Tell me about the Jtop's

[Harreh]

I've seen a few of these on the market, a lot in diesel and I'm thinking it's a great car for me to buy next.

What are the things to look out for?

What are they like on fuel? General performance?

Whats the wind noise like with the softtop?

General cabin noise from the diesel?

From what I've seen theres no storage behind the rear seats, is this the case?

[jonnyjtop]

well mine is a 1992 3lv6 petrol it goes anywhere off road well and drives pretty smooth on road now with 33s and the lift it will go further than anywhere

you can also get a 3.5v6 wich i think would fly
i was not keen on deisel for some reason iv always been a petrol man but iv only heard good things about them...

these are a few or the advantages you should get over the aussie model hard top..anyone feel free to correct me or add to if i miss them..

rear lock diff...
better front and rear diff ratios..
electronic suspention (probably stuffed by now but they have it)
bigger brakes...
roll cage in the rear...

look out for as with any car of this age car blowing exessive amounts of smoke,gearbot not selecting gears properly,also check front cvs and make sure the 4x4/difflock engages and disengages as it should..oil leaks also seem to come as standard..

my softtop is in average condition for its age and looks like it would leak but i have yet to find a drop of water inside (you can buy a new one if you need to)...and as for noise with the softtop up its no rolls royce but im used to it...

with the roof up there is limited space in the boot but you can easitly fold the seats forward and it becomes quite useful...with the roof down dont expect to fit anything at all in the boot as the roof folds into there..

i was origionaly looking for a hard top of the same shape but couldent find a decent one then came across this one and just bought it.. overall im very happy with mine

best bet is go to a caryard and take a good look and possibly a drive and see what you think for yourself..there are some pics in one of my threads a copple fown from this one keep in mind iv been pretty rough on mine but was mickey mouse when i bought it

[Harreh]

Cheers for that mate.

I figure a mid nighties one would be the go for me in the 2.8TD

I've got a LWB NG at the moment which whilst is a good car, it's far too thirsty on fuel and much much more then I need, 22 year old bachelor doesn't need 7 seats

Did they all come with rear diff lock? If so thats pretty cool

My real concern will be the softtop wind noise, I do a lot of fwy driving and I'm a bit of an audiophile

[jonnyjtop]

dont worry mate im a 24 so i know where your coming from...yeah the diff lock should be standard if you wanted to spend a bit more cash look at np models there going for around 15k haggeled down a bit i dont think 12k would be outta the question...but im not too keen on the 7 seater because i feel it is also a family car. but throw on a lift some muddies and a few stickers and it will hide the fact tht its so big..

i think the earlier j top deisel is a 2.5 turbo...should be ok running a bit of boost...but whatever suits your budjet...i bought mine pretty cheap as a runaround so i could keep my other cars at home and its been really good..

[WACKO]

the earlier jtop diesels had the 2.5. be carefull of too much boost on them as they have a tendency to pop head gaskets. do not let it get hot.

the diesels also had 5.285 ratio diffs, the lowest you can go for pajeros, and most, as jonny said, have rear diff locks. but not all. mine didnt have the diff lock, but i was new to pajeros and didnt realise. so if you find one without a locker.. keep looking.

if you get a 2.8 diesel you will probly have the 4.9 ratio diffs.

they j tops have bigger brakes so if you want to fit 15" rims you will need to land crusier offset. patrol offfset doesnt quite fit so make sure they are land crusier.

check the stitching around the zippers on the soft top. they get stretched and unstitch.

i have never found mine to noisy. had passengers actually coment on it being quieter than they thought it would be, but mine is petrol. im not sure what the diesels are like noise wise. didnt have mine long enough.

with the soft top up there is just as much room as in a hard top. with it down there is ALOT less, but still enough to put a couple of bags, not suitcases, but bags.

take a few for test drives. that will tell you what you need to know with reguards to noise.

i say go for it, theyre a great little truck and great fun.

[NJV6]

if you get a 2.8 diesel you will probly have the 4.9 ratio diffs.

Pretty sure they will be 4.636 for that one....

Good luck trying to get a 2.8 with a factory locker - they are very scarce, but if you can source a 2.8 manual JTop then it'd be a fun wee Paj.

[Harreh]

Thanks guys.

I really wanna go Diesel but it doesn't seem theres many SWB around in diesel that arent LWB.

They definately sound like a goer from what a lot of people seem to be saying.

[jop]

Some of the later j tops came with a pushbutton 40mm hydraulic lift mechanism, which is usefull sometimes, sometimes not. The push button is located next to handbrake ( next to the adjustable suspension p/b )

Don't discount the 3 ltr petrol - mine returns excellent fuel economy.

Look for the pushbutton down low in front of the gear lever next to a 12v power outlet - thats the diff lock button - labelled R/D, from memory.

Great little car

[Harreh]

My main reason for not wanting to go petrol is really the amount of KM's I do

It's a lot less these days but last year alone I clocked up 100 000kms so diesels a lot better in terms of milage for me

[siggie]

gidday
mine to is a 3.0lt petrol, great on fuel great on road and offroad
not a lot of wind noise and no water leaks.
F**cking great on a hot day with all the roof down.
can get rear tarp and and ute conversion tarp made (getting mine done soon) $400. Im leaving the seats in the back just folded untill needed.
Buy 1 you'll luv it
siggie

[jonnyjtop]

iv seen a few for sale in the sydney area mainly in caryards but my mate picked one up at the auctions for 5g fully loaded i also picked mine up for that about 2 years ago now...parramatta rd do a few laps of the import caryrds their usually at the back of the stock...get in touch with this mob actually was brousing you tube last night for paj videos and saw one looked pretty good karmart.com.au ill try find the video ad and post you the link...

here i think it must be on ebay

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=PmriZ5Zhu7g

[pom300]

ive got a 93 jtop the roof is pretty quiet its the front sunroof that u have to look out for if the drains get blocked or it doesnt shut properly ,but off road it performs awsom mines only a petrol but it runs underwater untill water comes through the gear stick holes and fills up the floor and wets the computer but if u want a diesel one u wont get those problems.but i recommend these after owning patrols hiluxs and jeeps this has been my favourite 4wd to have,and there still fetching good coin i wouldnt sell mine for under 10k

[terrysensei]

Hi there.
I just joined tonight and I'm looking for some infomation about jtops.I am currently living in Tokyo but plan to bring my jtop in under personal import in the future.Has anyone done this?Any advice or info would be great I also heard that customs is making all personal imports be valued and then you have to pay tax on top of this.I am trying to work out how much it would be worth and how much tax they will make me pay.It is 20% of the value so it might be just way too expensive to bring in.Anyway it is a 1998 model 3.0l petrol.Only 65000km and in great condition.Check out the pictures below.
Thanks !

http://fesu.com/PajeroJTop.htm

[j-top paj]

My real concern will be the softtop wind noise, I do a lot of fwy driving and

nothing to be concerned about there.. they are fine as long as they are in good condition.
as said, check the zippers.

most other things have already been covered... 5.29s, rear diff lock etc..





i wish my j top had rego now

[Mitch92]

hey there

just wondering if anyone could tell me if you can buy like conversion kits to go from soft top to hard top?

im currently looking at a 1990 swb Pajero, the guy said its an Import, im From Australia, so im guessing he means from Asia somewhere.

he said its the Model that DOESNT have Leaf Springs.

can anybody tell me what options i have, its a soft top, i want it to be hard top, or would i be better to just keep looking?

cheers!
Mitch

[Jcas24]

here i think it must be on ebay

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=PmriZ5Zhu7g

20years left in the tyres, what a dick!

[jonnyjtop]

yeah i know hahahhahaaaa.... he is a sandwich short...but it seems like an ok car if its cheap enough

[jonnyjtop]

hey there

just wondering if anyone could tell me if you can buy like conversion kits to go from soft top to hard top?

im currently looking at a 1990 swb Pajero, the guy said its an Import, im From Australia, so im guessing he means from Asia somewhere.

he said its the Model that DOESNT have Leaf Springs.

can anybody tell me what options i have, its a soft top, i want it to be hard top, or would i be better to just keep looking?

cheers!
Mitch

there is a removable hard top avaliable but you will be very lucky to find one i have only seen one around sydney and it may have been custom made...if you really want hard top..wait for one.. as iv said before i diddent really like the j-top when i saw it but now would not trade it for a hard top

[Mitch92]

yeah

i did a few searches on google an didnt come up with anything

mmmmm, shame its a really nice car.

cheers

[WACKO]

this one was for sale a while ago over here. not sure where you would find the hard top tho.

[J Top]

Have a competant diesel mechanic look at any jap import diesel, vehicles don't get the nessecary servicing in japan and diesels can get extreme wear with their higher loadings. Also they can sit for a while between coming off the road in japan and going on the road here and any water in the fuel causes high priced damage to the inj pump. The 2.8 is a far superior eng to the 2.5 and a big-bore exh, a little extra boost and a bit more fuel can give you a rocket. The 2.8 can get high wear on the cam chain, listern for a slapping/sliding noise from the front of the eng.

[kwhplj]

Guys, I am from Indonesia. i am lucky to have a black J top 2.5TDI since it is rare here. But finding spareparts is a headeche. could any of you be so kind to inform me where in sydney or greater OZ can i find parts suppliers that provide everything i need for my jtop? it would be much better if they can supply interior parts, soft tops. head and brake lights (basically all Jtop accessories) beyond common engine and suspension parts. thanks a lot before......i appreciate your help. Sorry for my english...

[jtop matt]

Tell you about them, .........well they're the best!!

[big wheel sigma]

Mate, you can't go past the shorty paj, mine cops a floggin and will go where any pootrol or cruiser will go.
It will be better on fuel anyway cause there a lot lighter than the long wheel base.
Less Metal, less seats, less kids, its all good

[JemmyBubbles]

Aftermarket front diff lock options ??

ARB ??

Is there an auto locker available for the front ala 'lokka' ?

[-Scott-]

Aftermarket front diff lock options ??

ARB ??

Is there an auto locker available for the front ala 'lokka' ?

Yes, ARB make the RD110, which should fit a J Top (possible exception being 3.0 auto, but there's a work around.)

I think 4wd Systems advertise an auto-locker to suit, but I think it's still "in development". I think there was a recent post on that subject...

Before ARB released theirs a few custom Detroits were made to suit - you might get lucky enough to find one of those.

An LSD from a Starion can also be made to fit the front diff, but I think these are in fairly high demand - so there are probably better options.

[jtop matt]

Heres mine anyways, just installed my 60mm body lift, yay, no more rubs!!

Before


After

[jop]

An LSD from a Starion can also be made to fit the front diff, but I think these are in fairly high demand - so there are probably better options.

Tell me more - looks like i have access to a starion lsd.

What model is needed? is it a straight swap?

[-Scott-]

An LSD from a Starion can also be made to fit the front diff, but I think these are in fairly high demand - so there are probably better options.

Tell me more - looks like i have access to a starion lsd.

What model is needed? is it a straight swap?

I don't think it's a straight swap - I think there's a little bit of mix-n-match required, but I don't know the details.

Just as there are two different sizes of front diff for the Paj, the Starion came with two different size of LSD - so the first step is to match sizes.

Beyond that, I read some discussion on the POCUK forum. Try digging around there.

[jop]

OK will do - thanks