$5,000 to spend on drivetrain upgrades. Ideas?

[UglyWagon]

For the past couple years I set a budget of $5,000 I can spend on upgrades or modifications for the Cruiser. This summer I want to spend it on the drivetrain.
The only upgrades I have done so for are;
- OME Lift
- Chrome-Moly Birfs
- Part-time conversion
Everything else is stock under the cruiser.
Curious what the experts would spend $5,000 on.

 

[94lc80series]

That's a Los Angeles-sized budget if I've ever seen one. You could buy 1,000 stickers from @NLXTACY ...

 

[mattv94]

Lockers and regear?

 

[slow95z]

5.3

 

[Bludozer]

Regear to 4.88's - $2k
Good set of 35's - $1k
OME lift - $1k
Rear Spartan Locker - $300
T-case Gears - $700

Man it's easy to pour money into these trucks...

 

[FJ809496TLC]

Regear to 4.88's - $2k
Good set of 35's - $1k
OME lift - $1k
Rear Spartan Locker - $300
T-case Gears - $700

Man it's easy to pour money into these trucks...

Tell me about it. lol

 

[Devils Paw 80]

3FE with 35's? Regear, or dump auto for a stick shift.

 

[Noahrob]

Ha...I dont have $5k for drive train upgrades, but managed to spend that anyway Regear, lockers, lift, tires...

 

[LINUS]

Before you let us vicariously spend your money, how about you tell us how you use it & how you want to improve for the things you aren't yet doing?

If you're a car camper, a RTT & ARB fridge make sense.

If you do day trips to local rock gardens, bigger tires & tons of armor mean more than a tent & fridge.

It's that whole 'build for how YOU plan to use it', not 'whatever seems cool' (cool is fun, not quite as practical though).

One thing I'd near say anyone who goes off-pavement should have is a winch. A good winch can cover alot of 'oops' moments. Sadly winch means bumper so by my math we could burn ~$1500-2000 just on that, even if you CL a used Warn M8K-M12K, bumper depending on winch size you would prefer.

Tell us more though, it'll really help you get more qualified answers.

 

[lcgeek]

For the past couple years I set a budget of $5,000 I can spend on upgrades or modifications for the Cruiser. This summer I want to spend it on the drivetrain.
The only upgrades I have done so for are;
- OME Lift
- Chrome-Moly Birfs
- Part-time conversion
Everything else is stock under the cruiser.
Curious what the experts would spend $5,000 on.

You are spending $5k a year for the past couple of years on upgrades? How many years you got going on doing this?

 

[Bludozer]

You are spending $5k a year for the past couple of years on upgrades? How many years you got going on doing this?

Yeah I'm a bit confused by the phrasing as well. I hope he doesn't mean he spends $5k/yr on mods just to spend $5k/yr on mods. That is a bit retarded

 

[UglyWagon]

Sorry, i see how the wording is confusing.
I set a budget that starts new every year.
I have not spent anything yet this year. So I have $5,000 available that I want to use under the cruiser in 2017.

Lockers and regearing are at the top of my list. I'm curious as to what else I should do in addition. Stronger axles, transfer, driveline or knuckles? Open to any ideas. Thank you for the advice.

 

[UglyWagon]

Yeah I'm a bit confused by the phrasing as well. I hope he doesn't mean he spends $5k/yr on mods just to spend $5k/yr on mods. That is a bit retarded

It might sound retarded to you. But to me, this is a hobby and something I enjoy. It is a budget of $5K. I don't have to spend every penny to wast money. I simply set a budget of how much i am willing to invest into my cruiser.

 

[itbrokeagain]

Cage, lockers, gears, and chromoly axles.

 

[half k cruiser]

Gears, then more gears. Maybe upgrade to a 1FZ on the cheap ?

 

[UglyWagon]

Before you let us vicariously spend your money, how about you tell us how you use it & how you want to improve for the things you aren't yet doing?

If you're a car camper, a RTT & ARB fridge make sense.

If you do day trips to local rock gardens, bigger tires & tons of armor mean more than a tent & fridge.

It's that whole 'build for how YOU plan to use it', not 'whatever seems cool' (cool is fun, not quite as practical though).

One thing I'd near say anyone who goes off-pavement should have is a winch. A good winch can cover alot of 'oops' moments. Sadly winch means bumper so by my math we could burn ~$1500-2000 just on that, even if you CL a used Warn M8K-M12K, bumper depending on winch size you would prefer.

Tell us more though, it'll really help you get more qualified answers.

Good idea. So far;
- Front and rear bumper are being fabricated as we speak, and will be installed within 3 weeks. (Bumpers and 1 winch are from last years budget.)
- I have a Smittybilt 17.5K winch going on the front.
- The rear winch is a Badlands 12K i received as a gift and figured i might as well do something with it. So, it is being mounted inside the rear bumper.
- Tires are 35s

My end goal is to build a cruiser capable of crossing most terrains, even rock gardens if I find myself in the situation. But I avoid rocks whenever possible.

I plan to start improving the body and interior next year. But want to start under the cruiser since it takes a majority of the abuse and a failure there leaves me stranded.

 

[UglyWagon]

Gears, then more gears. Maybe upgrade to a 1FZ on the cheap ?

Eventually an upgrade is in the cards. Any $ left over at the end of the year goes into an engine swap bucket. Maybe within the next three years. With more power come other problems. I figured by working from the bottom up, i will have everything ready to handle more power when the time comes.

 

[LandCruisinMy93]

Full float rear
Upgraded brakes for front and rear
Hydroboost mod
Stainless extended Brake lines
Valve body upgrade for transmission
Factory E-lockers or selectable lockers of choice
Chromoly rears if you wheel a lot.
U-joints all around
Factory Suspension bushings
Regear the axles.

Or
Buy the diesel adapters swap kit this year and by next year you may have all the parts.
Then next year can be a Cummins...or wait for the OM606 Adapter.

 

[UglyWagon]

[

Full float rear
Upgraded brakes for front and rear
Hydroboost mod
Stainless extended Brake lines
Valve body upgrade for transmission
Factory E-lockers or selectable lockers of choice
Chromoly rears if you wheel a lot.
U-joints all around
Factory Suspension bushings
Regear the axles.

Or
Buy the diesel adapters swap kit this year and by next year you may have all the parts.
Then next year can be a Cummins...or wait for the OM606 Adapter.

Good point about the brakes. Currently I have the stock 15" rims. Stopping can be a struggle sometimes with these tires. I was told upgrading to larger rims is the only way to upgrade the brakes. With larger rims I can fit larger brakes. Makes sense.

 

[BILT4ME]

You ask us all these questions this morning, when you already have $5000 worth of mods in the works? Why bother asking? Just confirming your decisions?

I put $6000 in my truck to begin with on my budget, but not $5000 PER YEAR! Hell,my maintenance alone for all my cars averages about $1000 per vehicle per year, NOT including fuel.

Good Luck!

Wish I could throe $5000 per year into my LC.......It would be a LOT nicer by now! I'd have over $20,000 in it!