Mort's 76 FJ55

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Why are you trying to keep the factory fan on the firewall if you’re adding A/C?



Go back in my build thread and I have some pictures of how I modified my Turbo to fit.

I don’t have time to dig through all my photos right now but I think I had to remove an inch from the 4” intake ring and use a tight 90° to clear the A/C compressor.
 
My reason for keeping the factory fan is I was going to try to find a factory ac or something similar. The ones you guys are running are nice, but I worry about the inside fogging issue. From reading on the hotrod forums a lot of people are having the same issue. A lot of them think its from not having outside air. Now that I have the ac and alternator in, I'm seeing that it will be much easier to get rid of the factory air. I bought a tight 4" 90 and am waiting on it to show up.
 
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I've been looking at all the pictures on the Internet and trying to find where the best place to put the steering box but haven't found a lot about placement of it in a 55. Is this too far forward? I've seen some guys put it even further forward and I've seen others put it further to the rear.
 
I was told, you want the pitman arm centered over the relay rods, so there's no interference. Think about your hoses and how you'll route and tighten them, once everything is welded in. You might have to trim some more of the fender.
 
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This is the measurement on mine - Tape measure is on the top of the frame rail on the front. Keep in mind, I have yet to get out on the road, but it seems to work well from all my indications.
 
I would think you would want your drag link and tie rod before you mount your steering box.

Confirm your pitman arm is the correct length then call Luke at 4X4 labs and pick his brain on what combination of parts will work best for your setup, bottom line you want to keep you drag link and tie rod parallel but watch for interference when the driver’s side is compressed and the wheel is turned all the way in either direction.



In this picture you can see my compromise between parallel and interference, at full compression (bottomed out on the bump stops) at full steering lock the tie rod end on the pitman arm just clears the tie rod.

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Thanks for the pics and advice. Scrapdaddy I was thinking I would have to cut more of the fender out, but didn't want to cut too much out until I knew exactly where to put the box. NikP Thanks for the measurement. That'll give me an idea of where to start. Jim. I saw that yours was a little forward of the drag link. That explains why. I've left a message with luke and will hopefully get a chance to talk to him today.
 
I just talked to Luke and ordered my steering kit. it'll ship out on Tuesday. I'm looking over the engine bay wondering if I need to do anything else before I pull everything out and clean and paint the engine bay.
 
mtnmort said:
I'm looking over the engine bay wondering if I need to do anything else before I pull everything out and clean and paint the engine bay.
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You might want to spend a minuet researching plating your frame, a lot of guys plate the front frame to strengthen the factory Toyota frame rails and I didn’t see much value for my application so I only plated a small section around my steering box. After driving with the 4BT turned up it twist my frame around pretty bad to the point I’m turning things down now to avoid future problems, had I known how much torque the 4BT can deliver I would have plated my frame with at least ¼” when I had the chance.

I’m not aware of any cons to doing it other than the time required, but you should ask around as others know much more about all things Toyota than I.
 
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I'll have to look into that. I was going to plate it this much on the front and back for the steering box. Would you suggest I plate further back where the engine mounts are too? Mine stops just before the engine mounts and I was only going to do it on the drivers side for the box.

I've been reading about the mechanical fuel s*** off and was wondering if it is necessary. And I'm thinking about hooking it up to the choke as a safety device.
 
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Like I said before I’m probably not the best equipped to answer your question but It seems like the high speed guys do plate further back and most incorporate several large holes to weld to the frame like this Ruff Stuff kit.

FJ40 Frame Boxing Kit
 
Lil'John said:
I'm not a frame plating expert but Don(my fab guy) does the following on almost all his 55s:
And don't forget to add a twist stabilizer on the inside as well as plating:
Also, vertical welding/plate on a frame is usually not recommended. Notice the rounding/angling on the plates above :)
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Is the twist stabilized bolted to the holes on the front crossmember or is there a plate there as well that it's welded to. And is it done on both drivers side and passenger side? If you have pictures id love to see it.

I'm thinking I'll extend the plate further back so that it goes past the engine mount and I'll round them off and put holes in it.
 
Are any of you guys that are running the aftermarket AC still using the rear heater? And are you using the original hole in the firewall or moving the hole?

Thanks
 
Mtnmort,

I am. As far as the holes in the firewall, I welded just about everything up and made what I needed. If you're going to aftermarket a/c, you won't need that huge opening. Four holes for the lines to a/c and heat. I ran my rear lines underneath the body so they wouldn't be lying on the floor.
 
I’m not running the rear heater and don’t feel I need it here in the Idaho winters, my A/C and heater lines come through the firewall in the same general location but I welded up the holes and use a bulkhead fitting instead of grommets to seal the lines.
 
Cool. Thanks. I'm in the process of welding up the holes in the firewall so I can paint the interior. It's hard to tell what holes to keep and what bolts I will need. Scrapdaddy, I like the idea of running the heater hoses under the vehicle. Do you use a bulkhead fitting to bring it up from underneath? On my last 55, years ago in Idaho, I liked having the rear heat. It was nice to be able to get it hot enough to make you sweat in the winter in Idaho.
 
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