89 Trooper build advice

[ClarkGriswold]

My buddy has an 89 Trooper, as it sits now its sort of a POS but after seeing Pinkstons ride I now see the potential in that rig, I may be able to get it for a good price.

So my questions to you Isuzu gurus follow:confused: :
1) What are the motor swap options, what is the easiest to do with the least headaches that usually accompany a swap.

2)Independent 4x SAS with the Wagoneer D44 is what I have been leaning towards for the front, any other suggestions or options I have seen D60's on Troopers.

3)SOA in the rear with the 12 bolt Isuzu, any other options/suggestions?

4)What about gearing suggestions, would like to be able to crawl some and still run trails and mudbog also.

5)Steering box is the stocker strong enough or swap it out? would like to run 38's but 35-36's would be alright also.

This rig wouldnt see to much street use and would primarily be a trail machine for me to have some fun in. I would really appreciate any advice suggestions to the above and anything else also. Thanx!:)

[Pinkstonmm]

If the price is what you want then go for it. What engine is in it now? A wagoneer d44 would be a good choice if you are sticking with the trooper rear. If you want a dana 60 you should also find a 60 or 14 bolt rear. For gearing it kinda depends on what you have and what you want to do. Im real happy with my 4.56s and v8, but of course 5.13s would be nice. You can also regear the t-case or swap in a new transmission and t-case with better gearing. I never had a problem with my stock trooper steering box. I switched to the scout box so I could push the axle forward more and it will also be easier to tap for hydro assist in the future.

[ClarkGriswold]

Nice thanx for the advice pinkston, I really like the way your rig looks man. I dl'd that vid of you and your bros wheelin, good lookin crew of trail rigs you guys have!

Motor swap would be the 1st thing I would tackle because as previously stated its sort of a POS as it sits now and knowing its history it wont be long til something else goes out. I believe it has the 2.6L in it right now. I have heard that these motors will work with the Isuzu 2.8L MUA5 trans or the auto equivilent cant think of its code. Here are the ones I have found.......:
Chevy: 3.1L V-6, 3.4L V-6, 3.8L V-6(FWD)
Oldsmobile: Aurora 4.0L DOHC V-8
Cadillac:4.1L V-8, 4.5L V-8, 4.9L Pushrod V-8, 4.5L DOHC Northstar V-8
Which of these are good and which are bad, as far as power, ease of install, aftermarket add ons etc.. I have no experience with any of these motors, yours looks like its got good power Pinkston and sounds pretty nice and healthy too. Thanks again guys for any help!

[Pinkstonmm]

All of those motors have the GM 60* bellhousing, same as the 2.8 that came in my trooper. I am not sure, but I think your 2.6 has a different bellhousing. You may need a different transmission and t-case as well if you decide to go with any of those.

[Indyguy]

1) What are the motor swap options, what is the easiest to do with the least headaches that usually accompany a swap.

Having the 2.6L Isuzu engine means you will be doing an entire drivetrain swap (engine/tranny/tcase) regardless of what you choose. The MUA5 behind the 2.6 only bolts up to the Isuzu 2.6 and 2.3L 4-bangers.


2)Independent 4x SAS with the Wagoneer D44 is what I have been leaning towards for the front, any other suggestions or options I have seen D60's on Troopers... would like to run 38's but 35-36's would be alright also.

You need to figure out what your ultimate goal is, then choose your parts accordingly. A D44 is going to handle 35's behind the stock engine. Drop in a V8, locker, and some 38" tires and D44 go *boom* if you romp on it. You can upgrade the shafts and u-joints to make a D44 rather strong, but its pricey. The terrain you wheel and your driving style have a lot to do with how long parts live as well.

3)SOA in the rear with the 12 bolt Isuzu, any other options/suggestions?

Options?... anything you want to drop underneith it. Suggestions: see above.



4)What about gearing suggestions, would like to be able to crawl some and still run trails and mudbog also.

Again, this is completely dependent on what tire size, engine, and t-case you are running.


5)Steering box is the stocker strong enough or swap it out?

OEM steering box is not bad, just limited in future upgrade options. I only know of one that has been tapped for hyrdo assist and it was a PITA to do compared to other, more common, boxes. If you can make it work with your SAS, I'd feel confident running 35-36's. But an Isuzu SAS is usually accompanied with extending the wheelbase forward 5+", so I don't know if you'll be able to work out steering with the stock box.

[ClarkGriswold]

Thanx for the responses guys I appreciate the advice
All of those motors have the GM 60* bellhousing, same as the 2.8 that came in my trooper. I am not sure, but I think your 2.6 has a different bellhousing. You may need a different transmission and t-case as well if you decide to go with any of those.
I had planned on using the 2.8L MUA5 transmission but will the 2.6L T-case mate to the 2.8L Trans., or will I be lookin for a T-case from a 2.8L also? Would the stock Trans. and T-case from a 2.8L hold up with 35"+ tires? Indy are you the guy who runs Independent4X? Just curious I am from Richmond originally and my p's live in Montpelier. Thanx again for the help Pinston and Indy!:D

[Indyguy]

I had planned on using the 2.8L MUA5 transmission but will the 2.6L T-case mate to the 2.8L Trans., or will I be lookin for a T-case from a 2.8L also?

The MUA5 has an integrated t-case, so it cannot be removed. You can remove the tailhousing, but the front half of the case is actually part of the transmission housing.



Would the stock Trans. and T-case from a 2.8L hold up with 35"+ tires?

The short answer is yes. The long answer resembles many of the answers from above... it depends what the rest of your drivetrain components are. 35's behind the stock motor would be no problem. Build up a 400 hp V8 and who knows? They are good tranny's and the tcases are stout gear-driven pieces(stronger than chain-driven), but they were designed to be used with 4-bangers and 'smaller' V6's.


Indy are you the guy who runs Independent4X?

No sir, that would be 'TrooperRS' on this board. My "Indy' is because I live in Indianapolis, not because I work for Independent4x (Matt should only be so lucky:laughing: )

[Roksamy]

My buddy dave is running 36" tsl's on his stock trooper 4 x ...and they fit:eek:

[paulevans76]

just takes some trimming and a little bfh 'massaging' to fit big meats on these rigs.

[Indyguy]

My buddy dave is running 36" tsl's on his stock trooper 4 x ...and they fit:eek:


A tire 'fitting' doesn't mean the front drivetrain is going to like it. I am going to venture a guess that Dave either doesn't use his Trooper very heavily off-road, or he does and goes through a handful of CV joints every year.:flipoff2:

[paulevans76]

my junk held up suprisingly well to some mild crawlin and trail beatings. you just gotta be lucky. for instance, i have had a ripped cv boot since i bought my troop about a year ago. 35's w/ stock auto hubs (click like a sob) stock everything up front. just bj flip, no sway bar, no bumpstops, and a little crank. i'm afraid if I tried to change the cv boot then I'd jinx it and things would start breaking :flipoff2:

but anyway, dont mess with it if you dont have to. and if you do, SAS it :D

[ClarkGriswold]

Thanx for the advice guys we will have to see what happens. His wife is throwin a bit of a wrench in the gears right now about the price, its an 89 with 170+k miles and right now it doesnt run, seems like it aint worth much the way it sits now but you know how women can be about this type of thing, I was thinkin around 500 bucks would be fair to him and me the way it sits now not runnin and all. She said something about 1000 and I laughed some but I dunno what do you guys think.

[Pinkstonmm]

Personally I would not give them more than 500 even if it was running, but im a cheap bastard. If you are planning on swaping motors, transmission, axles, and all that good stuff just go out and find a beat ass trooper that doesnt run for a couple hundred bucks.

[kobyhud]

Uhh... I tapped my box for hydro assist as well. No, it is not hard. Yes it works fine... in fact I am surprised.. it handles big tires better than the saginaw box we tapped for hydro. Its reasonably responsive and solved many issues for me.

Hydro assist ROCKS.

I had rocklogic4x4 do mine. They are local to me. They took really good care of me... I was able to get my complete assist done with ram tabs and tapping and porting with tubing for a total less than $350. I have a minor leak in my power steering but considering that I didn't replace any of the seals I am very pleased.

[ClarkGriswold]

How does that hydro assist work anyways:confused: ? I have seen a few pics but I cant tell if their is a lever you have to work in addition to turning the wheel or what just curious, thanx!:p

Oh I had dinner with my buddy and his wife and she still is thinking to much for the trooper, my buddy and I were thinking about the same but she wants money I suppose. Its his truck but yet she can still set the price and she will get he money in the end too, man I feel sorry for that poor bastard his wife is mean!:flipoff2: Guess thats why i dont have one, a wife that is LoL!:shaking:

[CPOM]

hydro assist is when you make modifications to your ps pump for more output, tap holes in the steering box to run lines to a small reversible ram mounted on your tierod. The ram I think is controlled by the area you are tapping in the steering box (so the ram pushes in the direction you are steering). This negates the use of levers and valves common on "full hydro" setups. I know those basics from just reading these forums, but if you search you can find many articles and post on it. You might find some pics on www.isuzu4x.com rob g's site who did one to an isuzu box.

[ClarkGriswold]

Nice thanx i get it now, makes total sense now.:)