Offroad-Express

Here is the bits 4 hits cart for the stuff required...

Front Axle Drop Brackets & Strut Spacer Bundle
$199.55
Rear Axle Spacer and Prop Spacer Bundle AxleSpPropSp
$108.14
Shock Repositioners / Spacers
$41.71
Camber Bolts - 12mm
$28.32
- Remove Item Discount: $0.00
Subtotal: $377.73
Total Weight: 7.149Kg Shipping:

Basket Total: $470.42
Australian dollars

$617 NZD

On top,
Cobra springs
$400
Commodore Shock absorbers
$150?
Body lift
Trademe $250

Total
$1417 NZD


Without the drop brackets,

Rear Axle Spacer and Prop Spacer Bundle
$108.14
Shock Repositioners / Spacers
$41.71
Camber Bolts - 12mm
$28.32
Strut Spacers 2.25" Steel Plate
$61.80

Basket Total: $332.66
Australian Dollars

$437 NZD

On top,
Cobra springs
$400
Commodore Shock absorbers
$150?
Body lift
Trademe $250

Total
$1237 NZD


This option has stock front struts, therefore the articulation is not quite as good as an option with full length struts?

Interesting about the commodore rear shocks...

VL shocks are what you need.

crzyfl wrote:How is the front? Do you think the spacer would be better than the strut flip?

Bit confused about the 'Commodore rear shocks extra 55mm down'
does this mean standard commodore rear shocks? any specific years of commodore?

Sorry man, haven't had much time lately.

The strut filp gives you +19mm down travel, OME struts I think are +30mm down and the strut extender is between 40mm-57mm down depending on which one you buy. I have +50mm extenders and no sway bar, I really noticed the difference over standard. From my experience you'll need to drop the front diff or leave positive camber on the front wheels to save the cv's.

Yes standard Commodore rear shocks, I think they're also used on the Ssanyong Korando. They give an extra 55mm down travel over the standard shocks. The Monroe part number is D7640.

I've just found some crush tubes that should work in the rear shocks, you can have them but you'll need to measure the std length so I can cut them to length. PM me if you want them.

Hi,
If this is any help, this is what I've done to my SWB V6.
Old Man Emu Grand Vit LWB shocks & springs , Bit's 4 Vit's 1.5" lift kit + rear axle / prop spacer kit.
I didn't use the front strut spacer's as the strut flip looked better way of getting lift, I'm just waiting on the V6 front axle drop bracket's, they should be here next week.

Foxtee wrote:I didn't use the front strut spacer's as the strut flip looked better way of getting lift, I'm just waiting on the V6 front axle drop bracket's, they should be here next week.

Hey Foxtee, nice truck. The strut top flip doesn't actually give you lift. It increases the down travel of the wheel but I suspect this is what you were meaning? It is a common method for increasing the down travel but I chose not to do this as the rubber bush in the strut top works better up the right way. The strut spacer to me looks easier to fit than the strut top flip but costs more but also gives more down travel. Another issue is that the strut spacers if not made correctly can be weaker, in saying that I haven't had a bent one yet and I've had a couple of big knocks on the front end.

There's pro's and con's for each way.

Hi everyone,
and thanks for all the good advice. Picked up Suzuki last night, from a nice grey nomad couple. Pissed down all the way home from Aux (four hours).

I have decided to go with;

V6 vitara springs - Mudbits $200
VL shockies - Auction still running
Strut spacers on front - Low range Offroad $40 USD + shipping
Rear control arm drop bracket - Low range Offroad $40 USD + shipping

I got a good deal on alloys with -100mm offset $400 mud bits

The trade me body lift kit.

I was quite prepared to go the full hog and spend $$ on the suspension kit, but have been flip flopping between the pricier options, and getting more of the project completed. Have used all of the Hilux money up, and need to wait for the Subaru to sell for more cash, but Wifey decided that she wants her Kombi fixed up to sell as it is essentially just filling the car port.

Long story short. I went with the cheaper option, hope I don't regret it.

I have a quote from Traxion.co.nz who were obliging, and also from ARB in Palmy, also good to deal with. Ironman have not responded to my emails yet. Still intending to post all the options up here to help others in the same position as me. Low range off road were great as they have an online shipping calc, which helps.

Incidentally there is oil pissing out of the Suzuki making big pools wherever I park. The people I bought it off said it had seepage from the timing cover seal.

Is this a major to fix? I'm guessing it means replacing a gasket. Where is the timing cover? It is hard to see where the oil is coming from as it is everywhere.

Also still need information about certification rules.

One other thing, for an 8v 1.6 SWB vitara, what would the rpm at 100 (110 actually) km be? seemed to be pretty steady at 4000 RPM on the flat.

The oil leak will either be a rear main or the front crank seal. The first one is a gearbox out job, but the second one just means removing radiator, fan, waterpump and crank pulleys and drive belts. Once you have done this, remove the black plastic timing belt cover and inspect.
For a more detailed how-to, look here:http://www.auszookers.com/index.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=26098

Ok,
and with the -100mm offset rims I will need some kind of flares in order to gain certification?

I read on here that someone used jeep flares with a trim up. Has anyone done that with a vitara?

What other options are there for flares that will fit the vitara?

-100 offset rims! Are you serious? I hope you like changing wheel bearings... For flares just find some rubber sheet and screw it to the guards. The tread of the tyre must not be visible from the top looking down.

zukmeista wrote:-100 offset rims! Are you serious? I hope you like changing wheel bearings...

4wd Urban myth........
some where on Auszookers is a thread where the load factors and tolerances of wheels bearings are explained and that offset has little to do with premature wear and failure .

UBZ wrote:

zukmeista wrote:-100 offset rims! Are you serious? I hope you like changing wheel bearings...

4wd Urban myth........
some where on Auszookers is a thread where the load factors and tolerances of wheels bearings are explained and that offset has little to do with premature wear and failure .

Read that Auszookers forums and they have got it wrong. Bearings on front hubs are sensitive to bearing spacing and where the load is applied in relation to where the bearings are. I designed a bearing system for a machine and ended up having to spread the bearings apart to reduce the load on them. This is caused by the load creating a moment around each bearing much like a lever on loping shears vs the lever on scissors. This can be proved mathmatically.

Wheel bearings on vitaras are very close together on the front hubs so wide offset rims could cause concern for bearing wear.

Rear semi floating axles are less prone to this seeing as the bearing spacing is very wide, e.g.one at the wheel and one at the side of the diff.
I'm not sure how full floaters are set up.

Oh and Vitara's used angular contact ball bearings as opposed to the more common tapered roller bearings. The angular contact can take half the load of the tapered roller at best when like sizes are compared.

So be careful with the large offset rims and keep an eye on your front wheel bearings.

crzyfl wrote:....
Strut spacers on front - Low range Offroad $40 USD + shipping
Rear control arm drop bracket - Low range Offroad $40 USD + shipping
....

I had our strut spacers fabricated, drew up the top/bottom template in auto cad and sent that to a profile cutter. Cost to our door was about $80. Then got them welded up by a friendly local fitter/welder. A bit of paint and they fitted perfectly. May be an option for you - I still have the cad file if you want a copy.

And subsequently replaced the spacers with OME extended travel struts, so I think they are sitting at home somewhere.

The diff spacer we also had made up, a 50mm one by Loppee and a subsequent 75mm one by the friendly local fitter/welder gratis.

What are you doing for recovery points?

CRZYFL, I think you are probably mistaken or misunderstanding about the -100mm offset rims. Mine are -30mm and they stick out quite a bit. The ones from mudbits are more likely to be -10mm.

This is what I bought from mud bits (his own words from the auction).

Now, that you point it out, It strikes me that maybe the 'backspace' is not the same as 'offset'. I had been reading up, and found that the terms seemed to be used interchangeably... F#$%,

Suzuki Alloy Wheels
15x7.5 thats 15" x 7 .5 inch wide
5x139.7 PCD
Backspace 107mm
Set of 4
Come with 4 caps not pictured.
Very rare to find Suzuki alloys this wide.

They came off an Escudo Vitara but will also fit most other Suzuki 4x4 with 15 inch rims.

Anyway, I will measure what the offset on these actually is, right now the little Zuk is up on blocks while I put the body lift in.

Wheel Backspacing and Offset


Print

Before mounting a set�of aftermarket wheels, there are some dynamics involved with fitment that are best to understand first.

1. Wheel Diameter. This is the diameter of the wheel. Stock wheels are commonly 15 or 16 inch diameter. This dimension is usually in 1 increments (i.e. 15, 16, 17) but some manufacturers offer 16.5, which is rare.

2. Wheel Width. This is the width of the wheel, measured inside the outer lip of the wheel. This dimension is usually in 1/2 increments (i.e. 7.5,

3. Wheel Center.�This is the center of the wheel in relation to the width.

4. Offset. The distance from the centerline of the wheel to the face of the mounting surface of the wheel that contacts the hub.

4.1 Zero Offset. Indicates the mounting surface is at the wheel center.

4.2. Negative Offset.� Indicates the mounting�surface is behind (or inboard) the centerline of the rim. This is often found on standard rear-wheel-drive vehicles and on so-called reversed rims. (Diagram below shows negative offset)

4.3 Positive Offset. Indicates the mounting�surface is�in front of�(or outboard) the centerline of the rim. This is often found on front-wheel-drive vehicles. Stock Tacoma wheels have Positive offset.

5. Backspacing. The distance from the mounting surface to the inside�lip of the�wheel. This measurement is closely related to offset (without actually measuring, backspacing is about equal to [Wheel Width / 2] + [Offset] + [about 1/4] ).

6. Centerbore. The centerbore of a wheel is the size of the machined hole on the back of the wheel that centers the wheel properly on the hub of the car. This hole is machined to exactly match the hub so the wheels are precisely positioned, minimizing the chance of a vibration. This measurement may be critical to clear the hubs of a 4WD.

7. Bolt Circle. Also known as PCD (Pattern Circle Diameter). The bolt circle represents the diameter of an imaginary circle that goes through the center of the bolt holes. 4x2 Tacoma�Bolt Circle: 5 lug on 4.5 PCD; 4x4/Prerunner Tacoma Bolt Circle: 6 lug on �5.5�PCD.

The wheels measure 220mm across, distance from inside to wheel mounting surface is 115mm. This means zero offset I think.

BTW,

What speed would the auto gearbox be on a 93, I think it is 3 speed, my mate has a helly hanson that is definitely four speed.

Also what is the difference between a helly hanson and standard trim?