Builds Mike's 1978 FJ40 Turbo Diesel Refit Project and Cross Country Road Trip! (2 Viewers)

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Will do! I need to dig into my t-Case too. I've had a rumbling at about 45mph for a while now. I though it was the rear axle, but after going through both axles I still have the noise. My truck is so loud its hard to isolate! I do notice it does not like to roll easily with the parking brake off so something is dragging.
 
Will do! I need to dig into my t-Case too. I've had a rumbling at about 45mph for a while now. I though it was the rear axle, but after going through both axles I still have the noise. My truck is so loud its hard to isolate! I do notice it does not like to roll easily with the parking brake off so something is dragging.

Does it change in different ranges? Change with load? Engine speed or vehicle speed? Is it quieter or louder in 4th gear?

Sounds like you have a few things to do and you will unleash that beast! I read your thread. Super cool stuff. How do you like that AA transfer case adapter? I was always concerned with how small the splined section of the NV4500 is that they use after cutting off the normal drive spline of the output shaft.

Mike
 
Does it change in different ranges? Change with load? Engine speed or vehicle speed? Is it quieter or louder in 4th gear?

Sounds like you have a few things to do and you will unleash that beast! I read your thread. Super cool stuff. How do you like that AA transfer case adapter? I was always concerned with how small the splined section of the NV4500 is that they use after cutting off the normal drive spline of the output shaft.

Mike

I think its vehicle speed only, I tried coasting in neutral and it was still there. The gear i'm in doesn't seem to matter. It is loudest at 40-45mph, faster or slower and it decreases. I haven't tried it in Low range.

The AA adapter seemed to be fine. I haven't seen it since I installed it 11 years ago! I haven't put many miles on it either, so there is that..
 
I think its vehicle speed only, I tried coasting in neutral and it was still there. The gear i'm in doesn't seem to matter. It is loudest at 40-45mph, faster or slower and it decreases. I haven't tried it in Low range.

The AA adapter seemed to be fine. I haven't seen it since I installed it 11 years ago! I haven't put many miles on it either, so there is that..
That's very interesting that it doesn't change with load....

Is it like a rumbling noise? How else can you describe it?

The front drive is disconnected right?

Knowing if its happening at a lower speed in low range would help narrow it down.

Mike
 
That's very interesting that it doesn't change with load....

Is it like a rumbling noise? How else can you describe it?

The front drive is disconnected right?

Knowing if its happening at a lower speed in low range would help narrow it down.

Mike

I'm remembering now that I had considered it might be the tires. The $1000 or so it would take to replace them has been holding me up. Also when I saw all the pitting on the rear 3rd gears I though I had found something that could be the cause, even though it wasn't a whine.
 
I'm remembering now that I had considered it might be the tires. The $1000 or so it would take to replace them has been holding me up. Also when I saw all the pitting on the rear 3rd gears I though I had found something that could be the cause, even though it wasn't a whine.

I bet a nice new set of tires would help you out in more ways than one.

It will for sure be a worthwhile investment. At least its just one of those drop it off and pick it up type of expenses so it's rather painless!

Mike
 
The truck got to earn its keep this weekend. Both my buddy Dillon and I have Dad's out of state so we decided to celebrate together.

We got him loaded up in the truck and his Mom got to come along for her first west coast 4WD experience:
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He cant walk or nothing like that so this is his first time getting out of the house since before this quarantine thing went down. We used to do some 4-wheeling together back when we met before his accident:
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It was great fun. We started the day off wearing masks but eventually we just couldn't anymore.

We had it at a hair under 45* once:

I little push kept it off the wall in a few spots:
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She did well,

I'll post up a video soon.

Thanks,

Mike
 
Here's a quick video from the weekend. Always fun seeing leaf springs doing leaf spring things:


Slow and steady with my buddy in the truck. Looks like I'm going to have to move my front fenders froward a hair to clear the tires better!

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Thanks for looking,

Mike
 
Looking good Mike! Can't wait to see what you have cooking next.
 
Another quickie update:

Painted the back hatch from white to the body color. Surprisingly the dealer had the tumbler, key set, and gasket in stock so I installed that stuff after this pic:
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It turned out way too shiny so I buffed the truck out for the first time to get it to match better and it instantly got super shiny which was cool. So I went and got an alignment:
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I was then motivated to replace the old tires because they didn't really fit the look of the tuck:

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39-13.5 R17 BFG KM3

I think it looks a lot better! And its the first time I've ever been able to lock the back of the truck so that's a good feeling.

Mike
 
Just a few notes on the 39_13.5_R17 BFG KM3.

I mounted these up on the same wheels I had the 37_12.5_R17 Nitto Ridge Grapplers expecting there to be a little rubbing up front. Mush to my surprise when I did a couple turns lock to lock where the old tires would typically (albeit just barely) rub the sway bar arms there was ni signs of rubbing. How could that be I thought.. Surely a 2" taller and 1" wider tire should rub!

We here's what I find:

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So I busted out the tape measure. The KM3's tread width is 1" narrower than the Nitto. Not only that but the cross section is much less "Square" than the Nitto tires were. This makes them act much narrower and fit the truck must better. Its a win win! They might be the ultimate tall skinny!

The narrower contact patch definitely helps me feel that 6* of castor on the front end. It returns to center with a bit more authority at freeway speeds which feels good. They roll nice and easy so far. The TDI doesn't care at all. I had to recalibrate my speedometer with a 6% change which makes sense with the diameter increase.

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They aren't very noisy yet. I can barely hear them, but they are definitely there, unlike the Nitto's which were silent. I hope it stays that way. I measured the tread depth on the Nitto's before dismounting them and they had ~14/32 all around. They came with 18/32" so considering that I drove cross country twice and raked up ~25,000 miles on them that's impressive. I would be happier with them actually if they came with a softer compound. The way I use my truck the tread would be all chunked out long before wearing at the rate these were. The BFG's definitely have a softer tread so maybe they are perfect.

Pretty happy so far!

Mike
 
I have a quick question I've been wondering about..

What was the original purpose of this hardline/hose:
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It originally went below the floor on the passenger side footwell:
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I plugged the hole, but there was a grommet there. It didn't seem to go anywhere??


Thanks,

Mike
 

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