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Well it's finally happened to me, I've read about guys dealing to them but haven't had one go then today I heard the distinctive bang as I was trying to pop over a ledge (yes both front wheels in the air - then the big bang as they landed)
I'm in two minds now weather this is the opportunity to SAS it (with coils) or just throw another sh!tter alloy one back in and keep wheeling it ? I want to stick with Zook axles if I do it as I all ready have the ARB in the rear and don't wanna have to fawk for a new one to fit a Yota axles and I all so don't want to go below my 5.12s which is probably what would happen if I ended up with yota axles as the 5.29s are not common here
Whats the other Vit owners recommendations on this ??
vitarajim wrote:To do SAS properley you would need to go hilux diffs under the Vit, this in itself would be fairly costly let alone the cost of a locker.
I was offered a pair a few weeks ago for NZ$400 but they were 4.1s which is going to make my situation worse. I also know where a GV steel housing is for $480 with a 5.12 center.
What I'm trying to weigh up here as well is in the long run if I stay IFS it's going to cost around NZ$1650 to throw OME 2" suspension at it (whats OME 2" worth in Oz?) and $1650 would go along way toward SAS spring shocks etc...
I won't be rushing in, so it's all food for thought so far.
Personally i got sick of fixing my Vitara. Regular CV breakages, front axles and housings. Should i say, the last trip was the straw that broke tha camels back. Hence the sierra with patrol diffs.
I think someone here busted a steel axle housing last week. The steel axle housing would be stronger, the CV's are a little stronger but it's still IFS.
IFS does have its advantages, comfort but does have many associated draw backs.
What sort of driving do you do most of? For some that use the vehicle as daily transport or even a tourer IFS could be a better option than SAS for its on road benifits.
However if it's a wheeler SAS is probably the better option.
If you decide to stay IFS save the bucks and look at Calmini suspension and anvil axle housing. The anvil axle housing means that you use tow of the one side CV joints (only need one spare). If you do go this way just use some limiting straps to reduce front wheel droop to save some CV's.
Also bear in mind that SAS will take some time setting up not to mention engineers approval for rego.
Diffs $400 + coils + shocks + misc bits + engineers = $$$ and more capable and stronger 4x4.
I found that as my driving confidence improved i felt as if the vehicle was limiting my potential. I'm not trying to say i'm an expert wheeler but that's just how i felt. I also started to think whats going to break this weekend before i even hit the tracks. This took a lot of the fun out of things.
I'm a big believer that if you over engineer something it generally wont let you down.
Is it a daily driver?
[quote="Harb"]Well I'm guessing that they didn't think everyone would carry on like a big bunch of sooky girls over it like they have........[/quote]
birfields: (i think i know,) but not sure what these are, can some one explain this to me again?
warn premium hubs: how much are these?
fuseable hubs: what are these?
i sort of remember somewhere, i think it was for warn, that they made the locking ring inside the hub(the one that slides over the axle when locked) to give way before the cv's do. and it was about $20 each to replace. or something like that.
vitarajim wrote:Personally i got sick of fixing my Vitara....... Is it a daily driver?
It's not used as a D/D anymore but I want it to remain capable of being used daily if needed. Road comfort and handling is not an issue to me, I'd rather have to sacrifice some road manners to gain better off road ability.
The wheeling I do can be from river runs that you don't need much suspension or flex to bush bashing our way into scrub where the terrain differs greatly requiring more lift and flex as your climbing over logs and ledges etc.
Suzuki Viagra wrote:I think a GV steel axle, birfields, Warn Premium hubs and fuseable hubs and you'd have no problems....The Calmini 3" kit is great for springs and a arms but the struts and the shocks are way too short... Point worth noting
Thats a probably not a bad set up if I want to stay IFS. I don't know if I'd go with the 3" Calmini though, I've read good and bad reports about it in fact I don't really know which report to believe some say it the bee's knee's then others say it's crap set up stretching the A arm down to it's limits to gain the 3" lift leaving nothing for droop and as you said the struts are too short ??
Go the GV steel housing, and a front locker. The front locker really helps with the IFS problems, also lets you change your driving style so that you can reduce the shock load on the front drive train.
The calmini 2" lift kit is actually about 2 1/4" and the 3" is like 2 3/4".
My recommendation would be 2" springs from calmini, OME or custom made (there should be a spring place over there who can do them), OME front struts and the rear shocks can be basically anything.
I used MX62 cressida on my SWB Vit (600mm long), but the LWB V6 is a longer shock to start with so you can get away with stuff like VN/VP commodore ones (about 700mm long), or various length ranchos.
The OME rears are like 520mm or so and dont even give sufficient travel for the extra lift of a 2" kit.
I don't know anyone who has bought a vitara lift kit who has stayed with the rear shocks from that kit.
Have you checked the rocky road kit which is basically as I suggest - OME springs, OME Struts and a different set of shocks.
Their 4.5" lift kit is $709 US. I know some people have had issues with their delivery times and stuff, but if you're in no hurry it's worth considering.
Last edited by Beastmavster on Sun Aug 22, 2004 9:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
SiKiD_01 wrote:birfields: (i think i know,) but not sure what these are, can some one explain this to me again?
warn premium hubs: how much are these? fuseable hubs: what are these?
i sort of remember somewhere, i think it was for warn, that they made the locking ring inside the hub(the one that slides over the axle when locked) to give way before the cv's do. and it was about $20 each to replace. or something like that.
The most eagerly anticipated suspension product of the decade.
The Rockfather 6" suspension lift, and Rockfather II 8" combination system are in their final phases of R&D and product testing... where we beat up on things enough to make even a 'Don' flinch. We hope to have the kits on the shelf this Fall. This kit is chock full of great features like ultra-flexy Johnny Joints, wheelbase extension, true long travel control arms, and other trick components. We're going to be calling in our markers and putting a 'hit' on the competition. No specific release date is yet set. We will have that information on the website as soon as it is available. Buckle up folks.... Sidekicks and Trackers are about to enter a whole new dimension.
Yeah seen that, I'd say there's not to much in the world a dedicated zooker hasn't seen if it's on the web this one got my attention too
I like that one alot But I don't know what Calmini are up to here, they put out a test rig at zukiworld which got every one going, then it's sorta gone quite even with people offering deposits on buying the kit ????
Calmini have been coping shit about the price of the kit and have put it on the back burner, apparently the only peolpe that buy "sidekicks and trackers" in the states are HILLBILLYS with no cash. They are not sure what is going to happen with it as yet
RIKSTR wrote:Calmini have been coping shit about the price of the kit and have put it on the back burner, apparently the only peolpe that buy "sidekicks and trackers" in the states are HILLBILLYS with no cash. They are not sure what is going to happen with it as yet
Have you heard any rumors of what the price was suppose to be ? I personally think they had a winner there depending on price of course
mudfkr wrote: Have you heard any rumors of what the price was suppose to be ? I personally think they had a winner there depending on price of course
Shane (Hillbilly driver from NZ )
Dont get me wrong I own a Grand Vit and a Vitara But they are supposed to be cheap in the states but I think the price for the kit was around $1500 US (dont quote me)
Popping 2 wheels up in the air, on the gas, wheels come down, they go from spin to stop in a very short space of time. Even if you SAS with a hilux diff you could still break it doing that.
this one got my attention too
I own a Grand Vit and a Vitara But they are supposed to be cheap in the states 
