94 V6 Surf various mod advice required

paule · Post by **paule** » Sat Sep 15, 2007 5:08 pm

Hey finally time to do sum work to me 94 v6 IFS surf. Its going to be my work wagon as im a mobile auto electrician and i do work out in the country, bush and town (multi purpose). Ive loaded almost all my gear into the rear and its sitting 10mm of bumps. Ive ordered higher and stronger Dobi springs for the rear, so hoping to go at least back to standard height or higher. I was wondering if 33x12.5x15 tyres will clear under (widebody surf) and fit standard 15x7JJ-8 rims??? Im not sure bout replacing shocks yet as factory electric ajustables seem to be workn fine. I also plan to fit a lockright to the rear as the IFS is not to flash even in the sanddunes. Any advice would would be great.

paule · Post by **paule** » Sat Sep 15, 2007 5:22 pm

Hey was also wondering about fuel economy, what does anyone else get???

Mattman · Post by **Mattman** » Sat Sep 15, 2007 6:33 pm

You will probably need a body lift to fit 33's. I am running a 2in suspension and 2in body lift and they just clear in the front.

The V6's are pretty thirsty from what I have read/seen/heard.

The factory shocks will probably be shagged by now, they are 13 years old so will have certainly worn a lot. OME shocks are pretty reasonably priced and perform well.

Matt.

paule · Post by **paule** » Sat Sep 15, 2007 6:54 pm

So 33's r 2 big? I dont want to do body lift yet, i think it might make it too high to easy work out of all day. How high does your tail gail sit when open? Im getting 435km a tank of fuel, about 19cents a km.

rangimotors · Post by **rangimotors** » Sat Sep 15, 2007 7:37 pm

I had 32 mtr's on my surf with no lift and no problems. Whats your diff code? i ask because i had a rear lsd which arent great but its cheap and easy to get them tightened up and they work well, then you can run a front locker. Just an idea

paule · Post by **paule** » Sat Sep 15, 2007 7:55 pm

Code is G254 so no LSD. Would be keen on 1 but paying for one vs locker id ratha just pay a bit more, wot u recon. Know any good easy mods?

rangimotors · Post by **rangimotors** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 12:15 am

I honestly think you would get further with a locker in the front, my back wheels were pretty good at getting traction (did have a lsd but standard they are not flash) but with the IFS i just kept lifting a front wheel and found i was going no where. Only issue is you might find the front locker a bit hard on cv joints.. Im sure im not the best person to ask some hopefully some of the others will get involved.

Mattman · Post by **Mattman** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 7:08 am

To gain a little extra travel in the front you can trim the bumpstops down and disconnect the swaybar when you go offroad.

The swaybar actually makes a bit of difference allowing each wheel to move independently a little more.

Matt.

paule · Post by **paule** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 7:26 am

I have been reading on yota about front balljoint spacers, i will prob do this. Most recon not to wind torsions up more than 1inch max. I i trim the bump stops it may be a issue for wof at some time, even spacers could be a problem for wof.

Im fitting heavier/higher rear coils. Im looking to fit larger wheels, 33's??? mb cant clear without body lift.

Rear locker will b easiest fit i think, i only do a mainly gravel, grass, sand and a bit of mud (no snork or winch yet)

SupraLux · Post by **SupraLux** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 8:11 am

The auto-lockers engage under load - so if you carry a bit of weight in the back of your truck then you might find it stays locked quite a bit. Especially with bigger tyres which will mean you will need your foot harder down to get the truck moving. As already mentioned I would go wit ha front locker rather than a rear as the offroad help it will provide will be similar, but without the onroad behavior you associate with a rear one. Use it in conjunction with one or a set of manual hubs to stop any possible locking while on-road (as locked front wheels are scarier than rears when cornering on a hard surface).

33's should fit with a body lift, with will most likely scuff without one - if you're not prepared to do it then I'd go with smaller tyres... they will also stuff up your fuel economy (I use the word economy loosely since its a V6

)

Steve

UBZ · Post by **UBZ** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 1:13 pm

I agree with Matt about replacing the stock shocks.

I fitted a full OME 2" lift to my Surf (Shocks,Springs,Torsion bars) and I have noticed an incredible difference in handling, on and off the road .

In the front, I have Trimmed the lower bump stops to get a little more down travel, and added 1" Ball joint spacers to the top, which gives an extra 1" of compression travel. I have lowered the front diff 1" to reduce CV angles.Also I disconnect the front sway bar for off road use.

In the rear I have added 1 1/2" coil spacers and a 3" panhard rod drop bracket to get the diff center after the lift. I have removed the rear sway bar and fitted a bracket to get the brake proportion valve to work correctly.

This setup gives me roughly a 3" Suspension lift

As far as I am aware the balljiont spacers, coil spacers and Panhard drop bracket require a CERT. I only went with a 1" balljiont spacer as any bigger means cutting into the upper control arm and no CERT.

I plan to do a 2" body lift next, then 33s and 4.88 diffs

Petemcc · Post by **Petemcc** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 1:33 pm

I have a v6 surf running 2inch bodylift 2 inch rear coil lift wound up tortion bars 33's 4.8 ratio diffs and auto lokkers front and rear. You will fit 32's without the body lift and your standard rims should be fine.

Go the lokkers they are the best mod i have done. Rear can be abit of a pain when on the road but you get used to it. I would probably to front first then rear but its 6 of 1 half a dozen of the other.

If you want a cert then balljoint spacers would be good but then you may as well get a body lift and 33's. If you don't want a cert then just wind up the tortion bars.

I have removed my rear sway bar and fitted shocks out of the front of a 60 seriers cruizer to the rear of my surf. they are great and with the rear swaybar out you get an extra inch or so of travel with them. especially if you are carring heavy loads new shocks will make it a completely different vehicle and are a must to do.

The front suspension is crap and in my opinion there isn't much point in trying to get any more travel out of it. just go for a little bit more momentum or get a lokker. leave the front sway bar in you will notice it on the road.

I get about 15L per 100k on a good day.

Pete
(excuse the spelling i cant be bothered proof reading that :lol:

)

paule · Post by **paule** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 8:19 pm

Thanx alot guys. Gives me sumthing to think about. As it is a work truck at the moment and weekend warrior i will do the:
-rear springs with 50mm lift DOBIS
-wind up front torsions to match
-fit new rear shocks (possibly adjustable ranchos??? wot ur thoughts???),
-look for a good deal on 32's, they will fit rims 15x7JJ-8 8inch wide???
-fit rear locker as best deal on these i think???
-disconnect rear sway bar
-make my own from winchbar and find a good winch.

SupraLux · Post by **SupraLux** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 9:43 pm

paule wrote:Thanx alot guys. Gives me sumthing to think about. As it is a work truck at the moment and weekend warrior i will do the:
-rear springs with 50mm lift DOBIS
-wind up front torsions to match
-fit new rear shocks (possibly adjustable ranchos??? wot ur thoughts???),
-look for a good deal on 32's, they will fit rims 15x7JJ-8 8inch wide???
-fit rear locker as best deal on these i think???
-disconnect rear sway bar
-make my own from winchbar and find a good winch.

15x7 will fit 32x10.5 and maybe 32x11.5 - anything wider and you need 8's... i'd normally say 10.5 is as wide as you'd want on 7" rims for a road-going truck...

Double check your Dobis are 50mm lift - the distributors claim only 35.

Rear shocks - Ranchos are expensive... do you need them? A good long-travel big bore shock will do the job well. The ones Pete runs are a good example.

Rear locker - Tim (Suzolla on here) or Rik (4wd Accessories - Chch) should have something in stock for you... Lokka or Lock Rite or Detroit... all the same thing (well, not, but to all intents and purposes they are). Is yours a 2 or 4 pinion? 4-pinion 8" you'll need to talk to Tim I think as the Lokka brand does not have a current 4-pinion model that I'm aware of.

Steve

Steve

Petemcc · Post by **Petemcc** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 10:33 pm

SupraLux wrote:
Rear shocks - Ranchos are expensive... do you need them? A good long-travel big bore shock will do the job well. The ones Pete runs are a good example.

Steve

Steve

adjustables would be sweet but if you are carrying alot of weight you should find the cruiser ones are ok. They are pretty stiff if you aren't loaded up though as they are made for the front of a heavier truck.

I went for the munro adventurers and have been happy with them so far. aparently if you are going munro then don't get anything other than the adventurers, not sure why but someone told me that. they are nice and cheap anyway.

Pete

rangimotors · Post by **rangimotors** » Mon Sep 17, 2007 3:33 pm

Yea i had 32/11.5 tyres on my factory wheels. I was looking for a set of 15x8 rims though they are not expensive

paule · Post by **paule** » Wed Sep 19, 2007 9:39 pm

Fitted new Dobis to rear on Tues, gone to approx 30mm over height before i loaded it up with all my work gears. Removed rear sway bar, didnt even notice it was gone after HD springs were fitted. If bought new 32 12.5 rims and tyres and just waiting to turn up so i can c if i need a body lift.