4bangerjp.com
General Forums => The Mess Hall => Topic started by: gomi on February 11, 2007, 07:26:36 PM
-
Hey guys. I used to work at a gym once a week, but it was sold and the entire staff met for dinner tonight. Fran, a fellow coworker and his wife were sitting across from me and we started talking about my jeep. Turns out they have a 1988 suzuki samurai that they said I could have....for free. Get this, it has 47k original miles, and they are the only owners. I couldn't believe it, I know it's not a jeep, but it's cute and free. This is what I know so far, it is in perfect mechanical condition and has never had any problems. They start it and drive it around the block once a week, and the wife told me that there is some rust on the outside, but from her description I couldn't tell how much. So I pick it up either mon or tues depending on when I have time. The best part is that it's free!!! I guess they bought it new twenty years ago and are to old to really work on it or even care. They were about to just take it to the junk yard but as luck would have it they saw me in my jeep and offered it to me. I think I'm going to use this as an opportunity to really learn about 4x4's. My tj is my daily driver so if I screwed it up I would be out a ride. Any advice will be much appreciated.
-
sounds sweet, posy up some pictures of it and you jeep when you pick it up....
-
I need to get a digital camera. I just figured out how to post pics, but need a new camera.
-
sounds like a sweet deal...
-
Congrads. I've owned 3 myself prior. Simple and easy to work on. You basically will only need a 10, 12, and 13mm wrenches and sockets. Everything is either phillips or those size. You'll have to trim the door hinges to be able to remove the doors like a Jeep. Rust can occur under the carpet anywhere but mostly in the rear floor, behind the kick panels of the rear wheelwells, under the windshield wipers, under the plastic cover under the doors, and in the front wheelwells. Best thing would be to give it a good bath under the flares and plastic covers. All wiring will be water tight connectors. To get better highway accel, there is a trick to do with the carb. Some tube replacement. There is still lots of following for these things. If you need to flip it, you probably wouldn't be sorry with the mileage on it. There are lots of Sami/Zuk forums and clubs out there also. Do a little web search to locate something near you.
They are small, light weight, fun to drive on city streets, suck on the highway, bounce hard on the street, noisy, slow, and fun to drive stock. One location near me on the highway, there is a swoop in the road. Driving the Sami at 65mph felt like I got some air.
-
Sami's are nice. I wish they still imported them into the US. They still make them in Japan and for other countries. They are fairly tough and can be built up fairly easily. The biggest advantage is their size and weight. If you put 33's on them, they will perform as well as a Jeep with 35's. They look nice on 33's too.
-
Gomi,
These little guy's are real fun. You will have a blast. Play with it on the city streets and off road but, you take your life in your own hands on the freeway and some hwy's. You definitly will not be able to get out of your own way if you hit any kind of incline. They are really fun, especially for free. :nod:
-
Thanks for the advice guys, I still can't believe my luck. I'll pick her up tomorrow.
-
http://calmini.com/
if your in the mood to mod it at all. im trying to get my dad to get a lift for his tracker. :biggrin:
-
The biggest advantage is their size and weight. If you put 33's on them, they will perform as well as a Jeep with 35's. They look nice on 33's too.
thats what i like about the old willys jeeps.. there small enough to sques down almost any atv trail or overgrown forest trail. and if you spend the time to add lockers a little lift some tires and power steering you can have nice trail rig. my grandpas cj2a still surprises me with some of the things it can do with the original 4banger.
-
went wheeling with a guy with 33s on his sammy :smile: he showed me up to say the least.
-
With the offset case, you can actually mod the case with different gears (both hi and low) to compensate for the larger tires. Stock axle gear is 3.73. The t-case gears are 1.4 high and 1.8 low. T-case gears go for 12 and 18% lower in both hi & lo, and more in the low side. Flip in some lockers, rebuild the front axle with seals, and keep the tires to 31's with SOA (rear springs up front, CJ rear springs) and have something that'll be hard to stop. 33's are a next step and are pushing the stock axles. Easy swap to Toyotas, Wrangler springs with bolt on kit, and you are set for 35's.
Give some pics.....
Have you found a forum near you for them?
-
a FREE vehicle is NEVER a bad thing (are you KIDDING ME??!!??) ......PLUS....i've seen pics of Samis flexing in EXTREME conditions:
(http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:wUmZbmOV2g_jvM:http://www.rpm4x4.com/images)
(http://home.off-road.com/~teamzuki/images/tzflex_3.jpg)
(http://www.rocky-road.com/media/tonkarocker2.jpg)
allright, maybe the last pic is a little hairy....... ;)
it should be fun for some 4wd tinkering.
nice score on the Sami. i know what you mean about "threatening" your "daily driver". mine is as well. i just bought a new torque wrench and a can of PB Blaster, though......i think i'm gonna "dig in". wish me luck. :uhoh:
p.s. (for anyone) my karma has been pre-designated as "+0/-0". what exactly does that mean?
-
Here she is, what do you boys think? Is the rust really bad? I can't tell. It's rusted under the fender flares as well :'(
(http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u24/sarahannsparker/100_0016.jpg)
(http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u24/sarahannsparker/100_0015.jpg)
(http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u24/sarahannsparker/100_0014.jpg)
(http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u24/sarahannsparker/100_0020.jpg)
(http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u24/sarahannsparker/100_0018.jpg)
(http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u24/sarahannsparker/100_0019.jpg)
-
Hmm, it is a bit rusty. I'd go at it with a wire brush and see how bad/deep the rust is on the frame. If it's not bad then paint it with some Rustolium and call it good. The rust on the body isn't bad at all.
-
Hmm, it is a bit rusty. I'd go at it with a wire brush and see how bad/deep the rust is on the frame. If it's not bad then paint it with some Rustolium and call it good. The rust on the body isn't bad at all.
It's a bit rusty under the fender flares, I should have taken a better picture of it, and the rust on the hood is straight through the hood itself, I wonder if a little por15 ad bondo would work.
-
its free get sme mudder and wheel the s**t out of it till it break and fix it or dump it, best part is free!!!!!!!!!
-
its free get sme mudder and wheel the s**t out of it till it break and fix it or dump it, best part is free!!!!!!!!!
one way to do that would be to do this http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8473252457452207382&q=jeep&hl=en . looks extremely fun.. but it does total the vehicle.
-
I don't think it's that bad considering it's almost 20 years old. The rust on the frame... clean it up. If it's not bad use some Rust Stop Primer and then give it a good coat of paint. Like Jeffy suggested, use Rust-Oleum. I've been wanting one of those Sami's for a while. When I find them they are usually beat real bad or the owner wants way to much for it. Have fun with it and congrats on the free score.
-
Go at the frame with the wire wheel. This is the most critical of the vehicle for safety.
As for the body, you'll have to remove the inner cardboard panels to get at the rear wheelwells. They do tend to rust at all the seams of the body. Don't forget under the rear carpet area. The gas tank tube area is another good spot. Exhaust could be a problem with coming back in. For the hood, let it go. Don't worry about it. Once you start to use it, it will break in for you. The rust is due to sitting.
Its a fun vehicle to have. Just make sure you know your passenger very wheel. Your shoulders/elbows will rub. :biggrin:
-
It's a bit rusty under the fender flares, I should have taken a better picture of it, and the rust on the hood is straight through the hood itself, I wonder if a little por15 ad bondo would work.
So there are holes? If they are small you can usually fill them with primer once it's all cleaned up. Then sand it smooth. POR15's like applying road tar. It's ok for frames but I wouldn't use it for the body unless you want that lumpy look. Another paint that I highly recommend is called Hammerite. This stuff is great. It also seals and stops rust but has glass in it which makes it pretty strong. It's also a bit thicker then regular paint. (Don't confuse Hammerite for Hammered Finish). With Bondo, you want to use the least amount as possible. For larger holes, you could patch with fiberglass. The best option would be to cut and weld in new panels. Honestly, I'd look at the frame first. Then check all of the body mounts. Things like the fenders and the hood aren't that big of a deal since they are structural.