Pajero Solid axle swap and other modifications

[evanstaniland]

If it were me I'd be going 80 Series front and rear with coils.
Bigger brakes, CV's, rear discs, wider track, full floater rear etc.
If you want outright strength then Nissan GU Patrol.
The lowest ratio you can get for the Nissan stuff is 4.88 but there are 5.29 and 5.7 ratio's for the Tojo stuff.
It's a very tall order to ask a 4 banger to turn 38's and most comp guys opt for an engine swap to turn rubber that big rather than try to compensate with gearing. The trouble with the Tojo stuff is that IMHO the C&P just aren't strong enough for above 35/36"s.
The combo you are proposing has been tried and tested resulting in numerous busted C&P's.
I had 3.0 V6 5sp with a front HP 8" Tojo diff and the Mitsi 9" rear with 5.29's ARB locker and treated CV's running 35"s (35.6") without any drama's but I always felt that was the limit of that combination. I did break the standard CV's but couldn't break the treated ones.
Some friends were running 36"s without issues on the same front axle combo as mine in their Tojo's so that is possible.
My problem was breaking the 28 spline rear axles.
The truck had good clearance and drove onroad ok I also had 2.85 t/case gears so 1st low range was 60:1 (not too bad).
There is also the question of ground clearance the larger diff you go the bigger the tyres you need to keep the clearance the same.
A Dana 44 is roughly the same size & strength of a Tojo 8" diff and axles so your going to break stuff running 38"s with a stock D44 of course you can upgrade from the numerous US aftermarket industries.
I know it's tough to decide as there are various permutations so good luck.

i have 80s diffs with 42s powered by a v8 and reduction gears and no problems yet. i have longfield cvs, axles and drive flanges and locker to beef up the front end, so far only locker in rear.



Your build looks good ill keep an eye on this one!!

Evan

[Bitsamissin]

You have strengthened/upgraded everything you can by the sounds of it but the weak point now is definitely the C&P.
I've compared the Mitsi & Nissan C&P's to the Tojo stuff and there is no comparison for crownwheel thickness or gear cut.
The front Mitsu 8" IFS crownwheel is almost twice as thick as a Hilux/Cruiser 8" front crownwheel for example. The Tojo ones are known to flex under load and this leads to pinion meshing separation and then broken teeth.
Good luck with the 42"s.

[monmendoza]

Hi bitsamissin,
My mechanic said thank you for your suggestion regarding the installation of spacers between the propshaft and the differential. He said that he has done it with the samurai's but he won't do it with this pajero because he is looking at a much longer suspension travel because he intends to have large articulation. Anyway I will continue to keep you posted and I really appreciate all the feedback and the inputs that has come from you guys. Thank you and keep it coming.

[claycity]

first off like the build and the front axle swap. got me looking at doing it now that i have 3 of the yota axles. but what im looking at is just using a yota tcase and bolting it to my Mitsu tranny. the tranny are made my asian and the one in my delica looks like the same tcase bolt pattern as the yota one i have too.

i have a lwb 95 pajero 2.8tdi all stock just got it today its getting all its inspection stickes now should have it by Friday.

[monmendoza]

Things are really getting very slow with this project. But at least it is progressing. My friend is really take his sweet time and I think he is serious about keeping his 8 months timetable. Anyway here is it now.

They started testing the control arm swing and tested different coils
on the set up


They also started trimming the fenders. Approximately 3 inches of Fender metal was remove in all sides. I prefer liberal fender trimming vs. A high lift . With Liberal Fender trimming, we can still have a low center of gravity even with 36" tires. Take note of the old location of the gasoline fuel cover.

[David Maritz]

Well done their mate. I see you did quite a lot of changes on the diffs.

I have also investigated to do this conversion but with a pre 98 Jeep Cherokee's front live axle. The pumpkin is situated on the left well suited for the Mitsubishi transfer case. All that needs to happen is to get the two ratios right and that is not that difficult.

Have you not considered this one yet?

[monmendoza]

The Toyota Dyna axles finally arrived last Monday. The toyota dyna ia a toyota medium size truck using LC40 differentials with a 6.17 Gear Ratio and a center pumpkin. It was use instead of the LC40 axles because it has a center pumkin which is compatible with the propeller shaft drive of the Pajero Jtop.

Here is a picture of the 9.5" Toyota Dyna (LC40) axle


Here is a backview. Take note of the folding shackle design to increase articulation.


Here is another view from the right side.


Here is a view of the whole pajero. Take note of the Liberal fender trimming that was done. Approximately 3" of metal was cut from the
fender.


Here is the view of the front LC40 axle which was reverse to adapt to the pajero right side (when looking from the front) pumpkin requirement.
We will still need the Toyota Dyna Ring and Pinion of 6:37 to match the gear ratio of the back axle.


Hopefully the front and rear axles will be finished by next week and we will buy wheels and tires. Target tire size is from 35" to 37" .

BTW simex and swampers are very popular offroad race tires in the Philippines. Can you recommend other brands and models of race tires that I should consider. tia

[monmendoza]

Progress is slow but inching on.

The axle gear ratio is 6.17 (37:6)


A picture of the front suspension. The rod inside the coil spring will still need to be cut and bump stops installed


A picture of the rear suspension


A picture of a standard coil spring holder used by the shop (Inline Motors) where I have the SAS being done. This coil spring holder can be used for Pajero's, Feroza's, Samurai's or Vitara's if the rig is to be converted into a coil spring front. Of course depending on the lenght of the spring and the articulation requirement, the center metal rod has to be cut. This is also where the bumpstop will be posistioned.


Next week we are scheduled to buy the rims and the tires. The plan is to place either 35" or 36" tires.

[monmendoza]

Again inching very slowly. The pajero now has wheels and tires
35" Maxxis creepy crawler mud tires.




Next year we will test articulation and suspension travel

[TurboAndreas]

Wow. This looks great. Did you move the inner fenders in the front and rear upwards as well? If you have more photos please post it.

[3739]

Sir mon, this is drey from tsikot.com

We miss you on the other forum, anyway, I was searching for Solid Front Axle swap for Pajeros lately and google picked up this forum. Never knew you were going to have new projects with a PAJERO!? Btw, at last, I've seen your Feroza. Sir Lui said it looks great, he's right. hehehe...

What happened? hehehe.. Was the LC w/ IFS any good that you replaced it with a Pajero? You never ran out of ideas... Hope to see that project running very soon... By far, it's looking very great, you should also try to put that on car shows. I bet it's the only SFA Pajero in the country, what if you put a 4D56 Common Rail Diesel in there?

Btw, merry christmas!

[money_killer]

nice work

[monmendoza]

Wow. This looks great. Did you move the inner fenders in the front and rear upwards as well? If you have more photos please post it.

Hello Turboandreas, We trimmed the fenders to maximum. We are trying
to avoid any body lift as much as possible so that we will maintain a low center of gravity. I don't think it is necessary to move the inner fenders upward as it seems that the amount of trimming is enough for 35" to 37" tires, but we will do it if necessary.

@Drey - I sent you a pm.

[monmendoza]

Hi sorry was not able to post updates. Was really busy addressing company issues related to the global financial crises.
Again as I said the project is inching up. It has succesfully pass the initial test drive in a 4x4 testing grounds.
Here are some pictures of the unit.
Front suspension

Rear suspension


Another view of the front suspension and differential


Side view


Front view


Another front view


The 6.17 gearing of the Toyota Dyna Truck axles actually increase the toque by about 17% even with 35" MAxxis tires
tires. There are still so many things to do. May take another 6 months before the Pajero is fully ready.
Next part is the rock sliders and the winch bumpers and winch installation.

[NJV6]

This looks really good, nice work.

What is the bar that runs across on the front just below the suspension? It is most visable in the 3rd picture. I would assume it is the panhard bar but it looks to high at the axle end...?

[monmendoza]

Hello NJV6,

Are you asking about the drag link or the tie rod? I also need to make the drag link more parallel to the tie rod to minimize bump steer . We will probably have to drop the pitman arm.

This looks really good, nice work.
What is the bar that runs across on the front just below the suspension? It is most visable in the 3rd picture. I would assume it is the panhard bar but it looks to high at the axle end...?

[NJV6]

Yes, what are you using to control lateral movement of the front axle? Your panhard should be doing this and it should be parallel to the steering arm for the bump steer issue but I can't see it??

[Guy]

It appears to be behind the steering gear and at a very flat angle .. would not handle to great over a bump methinks/

[monmendoza]

Hey guys,

sorry for being inactive for awhile. I had to address some problems related to the financial crises plus it took some time before we were able to address the issue of a wide turning radius. Now turning radius is okay but I believe their is still room for improvement. I still have not drop the pitman arm though and I am going to do that next. I just have to look for another group to do that for me. Anyway here is the current status of the pajero.

Pajero with the front bumper and the 12000lb. Mile Marker Winch


With the rock slider installed:


With the simple roll bar:


Another view of the roll bar.


There are still more than 25 line items that I need to do with the pajero but most of them involved aesthetic considerations although others are also functional. Need to install ARB lockers , snorkel, drop the pitman arm, reduce driveline vibration by replacing the engine supports, fenders . etc.. Will post new pictures as the project progress.

[monmendoza]

I was able to ask another shop to convert my LC40 drum brakes with Pajero Disk brakes. They also installed the handbrakes cable connected to the rear diskbrakes.

Here is the picture. Take note of the wheel spacer.


Here is another picture.


The new shop was also able to reduce the turning radius of the Pajero.
I have done actual measurements of the new turning radius and it is 5.1 meters. Better than my fortuner at 5.4 meters. The same as my RaV4 and slightly less than my Feroza's 4.9 meters. The old turning radius as measured was 6 meters. Here is a picture of the front.


And another one:




We also started cleaning the inside of the Pajero in preparation for the
painting job that we needed to do. We have decided to remove the carpet to make it easy for cleaning.




And taking advantage of the dry weather in the Philippines right now, after weeks of on and off rain, we also decided to paint the winch mount and the interior of the engine bay.





I will order ARB front and rear lockers for LC40 axles while we continue to
improve the aesthetic looks of the Pajero.

[Guy]

Keep up the work, it's looking like it will turn out pretty good.

[NJV6]

Have you considered going hi steer to protect your steering damper, lift your steering arm up high out of harms way and then getting it on a similar angle to the panhard to make it handle nicer?

[Guy]

A yeah .. a new tie rod (steering link between from one wheel to the other) may not be a bad idea... that bit of pipe welded into the middle is a weak link waiting to break at the worst possible time.

[monmendoza]

Have you considered going hi steer to protect your steering damper, lift your steering arm up high out of harms way and then getting it on a similar angle to the panhard to make it handle nicer?

Hello NJV6,

I want to finish the project first then try trailing it before I proceed with
improving on my front suspension system. I am not a very technical person and I want to fully understand first the pros and cons of each modification before I let a shop revise it for me. Even now I am already getting conflicting suggestions, so I decided to finish the modifications first, then try it out in the trail and discover for myself the things I still to do with the rig.

@love_mud, your suggestion is also much appreciated.

[hulsty]

Interesting project, have you for any more pics of the front panhard rod setup? I'm interested in hows its worked our running behind the diff, where and how its attached and what kind of clearance you have to the sump and diff centre

cheers

[monmendoza]

Here is the view of the panhard.






And another view of the front coil spring suspension.

[monmendoza]

Hey guys,

Would anybody know if my rear Dyna Truck axle pictured above is a semi-floater or a full-floater? Im trying to order ARB lockers and the local dealer has asked me that question. I'm inclined to guess that my rear axle is a semi-floater therefore I should order an ARB 124 for the rear but I want to be sure. Thanks in advance.

[NJV6]

Semi floating by the looks of it. Fully floating look like 40 series Landcruiser with a big hub sitting out the end.

[monmendoza]

Semi floating by the looks of it. Fully floating look like 40 series Landcruiser with a big hub sitting out the end.

Thanks NJV6 for the info.

I also checked it out in another forum and found out that
ARB for semi floater will install bolt on to a floating hub but not
vice verza. So even if a mistake is done, it will still be okay.

[Guy]

Here is the view of the panhard.

I would look at adding some additional bracing to the panhard mount, It is under alot of load.

something like this