You'll like that exhaust. I had Ed Hanson build my 3" cat back exhaust four years ago.
Builds Ochenta sin Nombre Moves to San Diego (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter perrobravo
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perrobravo
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #22
ISSPRO EV2 EGT and boost gauges in and operating!
Drilled and tapped the exhaust manifold, then threaded in the thermocouple
Did the same with the boost sensor
Fabricated (using that term very loosely) ABS gauge pods and wedged them in between the dash and windshield. A more permanent/elegant mounting solution will come later, but for now this should work.
While the hood was open, I also threw in the H4 LED bulbs I picked up on a whim (OPT7 Fluxbeam LED...bought from Amazon)
Haven't had a chance to test in the dark, but first impressions are good. They plugged right in and are certainly more white than the OEM bulbs.
Drilled and tapped the exhaust manifold, then threaded in the thermocouple
Did the same with the boost sensor
Fabricated (using that term very loosely) ABS gauge pods and wedged them in between the dash and windshield. A more permanent/elegant mounting solution will come later, but for now this should work.
While the hood was open, I also threw in the H4 LED bulbs I picked up on a whim (OPT7 Fluxbeam LED...bought from Amazon)
Haven't had a chance to test in the dark, but first impressions are good. They plugged right in and are certainly more white than the OEM bulbs.
perrobravo
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #23
A couple small updates
Cranked up the boost a bit with a simple boost controller. Combining ~14 PSI with the 3" exhaust may not result in winning too many drag races, but it does feel better and you can hear the turbo spooling up a lot more than before (street cred coming my way). Need more time to see the impact if any on EGTs.
Also had the windows tinted to cut down on glare and heat and to provide a bit of privacy. Chose 18% rear, 35% fronts. Pretty happy with the results and increased comfort.
Next up:
1. Tires...33s on order
2. Lift/suspension...research/decision-making in progress
3. Tie rod ends...noticed some cracked rubber, but will wait until the lift is on
Cranked up the boost a bit with a simple boost controller. Combining ~14 PSI with the 3" exhaust may not result in winning too many drag races, but it does feel better and you can hear the turbo spooling up a lot more than before (street cred coming my way). Need more time to see the impact if any on EGTs.
Also had the windows tinted to cut down on glare and heat and to provide a bit of privacy. Chose 18% rear, 35% fronts. Pretty happy with the results and increased comfort.
Next up:
1. Tires...33s on order
2. Lift/suspension...research/decision-making in progress
3. Tie rod ends...noticed some cracked rubber, but will wait until the lift is on
perrobravo
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #24
Had the new tires mounted up and hit some local trails to try them out. Options are somewhat limited in 15" and I didn't feel like making a wheel decision now, so thought I'd give the General Grabber X3 tires a try.
Went with 33x10.5-15
Pretty aggressive tread
Headed up a local trail to get them dirty.
So far so good. For sure these make a bit more noise on the road, but the truck is pretty noisy in general, so not an issue. Feels a bit slower from a stop, but I assume I'll get used to that after a few days. Looking forward to more trail time and seeing how these things do aired down.
Went with 33x10.5-15
Pretty aggressive tread
Headed up a local trail to get them dirty.
So far so good. For sure these make a bit more noise on the road, but the truck is pretty noisy in general, so not an issue. Feels a bit slower from a stop, but I assume I'll get used to that after a few days. Looking forward to more trail time and seeing how these things do aired down.
perrobravo
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #25
Suspension bits installed! With a couple small glitches, everything in the Icon Stage 1 3" kit went in pretty easily. Many thanks to @Dan2722 for lending me the 12T jack stands and for recommending the Icons. Couldn't have done the installation without those taller jack stands.
Came home from the quick trail run mentioned above and found a pile of boxes goodies had been delivered
Front springs for comparison. OEM on the left, shiny new Icon on the right
The holes in Icon's anti-sway bar spacer are spaced a bit wide. Maybe it is a JDM thing. Will need to figure out a solution.
All clean and shiny!
End result: The front went up 2.75", the rear 3.25" (the truck is more level than how it appears in this pic)
The truck feels super-smooth on the road. Very nice! Obviously anxious to see how it does on dirt.
Next up:
1. Caster correction bushings (bushing and press tools came with the Icon kit)
2. Tie rod ends from @cruiseroutfit
3. Brakes pads, rotors on the front
Came home from the quick trail run mentioned above and found a pile of boxes goodies had been delivered
Front springs for comparison. OEM on the left, shiny new Icon on the right
The holes in Icon's anti-sway bar spacer are spaced a bit wide. Maybe it is a JDM thing. Will need to figure out a solution.
All clean and shiny!
End result: The front went up 2.75", the rear 3.25" (the truck is more level than how it appears in this pic)
The truck feels super-smooth on the road. Very nice! Obviously anxious to see how it does on dirt.
Next up:
1. Caster correction bushings (bushing and press tools came with the Icon kit)
2. Tie rod ends from @cruiseroutfit
3. Brakes pads, rotors on the front
perrobravo
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #27
Chipping away at some necessities
Did the front pads, rotors, seals, bearing repack and general cleanup
Installed a cheap transmission cooler (later straightened a bit) until I can gather the parts needed for an OEM cooler
Icon caster correction bushings in, new tie rod ends from @cruiseroutfit , and a Tough Dog steering stabilizer for good measure (Thanks @reevesci for the quick turnaround on this one!)
To celebrate all of the above and just for fun, I took the truck into the wilderness above San Diego, pulled out my chair, and enjoyed an adult beverage!
The truck is feeling really solid overall. Need to figure out why the AC works only here and there, track down a small diesel leak on startup, and maybe get the stereo figured out (or at least use the gaping hole in the dash for something else). There's always something more to work on, but I guess that's part of the fun.
Did the front pads, rotors, seals, bearing repack and general cleanup
Installed a cheap transmission cooler (later straightened a bit) until I can gather the parts needed for an OEM cooler
Icon caster correction bushings in, new tie rod ends from @cruiseroutfit , and a Tough Dog steering stabilizer for good measure (Thanks @reevesci for the quick turnaround on this one!)
To celebrate all of the above and just for fun, I took the truck into the wilderness above San Diego, pulled out my chair, and enjoyed an adult beverage!
The truck is feeling really solid overall. Need to figure out why the AC works only here and there, track down a small diesel leak on startup, and maybe get the stereo figured out (or at least use the gaping hole in the dash for something else). There's always something more to work on, but I guess that's part of the fun.
perrobravo
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #28
Not satisfied with the light pattern coming out of the LED bulbs in original RHD housings, I opted to do an HID retrofit. Following others here, I ordered some Euro spec Depo housings from eBay a bunch of kit from The Retrofit Source (TRS) and started baking.
Bits and bobs to be installed
Morimoto D2S 4.0 projector in place in new Depo housing
Buttoned up, looking all chrome and shiny, dare I say modern?
On for the first time. Took some wrangling to get them aimed correctly, but they were pretty close right out of the workshop (my dining room)
With the H4 high/low now HID, I added an LED H1 bulb where the fogs would normally be on a JDM truck and now have a double brights with a crazy amount of light, all controlled with the factory stalk. And, the original fog light wiring (triggered from the OEM dash switch) is there waiting to be hooked up to a light bar or other auxiliary lights.
Bits and bobs to be installed
Morimoto D2S 4.0 projector in place in new Depo housing
Buttoned up, looking all chrome and shiny, dare I say modern?
On for the first time. Took some wrangling to get them aimed correctly, but they were pretty close right out of the workshop (my dining room)
With the H4 high/low now HID, I added an LED H1 bulb where the fogs would normally be on a JDM truck and now have a double brights with a crazy amount of light, all controlled with the factory stalk. And, the original fog light wiring (triggered from the OEM dash switch) is there waiting to be hooked up to a light bar or other auxiliary lights.
thedoughboy
SILVER Star
@perrobravo Did you have to modify the DEPO housing to get the Morimoto D2S 4.0 projectors to fit? Any other details on items purchased to make this happen would be greatly appreciated!
Nice work on the lights! One of the best upgrades I have done to the cruiser. The projectors just make a world of difference. In my old fog light location I got the brightest set of leds that was offered by the retrofit source and the outcome is just awesome! I definitely do not want to do this again. The high low beam is through the projector and I used a bow e46 shroud.
perrobravo
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #31
Great looking truck @ZeGerman !
@thedoughboy , I didn't do much modification to fit the TRS kit. Just a few tweaks. Here's what I bought:
1. Depo Euro housings from eBay
2. TRS Bi-Xenon D2S 4.0 projectors
3. E46-R shrouds
4. 50 watt D2S XB ballasts
5. D2S XB 4500K HID bulbs
6. MotoControl H4/9003 harness
7. OPT7 Fluxbeam LED bulbs
Here's the projector set in the Depo housing with the high beam wiring coming through an existing notch/hole.
Other than removing the clip that holds a conventional bulb in place there's really no modification required. On my 100 series, I had to spend a ton of time with the Dremel to get projectors to fit and align correctly. Very easy on these housings. I left off the silicone ring/washer TRS supplies to go between the projector. Leaving it off gave me an addition millimeter or two between the projector and the glass of the Depos without further modification. Seemed a lot easier than alternatives I'd read about. So far no issues.
On the shrouds, I had to grind down the circled bits for them to fit on the projectors. Used silicone as others recommended to hold these in place.
Also had to hack off the tab circled below to get my grill back on. Maybe a JDM thing?
Other than that, no modifications I can think of. I was actually surprised how easy this was, especially for the major improvement in performance.
@thedoughboy , I didn't do much modification to fit the TRS kit. Just a few tweaks. Here's what I bought:
1. Depo Euro housings from eBay
2. TRS Bi-Xenon D2S 4.0 projectors
3. E46-R shrouds
4. 50 watt D2S XB ballasts
5. D2S XB 4500K HID bulbs
6. MotoControl H4/9003 harness
7. OPT7 Fluxbeam LED bulbs
Here's the projector set in the Depo housing with the high beam wiring coming through an existing notch/hole.
Other than removing the clip that holds a conventional bulb in place there's really no modification required. On my 100 series, I had to spend a ton of time with the Dremel to get projectors to fit and align correctly. Very easy on these housings. I left off the silicone ring/washer TRS supplies to go between the projector. Leaving it off gave me an addition millimeter or two between the projector and the glass of the Depos without further modification. Seemed a lot easier than alternatives I'd read about. So far no issues.
On the shrouds, I had to grind down the circled bits for them to fit on the projectors. Used silicone as others recommended to hold these in place.
Also had to hack off the tab circled below to get my grill back on. Maybe a JDM thing?
Other than that, no modifications I can think of. I was actually surprised how easy this was, especially for the major improvement in performance.
perrobravo
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #32
Completed two fun projects at once this weekend...stereo/speaker and a ham radio installations.
Went with a JVC KD-X330BTS paired with Pioneer speakers making this truck feel ultra-modern for not a ton of money. Then, convinced my dad to hand me down an Icom ID-5100A he wasn't using. Total cost for all of the above: ~US$250 plus a day messing around in the garage running wires, crimping, testing, and drinking adult beverages to keep hydrated.
First up was a set of 4 Pioneer speakers (rears pictured below) to replace the crusty originals
Out with the old...
Finished product
Unplugged the OEM amp (the lower two harnesses on the left behind the glove box)
While the dash was apart, I discovered this (tiny and now bypassed) speaker and thought it would be a good location for the ham speaker
Function over form, right? Fit easily, is completely hidden, and provides plenty of sound.
Used an antenna mount I bought for my 100 series a while back. Mounted to an existing bolt and allowed me to easily thread in a Diamond NMO antenna.
Decided to mount the Icom 5100 under the JVC unit mostly out of laziness. Shorter wire runs, no need to extend the mic and face plate cables, etc. Had to flip it over to give room behind for the antenna connector. Need to find a more permanent home for the Icom face plate and get a mic hanger, but otherwise the installation went pretty well...and everything even works!
Almost done.
Between the HIDs, bluetooth, hands free calling, iPhone connectivity, and the potential for D-Star communications, this old HDJ81 just landed in the 21st century. Well, aside from the lack of airbags, ABS, OBDII, traction control, and maybe a few other nice to haves!
Went with a JVC KD-X330BTS paired with Pioneer speakers making this truck feel ultra-modern for not a ton of money. Then, convinced my dad to hand me down an Icom ID-5100A he wasn't using. Total cost for all of the above: ~US$250 plus a day messing around in the garage running wires, crimping, testing, and drinking adult beverages to keep hydrated.
First up was a set of 4 Pioneer speakers (rears pictured below) to replace the crusty originals
Out with the old...
Finished product
Unplugged the OEM amp (the lower two harnesses on the left behind the glove box)
While the dash was apart, I discovered this (tiny and now bypassed) speaker and thought it would be a good location for the ham speaker
Function over form, right? Fit easily, is completely hidden, and provides plenty of sound.
Used an antenna mount I bought for my 100 series a while back. Mounted to an existing bolt and allowed me to easily thread in a Diamond NMO antenna.
Decided to mount the Icom 5100 under the JVC unit mostly out of laziness. Shorter wire runs, no need to extend the mic and face plate cables, etc. Had to flip it over to give room behind for the antenna connector. Need to find a more permanent home for the Icom face plate and get a mic hanger, but otherwise the installation went pretty well...and everything even works!
Almost done.
Between the HIDs, bluetooth, hands free calling, iPhone connectivity, and the potential for D-Star communications, this old HDJ81 just landed in the 21st century. Well, aside from the lack of airbags, ABS, OBDII, traction control, and maybe a few other nice to haves!
You don't want that crap. Its just more stuff that can brake and more electronics that can go wrong. You have a fully user serviceable vehicle in your possession.
I had the same JVC head unit. I think you will be very pleased with it. It just works flawlessly, especially with an iPhone.
Good cal on the HAM speaker location. Im definitely copying that one. I was just sitting in the cruiser wondering where to put it.
Any more info on the upgraded amp? I just removed everything from that location and was thinking of putting all the communications gear in there.
I love the icom!!
As far as the icom faceplate there are a few good solutions for this. My favorite solution is to put it high up on the windshield using a mirror riser. You can attach a ram ball mount to it. Just need to run the wires through the A-pillar. I have ripped out my old headliner and installed the solid piece from a 97. Pain in the a$$ but well worth it. It comes with a panel for the Apillar that you can remove to cleanly run wires.
If you look at some youtube videos from the expedition overland guys on how their rigs are set up, you can see the mirror risers in action. They have a couple rigs with the ICOM as well as an Spod. It does not obstruct their vision and is very accessible.
Mirror Riser
If you look at some youtube videos from the expedition overland guys on how their rigs are set up, you can see the mirror risers in action. They have a couple rigs with the ICOM as well as an Spod. It does not obstruct their vision and is very accessible.
Mirror Riser
Overlandeffex
SILVER Star
Nice speakers... I ended up using the three way version just had the cur the face of the plastic ring. Nice work on the ride!
perrobravo
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #36
Trying to keep the seats in decent condition, and keep up with @bushdoctor , I decided to get some Escape Gear seat covers. One call to @Equipt and they were on the way. Thanks, Paul!
Perfect fit!
Went on a drive up Mt. Otay to test them out. So far so good!
When I got home a bunch of parts from @beno arrived, so I decided to start on the timing belt replacement.
Took more than a Harbor Freight adjustable wrench to hold the cam, but eventually the cam timing pulley was off
While I was in there...water pump, radiator hoses, tensioner, etc. Surprisingly straight forward...
...until I broke a bolt installing the valve cover of all things.
Success at last! Even applied the sticker for posterity!
Perfect fit!
Went on a drive up Mt. Otay to test them out. So far so good!
When I got home a bunch of parts from @beno arrived, so I decided to start on the timing belt replacement.
Took more than a Harbor Freight adjustable wrench to hold the cam, but eventually the cam timing pulley was off
While I was in there...water pump, radiator hoses, tensioner, etc. Surprisingly straight forward...
...until I broke a bolt installing the valve cover of all things.
Success at last! Even applied the sticker for posterity!
I'm loving this build @perrobravo . And those seat covers are the real deal - Canvas texture ideal in the bush. Bushdoctor approved.
Outsane
Supporting Vendor
Nice build, hope to see you on the trail or streets
Have you found a source for a pillar gauge mount? Also is your truck r12 freon?
Trying to keep the seats in decent condition, and keep up with @bushdoctor , I decided to get some Escape Gear seat covers. One call to @Equipt and they were on the way. Thanks, Paul!
Perfect fit!
Went on a drive up Mt. Otay to test them out. So far so good!
When I got home a bunch of parts from @beno arrived, so I decided to start on the timing belt replacement.
Took more than a Harbor Freight adjustable wrench to hold the cam, but eventually the cam timing pulley was off
While I was in there...water pump, radiator hoses, tensioner, etc. Surprisingly straight forward...
...until I broke a bolt installing the valve cover of all things.
Success at last! Even applied the sticker for posterity!
Shoot! I live right by mount otay! You should pm your number for future trails!
