[A-Zuki]

I have just bought myself a stock second hand 2008 Suzuki jimny and everyone has told me it's something I will never regret. Now I want to ready it for some beach driving and 4x4 thinking maybe a 2-3 inch lift, snorkel, bulbar, roof rack. Anyone got any tips and tricks? How high to go/ how high not to go wt what height I will need to get extended brake lines ect...... I'm open to all ideas
Thanks guys

[atari4x4]

welcome to AZ A-Zuki

someone from isle 4 aka jimny mod land will along shortly to assist you, please keep yourself entertained by pursuing the various jimny builds in the members section. viewforum.php?f=4

they've been around long enough that there is a well trodden path of mods, just depends how far you want to go.

thankyou, please come again.

[Gwagensteve]

Bullbar, roof rack and suspension lift won't make it any better in the sand.

Steve.

[Jezza86]

G'day
First question, how much are you looking to spend?

up to 2" is cheap
over 2" gets a lot more involved, and there are serious questions on how useful this extra clearance is.

going to a bullbar on the front exposes the front wheels to oncoming air and makes you use a touch more fuel.

215/75r15 wheels fit stock rims well and are also going to fit in the guards.
going up to 31" wheels is the other end of the spectrum, but you will need gearing well before then. once again, more expensive to buy, maintain, and more expensive to drive with poorer fuel economy.

[Jezza86]

also keep in mind a empty jimny with no fuel is 1030kg, and the GVM is 1420kg. you have 390 kg for people, necessities and mods.

[Seth2013]

HEHE - something you'll never regret *COUGH* KINGPIN BEARINGS *COUGH*

I second Jezza

for the brake lines I extended my brake lines at 2 inches, didn't feel comfortable removing the swaybar until i did this + the rear brake line looked a little under strain at full flex. and its a relatively cheap mod to ensure you don't loose your brakes one day.

everything you do will affect its road manners, so if its a daily drive be carefull. if your lucky (like me) and its just a weekend toy, go nuts.

neofitou sums it all up in the best list ever (in my opinion)

Quote:

Here's my stock reply, looking at it it needs some serious updates now, but you get the idea.

Before asking for mods, what terrain do you drive that you need the mods for?
Are you likely to hit a roo or do you need a winch because you like getting bogged by yourself? = bull bar
Cant get up bumpy hills? = locker
Cant get up bumpy and slippery or loose surface hills? 2 lockers
Camping by yourself? = drawer system
Camping with hot french girlfriend? = roofrack
Need to talk to other people? Uhf
Boat, jetski? = trailer hitch
Old fella or kids? Trailer hitch, camper trailer
Jimny too slow? M15 or 16
Jimny way too fuckin slow? M18 or j20
Not enough tourqe? Gears.
Tires too small? 215s
Ruts too big? 235s
Rocks too big? 30s
Rocks in the ruts too big? 31s
Rutted bogholes with bumpy bits? 33s
Rocks bigger than the car? 35s
Tires dont fit in the guards? Trim guards
Still dont fit? Bumpstops
Still dont fit? Guard chop
Tires come off the wheels? Beadlocks
Sandy or dusty? ATs
Muddy? MTs
Wet? Snorkel.
Friend with sierra? Front recovery point
Friend with patrol? Rear recovery point
Dog? Seat covers
Cant see the rocks? Rock lights
Cant see the track? Light bar
Cant see the roos? Spotties

[atari4x4]

Gwagensteve wrote:

Bullbar, roof rack and suspension lift won't make it any better in the sand.

Steve.

but it will look good doing it though.

[neofitou]

If you want to get it ready for some beach driving all you need to do is let some air out of the tires.

[JimnyAnt]

Hi all

I have a 2003 Jimny and need some advice on how to improve engine performance as it
struggles to get up the steep incline of Canning Mills Rd WA it doesn't get pass 40kph.
I have recently got a job near Rolleystone so I need to trek up there on a daily bases.

Thanks.

[Jezza86]

use a lower gear.

[JimnyAnt]

I will try that thanks Jezza86

[Gwagensteve]

neofitou wrote:

If you want to get it ready for some beach driving all you need to do is let some air out of the tires.

This guy^

So, your first accessories should be a tyre deflator/gauge and quality compressor, maybe some tree/maxtrax recovery boards.
Obviously along with the normal stuff, snatch strap, shackles, fire extinguisher, first aid kit. Also, diff breathers. You might want to look at an improved front recovery point. there was one in a thread recently that might have come from APIO in Japan and will suit the 2008 model from memory.

Familiarise yourself with reseating a bead, and then experiment heavily with tyre pressures.

Try and add the minimum weight. Nothing you do that adds weight to your car will make it better in sand.

Steve.

[Gwagensteve]

Here's the APIO recovery point thread:

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=47926

but in all honesty, it looks like the factory point is now quite good on the LHF, so, as long as it will accept a 3.25 tonne bow shackle you're laughing.

Steve.

[Breno]

Gwagensteve wrote:

Here's the APIO recovery point thread:

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=47926

but in all honesty, it looks like the factory point is now quite good on the LHF, so, as long as it will accept a 3.25 tonne bow shackle you're laughing.

Steve.

Thanks for the link, I sold it today on eBay. Was it anybody here?

[striker99]

IMO a suspension lift can be beneficial when driving on sand, particularly if you need to lower tyre pressures a fair bit for the really soft stuff... it just helps to stop the belly of the car dragging in sand if you're driving in deep rutted sand tracks

[vet 180]

striker99 wrote:

IMO a suspension lift can be beneficial when driving on sand, particularly if you need to lower tyre pressures a fair bit for the really soft stuff... it just helps to stop the belly of the car dragging in sand if you're driving in deep rutted sand tracks

Depending on the type of sand driving you are doing, how soft it is, lots of dune break overs etc you are right.
The catch 22 of more hardcore dune driving is that the sand kills the power and torque but bigger tires help with clearer but not with torque. Close mates discovery 2 has got his car stuck many times on the break of a dune and between small sharp dunes that have wedged his car do to approach angle.

To the op
I say drive it as it is and get used to the cars limits and what you think needs to be improved.

[vet 180]

One thing I will add to my last post:

My first 4x4 was a 85 hilux ( similar to the one in back to the future). It had 35's, 6 inch lift, and a 308 v8 in it mated to the Toyota gearbox. Car looked tough and I loved it. But I spent 10x more time under it than driving it. I am still annoyed to this day that I never drove the thing anywhere nears it's ability.

I ended up selling it and with a portion Of the money I bought lwb nt Suzuki Sierra on 28 BFG all terrains. This time I was not going to make the same mistake! I wanted something stockist to wheel and upgrade as I went. The thing I found was that drove this car to its limit and beyond. And although I eventually started modding it, stock with just the tires I found I out did many of my mates cars. It had more diff clearance than my mates mq patrol on 31's, always out did my mates sook chugging diesel Ifs hilux (and he took it to heart too) and the biggest shock of my life was when I did a very muddy rutted track and my mate in his wrangler on new 33's mtrs with 4 inch lift got bogged down to his fancy new expensive fender flares. I believe he broke one too that day.

My point is get to know your car first and you will go a lot more places when you finally do mod your car they will be better mods suited to your driving not a page in a magazine) Your car will surprise you how far it will go with it's small diffs for more clearance and light chassis.

Also I loved my big 6 inch lifted bus when I first started getting into 4x4 stuff, but I would never do it again. The more I drove I realised 2 inches is the max I would aim for on most cars, especially the Jim as it's narrow to start with and has smaller and weaker diff in comparison to bigger 4x4's limiting your tire size. Then I would look into guard trimming (and the jim is an excellent choice for guard trimming)