Re:DrRobin's Northumberland Jimny

Part 2 of the North East 4x4 Club October trial.



I am doing a trek tomorrow, Reeth to Ripon, over the hills of course.

Robin

I had a long day out in the top end of the Yorkshire Dales today with George and Paul of Trails and Tracks. We had every bit of weather possible, starting at Reeth in heavy rain and round the hills, very windy, via Kettlewell to finish at Ripon. I will do some videos but here are a couple of stills.

 

 

The sun came out in the afternoon 

 

A thoroughly enjoyable day out.

Robin

Looks like you need a little 2 inch lift or so, makes difference, and actually if you get the right suspension might even make it feel less rolly and more stable.

Thats what I found anyway, after the lift it felt more planted, which seems backwards, but I think itd more to do with the stiffer suspension that the GVM upgrade came with.

Chicken wrote:

Looks like you need a little 2 inch lift or so, makes difference, and actually if you get the right suspension might even make it feel less rolly and more stable.

Thats what I found anyway, after the lift it felt more planted, which seems backwards, but I think itd more to do with the stiffer suspension that the GVM upgrade came with.

it’s actually occurred to me that I do need a lift, but I have always avoided it, I don’t want to make the car worse on the road, I would need to court opinion from those who have lifted, the lift kit used and how the on road manners compare.

If I did lift, I would consider a second set of wheels with some higher profile tyres (may be 16”) and just put them on for the trial days, I could also consider road legal mud tyres then.  A lift only raises the chassis, it doesn’t do anything for the diffs, for that you need bigger wheels/tyres.

Trouble is cost starts to add up and I might find I am lacking in power, especially in the mud and soft soil.  I will have to have a think.

Robin

well I found that with the ironman GVM upgrade (2 inch lift) it actually felt more planted on the road than stock, didnt feel like it rolled around quite as much, probably due to stiffer suspension it has. I didnt go much bigger tyres, 215/75 on the stock rims, but a popular option with this lift is 235/75r15 on the stock rims also. you do notice bit worse fuel economy apparently and the BFG AT tyres are pretty aggressive.
probably harder to find a local Jimny that has something like this done over there seeing how they stopped selling them so early. But there are heaps over here.
I was concerned also about if it would feel even more top heavy when lifting, but imo it really didnt. id a fairly decent investment though so does require some pondering

My daily commercial and my SZ5 both have 2inch lifts fitted. My lcv has the pedders kit fitted and my sz5 has a trialmaster kit. Compared to our non lifted commercial they certainly haven't made road manners any worse in fact in my opinion they feel slightly better taking bumps and pot holes on the road compared to a standard car. All of our cars have BFG KM3 mud terrains fitted. Out of the two kits on my cars I prefer the pedders kit. Car feels a lot more solid and doesn't lean that much compared to my SZ5 Which has more lean to it when going round corners. As you rightly say the lifts don't actually gain you any more clearance underneath. They just allow more room in the Arches to allow bigger tires to be fitted and you get more flex. Personally I wouldn't go much further as you will start to effect the gearing. When we spectated trials back when lots were using SJs. Most cars were on small lifts with a decent set of narrow tall mud tires which was enough to make them really competitive. I think you could give the car a small lift Robin and I think you won't notice really any difference or you may find it better on the road. You could then buy some mud terrains on some cheaper steel wheels or aftermarket alloys to use only for trails or off-road meets.

I washed, polished and waxed my Jimny today and then removed the front diff protector ready for it going in to have the clutch looked at. The diff protector has lost a fair bit of [my red] paint, probably in the quarry last weekend, so whilst it is off, it will be re-painted then laquered.

I also checked the diff and transfer case breathers after the quarry and wading through all that water on Sunday in the Dales, all still secure and in place, I am sure glad I got that kit fitted.

Front HD recovery points turned up from Jimnybits in the week, so they will also be sprayed red ready to go on with the diff and transfer case protectors after the clutch is done next week and before the next trek in November.

Robin

jlines wrote:

My daily commercial and my SZ5 both have 2inch lifts fitted. My lcv has the pedders kit fitted and my sz5 has a trialmaster kit. Compared to our non lifted commercial they certainly haven't made road manners any worse in fact in my opinion they feel slightly better taking bumps and pot holes on the road compared to a standard car. All of our cars have BFG KM3 mud terrains fitted. Out of the two kits on my cars I prefer the pedders kit. Car feels a lot more solid and doesn't lean that much compared to my SZ5 Which has more lean to it when going round corners. As you rightly say the lifts don't actually gain you any more clearance underneath. They just allow more room in the Arches to allow bigger tires to be fitted and you get more flex. Personally I wouldn't go much further as you will start to effect the gearing. When we spectated trials back when lots were using SJs. Most cars were on small lifts with a decent set of narrow tall mud tires which was enough to make them really competitive. I think you could give the car a small lift Robin and I think you won't notice really any difference or you may find it better on the road. You could then buy some mud terrains on some cheaper steel wheels or aftermarket alloys to use only for trails or off-road meets.

Thanks James.

I don’t suppose BigJimny sells the Pedders lift kit and is it straight forward to install?

Would you recommend BFG KM3 in 215/75r15 or given it’s just to stick on for a drive to a trial and back would you go bigger, or is there little advantage to the next size up?  I guess then wheel size and offset might become an issue? 

I still have 3 x alloys from my 2011 Jimny (silver 5 spoke) would they be OK for KM3s if I get another one or should I go for steel wheels?  The thing is they might have to be stored outside when not in use, even in bags steel wheels might go rusty.

Thanks

Robin

Bigjimny does sell the peddars kit although I got the dealer to fit mine when I bought the car. I didn't hear of any issues when fitting. The trialmaster kit went on easily so I can't see the peddars kit being any different. We like the KM3s as they have good road manners. I don't know how much bigger you can go without affecting anything. I know a few with bigger tires and they say they are fine. Others start to need bumpers trimming. 215/75/R15 is a very safe size. I've seen some Gen 4s sporting Gen 3 alloys so they do work. You are right that the steel ones will start to rust if left sitting around.

Seen quite a few jimnys with 235/75r15 BFGs around here but pote tally may require some.e.triming when at full flex.

Also maybe better with gear reduction.

215 seems.fine and a decent compromise imo

Old Man Emu + 215/75R15

The ideal combo. Unbeatable.

I could be wrong but the last few posts on this look a lot like peer pressure.

Robin, your current jimny is already on taller suspension and tyres than your last one.