Mistakes & Regrets
I thought I would do a bit of a list, not of what I have done to the car as I have done that already, but the things I have done to it that were later deemed to be a mistake. Some of these mistakes i have just accepted and some... I regret having done in the first place and have altered.
I suppose the first one I should mention is the bullbar. When I first decided on getting a bullbar I decided an alloy bar and no winch was the way to go but later on, I got a bit more adventurous with the vehicle and at an additional expense of $3000.00 (round figures) I changed to a steel bulbar and winch. I had to make some reinforcements to ensure the bullbar wouldn't be wrenched from the car when using the winch. The car was not really built with bullbars & winches in mind, in my opinion.
The roof basket, while proving to be a handy item, later proved to be a bit of a waste of time. The reasons being, the weight of the basket itself reduced the carrying capacity of my roof. Also, the mounts for my maxtrax (a recovery device) were difficult to mount accurately within the basket. I later had a custom alloy frame made to replace it and added my mounts and some additional lighting to it.
Wheels & tyres.. I wasted money on a set of Pirelli scorpion tyres. They were no better off road than the standard highway tyres I started with. As for the choices available in a off road tyre, there was next to nothing available for the stock 17" rims that the car came with so, I sourced some 16" rims to my liking. Whilst I really like the rims, I found out later that a Zero offset didn't mean what I thought it meant and as a result, the tyres sit a little proud of the guards and I get the occasional rubbing on the inner guard which is only plastic anyway. The rubbing only occurs on full lock or on a decent bump which is usually only off road.
At the time of purchasing these rims I also purchased a set of Cooper ST Maxx tyres. While they are a great tyre and I am pleased with them, I now regret not going for the Cooper STT instead which has a more aggressive off road profile. Oh well, next time! As at October 1st 2014 I have changed back to a 16" Great Wall rim from a V240 Ute.
Suspension wise, as part of the lift kit I opted for the heavy duty torsion bars. This was a mistake. Even with the additional weight of the steel bullbar and winch, the front end is way too hard. When on bitumen and running highway pressures, I reckon you could almost feel a matchstick if you drove over it. I'm sure that the additional vibration on rough roads will eventually result in additional wear & tear as a direct result of the heavier bars.
LED light bars are something I skimped on when it came to price. I regret not having spent the extra money and getting better quality, and larger in the first place. I will be upgrading all my LED lighting as funds allow but they will do for now as I don't get to do as much night driving as I would like to.
The Auto Locker I had fitted in the rear diff has, in hindsight, proven to be a mistake. If I were doing it again I would have an "E-Locker" fitted instead. I won't bother going into the reasons here but if you would like further info on any of the above, please go to the "Blog" page and select the relevant section to post your question.
That's about all I can think of right now but I will add other things if & when they come to mind.
I suppose the first one I should mention is the bullbar. When I first decided on getting a bullbar I decided an alloy bar and no winch was the way to go but later on, I got a bit more adventurous with the vehicle and at an additional expense of $3000.00 (round figures) I changed to a steel bulbar and winch. I had to make some reinforcements to ensure the bullbar wouldn't be wrenched from the car when using the winch. The car was not really built with bullbars & winches in mind, in my opinion.
The roof basket, while proving to be a handy item, later proved to be a bit of a waste of time. The reasons being, the weight of the basket itself reduced the carrying capacity of my roof. Also, the mounts for my maxtrax (a recovery device) were difficult to mount accurately within the basket. I later had a custom alloy frame made to replace it and added my mounts and some additional lighting to it.
Wheels & tyres.. I wasted money on a set of Pirelli scorpion tyres. They were no better off road than the standard highway tyres I started with. As for the choices available in a off road tyre, there was next to nothing available for the stock 17" rims that the car came with so, I sourced some 16" rims to my liking. Whilst I really like the rims, I found out later that a Zero offset didn't mean what I thought it meant and as a result, the tyres sit a little proud of the guards and I get the occasional rubbing on the inner guard which is only plastic anyway. The rubbing only occurs on full lock or on a decent bump which is usually only off road.
At the time of purchasing these rims I also purchased a set of Cooper ST Maxx tyres. While they are a great tyre and I am pleased with them, I now regret not going for the Cooper STT instead which has a more aggressive off road profile. Oh well, next time! As at October 1st 2014 I have changed back to a 16" Great Wall rim from a V240 Ute.
Suspension wise, as part of the lift kit I opted for the heavy duty torsion bars. This was a mistake. Even with the additional weight of the steel bullbar and winch, the front end is way too hard. When on bitumen and running highway pressures, I reckon you could almost feel a matchstick if you drove over it. I'm sure that the additional vibration on rough roads will eventually result in additional wear & tear as a direct result of the heavier bars.
LED light bars are something I skimped on when it came to price. I regret not having spent the extra money and getting better quality, and larger in the first place. I will be upgrading all my LED lighting as funds allow but they will do for now as I don't get to do as much night driving as I would like to.
The Auto Locker I had fitted in the rear diff has, in hindsight, proven to be a mistake. If I were doing it again I would have an "E-Locker" fitted instead. I won't bother going into the reasons here but if you would like further info on any of the above, please go to the "Blog" page and select the relevant section to post your question.
That's about all I can think of right now but I will add other things if & when they come to mind.
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All content ©Copyright Stuart Whitehouse 2014 - Unless otherwise stated.
Images on this site may be purchase by using the form on another site here. Simply take note of the image I.D number.
HOME | ABOUT/CONTACT | MY CAR | MODIFICATIONS | TRIPS | GALLERY | BLOG | LINKS
Updates | Mistakes & Regrets | Electrical | Rocksliders | Roof Accessories | The Drawers
All content ©Copyright Stuart Whitehouse 2014 - Unless otherwise stated.
Images on this site may be purchase by using the form on another site here. Simply take note of the image I.D number.