Declan's 1997 95 series weekend warrior

[williade Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close williade]

Declan
Just keep in mind if you change to the dark side there is no equivilant to Pradopoint to support your build up and vehicle. It will be like living in a big city and still be very alone. Pradopoint is a community that makes up for anything that an 80 series or Pootrol has to offer.
Regards
Piet


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=-33.723136,151.043354

http://www.offroad80s.com/index.php?...5e22a38ba97cf1
http://www.patrol4x4.com/forum/

But don't worry I have big plans for the Prado. Its not going anywhere just yet.

[kav Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close kav]

seriously dec i dont know why you dont consider your vehicle as anything other than a day tripper. its an incredible TOURING and off road machine especially with the mods you have done so far . what you have to decide is whether you want a weekend battleship or something that can get you to work comfortably , go touring , and go on the odd weekend away or go to the other end of the country. or occasionally show pootrollers what an apparent lesser vehicle can do in the right hands . seriously before you even look at anything else . get rid of your tyres and get new ones its cheaper than a front locker and will take you further

[williade Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close williade]

seriously dec i dont know why you dont consider your vehicle as anything other than a day tripper. its an incredible TOURING and off road machine especially with the mods you have done so far . what you have to decide is whether you want a weekend battleship or something that can get you to work comfortably , go touring , and go on the odd weekend away or go to the other end of the country. or occasionally show pootrollers what an apparent lesser vehicle can do in the right hands . seriously before you even look at anything else . get rid of your tyres and get new ones its cheaper than a front locker and will take you further

The tyres certainly need to be changed. I'm fairly sure I'll end up with Mickey Thomson MTZ's. However I think the front locker is going to be the next installment. The amount of wheel spin at front I get from the driving I do, is diff centre failure (similar to glen_ep's) just waiting to happen. So strengthening the drive line is paramount for me.

Granted that better tires will eliminate a lot of the wheel spin by providing better traction for the locked rear axle, but by my calculations new tyres wont be any cheaper than getting a front locker installed and getting the front locker first gives me more time to sort out rims for the MTZs.

[williade Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close williade]

While cleaning the underside of the Prado today I discovered another casualty from last weekend (in addition to the sidestep and 3 mud flaps)

Presumably under articulation, the rear prop shaft made contact with the sub tank bash plate and ripped the grease nipple off. You can see where the bash plate has been bent.

I'm not sure if the remains of the grease nipple can be removed and a new one installed or if I have to replace the prop shaft now.

[MDST Member Find all posts View Profile Close MDST]

The tyres certainly need to be changed. I'm fairly sure I'll end up with Mickey Thomson MTZ's. However I think the front locker is going to be the next installment. The amount of wheel spin at front I get from the driving I do, is diff centre failure (similar to glen_ep's) just waiting to happen. So strengthening the drive line is paramount for me.

Granted that better tires will eliminate a lot of the wheel spin by providing better traction for the locked rear axle, but by my calculations new tyres wont be any cheaper than getting a front locker installed and getting the front locker first gives me more time to sort out rims for the MTZs.

The ARB front locker is way more important to strengthening the front drive line. The spiders were the weak point in the 7.5". DRIVEN PROPERLY, locking diffs will prevent damage that will occur without them ( read last post to second page ):

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/off-ro...formative.html

The 3rd gen 4Runner and Land Cruiser Prado 90/95 are practical the same!

I had this link posted on the Glen build up thread. Very important to consider.

Cheers

[williade Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close williade]

The ARB front locker is way more important to strengthening the front drive line. The spiders were the weak point in the 7.5". DRIVEN PROPERLY, locking diffs will prevent damage that will occur without them ( read last post to second page ):

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/off-ro...formative.html

The 3rd gen 4Runner and Land Cruiser Prado 90/95 are practical the same!

I had this link posted on the Glen build up thread. Very important to consider.

Cheers

Yeah I saw your earlier post. Its a good read.

In addition to the front locker and tyres, I need to come up with some way to protect the belly of the beast.

A couple of weeks back this happened,


Which led to this,


This damage could have been avoided with sensible driving but the consequences of this incident are $3 for a new grease nipple and few hours work straightening the bash plate.

Hitting the transfer case or the transmission in the same manner would be much more serious. A steel plate to run between the cross members under the transfer case is on the cards.

[edgeyhill Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close edgeyhill]

Williade, what's the gold coloured cover/protector over your rear OME dampener in the above photo?

Also, would you recommend the Macquarie bash plate? And what sliders are you looking into?

Cheers!

Justin

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Hi Justin, these are put on by ARB when you get OME suspension. its to stop rocks flying up from the front tyres and throwing rocks at the shocks and damaging them. I had them on both my 95's when I had OME fitted by ARB. I havnt put OME on the 120yet so not sure wether they use them for the 120 or not, hope so or maybe they dont need them ?? Cheers Steve

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Regarding bash plate, I had one on both the 95's but myn was Brown Davis, brilliant bit of gear and worth every cent. The only thing I noticed between myn and Dec's is myn had holes across the front (with wire mesh) to allow good air flow, I have been out with Declan numerous times and he has never has a over heating issue so I doubt that having or not having the holes will be an issue. My plate was worth around the $350 for memory, woould have to check files for exact price or you can check out there website, worth every cent, I am getting all 3 for the 120, bullbar to chassis, sump guard, and transfer gearbox, just under $800 delivered to my door. (thats when wife stops spending money around the house lol) Cheers Steve

[williade Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close williade]

I paid $300 for the bash plate from Mac 4x4. It doesn't have the air holes which the brown davis plate does but they clearly aren't needed. They wouldn't be selling bash plates that cause over heating. It is designed to bolt on to vehicles fitted with and ARB bull bar as it covers some of the holes that the stock bumper needs. The ARB bars on the 90 series have an air scoop under the bar any way so it doesn't need vents in the bash plate. The steering rack is now very well protected as the plate extends about 5 cm further back than the stock bash plate. The plate should be stronger than the brown davis plate as it is 4mm thick compared to 3mm on the brown davis. It doesn't have any holes for draining the engine oil so it has to be removed for servicing. There was a minor fit issue where the rear holes didn't line up. They were off by about 3mm, enough to wreck the mounting bolts. It was a 5 minute job with a dremel to fix that though.

Am I happy with it? Yes. Because of how I drive/punish the Prado it is worth every cent. I would only need to crack the front diff housing or engine sump once for the bash plate to pay for itself.

I am considering the Mac 4x4 sliders as they have the strongest mounting system of any of the sliders I have looked at. They use brackets welded to the chassis. They are expensive compared to other brands but they will quickly pay for themselves with my driving style.

[edgeyhill Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close edgeyhill]

Thanks Steve M and Williade! That's good info and has helped me along the road to making a decision

Welded brackets sound interesting/good for the sliders... I'll definitely be looking into that.

[Leethal Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Leethal]

If welding onto a chassis ensure it is done to Aus standards, I have a vague memory that there are regulations about how it is to be done.
I don't believe it is a DIY job - legal wise I mean.

I understand the reasoning for welded brackets but I think it would be worth checking.

Lee

[williade Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close williade]

If welding onto a chassis ensure it is done to Aus standards, I have a vague memory that there are regulations about how it is to be done.
I don't believe it is a DIY job - legal wise I mean.

I understand the reasoning for welded brackets but I think it would be worth checking.

Lee

Correct. There are strict regulations for welding to a chassis so I will be leaving it to the experts.

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Yes Lee I remember reading some thing about this, some thing to do with the heat and the integrity of the steel (chassis) once its been heated. Personally I like the U shape brackets better. Also any batteries need to be disconected as well to stop and spikes from possibly damaging the computer during welding stage..Cheers Steve

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Way to go Declan unless you were a qualified welder. Some things just arn't worth playing around with best left to the experts. Cheers Steve