Lj70 (early 88 version) advice needed!

[Simon_LJ70]

All, with impending engine upgrade I am starting to plan a few other upgrades, the first being replacing the rear drums and looking at a locking diff. Also thinking about the prop shaft, cv's as well.

Has anyone upgraded/replaced any of these items that could share some do's and dont's? Also is there anything else I should be thinking of.... Any upgrades to improve the front breaks?

 

[wobbly]

Simon

Chap on t'other place - RikM - has just done this exact jobbie - take a peek.

Pete

 

[rikm777]

hi Simon.i,ve finished putting the e locker into my rear axle.we went down the route of modifying the existing axle to accept the locker rather than trying to modify the lj78 axle to fit.it would have been nice to have the rear discs but it would have got quite involved and the disc set up from the lj78 wont bolt on the the lj70 axles(different stud pattern).i.m sure it can be done but the axles are so different it would have involved cutting,moving and rewelding both the shock and radius arm mounts .i was a bit concerned if we got the axle out of line a bit there might be problems with the propshaft.i think i,d concentrate on beefing up the front brakes .i,ve not looked into it but theres plenty of aftermarket uprated calipers around and i,m sure you could modify some to fit coz you,re sure gonna need it to haul up a lexus v8!!i,d be intersted to know what the ball park figure was from west coast to do the conversion and how they,re gonna wire it up as i read on an australian site about a modified loom to simplify it.pm me if you dont think i,m being too nosey

 

[Roger Fairclough]

A standard LJ70 has a max. speed of maybe 75 mph. A standard KZJ 70 has a max. speed of 100 mph. To my knowledge, the brakes on these two motors are the same. I have no problem stopping my KZJ 70 with the standard brakes. The limiting factor is the tyres, not the brakes. The fitting of a Lexus engine may well enable Simon to accelerate at a much greater rate than previously but that feeling of elation needs to be tempered with a degree of caution as the LJ is not a hot hatch and cannot be converted into one.

Just what are you trying to achieve Simon?

If you want an "off-roader", stick to a diesel, it's torque characteristic's are far better than a petrol.

If you want to blast the highway, buy a hot hatch.

I suggest that before you do anything else, you take a cold hard look at what your ultimate goal is. The roadside lamp posts and trees of my home town bare witness to the aspirations of drivers who thought they could and then found out they couldn't.

Roger

 

[Simon_LJ70]

Rikm great advice, saved me a load of time and cash there, as the axel swop was my preferred option. have sent you a pm, wouldn't mind the website if you don't mind re the wiring.

Thanks for The advice Rodger, blasting around town like a hot hatch isn't on the agenda, but living in the yorkshire dales has it's down side with a lot of hills, and the problem with the 2.4 is that it doesn't like them! I don't want to change cars as I use this for daily driving and it's perfect for what I need and I rate the 70 series as one of the best built trucks. But rattling around the gears and doing 20 mph up hills is not great. Considered the 3.0 conversion but it was working out more expensive and the v8 sounds like fun

 

[Roger Fairclough]

Rikm great advice, saved me a load of time and cash there, as the axel swop was my preferred option. have sent you a pm, wouldn't mind the website if you don't mind re the wiring.

Thanks for The advice Rodger, blasting around town like a hot hatch isn't on the agenda, but living in the yorkshire dales has it's down side with a lot of hills, and the problem with the 2.4 is that it doesn't like them! I don't want to change cars as I use this for daily driving and it's perfect for what I need and I rate the 70 series as one of the best built trucks. But rattling around the gears and doing 20 mph up hills is not great. Considered the 3.0 conversion but it was working out more expensive and the v8 sounds like fun

So just how much is this conversion going to cost?

Roger

 

[craig]

i swop my lj70 axle out for a shogun 3.0 petrol unit.
it didnt bolt straight in but it wasnt hard. plus you get rear disc
brakes and a locking diff. did it 5 years ago still no problems

 

[Birder]

and the v8 sounds like fun

Check you can insure it?

 

[Simon_LJ70]

Hello Rodger, the conversion costs approx as follows

Engine - bought a cheap lexus off eBay, sold a few parts and have got a price to scrap, have made £150 on this

Conversion - between 1 to 1.5 k

2.4 engine will be sold, either whole or as components, but expect to get min £500 back for this going on the last few eBay sales over the last month or so

So best case £350, worst £850+

 

[Simon_LJ70]

Thanks Birder, insurance quotes done, not too bad

Craig. Sounds a good option what year model was it?

 

[craig]

it came from a 3.0 petrol or the 2.5 td mk2 shogun
both have 4.875:1 ratios and same wheel stud patern. you will need the air pump aswell. on a lwb its under the rear seat and swb its in the n/s rear panal.
i also used police spec range rover springs aswell.