I would like to discuss my rear end, maybe show it off a bit, and try to not let it get too dirty.
Just like my front end build was needed to repair damage, the irony is that the same was happening with the rear end. It's a much bigger mechanical job than the bolt-on TC LT front was. It's a task on the order of Sol's and MissFJ's, involving total removal of the rear drivetrain and design and fab of a totally new one.
But why do this?
The DR truck has 54-inch lower links that bracket up under the front doors.
Here's why:
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Sqkd3gYFvo[/YOUTUBE]
This video from Jeshua shows the benefits better than any description. It's the difference between a 100-foot boat and a 10-foot one on a rough sea. The wheels move up and down and truck doesn't.
But also notice that a stock FJ would be destroyed on this course if you tried to go fast. In particular, by the whoops and impacts. So my build is really defensive, like body armor is for the rock crawlers. I am trying to protect the truck from splattering into the ground when it hits something at speed.
Also I should describe the situation offroad with a TCLT/Fox front and a stock rear (except for Hoes and jounces). The front essentially floats over everything. No longer does it bash into obstacles; it just sort of vacuums them up. Never has it come close to bottoming. Because of this you push the pedal down harder.
Now this is all fine until you look in the rearview mirror and see your kids bouncing all over in the rear seat holding on for dear life. And the rear wheels are only occasionally touching the ground. It's exactly what would happen if you were towing an empty trailer; it would just be up in the air the whole time.
Notice on the Trophy Trucks that they are low-set vehicles until they are in the air. About 70% of travel is allocated for droop. The logic is that being up in the air is setting the stage for a maximum impact, and if the paws are already reaching down to the ground the suspension is fully extended and can absorb more force before it reaches max compression. That's why these trucks are absorbing such huge hits yet appear to remain in place.
Jason and I had started planning on a rear 4-link and all the other things it requires. Like a Wells Fargo Equity line. There is no long-travel rear kit on the market for a reason. First, the gas tank has to go. Fuel cell in the rear floor. New rear axle. Shock towers through the whell wells, standing up behind the rear seats. Battery relocation to the rear. etc, etc. However we were not going to let it get in the way of Ouray. So we were going to do all the other stuff above first, and then leave the actual 4-link and rear axle project for last - as long as we had time left for it before July.
There are challenges with me as a customer too. First because it's my daily driver, and second, I still want to do the trips I was promising my family all through last year. So we'll pace this build in steps, and use the downtime to plan the next one. Last year I just wanted to go all out, period, and damn the consequences. As we all know now, that's fine if you want to rent a Sentra for 6 months. Plus, Jason and Kim have a business to run which is another reason to plan to the last degree. I do too, and can't live there all day anymore.
My dream is to have this go like Sol's build, and I think it will. A huge undertaking that came out beautifully because all the issues were clearly understood and defined. Mine got crazy because it covered every inch of the car from body to electrical to paint to interior and on and on.
Last night, the noisy rear end finally let go. To me it seems like an end bearing. The most horrible graunchy sounds, and finally, when you roll forward the rear end moves up and down with each wheel revolution. Yeah, real juicy stuff. We'll tear it apart and show the postmortem photos soon.
So this is a radical change in plans. I need a new rear end pronto!
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