Time to upgrade. (1 Viewer)

[SirJester]

Just sent this email to Slee asking for their feedback, but I thought I should ask you what you guys think.

Note: 1997 LC80, 160,000 miles, factory locking hubs.

......

On a road trip last week my father was driving my 1997 Land Cruiser that I was planning on building into an overlanding rig. I believe he hydroplaned and while sawing at the wheel he hit the asphalt and things went horribly awry. The result is, I believe, a shattered knuckle and/or bearings.

As an added bonus he most likely cooked the brake fluid and ruptured the line to the rear brakes.


All of this having been said and the axiom ‘never fix it, improve it’; What do you suggest I do?


Broken front:

What is the best replacement for the knuckle and bearing up front?

Would it make sense to replace the axles at this time? (How much extra work to add that.)

Anything else I should upgrade?


Busted Brakes:

Is there a stainless kit that includes all the lines? (including to lines to the rear?)

Is there a good kit to upgrade the brakes? (Is there really an improvement?)


Suspension:

I had plans to lift my rig by ~3” on OME, any time savings doing it now while the front is under repair?



Any other suggestions to fix/upgrade while I have it up on stands and in surgery?

 

[ewillis]

Once you get it on stands...everything is coming out: knuckles, axles, flanges, bearings, seals, etc. You won't know what exactly you'll need until it's all apart. Give @cruiseroutfit a jingle...he'll have everything you need including brake lines, etc. from there.

 

[IoN6]

Need to pull the wheel and see what is going on. Everything else is going to be pure speculation.

 

[mct75]

And post pics!

 

[SirJester]

Thanks for the reply! I see that I was ambiguous in my question... let me rephrase. Regardless of it is is broken or not what could I upgrade when I pull the front apart. Parts cost is not a concern but my limited time is, so if there is a part I pull out I have no interest in putting it back unless its the best and it's failures are not ,within reason, age related.

 

[SirJester]

Vis-a-vis pics: This is the desert recovery:

 

[jdayment]

Does it have front and rear lockers? If not might be advantageous to just swap both front and rear axles with locked diffs.

 

[IoN6]

Those "factory locking hubs" sure appear to be factory drive flanges...

As for upgrades it depends on your end goal for the rig. End goal being more detailed than "~3 OME lift".

 

[Hornd]

Sell it, and get him a boat

 

[ewillis]

You can be a pioneer and do us all a favor by upgrading to these FJ80 Keyed Hi Steer Kit (Pre-order) along with a set of Tundra brakes and calipers! Take lots of pics and share your feedback!

 

[IanB]

Those "factory locking hubs" sure appear to be factory drive flanges...

Agreed, I'm sure he meant 3X locked and just mixed up the terminology.

 

[Tools R Us]

Hard to say without pix of the knuckle, but guess would be; knuckle nuts not tight, fell out and/or wheel bearings?

 

[2fpower]

I'm with @Tools R Us wheel bearings/hub failure.

My answer on what to do is to do a full rebuild kit (with bearings) from a mud vendor (I get mine from Kurt at cruiseroutfitters). Given the damage, I have a feeling you will need new Spindles too.

 

[SirJester]

As I noted this is to become an overlanding rig. It currently has the factory lockers which had never been engaged before I got the rig. (I'm the second owner and until me it was a 100% mall cruiser.) I recently lost my leg in a motorcycle accident so I am selling my manual transmission 2013 Rubicon so funds is not really an issue. Here is the plan:


Front Bumper with Warn Winch and a few million lumens of led lights.
3" OEM lift
(I didn't have the Tacoma Brakes on this list... but I might now.)
35" MT tyres on 17" Rims
6BT Motor Swap
Secondary Fuel Tank
Roof Top Tent
Inverter / On Board Air / Water Purification / ~30 liters of water storage - Integrated into chassis.
Rear Bumper with another million lumens of light and spare tyre.
Remove rear seats and replace with custom cabinet with integrated kitchen.
Satellite Radio / HAM Radio / CB Radio / LTE Hotspot

Open for ideas!

Alex

 

[Tedward]

Cup holders!

 

[mechanist]

Tundra brakes - not Tacoma

May I suggest an IPOR skid plate? It will help offset the weight of the roof top tent while also affording additional protection underneath. Heavy weight up top moves the center of gravity.

Have you looked at ICON suspension? The ICON approach looks like a great fit for an expedition/overland rig.

Whose bumpers are you looking at?

Man-a-fre has a 45gal fuel tank for the factory location. I think they also have an aux tank kit enabling you to have 65+ gallons of fuel without interfering with clearance. This will also help offset the weight of the rooftop tent.

 

[VuickB6]

Cup holders is always the correct answer.

 

[SirJester]

@mechanist thanks! I love the idea of an improved skid plate. On my Rubicon that is the only item that was damaged while traversing it's namesake. I can only imagine the chaos to the running gear had it not been there.

I'll check on the ICON though I have always been a OME enthusiast. (Even built my own setup with OME on my Jeep.)

As to the bumpers I know very little. All my previous mods have been Jeep related but now due to my limited mobility I am moving from OFF-ROAD to Off-Road / Overlanding and I think the LC is the perfect platform.

On the cup holder situation... I don't get the obsession that Americans have with eating and drinking in their cars. Sorry @VuickB6 and @Tedward I have all the cup holding aparati I need.

 

[VuickB6]

Apparently jokes aren't your thing.

 

[SirJester]

Also @mechanist and @ewillis , I assume that this only applies to the front brakes? The rear stays stock and the front get the new hi-steer kit and a brake kit? Will the TDR set fit, it there value in this?