Expedition style BII

[Ozwynn]

Does he really plan on leaving the country though? That is a lot of work just for the novelty of a diesel.

If he has an Explorer laying around for parts, the 4.0, M5OD, TTB D35, and 31 spline 8.8 will be a tough combo to beat. He already has 3/4 of those parts right now. Parts are stupid common to find, when I went to rebuild my 8.8 I got off of craigslist for $100, they had all the seals and gaskets in stock at the local Carquest.

Dunno when the last time was I saw a Land Cruiser around here on the street, let alone one being parted out...

you need to check out IH8TMUD.com, look under classifieds. plenty of 80's being parted out.

Yes, I plan on taking this out of country in several years time, me and several colleagues are planning a South America trip in 2011... That's why I said diesel is a must... I don't plan on running anything near 40" tires, 35's would be the absolute biggest I would ever need, probably staying with 33's... This isn't going to be a rock crawler, more of an off-road transport, driving on bad roads, trails to camp-sites, and work areas, vehicle... I have an Explorer, but the BII is already stripped and ready for everything to go in... I don't really want to have to pull all the stuff out of the Explorer just to put it back in the Bronco... About the 80 series axles, I don't think they will work because the T-case I want to use is a driver side drop and the Toyota axles are passenger side drop... So far, what I've come up with so far... Cummins B3.3T - AX-15 - NP242 - Rear D60 Shortened - Front Axle??? By using a T-case with the option of full-time 4WD, would the front axle need CV type joints or do you think a regular u-joint would hold up?

I am not wild about that engine and tranny and Tcase combo. that transmission is rather weak and that awd feature in that t-case likes to burn its VC, the engine is rather weak and not very common. you need to think parts availability when in columbia. 4bt is more common.

Seriously I wouldn't use and AWD T-case, there is no advantage if you have switchable lockers and full time hubs. the FzJ 80 axles are designed to be run full time in 4wd, you would have to use a jeep axle (D30) with that T-case and it wount take the weight of the diesel. however parts for the 80 series axles are expensive, but common in south america, as common as D35/8.8 parts are here.


if you are doint this for a project I understand, but if you just want an expedition truck then how about looking into a diesel bzJ80 from Canada. those even have manual transmissions, electric lockers, full time 4wd with a CDL. you can get one well used for alot less than what you would have in powertrain on your B2 project.

 

[Beanmachine7000]

I was worried about the 3.3, the availability of parts and whatnot, and the measly 98hp or whatever it has, but more worried about the weight of a 4BT and giant tranny that is needed to support it... about the BZJ80, I had considered it, but I thought they were not importable into the U.S.? If they are, that would probably be the way I would go... I thought a vehicle had to be what, 25 years old to import it?

 

[Ozwynn]

there are a few around, I am not sure of the laws but my neighbor is from Canada and I will ask her how she brought her car with her.

the 4BT is heavy, but, if you use 80 series axles then the springs needed are readily available as a 4bt is a common swap into a 60 series, and 80 series axle swap is common into a 60 to get coil springs. so parts are not an issue, money is, and expedition vehicle is expensive.


you can get a tired Fj80 for around 4 grand, you can get the BzJ's engine and harness from Specter, or give a call to slee offroad or call cruiser dan. they do FzJ80 diesel swaps and have parts on hand. you get outside the US and BzJ80s are common so parts are common.

 

[Beanmachine7000]

So, I've been doing lots of research, and what my best bet looks to be is to buy an FZJ80, with, hopefully, a blown engine (cheap) and a manual tranny, then swap in, either a 1HD-T or a 12HT... Build it up the way it needs to be and go that way... I think I may actually end up saving money that way... maybe $3k for a FZJ80, $12k for a 1HD-T, roof rack, RTT, selectable lockers, long range fuel tank etc... Including PM items, I could see a budget realistically of about $20k-$25k... But, that leaves me with what to do with the BII...

 

[86ford]

FzJ80 axles are already under 6K - 7K rig by the time they are geared up (they weigh 5850 curb weight). plus full float rear and are stronger than the d44. Also have electric locking diffs that are 10x more reliable than ARB's. I know a guy running a winch front and back, roof rack with twin 35x12.50 in it, a tire carrier on the rear bumper that hold a pair of 35x12.50's, 10 gallons of gas, and a winch battery. the front bumber is an ARB bull bar that carries to winch batteries. with all his camping gear it tips the scales at 8600 pounds rolling on FzJ80 axles with 4.88's




I am pretty sure he wants the oil burner because of cruising range off road. you get out side the US and diesel is more common.

we are talking about 2 different things. on a wheeling rig fj80 axles can only withstand so much weight just like any other axle. 35s on fj80s is like 31s on a explorer, you just wont break anything. take the same 2 rigs, put some 40 inch boggers on the cruiser and 35 boggers on the explorer, watch the parts fly (if its actually seeing some tough wheeling conditions for those rigs). if both vehicles went on a diet they would be much less likely to break parts because less weight to send a shock load down the drivetrain to break things. a oil burners pure power (torque) will snap shit when left to the hands of a person who wants to test a vehicles limits.

86

 

[Beanmachine7000]

I'm not planning on buildong anything to rockcrawl with. I'm just trying to build a rig to succesfully navigate washed out dirt roads, and some muddy pits, river crossings and just be an all out get there and make it back alive rig, being able to live out of it for a weekend or so... I've read a bit on IH8MUD and Expeditio Portal, and it look slike my BII just isn't going to work for what I want... I believe I'll have to go with an 80 series cruiser, swapping in a diesel engine will be cheaper and less hassle than trying to import one, plus I'll get a coil suspension, and the good power of the turbo diesel instead of the NA diesel... From what I've seen I have completely trust whatever axles are under the 80 series, I've seen 7-8k lb trucks on 33's go tons of places I never would have thought...

My plan now is FZJ-80, 1HD-T, H55... Built up for expedition use.... now I just have to decide what to do with my BII, more than likely I'll just swap in the Explorer stuff and give it a little lift, maybe 33's and DD it...