New 80 series member

[ssmwalker]

Hi chaps,
I've hung around for a few years, getting useful tidbits of advice etc from the site, but thought it was about time I joined. Some of my details below:

• Name: Stuart Walker (username ssmwalker)
• Vehicle: 1996 Landcruiser 80-series DX (white, barn door base modeL). Normally aspirated 1HZ, 5-sp manual.
• Locatino: Sydney (Balmain), Australia
• Only minor mods:
  • 2" lift (Dobinsons shock absorbers + Dobinsons springs @ front, Kings springs @ rear),
  • ARB steel bullbar, non-winch version,
  • Old Narva driving lights.
  • 2nd deep cycle battery
  • Sound proofing (added this for front floorpan and front doors - made a big difference).
  • Running 285/85 R16s, BF Goodridge MT2's
  • Have replaced original passenger side (left) bench-style seat with single GXL seat, and will also throw in a centre console one day (I have an old crappy one that needs a lot of cosmetic work to bring it up to scratch).

Prior to this, I owned a Landcruiser Prado 120-series, bought new in 2003. Served us very well over the years and was a great touring vehicle, and pretty capable offroad for an independent frontend'ed 4WD (also great to have the total 180 litre fuel tanks). However, I knew that I had to go through an 80-series phase, so got rid of the Prado and in Mar 2020 (just prior to Covid lockdowns), bought myself a 1996 Landcruiser 80-series DX (base, barn door model). It had done 310,000km (just run in...), and the only mod was the bullbar - so perfect template for upgrades etc.​

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From a touring perspective, it's undeniable that I've gone backwards - my wife mentions it EVERY time we go away (as compared with the Prado). However, it's offroad capabilities are a big step up from the Prado.​

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I've taken it to the Victorian High Country (a legendary 4WD mecca here in Australia) numerous times, as well as Central Australia (Madigan Line). It performed flawlessly on each trip, though not real fast on the highways. Very, very reliable vehicle, and for the moment, I've not turbo'ed the engine in order to keep that level of reliability, though perhaps in the future, I may consider a light turbo - we'll see... Will take it up to Cape York this year, so that'll also be a good test.​

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In order to keep rust at bay, I tend to spray a lanolin product from Lanotec (Australian brand) in every nook and crannie I can find. I do this from time-to-time...​

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In general, I do all mods and servicing of the car myself, including but not limited to (sounds like lawyer speak...):​

• The usual oil and filter changes (I use Sakura oil and air filters, but original Toyota fuel filters),
• Have replaced pretty much all bushes on the car (last item is the front panhard - must get around to that...).
• Have replaced all wheel bearings as well as the swivel hub bearings and all related bushings & seals,
• Upgraded the front inner axle bush with the later spec roller bearing and (shallow)bush. Frankly, a touch unnecessary on a free wheeling hub setup, but whilst stripping the swivel hub, I thought, "why not...",

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Future upgrade considerations?:​

• Needs new tyres - may consider going to 255/85 R16's...
• Would love a cruiser control setup (you used to be able to buy one off the shelf made by <I can't remember>, though they weren't cheap). Will put that down as a fantasy for now...
• Moving the spare tyre from under the rear of the vehicle to a swing away wheel carrier would be nice, but not a big priority.
• The inside of the engine bay is covered in old fish oil that applied years ago. It's turned a nice dark brown colour and looks a bit shite. So, ONE DAY, will try and remove all items mounted in the engine bay and clean off this yucky layer.
• Winch bar and winch. Will in fact need to do this prior to Cape York (this coming August 2024). Better get a move on...

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So, that's my vehicle. Looking forward to swapping advice here and there.

Regards,

Stuart

 

[adrianr]

Welcome Stuart. Sounds like you have a great truck. We all love pictures if you have any you can post?

 

[ssmwalker]

Hi Adrian. A few shots of the vehicle in its element:

• the day I picked up the car (from Toowoomba in South Queensland - drove it back to Sydney).
• Still covered in sticky, clay-based mud (~200kg it turned out) after the track to William Creek (from just south of Coober Pedy),
• Camp 10 on the Madigan line (yes, the rear is definitely sagging...)

 

[adrianr]

Cheers Stuart. That look really well. I've always liked the barn door models.

 

[ssmwalker]

Hi Adrian. Personally, I'm not sold on the barn doors as such, especially when I see friends of mine with GXL's on a rainy day - they just flip down the lower tail gate, sit on that, and remain relatively dry under the upper tailgate. However, I do like the truly basic, reliable setup of the base (DX) model - it's bloody solid, and has lowere gearing than the GXLs, which is great for uphills, and really safe and slow for steep downhills (I've yet to be on a downhill steep enough to have to apply brakes when in 1st gear low range - in fact I often have to apply some throttle so as to get down a bit more quickly). Plus, whilst it would sometimes be nice to have a centre diff, I do like the idea of being able to completely disengage the front end when touring.