New to me 1998 SAFARI AWD van ... for camping and exploring

[LAZ 1]

Running great so far but I had to do notorious transmission valve re-bore fix.

[;{)
LAZ 1

[LiftedAWDAstro]

My favorite color van!

With some light mods you can have a twin to my old one...

[LAZ 1]

My favorite color van!
With some light mods you can have a twin to my old one...

Ha, ha, ha de HAH!!!
"Light mods" indeed.
[;{)

My experience with several micro and mini sized 4X4 vans,
and with two 4X4 conversion MONSTER sized MAXI vans,
has led me to prefer the lowest center of gravity possible.

BTDT a few times along "the road less travelled".
Here in BC, Canuckistan, where the terrain is ... "?AWKWARD?" ... once you leave the beaten path, those TALL vans have a tendency to start rockin' an rollin' along, swaying to de beat, side to side, especially on my usual haunts ... rough back roads and de-commisioned logging roads. Too many of those oversized TOO TALL, IMMENSE rigs inherently, by natural law, are inclined to fall over on their sides like a wounded elephant ...
and only God, great driving skills, HEAVY DUTY springs and shocks, and tires with STIFF side walls can prevent Gravity from becoming ...
NOT your friend.

My HIGH TOP, EX-BC Forest Products back road ambulance [ complete with oxygen tanks and VOMIT SUCKER ] aka MOBY VAN ... THE GREAT WHITE WHALE, had a SOLID front axle with COIL springs and trailing arms. This rig was VERY FFFFfffnnn tall. The lift required for the SOLID axle to clear the STOCK oil pan on the Dodge 318 was about 8". The COIL springs at the front handled MUCH better on the highway at speed than any of the other full size solid axle 4X4 van conversions with LEAF springs that I test drove. But even so, MOBY was a wild ride at any speed on the rough stuff. Moby Pitched and rolled almost like a small boat attached to a real whale on a harpoon.

My PATHFINDER 4X4 convesion of a FORD MAXI Van [ aka The BIG Blue Box ] had the FORD INDEPENDENT /TWIN AXLE / "SCISSORS" front suspension, again under coil springs with trailing arms. THIS VAN HAD ZERO LIFT AND FROM THE SIDE LOOKED TOTALLY STOCK. With the 460 motor and 4.10 gears, running 10 ply 235/75/R16 TOYO tires, it went GREAT on the highway at speed, all the way up to wide open throttle. And on the rough back roads, the long wheel base and FORD IFS front suspension soaked up the bumps without fuss or frolic. This low van was MUCH more stable on the rough roads than any HIGHER van.

And realistically, given that the ft and rear diffs are the lowest point of these vans, the actual ground clearance of the two MONSTER Vans was virtually identical. The main issues were with the TOO LONG wheel base, which tended to encourage high centering in the rocks and logs.

SO,
for the tight stuff,
I MUCH preferred smaller 4X4 / 4WD /AWD MINI vans ...
like my gaggle of Toyota LE vans,
my pack of MPV vans,
and ultimately, my MICRO vans from Daihatsu and Subaru.

BUT,
just like the great philosopher Goldilocks teaches us with her porridge analogy,
MAXI 4X4 vans are TOO BIG,
MICRO 4WD vans are too small,
but hopefully the properly modded MID sized Safari vans will be JUST RIGHT!!

Next week I am starting do-it yourself lifts on my two Safari vans. Both will get 2" body lift blocks at the front. The 1998 SLX clean daily driver will get quick and dirty / cheap and easy 2" lift blocks at the rear. The Rough n' FUGLY 1999 EX-cargo Safari will get the rear springs re-arced, plus a 4" add a leaf, for a total rear lift of ONLY 4". The 1999 cargo van [ Code name "Dirty Litter Box " ]is intended for LONG TERM CAMPING and serious off road, and it will also get the front and rear fenders cut out along the top of the angled crease, with enthusiastic application of the B F H ... hammer. This way I can maximize tire size with minimum lift, thereby MINIMIZING detrimental changes to the center of gravity. Who cares if it looks FUGLY to those sissy boys with their custom paint jobs on their BLACKTOP ONLY so called 4WDs. Dirty Litter Box will use the "Form follows Function", philosophy of design, and it will be very functional indeed. I plan on Wintering in BAJA this year, and living out of this fugly, beat up, ex-CARGO Safari. And in BAJA, FUGLY and FUNCTIONAL is the NEW "STYLIN FAVE. Down there, DUCT tape is considered a "high fashion" statement.

I will post pictures as I go.

Has anyone else done some serious "FENDER NIBBLING" on the ASTRO/SAFARI vans??
Any hints?

I am off to Princess Auto to buy my very first 16 Ga nibbler ...
on sale for $ 60 bucks.
HMMmmmm??
[;{)
LAZ 1

[LAZ 1]

JUST RAISED THE 99 with the DIY lift using the North Shore 2" body lift blocks and some 140 mm grade 10.9 bolts from ForceFastener.

The job went well, just followd the instructions, and had only one power steering hose to tweak over slightly away from the serpentine belt pulley.

But I discovered that for this job, a 4' Jackall is your BFF.

[SilverBullet1997]

<snip> and it will also get the front and rear fenders cut out along the top of the angled crease, with enthusiastic application of the B F H ... hammer. This way I can maximize tire size with minimum lift, thereby MINIMIZING detrimental changes to the center of gravity. <snip>

I will post pictures as I go.

Has anyone else done some serious "FENDER NIBBLING" on the ASTRO/SAFARI vans??
Any hints?

I am off to Princess Auto to buy my very first 16 Ga nibbler ...
on sale for $ 60 bucks.
HMMmmmm??

Looking forward to hearing about your nibbling and seeing pics...
Was contemplating this myself.

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