Hey guys, after searching around a while I recently bought a soft top 88 Sammy, 100% stock. There are a lot of modifications I would like to do to this vehicle (I'm a 19 year old college student, money is my limiting factor) that I want to make over the next couple years. Right now, I also have a Range Rover Classic, but I intend to sell it to begin financing these modifications. So the Sammy will be my daily driver for a couple years until I'm out of school and have the ability to get a second car again, at which point I'll turn the Sammy into my toy. But, I've never done anything like this to a vehicle so I would like some tips. I've read around online, and here is a rough list of changes I would like to make.
-New top
-lockable ammo box bolted under hood for goodies (done)
-lockable ammo box bolted on tow plate for tool storage
-spare tire cover painted (lion w/dreadlocks)
-safari rack w/ offroad lights and gas can and high lift jack mount
-3-5 inch SPOA lift
-30-31 inch rubbers
-brush guard bumper w/ winch
-replace engine
-spray on bed liner
-paint job (military green or khaki)
-Snorkel
-new front seats
-aluminum door handles
-folding down windshield (maybe, heard it's not a bad mod but i'm not sure)
-locking differentials (not ARB, i've heard those have a lot of problems)
-Possibly a transfer case mod (I don't know much about these)
-possibly regearing the tranny
Basically, any tips or advice you may have would be greatly appreciated. The safari rack I'm going to cut and piece together and have my friend weld it for me, but if you had any tips on the best way to attach it to the vehicle, that would be phenomenal. The biggest questions and concerns I have are about the lift and the engine replacement. Like I said, this will be my daily driver as well as my offroad toy, and one of the reasons I wan to put in a larger engine is so that I can go faster than 65 on the interstate when I'm roadtripping. What will I have to do to make the swap? I intend to pay a shop to actually put in the new engine, but what do I need to know about how the new engine attaches to the tranny? I'm looking online for the cost of various engines, and the most obvious choice would be a 1.6L 12V, but would that give me substantially more power? I've also been eyeballing some subaru engines (2.2 and 2.5L), some ford ranger inline 4s, and a 2.2L from a chevy s-10. Would putting in one of those engines be considerably more costly and difficult than a 1.6L conversion? How does that effect what I need to do with the tranny? And finally, with a standard 3 - 5 inch SPOA lift, is that something I can do with standard tools out in front of my place without too much difficulty? How will it effect everything else in the vehicle, or is it simply throwing on some new springs with more lift and flex?
