New to off-roading ?'s

[glfredrick]

Diesel.

 

[turboranger91]

Diesel.

very good, sir. thank you. any other little tips you'd like to throw out there, since it looks like i'm building a clone of your truck? lol.

 

[glfredrick]

very good, sir. thank you. any other little tips you'd like to throw out there, since it looks like i'm building a clone of your truck? lol.

Drive it like you stold it???

Just kidding, actually. I took my 'Sploder through a lot of stuff for having a budget build suspension, and it was VERY faithful. I never broke a single suspension or drivetrain component over all the trail miles I ran.

I did have to replace a few transmissions, but that comes with the turf with the known issues with the A4LD.

Otherwise, I mostly walked up stuff and used the throttle only when I had to. Keeps the truck alive a LOT longer.

 

[turboranger91]

Drive it like you stold it???

Just kidding, actually. I took my 'Sploder through a lot of stuff for having a budget build suspension, and it was VERY faithful. I never broke a single suspension or drivetrain component over all the trail miles I ran.

I did have to replace a few transmissions, but that comes with the turf with the known issues with the A4LD.

Otherwise, I mostly walked up stuff and used the throttle only when I had to. Keeps the truck alive a LOT longer.

that's pretty much how i drove my last one. it had the a4ld, and i babied it. this one has the m50d, so i'm sure i'll be burning through a few clutches. lol.

 

[glfredrick]

that's pretty much how i drove my last one. it had the a4ld, and i babied it. this one has the m50d, so i'm sure i'll be burning through a few clutches. lol.

the trick to off-roading with a clutch is to have the guts to let your left foot lay on the floor instead of resting on the clutch pedal "just in case."

I've watched guys struggling to get up an obstacle, and watched where they have their left leg (in open door Jeeps -- same principle applies). I get on them to take their foot off the clutch, and it is wild... Truck goes right up stuff. That little bit of slip that happens when the foot even brushes up against the clutch pedal will cause bounce and tire hop, not to mention all sort of clutch and throwout bearing wear.

 

[FireZapper]

The trick to a clutch is LOW gears.

 

[turboranger91]

the trick to off-roading with a clutch is to have the guts to let your left foot lay on the floor instead of resting on the clutch pedal "just in case."

I've watched guys struggling to get up an obstacle, and watched where they have their left leg (in open door Jeeps -- same principle applies). I get on them to take their foot off the clutch, and it is wild... Truck goes right up stuff. That little bit of slip that happens when the foot even brushes up against the clutch pedal will cause bounce and tire hop, not to mention all sort of clutch and throwout bearing wear.

i read that in another of your posts too. i kept that exact phrase "just in case" in my mind when i took the new ex out to the trails for the first time. i caught myself resting my foot on the clutch when we first got in there, and remembered reading that... my foot was only on the clutch to shift and stop from that point on. i'm not new to wheelin at all, but this IS my first 5 speed rig... it's quite a lot different.

The trick to a clutch is LOW gears.

so i've seen. the times when i switched into low gear, i'd start out in second gear (first seems like it could pull a house off it's foundation!), and most times, i wouldn't even use the clutch. i could go as slow as a crawl or as fast as 10mph or so without ever touching the clutch. it was surprisingly easy.

as long as i've been doing this, there are still people out there with way more experience than myself. i'm always open for advice, tips, and tricks. thanks, guys!

 

[r3dn3ck]

do you need to do anything with the steering??
pitman arm?

 

[glfredrick]

do you need to do anything with the steering??
pitman arm?

I didn't, but admittedly, steering is one of the weak links with the TTB front suspension. What I found was that steering was never an issue on the trails, even with tons of travel and a bunch of toe-in that came from max droop in the suspension.

The more you lift, however, the more you will need to address steering issues. My setup has very little actual suspension lift, so the stock pieces work. Go up to 6" lift and all bets are off! You are going to need a Superlift-type steering setup (or better) and that will likely exceed the cost of the vehicle purchase, which would defeat the whole concept of "low buck." If you have $1500 to dump into steering, then by all means also get yourself set up with a long travel coil SAS up front instead of fighting with the TTB. But, to get on the trails less expensively with relatively stock parts, you'll be okay with the setup I'm describing.

 

[r3dn3ck]

can you make the quick disconnect for the rear swaybar? im really liking this setup but my x is my main rig. i like my wheelin but i need it for my dd. so i dont want to lose to much drivability.

 

[glfredrick]

can you make the quick disconnect for the rear swaybar? im really liking this setup but my x is my main rig. i like my wheelin but i need it for my dd. so i dont want to lose to much drivability.

If you make some of the mods I've suggested, you are going to loose some of your street drivability. Softening up the front springs will do that.

But, yes, rear disconnects are fairly easy. Just replace one end of a link with some sort of removable pin -- same up front. I didn't mention it, but I made my own disconnects for the front by swapping out the bolt that held the lower ends of the links to the axle for a pair of modified 1/2" hitch pins. Hardest part of the entire process was slightly drilling out the bushing in the links for the pins to slide through. If you found (or made) links the exact metric size that wouldn't be a problem.

Make sure you tie up the links securely when wheeling so they don't get into the suspension.

 

[r3dn3ck]

thanks for the awsome info. cant wait till i get it done. everybody around here are 'yota guys. cant wait to show them up.

instead of drilling out the bushing, would shaving the pin down alittle work also?

 

[glfredrick]

thanks for the awsome info. cant wait till i get it done. everybody around here are 'yota guys. cant wait to show them up.

instead of drilling out the bushing, would shaving the pin down alittle work also?

Yup, but it is easier to find a metric bolt of the right size (get a really long one, then cut off the threads and drill a hole for a hitch pin -- or just run a nylock nut).

The Explorer set up like I've advocated will walk all over an IFS Toyota, probably same/same with an SAS model, of course, depending on the mods the Toy owner put into their vehicle.

At the end of the day, it is not Ford, Toyota, Jeep, etc., that gets you to the top of the hill. It is physics, proper weight distribution, the ability to keep rubber on the trail (and that the rubber doing the hitting can handle it), and a driver that knows how to do all that. Really, the trail obstacles don't give a rat's patootie if it is a Jeep, Toy, or Ford that hits them. That being said, I've always enjoyed bringing a vehicle that most people don't think can wheel to the ride and sitting on top of the hill with all the big dogs at the end of the day...

 

[r3dn3ck]

yeah. i have been able to keep up with '85 yota with 4 in susp. on 32s and a '95 with 4 in on 33s. granted i need to move my air intake... i keep flooding it out.

 

[glfredrick]

yeah. i have been able to keep up with '85 yota with 4 in susp. on 32s and a '95 with 4 in on 33s. granted i need to move my air intake... i keep flooding it out.

I fixed that problem on mine by adding a hood scoop to the passenger side of the hood, then ducting the scoop to the air box (sealed off the factory intake hole). You can pick up a cheapy plastic hood scoop that works well at any Auto Zone or Pep Boys or find one on eBay. Just holesaw under the scoop, then use a piece of dump line from an RV portapotty to move the air. Cheap and works great for a poor-man cold air induction. I did a post about this on the first page of this thread. The scoop is in place in all of the pictures of the truck I've posted in this thread, but it disapears from sight most of the time. If you do this mod, I recommend drilling a couple of smallish drain holes in the bottom of the air box just in case it sucks up some rain.

 

[r3dn3ck]

yeah i read that. i'll get that done, rebuild the rear limited slip for now, and do your front end mods and i should be good for alittle while.. then i can concentrate on rebuilding that other engine i got.. hehe...

thanks again for all the great info. ill definetly hit ya up again soon, it looks like you got alot of neat tips, tricks and mods.

 

[r3dn3ck]

you got any other qwik/cheap tricks or mods?

 

[glfredrick]

you got any other qwik/cheap tricks or mods?

Print money... Not quite sure about the legality on that one though.

Actually, the sky is the limit, but use good sense. Free rear locker, just weld up the spider gears (not good for street use -- will drag a tire around every corner). Jeep Dana 35 lockers will sometimes work in the front axle of an Explorer with TTB. They can make it a handful to steer.

Synthetic oils -- last longer in hostile environments. I like True Flow air filters for off-road use. The foam doesn't get boogered up if it gets wet and I never had dust in my intake after switching to that brand (sometimes on sale at Amazon.com).

 

[gmanpaint]

If you just flip the rear sway bar ends so the top is the bottom, you don't have to do anything to the bushings at all. A 3/16 clevis fits perfectly. I used a spring and washers to make them snug to eliminate any noise from the clevis pin.