Project Need More Doors gets a new engine, aka 4.3runner

[Ghetto Fab.]

With the ends done I started working on trussing the axle.




Gotta keep it straight while welding!


I checked straightness with an alignment bar constantly while welding parts to the housing. In the end I had to do a bit of straightening, but its straight.

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

Welded on some diff armor. Also, cut out the drain plug, filled it in, then skid plated over it.


Went ahead and welded on the air bump mounts.




Paint!

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

I'm dumb and made my own shock spacers out of stainless.




Plumbing the brakes. I don't really like the long floppy individual brakeline hoses I had and I was afraid they'd get stuck in the coilover springs. So instead I went to one central line running down the upper link to a T and then to smaller hoses out at the ends. Its much cleaner and tucked out of the way.




And some final assembly.

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

Cleaned up and repainted some hubs.


Drilled out the wheel hubs for 7/16 bolts also.


Weighed it on some coils I had in the shop. Its almost 1000lbs per corner!


I was able to find some coils in the shop that would work so I was able to finally get it together. Its not quite the right spring rate. I think its a bit too stiff, but it works for now.

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

Finally got it all done and started driving it to work to feel it out.


Attempted to flex it out in my yard.


Hit a small tree in my yard while trying to flex it out and broke the front running light.

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

Trying to get this thing ready for another spring break trip. Had to get the tablet mounted. Trying to run maps and music off the tablet so its easier to use the phone for pics when we are out, plus the bigger map screen is nice.


Fits pretty good, but does block one of the AC vents. Compromises.

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

So I finally got this thing out in the dirt locally. I've been daily driving it in to work during the week, but needed to get it out for shakedown run before spring break. We don't have any really good trails in the area, but I was able to get it in the dirt and make the suspension work a bit.




Everything worked really well. It does have a few new noises, but nothing that is worrying me. As far as I can tell nothing in the front end is making contact or crashing into each other.

Was it worth it? So far, yes. The suspension has fixed a lot of issues and hasn't created any new ones. It no longer has bumpsteer and the vagueness in the steering is gone. I no longer get the odd thud I used to as the shocks bottom out under articulation. Whats better is the ride has improved even with the slightly too high spring rates. I only put 100psi in the air bumps and can barely tell they are even there, haven't felt anything bottom out, yet I can see they are being used. The geometry works well on the highway. It doesn't have a lot of roll oversteer so its easy to drive on the highway. It is still a tall CG vehicle with relatively soft springs and no sway bars, but its very predictable in the turns. The trail we did sunday has some steep climbs and decents and there was no odd behavior, no wheel hop or skidding, it just worked.

Honestly the issues with driving this thing center more around the old tires(more square then round anymore) and the limitations of the rear suspension, but we'll get to that latter.

We'll be exploring St. George and Sand Hollow park next week in this thing. Wish us luck!

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

We are back from our spring break trip to St. George/ Sand Hollow area. We had a blast and went all over the place. I've been to Sand Hollow twice before in my jeep buggy, but this trip is a little different as I was taking the family and the 4runner, plus we'd be alone. The family isn't into doing hard wheeling all day everyday, and I doubted my other friends want to wait around for my kids so I didn't invite anyone. We did some easier stuff and did a bit more exploring than I usually get to do when coming here for a wheeling trip. My wife likes to hike and we did a few different hikes in addition to the wheeling.

For the wheeling I really just wanted to show them around the park a bit, so I picked a few easy trails I was familiar with that would cover a good chunk of the park. We started on Waynes World and worked our way up to the Fallen memorial spot.


I had a bit of trouble in this spot.


I then figured out how to drive and drove right up it.

Eventually we made our way to the flintstones house and had lunch. Unfortunately with a storm moving in that previous night it was windy up here.

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

We had to cross the sand dunes to get over to the top of the world and the only bathroom out here for the wife. Oddly enough this spot was causing me the most apprehension. I'm familiar with driving in the dunes out at Oceano SVRA here on the coast, but in sand hollow the dunes are massive and the sand seems to be finer or less compacted at least. The other issue I had was since the wind was blowing and it was mid day the sand was a complete monotone color. You could not distinguish slopes or any shadows. You would be cruising along on a flat section and all of a sudden a 6ft tall wall would rise up in front of you and you'd have to stop. Cresting the top of a dune you'd have to be carefull as it might just drop off. I had issues getting up one spot, but we were able to back track quite a ways and work our way up and around.


Top of the world!


We then worked our way around on the West Rim Trail. I got to show them the Wall of Doom, and we went through the Squeeze and the toll booths.

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

For day three, actual day two of wheeling, we explored an area I've never been too. I wanted to go check out the Toquerville Falls and some of the trail along the creek I had seen pics and videos of. It did not disappoint! I don't know why, but I've always enjoyed crawling through creekbeds. I believe this is called Rattlesnake trail and pretty much crosses the river about a dozen times and at times your just driving through the riverbed for a ways. We pretty much had it all to ourselves as we only passed one other small group with two SxS.




The 4runner doing what is should be doing, getting us out and about. We stopped to have snacks and let the kids through rocks and sticks in the water. I was really hoping it would be warmer and the kiddos could go swimming, but things were still cool from the storm system that moved through.


We came across this cool section where the river cuts right into the rock like a giant water slide.




And eventually we made our way to the falls. I was able to get the wife to take some pics. You've probably seen this spot elsewhere, its a popular photoshoot spot.

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

Not wheeling related, but cool none the less, St. George area has some interesting dinosaur artifacts. There are three different spots in the St. George area that have dinosaur foot prints from way back when. When you think about what had to happen (or not happen) to have these prints still around its impressive to say the least. I find it amazing they still exist and of course the kiddos are fascinated with dinosaurs also, so we had to go check them all out. Apparently St. George was a dinosaur beach party spot 150 million years ago!


A future paleontologist?

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

So I do have an issue or question on this thing that maybe some of you could help out with. The exhuast on this thing stinks, I mean it smells like its always running rich. I've never encountered a newer vehicle with a cat that smells this bad, even my jeep with no cat doesn't smell this bad. The cat on this thing was the original Jimmy cat and it is failing. It is falling apart and rattling, however it has recently (like in the past month) passed a california smog test with flying colors and there are no check engine lights etc... The cat monitor is currently passing which means there must be enough left of the cat to function. The smell is all the time, hot or cold.

Its not that big of a deal, but makes me wonder what is going on, and if I have to have a cat for the stupid state of california then I shouldn't have to smell this also. I'm down to replace the cat if that will help fix the smell, but I'd rather not spend the money as the one I have is apparently working fine.

 

[det107]

Reportedly sulfur buildup in cat makes that rotten eggs smell-

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

Reportedly sulfur buildup in cat makes that rotten eggs smell-

Yeah, I've heard that too, but this doesn't smell like rotten eggs. It just smells rich or like there is no cat, but it is there and apparently functioning.

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

Been playing around with the rear fuel cell and link design. Gotta figure out how to incorporate a rear sway bar in this. Frame rails aren't quite accurate but good enough for now. You can see some of the scans I've done to help this along.

Rear roll axis sketch. I'm trying to make the roll axis slightly higher than it is currently to try to combat some of the obese 4runner body sway inherent in these things. Debating if this is smart or if I should just tune it out with a sway bar. Its getting a sway bar either way.


Rear Anti-squat:


Rear with the fuel cell. Same 25gal cell as previous, but you can see how it tucks up. Plan is to remove the tire carrier crossmember from the pickup chassis since the shock crossmember and rear bumper pretty much take its place.


Lots of things to still work out.