Hey guys, I bought my first 4x4 last night, its a suzuki sidekick sport jlx 1996.

So far i'm enjoying it but wasn't expecting it to be as slow as it was have 40bhp more than the 1.6 sidekick.  It's like you have the floor the gas pedal to get to a suitable speed on the interstate.  Also I felt like I was being battered by winds due to the high sided nature of the vehicle.

Are aftermarket arm rests available?

Below the rear diff there is oil residue, could the gasket me perished?

Theres also oily dirt on the side of the oil sump, does anyone know if its an engine out job to change the sump gaskets?

My last issue is with the steering, it feels sagy and a bit hesitant, pictures will come shortly.

When I got off the interstate it was raining heavy, I was under the impression i could drive 40 mph on paved roads in 4h.  I know now from a friend 4wd is not supposed to be used on paved roads.  When I got to the house, I could slightly smell a burning smell.  Is it possible I could have damaged the 4wd?  As I said it was only about 3 miles I drove, not fast.

Welcome to the family.

What you have bought is known as a part-time 4WD, and as you have learned, should not be used if 4WD on any "high traction" surface - when a four wheeled vehicle turns a corner, each of the four wheels turns at a different speed, the front turns faster than the back, and the outer turn faster than the inner - part time 4WDs don't have the center differential that's needed to allow this, so the wheels need to be able to slip to prevent what is known as "drive train wind up" - chances are you didn't damage anything - since you haven't reported any loud bangs or major oil leaks - the common damage areas are the transfer case and/or the front differential housings, and the damage is usually catastrophic and very noticeable.

Regarding the oily residue on the sump and differential - start by washing it off with your choice of degreaser and then watching it to see where the leak is from - I believe they use silicone rather than the old fashioned paper gaskets on both the sump and differential.  Pay close attention to the oil on the side of the sump - it probably does not come from the sump - but is dripping down from a leak higher up - the cam position sensor (on the back of the left side or exhaust cam shaft) is fairly common, as is oil spilt and not wiped up whilst changing the filter.

One of the things I do will all "new to me" vehicles very shortly after purchase is a full service, making sure to replace all fluids & filters, the drive belts and spark plugs.

Sorry I can't be much help on the steering - that's one of the areas where your car differs from mine - I have rack & pinion, you have the older style steering box - whilst servicing check for play in the linkages and replace where necessary.

Have you driven a 1.6 engined Tracker or Sidekick?  If so how did it compare?  While mine weren't particularly fast I didn't consider them slow either.  I wonder if the extra weight of the Sport is too much for the slightly larger engine?

Thanks for the welcome and the info. 

About the cam position sensor, does it leak from the gasket?

I'm going to do what I can and have a garage do the rest of the inspection. 

Did the sidekick sport come with keyless entry as all I have are some generic keys?

Also where can I buy seals/weatherstripping from?

I've never driven a 1.6 tracker before, its the first suv I have owned.

These things might seem slow but if you give it a little gas and don't be afraid to let it rev and it will move quick.  I am usually the first out out at a light and can stay at the front of the pack unless someone is trying to race me.  I drove a 4 cylinder Wrangler automatic and compared to that my Tracker was positively a race car.

About the cam position sensor, does it leak from the gasket?

There's a rubber O ring where the cam position sensor goes into the cylinder head - it allows the sensor to be rotated to adjust the base igntion timing.  Suzuki has used the same "concept" on many of their engines - the G series engines (1.0/1.3/1.5/1.6) have it, the J series engines (1.8/2.0/2.3) have it, the H series engines (2.0/2.5/2.7) have it, and sooner or later, you'll get a "seep" past the O ring - it's more of a nuisance than anything else, it rarely leaks enough oil to be a problem other than the dirt sticking to the oil and making a mess of the engine and bell housing.

I have a 97 Sport, with the 1.8L engine, and it's a lot quicker than my 95 1.6L/16 valve was.  You might want to run a compression test on your Sport.

x2..i swapped a 1.8l into my 94 tracker that had a 1.6l 8v in it...huge differance!!!