It's Alive! Here's How I Transformed My Suzuki Samurai, But I Need YOUR Help To Finish It!
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 มิ.ย. 2024
- ( www.TFLcar.com ) You may have thought it was gone, but Nathan's Suzuki Samurai is still kicking! He's made a few changes in the past few months, but how do you think he should finish the project? Let us know in the comments!
( / tflcar ) Please visit to support TFLcar & TFLtruck.
Check us out on:
Facebook: ( / tflcar )
Twitter: ( / tflcar )
and now even Truck Videos on TH-cam at:
The Fast Lane Truck ( / tflcar )
and classic cars as well at:
TFLClassics ( / classicsunleashed )
#Suzuki #Samurai #Project - ยานยนต์และพาหนะ
"I wanted to keep it cheap because I wanted to stay married" I think the neighbours heard me laugh. still smiling
This should be the next t shirt
Meme material
That got a laugh out of me too!
Unfortunately, I think I woke up my wife... lol
I think a locker is the best to do at this point. On the samurai. I have a good used rear third member with a locker. I would sell it to you for 300 it has stock gears.
@TFLclassics just go for that pro eagle off-road jack.
Finally. Been waiting a LONG time for this. Some points from years and years of off roading and daily driving a samurai.
- Steering is wonky due to the changed drop pitman arm and streering angles.
- Remove the sway bar, it's free flex.
- Mud tires will go a long way. Tire pressure: Off road, 10psi in the rear, 12 in the front.
- Get a spartan locker for the rear, It is amazing, best mod for 170$. I installed it in an afternoon, easy job.
- Remove the rear tow bar if you don't tow, it will hit and get you stuck..
- A bottle jack and max trax will work wonders, while being light.
- The mounting bracket for your front bumper will touch the tires.
- The shackle problem. I also suffer from that my friend... I've decided to go with a coil conversion, but you have a couple of cheaper/easier ways to fix this. Lift springs, spring over axle or Add-a-Leaf lift (some people say they are rough, some love them. For around 100$ you can't complain much).
-Weight reduction: Lighter seats (10Kg), Spare tire carrier and stock jack bracket delete (5-10Kg), remove the carpet, rear seats and soft top in the summer, which makes it a lot easier to clean (50kg), Tow bar (10-15 kg), Grill guard (10kg)
Hope some of these help you, you can always check my channel for a similar built samurai. Mine sits at 1000-1020kg with a 1.9 turbo diesel, front and rear steel bumpers and 30s. Off road performance is similar to a jk rubicon on 35s or a patrol on 37s in most situations, only falling behind on rocks, where the bigger tire size always helps) .
Tons of great advice here!
This is great stuff. Thanks!
Ditch the doors in the summer too 👍🏻
Golden advices, I love Samurais and just a couple days ago I receive my own 2020 Jimny. Pretty much the same concept, weight and size. The new one comes with coil springs but the same robust structure attached to a 1,5 liter 16 valves K15 engine. I’m really amazed of the quality you can find under the car, definitively they made a tribute to the history of this one.
nathan adlen Hi Nathan! Good work with the Sami, it was really nice that you keep it. I will wish to live there so we can do a ride to comprare your Samurai with my 2020 new Jimny. I think Suzuki keeps all the goods of samurai and just updated some hardware keeping all the essential concept of this icon.
The best thing about this video is that Nathan's in front of the camera again. 😁 I don’t know why, but he’s my favorite of all the TFL guys. Maybe it's the haircut - the same as mine. 🤣
I daily drove my '87 Samurai for 20 years. Loved that thing.
I’m so glad they brought the samurai back
Finally,another video of the Samurai 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Great little build! I'd dich the hi-lift jack and go for a small 4500lbs atv winch. It won't be any heavier, but it might be over the budget... The car is so light, it won't have any problems pulling itself out with such a winch.
Came here to post this.
I put a 3500lb winch and synthetic rope on mine 3 years ago. Only needed it a couple times so far but it has been more than enough winch when I needed it. Way more convenient than a high lift Jack and safer in my opinion.
You could probably get by with a come-a-long instead of using a heavy high lift jack.
definitely agree here. A good bottle jack and a come-along weigh less, are less annoying to use, and are certainly safer than a hi lift.
Max trax or a cheap knockoff would work pretty well too. The cheap ones break easier, but this thing is so light that it might not matter.
My first thought was a come-a-long and some ropes instead of the hi lift
Agreed hi lift jacks are dangerous. Dynamic rope like a bubba rope and fellow friend is all you need, never go out alone.
@@dirf554 dangerous??? not if one knows how to use them. friggin' rope is dangerous in the wrong hands.
I love Nathan, his direct open and honest approach is so great.
I have an 87 as well. Honestly you can't make it off-road worthy without adding extra weight. You need to re-gear the T-case...it's a must since the 1.3 is so weak. I have 6.5:1 T-case gears and as a result i can zip around town on 31's like it's bone stock.
Great video...I’ve owned my 87 Sami 21 years now . I added a set of headers , Toyota carb, spring over with a hi-steer kit and rebuilt the transfer case with better gears.Its a blast to drive. Rebuild that Transfer case would be the first thing to do.Makes all the difference in the world. 😎
I had a white one the same year. Pick it up damaged (rear end hit...tied onto tree pulled it out and ran it the whole time I owned it). Back then Rancho had a 1 1/2 inch lift front springs, Conifer rear shackles 2 inch shackle was available and a one piece Conifer skid plate (went on with four bolts, could jack up the Samurai and spin it on skid plate), smitty Bilt side bars from that era (yours are better), had also a center push bar (same as yours without head light protectors). I used stock rims and bought 1-2 sizes up aggressive factory take offs off Ford Ranger (Firestone back then). Ran it half soft bikini top/tonneau cover in summer. Ran it mostly without the rear seat in (unless needed). Purchased Blim removable fiberglass hard top for winter (was my commuter rig). Used a come-a-long with tow strap for extrication, army shovel, snow chains (if you keep tires small you should be able to find cheap 2nd hand unused chains). Always wanted to put tracker motor in it (love EFI). I am 6'3" fit and it me better than my 2015 Taco. If you have a larger budget, Samurai 4x4 (below entry) has great suggestions.
The US needs the new Suzuki Jimny - it’s awesome!
I wish, I still keep my 96 RAV4 2 doors cuz everything else too big and heavy.
Nathan: Can you put the leaf springs ABOVE the axles, then go back to the shorter spring shackles, improving your approach angle while giving you approximately the same lift?
Spring over axle has many complications. He could do it for next to nothing but it would absolutely ruin it. To do a successful spring over axle it would be far out of his budget (the whole steering system had to be changed, not to mention SPOA has less benefits then Spring under)
Spring over conversion. It has worked for Toyota's for decades.
Definitely spring over, my buddy did it on his samurai. Wow what a difference. Huge improvement. And change the gear in the rear. go up to 31x 10:50 tires and lunch box locker. Shocking how capable of a rig that combo makes.
So glad someone brought this up, if you have a shop that can take care of it pretty quickly.
@@reeveharper8424 what are the the issues of spring over vs spring under?
"My wife said if I added one more thing to that Samurai, she'd leave me."
"I'll sure miss her."
(Old joke that can be swapped out for any number of hobbies)
I got the myside carb and turbo setup. With 32s, I had no issue cruising 70mph everywhere
Myside carb conversion is the way to go.
TFL inspired me to get a stock Sami last June. And I did some minor mods that started me down a slippery slope. Now my Sami is on 31", spring over axel, arb lockers fore and aft, full size skid plate, 4.16 transfer case gears,and as I type this I'm taking a break from welding in a full roll cage. When your wife kicks you out you and you Sami can come live in my shop.
I had a 95 Cherokee 2door 2wd , very base very reliable. Thing only weighed like 2900lbs I couldn't believe it lol Wish I still had it. Some jeeps today easily twice that
I built a 1.3 SJ with a high lift cam, 4 branch janspeed manifold and a K&N air filter . Removed the carpets and rear seats and it transformed the car a lot
Nathan, I had an '87 Samurai about 20 years ago. I trimmed the bottom of the door hinge brackets and made the doors removable. I believe that cut off 75 pounds and made it very cool!
Dog leg shackles in the front will help with the approach angle. That’s what I put on my CJ.
In the late 70's, I used to have the model before this one, the LJ20. Loved that little truck, it could go anywhere. Had bigger tires than stock, and a 2500 lbs winch. I once used a root sticking out of the ground to pull me out with the winch. Sometimes I would get stuck with no trees around, so I would put it in gear, pull out the choke, get out and push to get un stuck. Those were good days. Life was simpler and innocent. Cheers from Canada.
Take a grinder with a wire wheel to the underbody and rust convert the underbody of the truck. Before it's too late...
Also, paint the hood white add a big Rising Sun graphic to match your bandana.
I've had a samurai for about a year. Love it and love that there's a relevant video out for a budget minded build
A trick we used to do in the "old days" to get a cheap lift was a spring over axle conversion. You can then go back to the shorter shackles.
Awesome to see the Sami back. I used to have one and a couple of the best things I did to it were gearing and locking the rear axle. With the Sami you can change the gearing in the tcase without touching the axles, which is really cool. With budget in mind you could weld the rear axle.
Put a Suzuki Steem 1.6 G16B FI engine, have 96hp and is almost plug and play (same engine family ). So it will looks original, improve engine output, that mean you can use some bigger tires and other mods.
I remember drooling all over all the mods they used to sell for Samurais: lift kits, spring-over axle conversions, different t-cases, Sidekick engine swaps, and even diesel engine swaps. Unfortunately I didn't have any money for any of that stuff at the time, and by the time I did, that Sammy was long gone.
My strategy for off road recovery was to have tow points front and rear, always carry a recovery strap, and never go wheeling alone.
Here's how to revert back to stock shackles, retain your lift, have the car ride and handle 1000x better, get many many times more flex, and cost next to nothing. This normally does require some welding and fabrication (or since you're in America I believe you can buy a bolt on kit from Rocky Road so no fabrication is required).
Buy 1 set of rear lift springs, the best is an Old Man Emu 40mm lift spring. Install them on the rear of the car. Next take your old rear lift springs and install them in the front. There's three ways to do this, 1) Weld extentions to the Chassis for the shackles to bolt onto further forwards
2) Buy a bolt on kit (DO NOT get the one with drop shackles, foldable shackles, missing links or whatever you call them. They look good for flex but ruin the cars handling and off-road capability
3) You can redrill the spring mount further back and use extended shackles again
1 is the best, 2nd is pretty good if you don't want to weld, and 3rd is also good but you still have extended shackles that could get caught.
By having the longer rear springs in the front (this modification is called RUF or Rears Up Front) it gives you all the benefits as stated above. And if you do it all yourself you only need to buy 2 new rear lift springs as your stock rears in the front will equal out with the lifted rears! PS, love what you're doing by keeping the Zook low and light
I would put an add a leaf on the front and rear, and flip the axle under the springs for a little more lift. I would also put in a lunch box locker in the rear and add a set of mud terrains and that's really it.
I like the idea of a cheap ATV wench. Harbor Freight has them < $200. I would be interested in seeing you figure out that front suspension as well to improve the approach angle. Cool little budget build. Proves you don't need $$$$ to have fun!
Ya thats a good idea use an arb winch an then rig it with a a snatch block when u use it an it'll be just fine with a 2500lb winch since the rule of thumb is usually 1 1/2 ur weight is what ur winch should be rated an using a snatch block should about double ur pulling force would be more than sufficient. An use a good synthetic line an the new ring things they have that act as a snatch block with soft shackles and stuff for ur tiring gear u wnt add hardley any weight
I got one of these, but heavily modified now. Had it almost 20 years now. I'd start with a spring over axle on 31's. Either way, it's still a blast to drive after all these years.
I'm currently swapping Toyota axles on a coil 3 link front and 4 link rear. These things can be built to handle anything.
Awesome you still have the Sami and didn’t sell it like Comanche 😢,, anyway I think the Hi lift jack is great but for such a small vehicle I’d get the smaller hi lift for UTVs it only weighs about 30 lbs. also you could use a come-along for extraction purposes.. and you could throw in a lunch box locker for around $200 ish bucks,. That would greatly help off road IMO.. keep up the great work Nate!!!
@@wildbill23c jeep is more useful than the samurai. It has a bed.
I wouldn't do it.
And thats coming from a Samurai owner. I'd rather fit the spare tyre than add the 50lbs.
Agreed. I have a samurai as well and you’re gonna want as much weight savings as possible to be able to use what power it’s got
@@mikeybaughn2688 I build my JK with weight savings always at the forefront. Its my daily and I try to keepthings as close to stock performance. Good train of thought for sure. Still quite capable as is the Samurai. Love those still wish they made them, or at least shipped it's current variant here state side.
For my Samurai I added a 4,000 lb come-a-long with the synthetic cable. Works great and it stays in the garage when it is not being used. The radio in Samurai was also a relic from the past. I removed it and zip-tied in a cylindrical JBL blue tooth speaker. It is simple, works great with the phone, and I can charge it from the USB charger I put in the cigarette plug. I would love to see a comparison with the street legal Samurai to a Mahindra Roxor.
Many years ago I owned that exact same model of Samurai. The lift option I took was having the stock springs re-arched at a reputable spring shop. A reputable shop can even compensate for the drivers weight so its level side to side after you get in. The max lift and keeping stock steering components is about 2.5 to 2.75 inches. It was by far the best mod I invested in on my Samurai. It's more money than shackles but I wouldn't consider it an expensive mod. It'll ride better than the shackle lift and you get rid of the approach angle issue. Oh and I drove the Samurai well over 100k miles and rebuilt the engine and drove it another 50k before selling it.
Excellent job Nathan! what about using a manual boat trailer winch? For just 2000 pounds it might be fine and it´s very light weight!
Love the look! Love this Sami and this series. Very glad to see it back. Here is my two cents (since you asked) as a long time samurai owner who started from stock...take it as you will. First mod I always recommend is tires. 235's are great for spua. Tread and reliability matter. I love the reusing but some good meats go a LONG ways. Second is honesty a buddy haha. A little push can get you out of a surprising amount of trouble. For solo adventures I get the idea of the hi-lift but agree with others who have commented, not worth the weight. Better a come-along or small 4000lb synthetic line winch. I wheel with a few guys who pack hi-lifts that never get used. For a lift I went straight SPOA (~$200) and 31's with no issues but it does strain the ujoints. I like that you want to keep it low and close to stock. Shackles are skechy though...the tilted castor angle is causing the darty steering issues you've got. Shims can correct that but honestly the OME 1.5" is what you want(budget be damned). For pure offroad performance next is a locker or spool but unless you go ARB (divorce) the on road handling is trash...my wife refers to the locker as "when you ruined it"... Engine the only real way to go is 1.6 efi but a header and the right carb (not weber) help. It's a samurai not a race car right?! Also, aluminium wheels...reducing unsprung rotational weight goes further than you'd think.
Cheers,
This is the only one, out of the many builds, that I agree with. Keep going. I recommend Trail Tough. My Samurai rides like a Caddy. When dealing with the 1.3 Headders and exhaust really helps. A Webber Carb really wakes these little guys up. You will sacrifice a bit of mileage and Off road ability, but well worth it. If you go with a Harley carb you will gain in Off Road ability but will obliterate your mileage. Might as well do an engine swap at that point. I got 15k in my rig. So I suggest to keep it cheap and simple. Gearing, exhaust, and save your money for a suspension that really works. Don't do the YJ springs. That's so 90's. Go with a tuned suspension that makes the little Samurai perform like a mini Raptor.
I've owned a few of them. A cheaper lift in the front is to place the leaf springs over the differential.
Yeeeeah the best car of the whole fleet !
The Puerto Rican community in my city have the cleanest and only ones I have even seen in person outside of the 90s. I saw an awesome one yesterday. I love them
Stickers. They add horsepower.
vtec sticker or GT probably adds a lot hp
More go faster strips too and paint it red, red cars are always faster !
Speed Holes
Swap in the 1.6 16v from a tracker, well worth the swap, you can basically use your big toe on the pedal vs being 3/4 to full throttle everywhere you go and you can cruise comfortably at 70-75mph
Also tell your wife to mind her business and to stop spending money on shoes
I’m sure for their sake of time and money a 1.6 8v would be better for them. Much easier to mess with and you don’t need to run fuel injection on it. For simplicity I would do the 8v. But if they could the 16v or a 1.6 with the 1.3 DOHC head with a turbo would be sick as hell
Power Wagon don’t care, Samurai don’t mind! Truly love this build,,,,,,tell the lil lady your the man, you wear the britches, just like I been wanting to for the past 38 years, but I’m a coward😳 plus over that time she’s fattened me up and my speed ain’t what it use to be
Hilarious response and advice!
Keep stock shackles and do a spoa
I'm in a similar situation with a project and wife mandated budget. My suggestion is to finish the mods you've already started and get the steering fixed. Then enjoy it for a couple years and set aside some money every paycheck for upgrades over time. You don't have to have the project complete in one shot, make it a work in progress and you can enjoy the mods more as you make them.
Does snh6e work?
@@WDMC48 ???
Dig the Suzuki, but sorry for the marital woes.
Keep it light Nathan if you want it OG.
Man, that looks nice. The only thing I would do is find a junkyard 6 cylinder and stuff it under the hood. It will help with you being at altitude. Samurais are awesome. It's a shame suzuki doesn't make cars in the US anymore... They had a couple decent ones.
Under GM's 'leadership' Suzuki started selling too many re-badged Daewoos. That undermined the solid reputation they had earned selling their own cars. The rest is history.......
Nathan,..if I owned that Samurai I would mount an ATV winch ( loaded with 7500 pound capacity synthetic rope )on this instead of the Hi Lift Jack and bracket,..they'd all weigh about the same,.
Those winches would have about 3,000 pound pull ( or more ) and you can use a snatch block pulley/hook too, then you'd be up to some 6000 pounds of pull.What's wrong with that!
yea, i run the 4500lb atv winch on my XL7 vitara. not big, not heavy but they sure to the job.
id guess they are around $50usd and weigh maybe 5-10lbs all up. cheap and easily enough for a sierra
I don't own a Samurai and I've never done any off-roading but during some of the heavy snows in Portland OR (2010, 2015) I started taking notice of ground clearances on different cars (I had a standard 2 WD 1991 Toyota Pickup) and that's when I started noticing Samurai's. Most of the ones you see in Portland are pretty beatup, but, you do see a very nice one (like yours) occasionally. You've got an awesome machine there and I wish you many happy times with it, and a strong marriage as well. Cheers!
this is how samurai have to looks and it looks great, one of best of roads for money
I'd add a 1 inch carburetor spacer to the manifold for more umph, you might get 20 more hp if you can make it work. Aluminum spacers is perfect cause if it doesn't fit you can shave it down to size or check with the forms.
Hey Nathan! I just want to see you drive it around off road. Especially if you can put her in Moab somewhere. Let's see her tackle some rocks. Thanks for reminding us about the Suzuki Samurai.
Hello, just love the show, and very glad that you get one of these mini monster to yourself =)
Not north american and not with easy acess to most of good stuff that you guys have, but if you want/need to keep it simple and low cost I think it might help.
I have mine for a 10+ years now and after a lot of mods e stuf the best configuration that I found is this:
-30" tires (MT)
-wheels are the same as yours
-drop pitman
-trailgear lift springs (SPUA)
- stock (but reinforced with some weld) shackles
-rancho shocks (F and R)
-rear spartan locker (best ever ratio between gain in offroad capabilities and cost)
-5.4:1 transfer case gears (optional, but made my life a lot easier offroad)
-12" led bar in the front bumper for offroad use (amazing cost/effectivity ratio also)
For recovery I use:
- a couple of generic matraxx
- small hilift (1,2m?)+recovery gear or a generic 6000lbs front winch (steel cables, but you may be able to get a kevlar one, I guess)
If you dont need to push heavier vehicles, 6000 lbs is plenty for samy.
Other than that, you already got a lot of good tips. Hope you enjoy the samy and stay married rs...
Cheers
Here's few things I did on my SJ410. It is a smaller engine than the samurai (SJ413), but maybe it can become usefull
1. Change the radiator fan with an electric one.
2. Get a slightly bigger ignition coil than the standard one
3. In addition with the coil, get bigger spark cables
4. Take out the rear seats, its painfull for rear passangers anyway :)
5. Change the gear ratio to get more torque
I hope this helps to get some new ideas, good luck
Take off the sliders and add the winch. I’m so happy to see this back on the channel! I’m not sure if they still make it but you used to be able to purchase a kit that moved the springs to the top of the axel
Those boots are nearly Baldini's, bro.
Love your Samurai ! My mom bought one brand new in '87. She paid for the optional black paint and cold AC system. 👌
Looking great with your scarf!
Us big guys, we gotta look out for each other! So, if you get a roof top tent, you’ll have a place to sleep when u get thrown out!! As much as I love the segment and the samurai, stop with the money suck!! Just ride the thing into the ground and have fun while doing it!!
One of the most understated 4x4 ever built I’ve put theses Suzuki’s where Jeeps Toyotas and LR got stuck due to weight!
My first car was a blue one...made it up trails that only Gators could get up otherwise
I would definitely go with the Hi-Lift jack since its so damn versatile. Not as fast as a come along but way more useful and your already have flat bumpers and not much weight needed to be lifted. I definitely would not have gone with the 8 inch wide tires. This vehicle does not have a lot of power, wider rims just adds more weight, especially rotational weight. Also because this vehicle is not heavy, wider tires reduce your contact pressure which will not help you gain traction. Tall and skinny tires is usually a good way to go for off road. I'd fix what needs fixing, address the rust, and save up over a while for a locker for either the front or rear because that will be the most important upgrade.
I would recommend a good come a long, they aren’t as heavy or expensive as a winch. Also your tires look pretty old and weathered, I know tires are expensive but the world’s better with you in it. So new tires should be on the list, especially if you drive on the highway. Just my opinion I really like what you’ve done glad the samurai is still around.
My old side by side didn't have a winch and my come along saved me several times.
I've always loved the little Suzuki Samurai. Really enjoyed the video.
Glad to see the Zuk is still around!
I would of done a spring over axel lift there almost free, and don't have the spring hanger way out front.
It looks like the front springs have negative arch.
Cheap off road mods that makes it actually work better, lunchbox locker for at least the front, and some T-case gears.
If you get a bigger allowance and still need power, Chevy 3.4 swap it fits perfectly in the Zuki
I had an 88 Samurai as mentioned in another video. Mine also had a 2" shackle lift with slightly bigger tires. One place you can lose weight is jettisoning the back seat. I never used mine any way. I also put a bikini top on mine. A Weber carburetor will help it run better. Thumb up for your little Sammy.
Been in the Sammy world for 20 years. Mini spool the rear. Its still streetable. Spring over, T case gears are a must. Great ride
I built an 1 person camper rig out of my 87 tintop. Way better than you can Imagine. Now daily it like I do and every month add $800, that you didn't spend on a boring new p.o.s., to your Samurai.
Hello Nathan, I've a 88 1/2 had the same shackles as you do, I removed them so glad I did. Went back to stock shackles ride much better. I trimmed front bumper and I run 225/70/15.
😭 I miss my Samurai! I had sooo much fun in it!
You could get the same ammount of lift with an ome (old man emu) lift, it might be something to think about in the future since the lift is around $850 but just throwing the option out there
Its a great little car. Suzuki made the LWB Samurai in India till last year, called the Gypsy.
Fix the front shackles, wire in the switch box, and add the jack bracket. After that, leave it alone.
Nathan, I'm an old timmer been 4wheeling since the '60s. I got by for decades with a come-along. Cheap lightweight and great incitive not to get too stuck in the first place. Might get you by until the wife needs to get your Christmas present...
I have a stock 1.3 litre version here in India. This is called the Maruti Suzuki Gypsy here. And has been used by the Armed Forces for the last 35 years. It is so versatile and so simple and light that it automatically became the rally vehicle of choice here in India. Sadly they stopped production of it in 2019.
Hi lift? you can lift it yourself with one hand and change the tire with the other.
Very good build well done and thanks for keeping it close to stock. It’s a great and highly capable vehicle!
Love the Samurai.
Nathan, it's looking better for sure! I have the exact tintop brother to this right down to the color and stock radio. As for your next move, I agree with many suggesting to NOT do a jack. Better to budget a used or HF winch into the future. Go with the sidedraft carb or the toyota K carb over the stock unit. Check out any of the Sami groups and they will get you to the right part. Second, those tires are a nice improvement but you need tread for the trail. Fb market place is my source of good used tires and often someone's jeep replacements are ideal. Keep up the great work and set your sites on a T-case gear upgrade. Love it man!
Literally just finished up a Toyota 3K carb swap on my stock ‘86 Zuk 2 weeks ago. HUGE difference. Power is night and day. It’s insane that I’m actually able to accelerate from 40mph to 50mph just as you would from 10-20mph from first to second gear. Can’t recommend this carburetor enough. And it’s a direct bolt on replacement. Gas mileage has been significantly improved as well. The stock Hitachi carb had been giving me plenty of issues the last couple years, so I did a bit of research on different carbs and went with the 3K over the myside Harley mainly for ease of install and overall performance. I can’t emphasize enough how much better this carburetor is over the stock, even when the stock was running great years ago. Also just put on some 225/75 Toyo Open Country AT3’s on the stock wheels and my Zuk is night and day better overall than what it was just last month on the cheap old 215/75 road tires I had. Haven’t done anything else yet to my rig other than trimming the door hinges a bit in order to remove the doors. The weight of my rig without the doors and the top basically even out the added weight of the bigger aggressive tire. It’s so much more fun to drive now, the low-end torque is impressive for what it is. Will be doing a 3 inch old man emu suspension lift within the next year, but for now I’m satisfied and loving my Zuk!! Get plenty of comments around town, people love the thing and it’s just in its “infancy” of maturing from a stock Samurai to a force to be reckoned with lmao
Yes! Keep it running good and do the basics like make sure duff breather tubes are extended and this this ought to be a blast!
How deep into the wilderness do you plan on taking it and how often do you use high-lift jacks anyway? (my vote is not worth it)
What a cool little trucklet! I love these things. It's amazing how popular (thus expensive) they are.
Keep an eye on the compression. On of mine had two cracked values. The other, ring blowby. Gears! lockers! cams! Oh my! A big come-a-long and a loud stereo. DONE! Spare tire. Save up for some TSL's.
Semi PRO tip- Your shackles are bowing where they attach. This is because those shackle are aftermarket, and they tend to build them for aftermarket leaf springs, which are typically - you guessed it- wider.
You're going, or already have caused the metal to cave in/bend by wrenching them snug enough to fit the more narrow leaf's and bushing. INSTEAD- what you should do/have done is get some large 2" fender washers and inserted them on either end to make up the difference in width. That'll maintain their structure and if you ever change leafs, you won't need shackles like you do now because good luck unbending them later.
As for the tailgate hi-lift. You can probably get away with that and the larger tire, but the Sammy tailgate is notoriously weak (just like all of the vehicle) and adding a bunch of weight to the tailgate may cause the hinges to fail.
I also had a stock 87 and low budget. I went with new tires and rims same size tires but deeper rims. new shocks plus bought shackles from DrZ Fab and best improvement was replacing all springs with the OME. Did it this year for under $1500 Both the ride and look improved!
But a CB bracket for ur light switch. It'll work perfectly. 👍
I have always loved the Samurais, I borrow my friends when I was in the Army for about a week and it was the most fun I have ever had. I would love to own one. I have seen them with a Chevy 350, crazy stupid. Anyhow Nathan I like how you have built yours up, very tasteful and not over done.
Good to see the Suzuki back. Looking forward to seeing the little beast in the dirt.👍
That's one beautiful little rig! My brother used to own one! Loved it! Wish he had it back again.✌🤠👍
I have an 88. I have the same tires and rock sliders! I always carry my hi-lift behind the rear seat with some recover ropes and smitty bilt element tracks. I have never had an issue with too much weight
So great to see smaller SUVs getting attention! The Suzuki looks great! Would love to see more on this if possible!
I did an unusual locker install in my Front Diff. Mainly a beach rescue vehicle and the engine weight gives me better traction pulling in reverse. Also shackle lift, lower pitman arm, cheap headers and Weber carb.
Your samurai is probably my favorite vehicle in the TFL fleet
If you do an axle over leaf spring you can get a little lift but you may need to replace the Ubolts. Also with how light that is an ATV winch would get you out of most things. Winch will come in handy when you need more power to climb up something and they are not that heavy. That is a nice little truck have fun and be safe. Buy the wife flowers for no reason once in a while.
I had friends that used to use these neat little rigs for hunting, they just put the leaf springs on top of the differential's and then went with a good aggressive tire some bfg k2`s or bfg mudders and you have low range so no problem, they could even haul them in a full size pickup. get rid of the silly shackle lift, weld some saddles on top of the diffs and your golden
LS swap that lil beast 👍❤🚗💨💨💨💨💨💨💨💨 So glad you brought back the Samurai!!!
Good job on keeping it light. I've had 3 of these in the past. Would advise you to change gear ratio if you ever want to get some bigger tires.