Need Advice On Upgrade ...Top 5?!

[lc98v8]

Need your help guys on the top 5 best & most valuable upgrades for On/Off road,,, budget is tight ...but will manage over time
Current issues:
-Clutch is week, it burns easily with medium to heavy use of 4x4, changed clutch several times, the first part that fails is the release bearing, MANUAL Tranny!..I read this is because Toyota used the 80 series tranny and clutches setup and worst behind V8 ??
-Stock break is week.

Thanks

 

[Trunk Monkey]

Depends on your uses on and off road, best is totally subjective.

 

[PhrogsPhorever]

What model/engine do you have? I would assume a 98 with the petrol V8 based on your mud handle but the V8 with the H151 and the clutch should be the same as the FZJ 100 series and other 80 series.

What clutch are you using for replacements right now? Exedy makes an HD clutch for the many of the 80 and 100 series with the manual box. The TYK-6847HD might be a beefier option that Exedy offers. How much are you towing/hauling that your clutches are burning up and your brakes aren't doing the job or do you just wail on your truck and wheel it like you stole it?

 

[lc98v8]

My engine is v8 4.7l, as for hauling I can't be specific but I do carry around 80 L of water in the cabin and a fair amount of camping gear...
I upgraded the springs with some ARB part, don' remember the exact part, think OME 865. Replaced the shocks with yellow ones but they were horrible, think they were all defected, the care was driving like without shocks. I returned them after few days with a decent discount and replaced all 4 with oem.

The replacements clutches are all OEM, I can smell the clutch burn each time I get stuck in the sand.

Recently replaced the front shocks but don't feel the stock suspension is firm enough for such an off-road car,,, it bounces back and forth when going over a pump...

The clutch issue is not related to load..haul/tow..each time the clutch is stressed the release bearing starts to get noisy at idle and eventually it gets pretty bad.

 

[PhrogsPhorever]

Burning up clutches are a result of two things, either it is not installed/set up right, or you are driving it like you stole it If you are hammering the clutch in sand/off-road driving, then you are most likely heating up the throw away bearing causing it to fail prematurely. Also, check to make sure everything is adjusted properly, if things aren't set up right, that could also lead to the bearing crapping out. Is what it is

Good choice on the 865s, nice upgrade for the rears. Have you done anything with the front suspension other than shocks? If you haven't, then you may want to consider upgrading your torsion bars on the front also, will level you out and balance the front suspension. Plus it will allow you to crank up the front if you add a heavy bumper.

Sent from my interwebz doo-dad

 

[FJ62INTX]

I have a possible solution....

If I understand correctly....

The clutch isn't actually failing, it just smells when You slip it and get it hot (very normal to smell one when it is hot)

The release bearing failure is actually the main problem that keeps recurring and cashing you to replace the clutch while You are there...

Correct? Or not?


This release bearing that keeps failing after an intense heating of the clutch, have You ever upgraded the grease in the new bearing?


You can pop the seals off of most new bearings and you could clean the factory grease out of the bearing with brake parts cleaner or mineral spirits and then pack it with very good , very high temp synthetic grease like red line cv-2. I have had a wheel bearing failure occur in my Subaru with 700+hp because the typical parts store grease just couldn't handle the bearing speed and heat, and Red Line CV-2 worked.

 

[lc98v8]

Burning up clutches are a result of two things, either it is not installed/set up right, or you are driving it like you stole it If you are hammering the clutch in sand/off-road driving, then you are most likely heating up the throw away bearing causing it to fail prematurely. Also, check to make sure everything is adjusted properly, if things aren't set up right, that could also lead to the bearing crapping out. Is what it is

Good choice on the 865s, nice upgrade for the rears. Have you done anything with the front suspension other than shocks? If you haven't, then you may want to consider upgrading your torsion bars on the front also, will level you out and balance the front suspension. Plus it will allow you to crank up the front if you add a heavy bumper.

Sent from my interwebz doo-dad

As you said, I think installation is part of the problem & one replacement last longer than another..dealer install was the worst!!

I am a better driver now than ever and it still get heated up and bearing failure each time I go through the process of back and fourth to get out of sand traps..

As for the torsion bar I'm curious ..when I upgraded the rear springs (no front spring in these models), I started to get drive train vibration at high speed exactly starting 160k, I do not intentionally speed to that level but it happens sometimes and the vibration is mild but noisy. The reason I say this is because someone told me that this is happening because the new spring cause the drive shaft to run unbalanced !??
I really don't like to raise the front beyond the original design because I still use the car in the city and on high way, but if this torsion bar upgrade is going to help improve/fix something without stressing the OEM suspension parts like shocks ...I will go for it. Good thing to know, and by the way how much work is needed to replace the torsion bars and who provide the best part? And any part number?

My off-road driving is limited to several trips during the year but sometimes the investment is worth the risk!!!!!? You only learn this from experience !!

The front and rear bumpers upgrade are very tempting but they are too heavy for my needs.if you know of a light setup & low profile please advice. I feel the need for front bumper upgrade to add more light and protect my air compressor in the front but I may go for the bull bar if it will help??

I do have dual battery and air compressed setup under hood and look forward to increase the fuel capacity but the problem is I can't give up the spare tire..???

 

[lc98v8]

I have a possible solution....

If I understand correctly....

The clutch isn't actually failing, it just smells when You slip it and get it hot (very normal to smell one when it is hot)

The release bearing failure is actually the main problem that keeps recurring and cashing you to replace the clutch while You are there...

Correct? Or not?


This release bearing that keeps failing after an intense heating of the clutch, have You ever upgraded the grease in the new bearing?


You can pop the seals off of most new bearings and you could clean the factory grease out of the bearing with brake parts cleaner or mineral spirits and then pack it with very good , very high temp synthetic grease like red line cv-2. I have had a wheel bearing failure occur in my Subaru with 700+hp because the typical parts store grease just couldn't handle the bearing speed and heat, and Red Line CV-2 worked.

When I think about it you are correct, the clutch is replaced because they have to drop the Tranny to replace the release bearing ...never upgraded the grease,,next time I will just replace the bearing but with new grease..is there a way to add grease without dropping the tranny??

Great information..

THANKS ALL

 

[FJ62INTX]

You didn't mention tires....

Are You using a good enough tire to work when You are in a bind off road?

You didn't mention the size or brand/style of tire...

Perhaps that could be upgraded and keep clutches and release bearings alive much longer?

Many off-road tires are good for highway and sand/multiple terrain and lots of miles