D
Deleted member 9101
Guest
Personally, I'd replace everything with LEDs. Your alternator doesn't put out much power to begin with and adding extra lights and accessories will necessitate more power.
92 Isuzu pickup reality check / build
- Thread starter GTI-88
- Start date
GTI-88
Active member
A few photos below per last post.
Here is the exterior as it sits with the camper top removed and my old Thule box mocked up in the back of the bed. I currently just have it sitting on a couple pieces of metal closet rack that I had sitting around.
I thought perhaps it might be hefty enough to DIY a rack, but it sags just under load of the box. I am looking forward to the rack system arriving and getting that installed, which I will do a write up on.
I did run through the auto carwash and cleaned the truck up a bit, but it is going to need a good scrub to get some of the layers of dirt off, especially the buildup on the wheels.
They are old school wheels but they are growing on me! I think wrapped with the 27" General Grabber tires they will look great.
The paint and body aside from a couple dings and scuffs is in great shape though. I was also excited to find when I bought it that the bed was already fully spray lined, and on top of that there was a heavy rubber mat in the bed as well. Something on my to do list that I was able to knock off with no cost or effort on my part!
More to follow...
Here is the exterior as it sits with the camper top removed and my old Thule box mocked up in the back of the bed. I currently just have it sitting on a couple pieces of metal closet rack that I had sitting around.
I thought perhaps it might be hefty enough to DIY a rack, but it sags just under load of the box. I am looking forward to the rack system arriving and getting that installed, which I will do a write up on.
I did run through the auto carwash and cleaned the truck up a bit, but it is going to need a good scrub to get some of the layers of dirt off, especially the buildup on the wheels.
They are old school wheels but they are growing on me! I think wrapped with the 27" General Grabber tires they will look great.
The paint and body aside from a couple dings and scuffs is in great shape though. I was also excited to find when I bought it that the bed was already fully spray lined, and on top of that there was a heavy rubber mat in the bed as well. Something on my to do list that I was able to knock off with no cost or effort on my part!
More to follow...
Heading Out
Adventurer
You should be able to crank up the torsion bars a bit to level it out,
Just don't go overboard and top out the suspension.
Rodeo, Early Trooper and Passports share quite a few parts for up grades.
Try to keep it as light as possible.
Just don't go overboard and top out the suspension.
Rodeo, Early Trooper and Passports share quite a few parts for up grades.
Try to keep it as light as possible.
GTI-88
Active member
That is my plan once I get around to new tires, crank the torsion bar up a bit to level it with the back, new tires, and an alignment. I was also thinking about shocks from one of the models you mentioned. I am trying to research parts compatibility on things like that
D
Deleted member 9101
Guest
Don't "scrub" to clean it, use a proper soap like this one.
After you have removed the impurities from the paint, clay bar it and you'll notice a pretty drastic difference.
Heading Out
Adventurer
Back in the day I ran Rancho RS5000 shocks on trucks like this with good results.
Do you know that if you look up a part on Rockauto when you click on the PN it will give an interchange
for what vehicles that part also fits. Handy feature
ricoisme26
Active member
cool little truck, I would love to find something similar for adventures.
Just a thought, would turning that cargo box around net better aero for trips? Having the sloped edge to the rear would help make a tailing affect and since the cab is in front of the box you wouldn't need to worry about creating drag building up air pressure putting the flat side forward.
excited to see how this progresses
Just a thought, would turning that cargo box around net better aero for trips? Having the sloped edge to the rear would help make a tailing affect and since the cab is in front of the box you wouldn't need to worry about creating drag building up air pressure putting the flat side forward.
excited to see how this progresses
GTI-88
Active member
Good point, I hadn't thought too much about that. Once I get the bed rack in I will give that a shot and see how it looks. I will probably just need to leave a little more of a gap between the back of the cab and the cargo box to access the lock and open the box, but that wouldn't be a big deal
GTI-88
Active member
Thanks for the tip on Rockauto, I will take a look at that for parts compatibility!
GTI-88
Active member
Small update
Just had a pretty decent snowstorm hit yesterday and the roads were an absolute mess. My Alltrack did pretty well all things considered, but I may be shifting some funds over sooner rather than later to upgrade the stock tires to a set of Falken Wildpeaks, which would likely put new tires for the Isuzu on the backburner until spring. Hoping the rack that I ordered for the bed of the Isuzu still shows up without delay so I can install it this weekend.
I did snap a couple photos in the garage of the interior of the Isuzu just to show how clean it is for a 92 pickup. Clearly well cared for by the previous owner. Last shot is of the Alltrack a few weeks ago out on some forest roads. I think it will look great with a little more aggressive tire on! Also increase performance offroad and in the snow.
Just had a pretty decent snowstorm hit yesterday and the roads were an absolute mess. My Alltrack did pretty well all things considered, but I may be shifting some funds over sooner rather than later to upgrade the stock tires to a set of Falken Wildpeaks, which would likely put new tires for the Isuzu on the backburner until spring. Hoping the rack that I ordered for the bed of the Isuzu still shows up without delay so I can install it this weekend.
I did snap a couple photos in the garage of the interior of the Isuzu just to show how clean it is for a 92 pickup. Clearly well cared for by the previous owner. Last shot is of the Alltrack a few weeks ago out on some forest roads. I think it will look great with a little more aggressive tire on! Also increase performance offroad and in the snow.
GTI-88
Active member
Another update, I did receive the new rails for the truck bed, and Sunday night got around to getting them installed. It took me about 2 hours, due to lots of measuring and remeasuring before I drilled and bolted down the vertical brackets. I had to space them to fit the Thule box. Below is a quick step by step and install photos.
I opened up the kit and for the price everything looked pretty solid! I am very happy with the quality of the bars themselves, and the vertical brackets seem pretty sturdy and did come with nice foam padding between the bracket and the truck bed. Here is the first bracket mocked up on the truck bed rail. Obviously these would fit even better on a full size truck bed with wider rails. The width of the rails on the Isuzu are tiny.
The definite fault with this kit is the provided hardware. I scrapped the mounting hardware for the base of the brackets and used my own. How they could possibly just give you screws to attach the bracket to the bed is confusing to me. Below is the hardware I substituted that worked well.
Here is the first bar mocked up, which I was happy with after measuring a few times and making sure I would have clearance between the back window and the Thule box. I proceeded to drill and mount the brackets and am happy with the fit and how everything stiffened up once installed. Measured and repeated for the rear bar.
2 bars installed! Ready to put the Thule box on.
I opened up the kit and for the price everything looked pretty solid! I am very happy with the quality of the bars themselves, and the vertical brackets seem pretty sturdy and did come with nice foam padding between the bracket and the truck bed. Here is the first bracket mocked up on the truck bed rail. Obviously these would fit even better on a full size truck bed with wider rails. The width of the rails on the Isuzu are tiny.
The definite fault with this kit is the provided hardware. I scrapped the mounting hardware for the base of the brackets and used my own. How they could possibly just give you screws to attach the bracket to the bed is confusing to me. Below is the hardware I substituted that worked well.
Here is the first bar mocked up, which I was happy with after measuring a few times and making sure I would have clearance between the back window and the Thule box. I proceeded to drill and mount the brackets and am happy with the fit and how everything stiffened up once installed. Measured and repeated for the rear bar.
2 bars installed! Ready to put the Thule box on.
GTI-88
Active member
Now was the moment of truth whether my triple measuring was successful. If not I could always put more holes in the bottom of the Thule box, but I prefer not to. A few minutes lifting it on and wiggling it around, and it lined up great! Here is the clearance between the truck window and the back of the box. Perfect to reach back and unlock and open the box. I kind of like that it is a little obscured in this location.
Here is the box open. I was very lucky that the combined height of the rails and the box just happened to put the box when closed almost perfectly flush with the top of the cab of the truck! I think this should result in very little drag. Another member on a previous post recommended mounting it backwards like this and I think it worked out perfectly. Thanks for the suggestion! I also offset the box to the drivers side for easier access and bed access on the passenger side. The box is still fully behind the cab, again for aerodynamics.
Finally, a couple of finished install photos! Overall I really like that I will have some dry / lockable storage since there is virtually none in the cab, but still have full access and a lot of room in the bed for things that can get wet while out camping / fishing. I am happy with the install as it sits and am looking forward to testing it out! Budget wise the bars came in at about ~$180, and I have probably $5 of my own hardware into the project. The Thule Weekender I already had, and even that I picked up this last summer from a woman on craigslist for $100 that just wanted to clear out her garage.
Now back to not as fun maintenance projects! P.S., I have no political affiliation with the Obama / Biden bumper sticker, it was the previous owners and I would really like to ditch the current bumper and find / have someone fabricate me a simple tube steel bumper replacement
Here is the box open. I was very lucky that the combined height of the rails and the box just happened to put the box when closed almost perfectly flush with the top of the cab of the truck! I think this should result in very little drag. Another member on a previous post recommended mounting it backwards like this and I think it worked out perfectly. Thanks for the suggestion! I also offset the box to the drivers side for easier access and bed access on the passenger side. The box is still fully behind the cab, again for aerodynamics.
Finally, a couple of finished install photos! Overall I really like that I will have some dry / lockable storage since there is virtually none in the cab, but still have full access and a lot of room in the bed for things that can get wet while out camping / fishing. I am happy with the install as it sits and am looking forward to testing it out! Budget wise the bars came in at about ~$180, and I have probably $5 of my own hardware into the project. The Thule Weekender I already had, and even that I picked up this last summer from a woman on craigslist for $100 that just wanted to clear out her garage.
Now back to not as fun maintenance projects! P.S., I have no political affiliation with the Obama / Biden bumper sticker, it was the previous owners and I would really like to ditch the current bumper and find / have someone fabricate me a simple tube steel bumper replacement
GTI-88
Active member
A quick question for you all, does anyone have any good, inexpensive recommendations for mounting equipment to the rack? On the passengers side I am thinking about mounting a set of recovery boards and a small shovel so they aren't just floating around in the truck bed. I think I will just zip tie the recovery boards and I can just cut them loose when / if needed. Any ideas on shovel mounting? I looked at some purposed built brackets for shovels and high lifts and they are stupidly expensive. I can't imagine paying $70+ to mount a stupid shovel...
