i want to modify my 1995 vitara 1600 cc 8 valve to something really higher and wider. only kit that i found for this job is calmini sas kit. however i dont believe my engine can be efficient with this kit.

therfore i need your suggestions for a better engine

or any other kits which can make my vitara wider and higher (because i want to fit 36+ tires on it)

hope u have the solution

There are solutions, how much did you have in mind to spend on your project?

Wild

there are lots of SAS kits available now and more in the works.

trailslayer (the best currently IMO)- trail tough

leaf spring SAS from- low range and sky's off road (in the works).....some others too.

and of coarse the crapmini coil SAS-

that's the easy part......

power-plant;

first thought.

> have is to turbo your current motor and gear axles wayyy down.,there is great (real time proven) support on this forum on the exact subject.

>second, motor swap; with tires that big skip the little motors (1.8-2.0) and go for the 25-2.7 v6 or maybe some freak-show choice like mine (Audi 1.8 turbo)or?

first of all thanks for reply guys...
wildgoody, i dont know but probably +5k will be enough for this project. what is your suggestions ?

jluck, yeah i dont like calmini... i ve seen "lowrange" one... 40" articulation is perfect and i think this kit is for rock crawling. but still searching for wider, higher and bigger articalation kits.

for engine, one of my friend tried v6 ford capri engine... (was awesome) but im thinking to put v8 if its possible to fit... however i am worrying about the weight of the engine so i dont know what to do.

the problem is some guys telling me EFI engines are not good, some telling they r ok... sime guys telling me turbo and supercharger can be a good thing for performance and some thinkng they are not good for offroad (because of mud)... TOTALLY CONFUSED ;(

I do hope that 5k is very flexible. that amount just dont get very far these days.

trailslayer w/delivery........................2900

new tires and wheels 36's.....=/-......1800

any donor axle maint. (or rebuild).....500-1500

lockers and gears (done right)...........1000-2000 (after all theres no point in 36 inch tires if you cant turn 'em all)
                                                _________________
                                                         6,200-8,200

then motor conversion....

these are just for example/conversation....

personally I would so the engine swap first. at least you would have a fun to drive smaller rig when the money runs out instead of a monster to gawk at but is no fun to drive with a under powered mill.

and a experienced driver in a lesser equipped rig can usually out drive (wheel) the guy with limitless funds and the trickest truck and no clue how to drive. 

most any motor swap will more than likely absorb most of that budget. I know both the motor swaps I have done in my kick have gone over that amount.

Turbos and EFI are both great offroad, most turbo knowledge is street based
and the turbos are over size, giving huge lag and low bottom end performance,
but I can tell you that a properly sized turbo will give you boost in 2 seconds and
works great in the dirt/mud.

Your problem is the 8V engine and it's TBI fuel injection system, a 16V head would
be the best, or a V6 2.7L from a GV or XL7 would be excellent

You will need an undertaker to turn 40 inch tires on the road, and 5.13 diff gears,
the SAS kit is a pricey one, I don't really see why it's needed the axles are what
you need and the links can all be made but that depends on your skill set

Wild

I meant to put in my .02 on efi too.

I would always go with EFI. I just dont see any advantage to a carb any more. EFI is so manageable, flexible and reliable now days.

I agree with the v-6 opinion. going to a v8 will lend a poor weight bias. (pusher) but if you just had too....all aluminum LS series is a sweet set up!


I guess really the overall scope or purpose of this project would be worth knowing to answer some of the q's. 

Liberty Overland built Zukipilot's rig. But that cost A LOT I'm sure.
If you're a DIY fabricator you could possibly bring that cost down quite a bit. Also depends how cheap you get the truck for, how cheap you can find axles for, springs, gears, the engine and adapter kit. Suspension costs could be reduced if you go a little lower and trim/cut like hell. Especially if you're looking for a V8 swap i'd recommend alum block too but price will increase even more. Sounds like an awesome build I'd love to watch the progress on but i think the budget will be big.

What in the world are you planning on doing with it? 36s are huge for these little trucks!

thanks for reply guys...
jluck,first of all what is the difference between trail slayer and low range's sas kit
 is there any other kit than "low range's" SAS kit. in my point of view 40" articulation is very good and it is the most useful kits available now. but i have no idea about other brand that reconstruct this kind of kits. therefore what is your suggestion ? shall  i wait to see other kits aswell (because i am trying to make my vitara, a rock crawler). or the constructing kits will be the same as low range's one ?

other question is again the axles. some guys prefer DANA 44 or 60 or toyota hilux or 4runner. but i want something unique. i see some kits that making samirai's rockcrawler buggies with different suspension systems (gas for example and much softer) and also front and rear steering systems. however i couldnt find a kit for vitara. can you help me about this guys

wildgoody, the problem can be water and dust protection for turbo and electrical parts. i think this is the most important point why most guys dont prefer these. also crawling or driving in th emud tub needs torque not acceleration. this is why turbo is not used. i see some supercharger kits but i am looking for torque more than acceleration. do you have any suggestion about this ?

jluck, i also agree that v8 is too heavy for vitara and can cause some axle or diff break. also i am looking for a buggy kit to convert my vitara in a rock crawler buggy as shown in the picture below. but i think there is no possibilities to find some buggy kits i am still confused but i think i may go for something different or lowrange's kit...

djlantis, can you please explain me zukipilots rig

The 40" kit from low-range is trailtoughs kit. Low-range is releasing there own leaf sas kit soon.For a rock rig I would recommend the trailslayer 110%.

And on axles....have you thought about unimog 404's or 416's? That's that my next project will get I am thinking.

And those rigs you chose for examples are 50-100k builds. I hope that 5k budget is a bit flexible.

The 5k budget is going to be really tight, especially if you are looking to buy a kit.  Just your air shocks for all 4 corners is going to be close to 1000, so a 5th of your budget.

If you want to go with bigger axles I would look around and see what you can find at a junk yard or a swap meet.  Something with a passenger side drop on the front end.  Then build your rig around those axles.  Or you can just look at doing a full drive-train swap from a larger rig. 

thanks guys...
jluck, 100k lol i think its just "a bit" over my budget.. but just a curiosity where i can find these products.. specially i am willing to see how the rear steering axle works...

drone637, probably i will look junkyards and some friend who has toyota axles..

another question guys... i ve 1.6 liter 8 valve vitara engine (the orginal one). if i put this kit with 36" tires, do you think that this engine will be enough for me.. (honestly i don't) and what kind of modifications can i make to this engine ? i heart about holley carbs and weber most. i am triying to find a kit to make this engine 2 twin carburetors or 1 four barrel carb...

Turbo-turbo-turbo.

Here's your axles.
http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSqW_AIgcaHH_8bAfBaTlCeedrAvQp9V27K9W26k9eLiqvAjHcLNA

Go for these. Only 13,200

Here is some info on my rig... the article contains a link to the thread when we were trying to determine what to do.
http://zukiworld.com/month_020109/feature_suzuki-sidekick-build-up.htm

Something to consider beyond what you are discussing is clearance for your tires and drive shaft issues with 40" of articulation. You can fit 36's on one of these rigs (I'm running 37's) but it will take precise wheel placement and body work. I am running a custom tweaked Trailslayer kit and absolutely love it. Does great on and off road. As for the engine choice, I wen with a 2.5L V-6 out of a GV and love it to. With the Toyota axles and auto, it will cruise at 70mph all day and still tear up the trails. If I slow her down to under 60ish, I get great gas mileage too (mid 20's).

Sounds like you have a great plan ahead but I would plan it in stages (suspension then engine or vice versa). If you are going to be mainly off road, you can do 36's with a 1.6L and gears (Hagen still runs one in his orange beast). I personally would like the clearance of the lift with less power over a smaller rig with allot of power... but that's just my preference.

Good luck on the build,
Zig

thanks for reply guys.
jluck, lol.. hell no just willing to know how rear steering axles working

zukipilot, what kind of modifying did you do to trailslayer kit