Might never finish this but that's what I said about the first one. It's keeping me busy fabbing - there's just something about angle grinders that I love... I've got 80-90% of the parts already, so I figured might as well build another buggy. My current build really exceeded my expectations so there's not alot of significant changes from that one.
Tentative plans:
Vitara 2.0 engine (J20)
*Behind-axle Toyota IFS box hi-steer
Toy axles w/5.29
Zuk tcase w/ 6.5:1 gears
100% new frame/chassis (first buggy was build from a stock Samurai frame)
Hopefully significantly less metal and more DOM where it counts.
Fuel cell and better storage in the back maybe.
bla bla bla
P.s. I used square tube cuz it's easier to work with, especially when you don't own a bender OR have any round tube whatsoever to start with. More importantly, it's stronger for the belly and much easier to mount a steering box to. A little heavier, but I don't think very much.
*I may find something more reasonable, like another FJ box or a Chevy box with a forward pitman arm, but that's not as interesting, and IFS boxes are easy to find and I have 2 or 3 sitting around)
No frame table but i had some other steel pieces that seemed flat and square.
2 frame rails that are near identical. Not bad.
I'm really hoping I got this square. I can't say I know any fancy techniques to confirm it, but I did measure diagonally from the corners, and also for parallel and level. I'll continue to measure as I weld in case there is tweaking.
Nothing wrong with the first buggy. Variety of reasons to start this build: love to fab, have lots of spare parts, including a full Vitara with a 2.0... hoping to build this one over the next couple years (?) with little or no downtime on my current wheeler.
Not sure the rear IFS box is going to work. I think the upper link mount is gonna get in the way of the drag link and I don't think I can work around that. Might try a Ford or Chevy box with a forward pitman arm if I can't find another FJ80 box.
Front link mounts are done. I opted to make the upper link on the frame a little different this time. I drilled some holes for the bolts and welded some nuts onto the frame. Oh crap... I just realized I might not have enough room to pull the bolts out if the engine is in the way. hmm... guess I'll have to redo that else I regret it way down the line.
Well, I decided the angle of the front frame rail was unnecessarily steep which would limit how much room I have for the pedals... so.... I'm cutting up those rails and redoing them. This is a minor problem I had with the first build, where I had to shorten the pedals to fit cuz I like my seat super low. A fairly major oversight in my frame design and a bit of a chore to redo the frame rails. But worth redoing.
Done. Almost back to where I was. Should have significantly more room now, even compared to the Zuk frame that my first chassis is based off. I didn't have any 2x3 tube so I used 2x2, and barely had enough of that. Had to scab some pieces together. Shaved a pound or two, I guess, and the strength is still in the right places.
Also lucked out and got some high-steer arms and an FJ80 box. So... guess I don't need to do the queer steer. Kinda bumbed out about that, but I just couldn't figure out any way to make the drag-link fit without interfering with the upper control arm in the 3-link.
Fark ya. I didn't realize solid axle trucks had different tie rods. Good thing I hoarded up a few. Looks like some of thems are bigger than others and have beefier rod ends. I cut, sleaved and plugged this one and it should work goodly. Found a nice 12mm socket to sleeve it with on the cheap. U can see in the photo the top one is the slim tie rod, the lower one is the one I used and the socket fit perfect.
Ayup. That's in. Now, as long as I can get that darn pitman arm off the FJ80 box that's been stuck on it since Reagan...
Well, it's 99% the same setup I have on my current buggy. Works great and I found the parts so all the better. The build is sure going alot faster since I don't have to think much and I have a real model right beside.
No rear steer. Too hard to do without hydro or electric rams, if it's even possible. Engine is a J20A (2 litre Zuk) hopefully. Drop pitman arm would put the arm in a much more vulnerable position if it hit a rock, and the tradeoff of poorer steering isn't bad. Current steering setup works just fine surprisingly.
I supposed one might be able to operate the steering box with some sort of electric ram or something, but I think I'd sooner do something like Hideous 4x4 did and put an electric ram on it.
It's just a double acting 12v hydraulic pump. That, with a TSC ram. I like the total separate system. Mine works off a toggle, but my brother uses the factory controller. It's like using buttons for the rear steer.
Front geometry is done and all tacked in proper. Working on the rear now. Lower link mounts are done. This took me about 4 hours cuz I had to redo all 4 link mounts. I flared out the frame mounts and had to redo the axle mounts cuz they needed a different angle. Something that really surprised me was that the distance between the front and rear axle lower link bolts are dam near exactly the same on both sides - 91" 5/8. If the diagonal geometry is close to that I'll be really excited because my first buggy is quite a bit out due to the slightly bent zuk frame, and that affected quite a bit of rear cage design. Doesn't seem to matter a hoot in performance, tho.
Wheelbase as it sits is about 1-2" shorter than my other buggy so this one might end up about 99". Front links are longer and the rears are shorter. Seat is also lower and more rear-ward than than the other buggy. This buggy is really maximizing the rock-bouncer balance that I was fairly succesfully achieved with the first buggy - as low COG as possible and seat low and back.
Aiming to get the upper frame mounts done then tack some pipe in for shocks to make a roller just for fun. I only get about 5-6 hours a week to work on it.
For only a few hours a week looks like you are making damn good progress. If the links are nearly the same length it might make having spares much easier.
Not exactly sure what to do now. I think the next step is to pull the engine from the Vitara and install it, then build around it. Might leave this for when the weather warms/dries up. I've got an engine to rebuild and hopefully install in the active buggy.
Well, my other project has been put on hold so I'm gonna try to get this one done.
I started taking apart the Vitara so that I can easily transfer the engine and drivetrain, wiring, etc. Want to get as much removed but still have it drivevable.
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Pirate 4x4
18.7M posts
366.4K members
Since 2000
A forum community dedicated to custom off-road vehicle owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about trail reports, builds, performance, modifications, classifieds, troubleshooting, fabrication, drivetrain, and more!