Pirate 4x4 banner

Lets see your expedition rigs!

3M views 2K replies 799 participants last post by  Refmech 
#1 · (Edited)
Title says it all, lets see what you got! This isn't mine, i'd like to build an m715 someday, anyways i think this one is awesome :smokin:
 
See less See more
1
#222 ·
that's awesome - did you do the interior work yourself?

You guys are so damn lucky - so much choice and stuff that we can't even get over here!

Yea I don't know - a lot of us with Swags reckon they are just as comfortable as our beds at home - but that could be the beer and late nights around the campfire talking haha.
 
#223 · (Edited)
I bought the seatcovers and i'm doing the rest myself.

Reminds me of the expression we have here.. "The grass is always greener on the other side" Personally wish i had access to some of the gear and the sights in your country. I'd kill for another Land Cruiser... a Troopy this time i think.

But if i can help you with an aquisition say the word.
 
This post has been deleted
#233 ·
Oh fuck, does the PBB über elite BS get tiresome over the years.

Here's an idea: just STFU.

TLCs - great place to start.

Depending on what you have in mind, can't go wrong with a FJ60, FJ80/LX450, FJ100/LX470. If you are "adventurous" import a RHD diesel from British Columbia (Japanese imports). If you are willing to go that route don't forget the 70 series as well.

There's a LX450 locally I've been eyeing but I don't know if I could live with sub 15 mpg on an on-going basis. Maybe as a weekend toy but I have enough weekend toys.

Jeep stuff, can't go wrong with an XJ. Dead reliable. Small though but will get better than 20 mpg when kitted out sanely and in good running spec. If you want SWB the TJs are reliable as well. YJs can be if you get a later one with EFI. The old stuff can be made as reliable. They're all pretty decent regardless.

There's SWB TLCs as well of course. FJ43 would be my choice if I could find one - would almost be the same as my old LWB SJ-413 (which I really miss some days).

Other Jeeps I've been eyeing are WJs (Grand Cherokees, 1999-2004). 2003 seems to be the sweet spot (rear LATCH and side air bags - still have small kids); Laredo V8 or Limited with Select-Trac is what I'd buy. The 4.7V8 gets the same fuel economy as the 4.0 so why not? Little more maintenance (more plugs to change) but that is splitting hairs at that point.

The TLCs are built like tanks. The Jeeps are lighter duty. How much "duty" you need is up to you.

I'm pretty happy with my XJ... but more kids on the way makes me think about larger vehicles.

HTH
 
#237 ·
I think a built up Sammi with a VW TDI swap would be more than capable of that. and I'd very much like to prove that once it's time to build a new rig.

The problem with Sammis is they are so damn small, you just about need a trailer for more than a day trip... but that's not the end of the world.

Personally, with all the wheeling that I enjoy being over 200 road miles from home it's going to by my only option to keep my hobby... I'm not going to be able to afford 50-60 gallons of fuel for a weekend of fun. 15-20 is a lot more livable even if it hits $10. On the expedition front it makes range a lot easier to deal with though.
 
#238 · (Edited)
Over on expeditionportal.com there is a guy with a Libby that posted a trip computer avg number of something like 32 mpg. Can't remember if he has over sized tires on the Jeep or not. Not verified - that said not surprised either. Keep it on cruise at around 100km/h I wouldn't be terribly surprised on stockish tires.

Tom H (old_man) over on NAXJA says he gets something like 22-24 mpg pushing 35s with his stroker. That's on 87/regular gas too.

IIRC the diesel Cruisers get in the low to mid 20s consistently with a light pedal.

My old Suzuki SJ-413 used to get high 20s on 33s (Imp mpg). But that is another experience if you will. Staying under 100km/h in a tin can in four lane highway traffic is not fun. LOL

FWIW, my XJ as it sits now on 235s and pushing a ARB bar on the front gets 21-22 mpg. Not sure what'll happen when the 33s go on.
 
#239 ·
well i drive a 5 speed 12v cummins, and i get about 30mpg under easy driving, wich sound skool, but with diesel being so much more, i would pay about the same in gas if i was getting a few mpg less. what abouts isuzu troopers? or dodge raiders? i do love the reliability of a 22r. i think a tpyota PU is still the best move. any thoughts?
 
#240 · (Edited)
In a gas powered full size the same vintage as your 12v Dodge you'd be lucky to break 20 mpg - ever. Thank your stars for the diesel.

Troopers and Raiders are cool. Some guys have built Troopers...IIRC there is a bunch of solid Isuzu stuff over at 4x4wire.com. The engine is a GM of some flavour depending on vintage. IFS so depending on what you have in mind that may be an issue - either to limit where you go or to start a mega SFA swap. Dodge Raiders (rebadged Mitsubishi) are just old at this point. Very little aftermarket support as well. Not even certain there is much in the replacement parts systems. Hey, if you like them go for it but it will be an uphill battle.

Personally, I feel a Jeep or a TLC is the way to go. If you plan to leave North America on expedition get a TLC over the Jeep. If there is a diesel version of the same truck you settle on go for the diesel.

If you stay in NA you can pretty much pick anything with little issue. I have no desires to go outside of NA (lived overseas before) so I went Jeep. That plus I wanted something newish versus dealing with a "restomod" (BT/dt - PITA). And something cheap to run vis-á-vis parts, spares, servicing, etc.

There's also Nissans and Rovers. Nissan Patrols are TLC grade equipment but very rare since they weren't imported to NA. There's the old hard body Nissans as well. Kinda small and under powered - about the same size as an XJ I guess. Rovers are really cool but they don't have the best reliability reputation. The Discoveries are hard to pass up at the prices they are asking (cheap!) but you will have issues with the engine at some point - just a matter of time. Re-engined with a SBF/SBC would be pretty neat. Love the trucks, just not the engine.

Toy mini stuff is bullet proof. 22R is a great engine. I don't fit in the Toy mini stuff so never delved into them much.

I like modern stuff. Look at stuff that is late 90s or newer unless you can fluke into something like a BJ62 that has been all gone through and up to spec. Where we are in the salt belt the newer the better.

HTH
 
#241 ·
You guys have some AMAZING rigs !!!! :eek:

I guess you can barely consider mine an expedition vehicle so far,
but I have alot of plans for it, and LOVE the aspect of the expedition setups.
It is also my daily driver, so I have to be careful how I set it up, none of this stuff makes it any lighter :(






2005 Wrangler TJ Rubicon
4.0L I6 Engine
6 Speed Manual Transmission
Rock-Trac 4:1 Transfer Case
Dana 44 Axles in Front & Rear
Air Lockers in Front & Rear
Hardened Drive Shafts & U-Joints
4.11:1 Gear Ratio
4 Wheel Disc Brakes
16" Rubicon Wheels
31" Goodyear MT/R Tires
Both Hard and Soft Tops
Rear Wiper & Defrost
7 Speaker Sound System
High Rock Rear Bumper
ARB Bull Front Bumper
Warn M8000 Winch
Dash Winch Control
Poison Spyder Rock Rails
Skid Row Oil Pan/Trans Skit Plate
JKS Quicker Disconnects
Uniden Pro520XL CB
Firestik II 4' Antenna
Custom Switch Panel
1650 Watts of Power Inverters
IPF Headlights & Fatboy Bulbs
35W HID Offroad Lights
Garvin Wilderness Roof Rack
Bestop Extendatrunk

~John
 
#242 ·
Here are some more of my mates - he's currently up in far north Queensland, Australia travelling around.



- 2007 Toyota Landcruiser 79 series trayback (4.5l TDV8 turbo diesel)
- Factory diff locks
- OME 2" suspension lift
- Firestone airbags for load levelling
- 33" BFG mud terrain tyres (incl 2 spares)
- dual batteries
- ARB bullbar and side rails
- Warn XD9000 winch
- Outback roof console with GME 3200 UHF
- Barrett 950 HF radio (to VKS737 4WD radio network)
- Motorola satellite phone on Iridium network
- Ipaq PDA with ozi-explorer for GPS mapping
- Tyredog tyre pressure monitor
- Mp3 stereo head unit, connected to reversing camera
- Boston Canopy on the tray. Fully fitted out with;
+ 40L Engel Fridge on fridge slide
+ food/kitchen drawers and drop down table
+ 2 burner gas cooker
+ 55L water tank with pump
+ storage drawers for recovery equipment and camping gear
+ Lots of space for swag, and other general camping gear
 
#243 ·
I don't see this on the list. Don't think its your winch controller. Looks like a fujitsu. Is it ruggedized, waterproof, touch screen? How is it mounted? Whats the gps card?
 

Attachments

#245 ·
For those of you traveling with these big GPS screens, how do you like them?
Not sure I would like that large a screen blocking my forward view.

I have been playing around with laptop based car PCs for a while. I have a nice little 8 inch touch screen I sometimes mount in my tow vehicle, but not sure I would ever mount it in an offroad vehicle as all of my wheelers get way to filthy inside. (I like driving with windows down, or better yet doors off.) The touch screens do not seem to like dirt and dust.

Lately in my Superduty I just sit the entire laptop on the tranny hump and have a good view of the laptop screen for GPS. I have done similar in my Samurai with an OLD laptop on the passenger floor. (It got filthy, but stayed dry even in the rain with no roof on.)

-Wayne
 
#246 · (Edited)
That is a Fujitsu P1620 Tablet PC,
mounted with RAM mounts.
I talked about it more here...
http://www.jtice.com/jeep/5-13-08/

Its well made, as must all Fujitsu stuff is, but its not water proof, or rubberized some like Tough Books, etc.
It is a touch screen though, although it works best with your fingernail, rather than your fleshy finger tip.

It can be a bit large, I found it blocked less of my view mounted above the rear view mirror than it did down on the dash.

Below it is a Garmin 60csX handheld unit, which I can connect to the Fuji via USB.
You can also use a small BlueTooth GPS receiver with it.


I have a Garmin Nuvi 750W that I use in the Jeep now, I find it MUCH easier to use, the touch screen is more sensitive.


Yes, that is actually a little white Jeep on there as the position marker :D
Its insane how much it looks like my Jeep, it even has a roof rack !

~John
 
This post has been deleted
#252 · (Edited)
those are RAM mounts tight?

yes, i am from ohio. haha. i think ill go xj. maybe a later model xj. whats a good suspension for a expo xj? i dont want soem crawler crap for it. something good at high speeds and decent cornering, on and off road. also, what abotu a zj with a 4.0l? ehat about suspensions for a zj (same requirements as the xj)? they are confy, haha... im am DEFINATELY interested in laptop mount. id like to be able to mount it and still have room for a pass. also, who makes a good GPS card for laptops? thanks!
 
#247 ·
Wow!, I just found this topic…..and here I thought pirate was mostly dudes hacking up perfectly good rigs to make truggies. There are a lot of great expo trucks here too!

Here is mine…

1978 K10 with the usual ORD goodies, 14 bolt FF, Detroit’s, 8.1L EFI big block, Q78x16 Superswampers new Snugtop topper and old Hickey Sidewinder winch. Rear winch coming soon.

The hi-lift jack, tools, air compressor, spare tire and all much of the camping equipment are stored under the sleeping platform. I left just enough room between the platform and the tailgate for removable refridgerator and a cooler.

Picture taken at Browns Lake on the other side of Mt. Antero in Chaffee County, CO






The new topper definitely makes for more comfortable (and dry) camping than the old bed tent. Photo take at Grizzly Lake in Chaffee County, CO.
 
#259 · (Edited)
I think you are being a little optimistic with $5k for a 80 with lockers. I'm not saying they aren't out there but...

There is a lot of service that needs to go into a 80 at that price range to make it expo ready.

Check out the ih8mud forums and do a little digging on the costs after purchase that some people have had to go through. If you do some research there don't get freaked out by the talk of head gasket issues on the 1FZ. I think that may be a red herring - kinda like the 0331 cylinder head issue on the last XJs. Sure, it happens but rare... and the fix is not a big deal if you can spin your own wrenches.

That said, I think the 80 just might be the one of the best rigs out there. They are a touch large but that doesn't bother me.

You'd be farther ahead cost wise with the 80 but low purchase price on the XJ means that you can upgrade incrementally and add stuff as budget allows. The 80 is a higher quality vehicle too.

Depends on what you want.
 
#261 ·
thanks for all the info guys. i found a good beater fj80 that need some engine work and he will deliver it! im going to look into it. i have to look into things maybe. i dont know yet. im still open to any advice or opinions.
 
#265 ·
Oh yeah. On this particular trip, we could have probably taken a well-prepared truck through most of the places we went, but we ride a mix of REALLY tight woods and singletrack and more of the wide open stuff that you see in those pics. It just depends on where we're riding.
 
#267 · (Edited)
many of the larger expedition trucks i have seen have one or more bikes for local exploration or tight trails. A side by side or two person quad would be cool too and should take the same room as two bikes..

Has anyone done short expeditions 2-4 days on a side by side or quad bike, using off highway trails or routes??

EDIT: watching Fisher's ATV Adventures now on Versus. This show covers 1000 miles in Mexico on side by sides. Some footage shows travel on paved roads and through rural communities, but the vast majority seems to be off road....
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top