the axle. That will be next on the list.
I did twist the suspension as much as I could with my jack looking for other binding areas. So far so good there.
More to come as it happens.
To fix that, I dropped the springs, drilled the spring perches and moved the axle back 1". That solved the steering issue, but now the axle is hitting the oil pan instead.
This is apparently a common problem when a 1.6 engine is swapped into a Samurai. The fix is usually a 3+ inch lift or modifying the 1.3 pan to fit the 1.6 engine. I'm leaning more toward modifying the 1.6 pan to clear the axle. That will be next on the list. I did twist the suspension as much as I could with my jack looking for other binding areas. So far so good there.
More to come as it happens.
DD196
Observer
Nice tintop. You've ended up where ours has been for a few years. '86, got the rears-up-front/CJ rear springs, 235/75s, Neon seats (awesome), lots of little stuff. We've owned it 12 years, actually just did the 2nd round of belts, hoses, gaskets, fluids, etc. Thought we'd probably sell it when we bought the 02 Xterra before Christmas but just can't. It's part of the family. We'd just got back from a hike to the hilltop directly behind the Zuk to see some ruins. ZOR is local.
Toyman01
Adventurer
Well, I guess I still don't need the winch, though I better start planning on one of these. :snorkel:
It's been unbelievably wet around here. While the northeast was getting snow, we've been getting rain.
A lot of the forest is flooded. My son wisely wouldn't try this in his Explorer. He shot this as I was coming back through.
On board.
It's been unbelievably wet around here. While the northeast was getting snow, we've been getting rain.
A lot of the forest is flooded. My son wisely wouldn't try this in his Explorer. He shot this as I was coming back through.
On board.
Toyman01
Adventurer
I want to say it was a Belkin mount, but I can't find it on Amazon anymore. Since then the tablet GPS died and I'm using a Garmmin 2797 for street duty and a Garmin GPSmap 76CSx for in the woods and boating. The 2797 is mounted where the tablet was. I do still have BackCountry Navigator loaded on my phone in case I want different map options.
Toyman01
Adventurer
Unfortunately, I can't. It was on there when I bought it and there are no identifying marks on it.
Toyman01
Adventurer
It's time to update this again.
A few more changes have been made. The Hellas have been swapped for LEDs and all the winch relays and plug moved under the hood. It cleaned up the front end and helps the alternator keep up.
I had the windows tinted. With no A/C, keeping things cool is important.
Before.
After.
The fan shroud was missing when I bought it. I haven't had any cooling issues, but I wanted the shroud installed.
The clay around here is like concrete and I got tired of having to blast it out from under the chassis. A set of mud flaps were in order. The mudding crowd won't like them, but they sure do save me a lot of work. Now the mud stays in the wheel wells for the most part.
She's still my favorite trucklet. I'll post up if anything else changes.
A few more changes have been made. The Hellas have been swapped for LEDs and all the winch relays and plug moved under the hood. It cleaned up the front end and helps the alternator keep up.
I had the windows tinted. With no A/C, keeping things cool is important.
Before.
After.
The fan shroud was missing when I bought it. I haven't had any cooling issues, but I wanted the shroud installed.
The clay around here is like concrete and I got tired of having to blast it out from under the chassis. A set of mud flaps were in order. The mudding crowd won't like them, but they sure do save me a lot of work. Now the mud stays in the wheel wells for the most part.
She's still my favorite trucklet. I'll post up if anything else changes.
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