1989 Power Ram 50 4x4

[PowerRam348]

i am currently rebuilding one my two 89 Power Ram 50 4x4's. the one i am rebuilding has a three inch lift that was done wrong that i have to re-do. the motor went out on me the day before christmas last year and have finally got all my parts together for the rebuild.

this where it starts
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here is the motor torn down
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here is what all the main bearings look like
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next week the block, new rods and pistons, crank, flywheel, clutch, and front pulley go in to the machine shop to have the bore pushed 0.020 over and a full engine balance. i am going to have two pounds of metal removed from the flywheel as well as eliminating the balance shafts, hence having the motor balanced. i am also going ditributorless so you will get to see how i progress with that.

[4doorciv]

Nice work. It always takes time when you wanna do things the right way. When you rush, that's when mistakes are made. Keep us posted on progress. Gl with build.

[l.k.]

looks like a nice truck man. nice work. keep it up. welcome to the site.

[PowerRam348]

here are some pictures of the transmission and clutch. thankfully i have a friend in the transmission repair field to help me on the rebuild.
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this is my center force center-fugial (i think that's how it's spelled) weighted clutch that i bought six years ago for my silver dodge. going to have it cleaned and getting a new dual friction plate and throw-out bearing
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and this is what happens when inexperience and an ego come together on a three inch body lift.
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here is a picture of my two trucks. the white and silver one on the left i've had for 11 years. the blue one i got last november.
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[l.k.]

2 is better than 1....sweet. i would love to have my bagged mighty max and a jacked up one that matched....that would be the sh!t

[PowerRam348]

i'm rebuilding the motor and transmission in the white and silver one and putting them in the blue one. what's kinda cool with my trucks is that they were manufactured only 284 trucks from them each other and built in the same month. i though that was pretty nifty.
the white and silver one now, my dad and i are gonna put a 1992 caddy 4.9 liter v8 (non northstar) in it. gonna put a turbo 350 tranny and a dana 300 transfer-case behind it. i'm gonna take off the front fender skins and take out some of the inner fender to accomidate some bigger tires. then the bed comes off and a smaller more functional box will be made and welded in place. but, that is for later.

[4doorciv]

That caddi motor should be fun. I like the fuel milage of my 4 bangers though. So you will be going with a smaller bed? You can always modify what you have.

[PowerRam348]

my white and silver one will hopefully make the rubicon trail in two years along with my buddy who has a highly modified CJ-8 scrambler. i've been dreaming about doing the rubicon in my dodge for years. i hope i get it done by then though. this has been a dream in progress for way too long. thanks for all the support and advice guys. it helps a lot.

[l.k.]

well i hope that dream comes true for you buddy. best of luck to you.

[4doorciv]

Have you been on that trail before? It would be cook if you could film you running it. Kind of like that vid of the off road racing that we have on the site.

[PowerRam348]

my friend with the jeep runs it all the time with his club. i've gone 4 times and it only gets better every year. newer, cooler, and more exciting stuff shows up all the time to run the trail. i can't wait to start fabbing the truck and rebuilding the 4.9 liter that will go in it. but i gotta finish this one first.

[PowerRam348]

got my ARP head studs and main studs yesterday. be dropping those off at the machine shop when i go into town later today.

[PowerRam348]

gonna need a new crankshaft. mine has a crack on number 4 that goes almost all the way around where the rod connects. got a new crank that will be here tomorrow. gotta love my local K-necks auto parts store for having knowledgeable people that know where to find "hard to locate" stuff.

[PowerRam348]

the machine shop is through working on my motor and i am picking it up at the end of the month. can't wait to put it together.

[PowerRam348]

got my engine and internals from the machine shop today. gonna start putting it together tomorrow. i will post some pictures tomorrow too. good times ahead.

[pennyman1]

Did you get ARP rod bolts to go with all the other ARP stuff? Just asking, as I had the bolts , but the machine shop put the bottem end together on my conquest motor without them, so I got to pull them and change them out.

[crvtec90]

Did you get ARP rod bolts to go with all the other ARP stuff? Just asking, as I had the bolts , but the machine shop put the bottem end together on my conquest motor without them, so I got to pull them and change them out.
Arp reccommends resizing the rod after installing new studs. Since they are a press fit....they slighly distort the open end of the rod.

[pennyman1]

I didn't know that - glad you pointed that out before I did it - maybe I will leave well enough be.

[PowerRam348]

yes, the machine shop installed all my the arp studs; rods, crank mains, and head. the machine shop did a fantastic job on the motor and internals.

[PowerRam348]

here she is...

here are all my pieces and parts
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here is the block just painted
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all my timing guide rails ready to install along with the front pulley, oil pick-up tube,rear main seal housing, distributer gear, the original oil filler cap, and my reference material.
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here is the crank and pistons in the block.
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here is the oil pump and the timing gear set on the crank.
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[PowerRam348]

here's some more pictures

the plate that goes between the transmission and the back of the block
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new head fully assembled
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taping it off
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painting
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ready to install
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valve cover
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flywheel; balanced and lightened 2 pounds. was 35 pounds, now 33 pounds
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clean and shiny intake. its going in to the machine shop to have the face trued up (on the off chance its not straight. it does have 200,000 miles on it) and the inside polished.
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more pictures to come in a few days. thanks again for all the helpful info and input from everyone.

[PowerRam348]

here are some pictures of my silver and white dodge torn down to the frame. this is my rubicon project.

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[PowerRam348]

cleaning all the original nuts and bolts and the carb base plates

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the carb; weber 32/36
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head with valve cover
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all my parts all painted and clean
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rear main seal installed
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ready to go. just need to get the intake and header back from the machine shop before it all goes together
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[DroppedMitsu]

Wasn't really digging the orange at first but it is actually looking bad ass with all the shiny black and cleaned aluminum.

[PowerRam348]

the color scheme was actually my dads idea. he stopped by when i started painting everything (my color idea was to paint everything mopar blue) and said "what the hell, kid. i raised you better, paint it something cool and leave the alluminum shiny". i too was skeptical at the colors he suggested, but it really has turned out nice. i think my dad had a better idea than mine.

the work i'm having done on the intake and header is; the intake is getting polished and the face trued if its warped a little. the header is the headmann header i put on this same motor 12 years ago in my automotive class in high school. i'm having it bead blasted, the pipes are getting welded at the face plate and the collector welded as well. the header wasn't leaking at all when i took it in, just getting it re-inforced at the critical areas. the intake and header should be done by the end of the week. and hopefully we'll start it at the end of next week. more pictures to come.

[joey_crandall]

next time you plan on going to the rubicon hit me up. ive lived in georgetown all my life and still havent ever been on it.

[PowerRam348]

the rubicon is an amazing trail. it was where i first saw an axle detonate and scatter for a hundred feet in every direction. it will be at least a year before everything will be ready to go but i will shoot you a message when i set a date to go.

[PowerRam348]

took a break from the motor and truck yesterday. my friend and my sister and i built this nice waterfall to run into my pond. i hope to put some fingerlings of trout in the pond. sure was fun to build and surprisingly easy to build too. now i just have to decorate it with rocks.

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[Acuta73]

Trout will live for a while, but if the water temp gets above ~70 degrees they'll just die, and they require a high level of dissolved oxygen, not sure the waterfall would cut it. Could get some small bluegill or pumpkinseed?

Cool looking falls, though. Be really nice when the landscaping is finished!

[PowerRam348]

my pond is around 2,500 gallons and is almost six feet deep. as far as oxygenating the water, my pump moves 1,200 gallons per hour through a 4 inch line. my neighbor has a much smaller pond with no waterfall and has had trout living in it for years. a few of them are almost a foot long. anyway, the trout are only an idea, something for my daughter to fish for when she gets done with school.

[PowerRam348]

i decided today that a stock camshaft wasn't going to be good enough, so, i got a hold of Oregon Cam Grinders. they have a nice camshaft with a 272/260 profile with .430"/.448" lift and a 1.4:1 rocker ratio. it can be used with hydraulic lifters as well. oh, and it's $99 to grind your core.

[PowerRam348]

here is the intake secured to the head
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i got rid of the useless vacuum plugs attached to the thermostat housing and plugged them. only the temp gauge is left. since no one makes a block off plate for the machanical fuel pump, i had one made.
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i have a block off plate being made for this port too.
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[PowerRam348]

here is my waterfall all done.
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[DroppedMitsu]

Congrats, that waterfall looks badass

[PowerRam348]

here is the timing chains and gears on and oil pump primed. notice the balance shaft delete
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the timing cover and oil pan on
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i painted the oil pan bolts orange. kinda looks cool on the black oil pan
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here's the arp head studs
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i had to cut the valve cover to have enough room for the head studs. i didn't realize they would be just a smudge too tall
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just needs the water pump now
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[pennyman1]

Ya the instructions do mention that the valve cover needs trimmed for clearance; the benefits far outweigh the problems of trimming the cover

[PowerRam348]

here it is all assembled
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here my lightened and balanced flywheel
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i didn't realize that the weber carb i wanted to use is not a weber at all. i found out that the EPC 32/36 is not a weber but a knock-off of the weber
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so i had to rummage through my parts shelf and i came up with this actual weber DGAV 32/36
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now i have to rebuild this one so i can put it on the motor

[PowerRam348]

rebuild kit for the carb will be here tomorrow. can't wait for that:bang:

[PowerRam348]

i pick up the engine hoist from the equipment rental place tomorrow:thumbup:. i'm gonna pull the motor that's in the truck, drop the transmission, pressure wash the engine bay, install the new motor, then install the transmission. i got the carb rebuilt and it is ready to go. my edis4 stuff will be here on wednesday as well as my new fuel pump. the megajolt lite jr module should be here by the end of the week. i hope to start the motor next weekend:grin:

[PowerRam348]

here's the motor out of the blue dodge. i'm not quite sure why the person that owned this truck before me put a dipstick in the oil pan.
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here's the motor mounts on the new engine
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here's the transmission and clutch
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here's the engine bay all dirty. i'll pressure wash it in the morning then the new motor will go in. i still have to eliminate the distributor and coil.
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here's the driver door caved in. thankfully i have a spare.
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[abeemanator]

How would you wash the engine bay, just soap and water or do you use some kind of cleaning agent?

[PowerRam348]

pressure washer hooked up to hot water.

[joey_crandall]

purple power and a good garden hose nossle also work good if you dont have a pressure washer. truck looks nice though, keep up the good work.

[Rickdees]

pressure washer hooked up to hot water.

X2, hotter the better

[pennyman1]

That oil pan looks to be from a starquest 2.6 motor; thats how the dipstick is on them.

[PowerRam348]

cleaner engine bay
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getting ready to go in
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motor and transmission in
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the motor is in and the only thing i am waiting for is the fuel pump and the edis 4 stuff.
the old motor
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the rebuilt carb
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[PowerRam348]

my edis stuff with the wires mapped out on the harness and the coil
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the carb torqued down, linkage hooked up and set
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since the truck has a 3 inch lift i had to go custom with the heater core hoses
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made a new ground wire out of 10 gauge wire to go to the exhaust post. realized afterwards that i may get some smoke from that yellow plastic cover touching the header plate
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getting some measurements for the bracket for the VR sensor
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i'll attach the coils to the fender and the module to the firewall
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[PowerRam348]

i get my crank pulley with the trigger wheel welded to it in the morning. i sent them off to the machine shop today. almost done!

[lush90]

Great thread, enjoying the really good photos. Can't wait to hear how it runs!

[PowerRam348]

the machine shop did not get done with the crank pulley today, so i am in limbo until it gets done.

[PowerRam348]

running my power for the fuel pump and the edis unit
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here is my switch that activates the edis module and coil
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almost done. just a little bit left to do.

[abeemanator]

What are you gonna do with the old 2.6? Im looking for an engine for my truck, although mine is a 2.0, I would like to drop a 2.6 or a 3.0l v6 in it if i can get it at a good price.

[PowerRam348]

FIRST LINE REMOVED

the old motor spun a bearing and i snagged a few parts off it for my new motor. anyway, the machine shop finished my crank pulley and trigger wheel. almost done. i will make a video of it starting for the first time. just another few days.

EDIT:
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[PowerRam348]

here's what $70 gets you from the machine shop

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the only thing left is to bend the bracket for the VR sensor. then its time to fire it up. i'm hoping to start it this weekend... hopefully.

[PowerRam348]

here is the bracket i made to mount the VR sensor to. getting closer

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every time i think i'm gonna get to finish this lately, something comes up and i can't work on it:bang:. its so frustrating.

[DroppedMitsu]

Looks good, glad to see someone trying something different, hope it works out just as you hoped.

[PowerRam348]

got the VR sensor hooked up and lined up. tested the EDIS system today. it works because it shocked the crap out of me. the engine turns over nicely. the carb filled with fuel nicely. i've downloaded the software for the megajolt ecu and i will hook up the ecu on tuesday.

[PowerRam348]

i tried starting the motor a little bit ago and was disappointed that it didn't start. all that is hooked up is the edis module right now. it has spark, the VR sensor is about 1mm from the trigger wheel, but i'm get fuel blowing back out of the carb... like the timing is way out. the engine tried to fire when i initially turned the key. i'm thinking i'll wait and hook up the megajolt ecu then try it again.

[joey_crandall]

think you could have the cam timing on the exh stroke?

[PowerRam348]

i never thought about that:thumbup:. i made sure that the cam marker was at the top and lined up with the notch on the front cam tower. i made sure that number one cyl. was at the top as well. but then again, the cam could very well be 180 degrees out. i'll check it tomorrow. thanks for the idea. got my megajolt unit today and started the wiring process. pictures to follow soon.

[PowerRam348]

here is my megajolt unit
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this is the serial tuning cable that comes with the megajolt unit
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this is the $40 adapter cable that i needed to link my laptop to the serial tuning cable
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building the wiring harness that plugs into the megajolt unit
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finished wiring harness
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getting ready to bench test it. the megajolt unit can be powered by a 9 volt battery for this purpose
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it works
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[camoit]

Make sure the crank sensor bracket does not vibrate. That might cause timing issue later on.

[PowerRam348]

got the truck running today. it fired right up after i got the megajolt unit hooked up. i would upload a video of it starting but the video is 200 something megabytes so here are the rest of the pictures i took today

i put the megajolt unit in my glove box and ran the vacuum line, power, PIP and SAW, lines through the firewall
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i used the heater fuse in the fuse panel to power the megajolt
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[DroppedMitsu]

Awesome, glad to hear it fired right up. So how did it run, pretty well?

[PowerRam348]

it ran really well on the default timing map. revved up good and idled well. i took it for a drive and forgot that i hadn't tightened down my canopy and found it laying on the road when i came back to my house. the truck runs really well and the timing is dead on. now its time to get the exhaust installed and fine tune the carb.

[camoit]

my white and silver one will hopefully make the rubicon trail in two years along with my buddy who has a highly modified CJ-8 scrambler. i've been dreaming about doing the rubicon in my dodge for years. i hope i get it done by then though. this has been a dream in progress for way too long. thanks for all the support and advice guys. it helps a lot.

Let us know when you are going to hit the trail... We will meat up with you at the trail head. It's only 1.5 hours away.

[joey_crandall]

ill try to show up as well its like a half hour from me

[PowerRam348]

i will let everyone know when i set a date to head to the rubicon. it won't be for another year or two though.

[camoit]

Good I need to finish up my truck as well. Then we can go jump it..

[PowerRam348]

i got exhaust on the truck today. i'll take some pictures of the duel exhaust tomorrow and post them. i'm gonna take it out this weekend and start tuning the carb and timing. i'll tell you now that the distributorless ignition is amazing. the idle is as smooth as silk and even with the carb not adjusted properly yet it winds up nice. i can say with confidence that going distributorless is the way to go. i am working on an edis installation guide and an approximate cost to go distributorless. it cost me, using the megajolt ecu, $340.76 to go distributorless. i think that this is an acceptable price for an awesome upgrade to your ignition system. when i get done tuning my ignition map i will post it so that all you guys who aren't going turbo have a good place to start.

[PowerRam348]

here's the pictures of my duel exhaust

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quite a few years ago i learned that the exhaust is really hot on these trucks and that, at least on my truck, they go through mufflers if there is no catalytic converter. it took my exhaust guy and me awhile to figure out a system that works really well. what we found was that if you put a glasspack after the header where the cat used to be it saves the muffler from the heat of the exhaust. that and the fact that i had my muffler custom made at the exhaust shop for my truck.

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[abeemanator]

Is that glasspack glowing that color or is it painted that color (That looks BA if its painted like that), my cat on my truck looked like that when I first started to drive it, it was missing on one plug and running too rich, it got so hot that the passenger side of the truck started steaming from the water that was on the floor because I had had the door open when it was raining.

[Razmear]

quite a few years ago i learned that the exhaust is really hot on these trucks and that, at least on my truck, they go through mufflers if there is no catalytic converter. it took my exhaust guy and me awhile to figure out a system that works really well. what we found was that if you put a glasspack after the header where the cat used to be it saves the muffler from the heat of the exhaust.

Good trick to know, $30 Glasspack is a lot cheaper than a $90 cat. The exhaust system is trashed on my 86 so I might try that when I get around to rebuilding it.

[PowerRam348]

a few years ago i got that glasspack glowing red hot out at the dunes on the coast. thought my truck was gonna catch on fire. no, its just the paint burning off cause its new. it sounds a lot healthier than it ever did before and boy is there more acceleration. i think i need to upgrade my motor mounts. they are new but they are stock replacements. i was thinking of upgrading to polyureythane motor mounts.

[PowerRam348]

it seems that i can't upload the actual ignition table so i will have to give it to you in text form. this table, at least for my build, gives superb low end power, smooth idle, good fuel mileage, and no popcorn noise or backfiring out the exhaust. RPM's on the top from left to right, and Load going down the left side. low load on the top and high load on the bottom.

L
O
A
D RPM'S
1000 1500 2500 3500 4000 4500 5000 5500 6000 6200

10. 13 17 28 32 37 37 37 37 37 10
20. 13 17 28 32 37 37 37 37 37 10
30. 12 17 28 32 37 37 37 37 37 10
40. 13 16 28 31 36 36 36 36 36 10
50. 12 16 27 31 36 36 36 36 36 10
60. 11 16 27 30 35 35 35 35 35 10
70. 11 16 27 30 35 35 35 35 35 10
80. 12 15 26 30 35 34 34 34 34 10
90. 13 15 26 34 34 34 34 34 34 10
100. 14 15 26 34 34 34 34 34 34 10

sorry about the way it crunches all the numbers together.

[camoit]

Need more information please. What are the numbers down the side, and in the main block. How do people read this??? Please give us an example. Inquiring minds need to know.... You can always add in a - between the numbers.

[PowerRam348]

sorry about the timing advance table. here it is a little better done. load is down the left side with low load at the top and high load at the bottom. high load is when you put the gas pedal to the floor. low load is when you take your foot off the gas. RPM's are horizontal across the top. load, for me, is represented through a map sensor in kilopaskels. the reason why my RPM's drop off to 10 degrees between 6000 and 6200 is because the soft rev limiter is set at 6200 and it reduces the timing 0 degrees across the board. i think this makes a very nice rev limiter that kills all power at 6000 RPM's. peak power is about 4500 RPM.

L
O
A
D
--------------------------------RPM'S--------------------------------
------1000--1500--2500--3500--4000--4500--5000--5500--6000--6200
10.----13----17----28-----32----37----37-----37----37----37-----10
20.----13----17----28-----32----37----37-----37----37----37-----10
30.----12----17----28-----32----37----37-----37----37----37-----10
40.----13----16----28-----31----36----36-----36----36----36-----10
50.----12----16----27-----31----36----36-----36----36----36-----10
60.----11----16----27-----31----35----35-----35----35----35-----10
70.----11----16----27-----31----35----35-----35----35----35-----10
80.----12----15----26-----32----35----34-----34----34----34-----10
90.----13----15----26-----34----34----34-----34----34----34-----10
100.---14----15----26-----34----34----34-----34----34----34-----10

i got the chance to really test out the engine today. i had to tow my sisters mazda 323 270 miles. it pulled her car really well and didn't lose too much speed going up the hills. i am about as happy as i can be with the rebuild. i hope that this timing advance table helps out someone else.

[PowerRam348]

i had the good fortune this morning of being with a friend of mine while he had a mobile rolling road come to his house to dyno and tune his 1995 camero z28. he took the 350 that was in it and made a 383 stroker out of it. anyway, after my buddy got done having his car tuned by the tech's, i asked willyman (no bullshit, that is what his name tag said on his coveralls) if i could put my truck on the dyno. after paying for an hour of use, willyman told me to give him the keys. this is only the second time i have ever seen a dyno in action... let alone on my own vehicle. one of the tech geeks pulled my truck up on the rolling road and hooked up their computer to the megajolt unit, turned on some fans in front of the radiator, and started the test. i wish i had thought about a camera before leaving the house this morning. it would have been awesome to have gotten some pictures of the testing.

the results are in and i am more than happy with them-

159 hp @ 4900 rpm
188 ft-lbs of torque @ 3700 rpm

this is more than i had hoped for. both horsepower and torque. plus the technicians told me that i could increase my peak timing from 34 degrees to 39 degrees and that a 38 dges weber would also help me out. i think that if i am going to spend the money on a 38 dges weber, i'll go throttle body. anyway, my expectations were exceeded.

[DroppedMitsu]

Nice, much better then what the stock output is supposed to be, congrats. And yes a modified 2.6 would much rather have the 38 on it then the 32/36.

[joey_crandall]

i remmeber someone on the old site having a set of dual deltoro sidedraft carbs for a 2.6 that would be a sweet set up and sound friggin awesome

[PowerRam348]

when i do upgrade my fuel delivery system, it will be to adapt it to throttle body injection. i have an extra intake manifold so i can have it modified to fit a throttle body. then i will need to upgrade to a megasquirt ecu to control the throttle body and the distributorless ignition. then i need to put an insert in the collector of the header to put an o2 sensor in. i think for now i'll just get bigger jets for the 32/36. i like the idea of side draft carbs though. they would look cool too.

[DroppedMitsu]

If you want to go to fuel injection you should be able to use a starion 4g54 intake manifold and throttle body and all that on your motor.

[joey_crandall]

i got a tbi manifold you can have, you just need to get the throttle body, pay shipping and its yours.

[PowerRam348]

i would love to start that project but i have got to get building my other dodge for the rubicon
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i haven't decided whether to go 4 link with the rear axle or going independent suspension. i have an extra front independent suspension axle with A-arms. my first thoughts were to use the extra front axle to go independent in the rear. my buddy with the cj8 tells me that 4 link is better. i think independent suspension is better.

to anyone who has been reading this build thread-
what should i do? independent suspension or 4 link. my ultimate goal is to use only d50 4x4 parts. no switching out the rear axle to a wide wagoneer axle or things like that. but i figured that i could use a front axle from a d50 and that wouldn't be going outside to the box. i will modify the frame and A-arms but i want it to be as much d50 as possible. this has been an idea in my head since i was in high school when i bought the truck. and i have kicked around the idea of using another front axle to go independent for a while as well. let me know what you guys think.

[pennyman1]

The front axle from the truck is a 7.5 inch and is too light to use in stock config. A front axle out of a second gen monty is an 8" that can be made lsd with a center section from a starquest, and will handle the power. You would also need to have new shafts made to center the diff, as the front has unequel length shafts. After all that work, you still won't get the articulation a solid axle with a 4 link will give you. If it was better, peope like extreme off road and monster trucks would use it more. Although Hummer H1 alphas have a pretty compelling case for 4 wheel independant suspension...

[joey_crandall]

4 wheel independent is usually on off road racing cars trucks, and hummers, not ruck crawlers.

[PowerRam348]

i'm kinda after the 4 wheel steering aspect as well as independent suspension. is there any way that i can beef up the front axle that i already have or would it be cheaper and easier to use a montero front axle?

i like to think outside the box a lot and build unusual things like this 4-wheeler with 750 kawi 4 cylinder
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[pennyman1]

Montero is the way to go, especially if you want 4 wheel steer

[Acuta73]

I swear I had read this thread all the way through...but apparently I didn't. You did MUCH more to the short block than I had thought.

Need to look into your distributor-less ignition a bit more....I THINK I could just buy a Digital 6AL-2 and do the same in a single package (for about $40 more), just not sure.

If you get a chance, could you re-hash your body lift? Really want to do a 2" lift on mine, but with no kits I don't wanna F it up.

[PowerRam348]

here is the video of my truck starting


http://youtu.be/_8joeRHz8Ys

[Fordubishi]

very nice job :D

[mopar_ja]

You planning a SAS

[PowerRam348]

what's an SAS?

[DroppedMitsu]

Straight axle swap

[Fordubishi]

Stand Alone System ? Runs just the engine without a crap load of extra stuff (ie power windows/locks)

[Acuta73]

Yep, I want a header now...that sounds mean as hell. lol

[mopar_ja]

Straight axle swap

Yes, you will also hear some call it a Solid Axle Swap as well. so if plan on something like that check this site out. Look at straight axle toyo trucks. I know you said you wanted to go all d50 parts, technically these are new made after market not by toyo so you could run them.

http://www.trail-gear.com/

If you plan on doing leaf over for the rear get this, adds to the flex and lift. Then you could hit the revolver shackles more lift and flex.

http://www.tntcustoms.com/u-bolteliminiators.aspx

See now i also want to know if the ARB RD90 will fit our trucks it is desgined for yota 7.5 IFS front diff.

http://www.rocky-road.com/arb-air-locker-compressors.html

[pennyman1]

ARB makes a rear air locker for the montero / truck axle but not for the front - I asked them while I was at the SEMA show

[Acuta73]

If I understood it right, you can swap out the rear axle with a Montero axle that already has the air locker AND big disc brakes. Junkyard price ~$250. ARB locker is about $1k as an aftermarket unit...

[pennyman1]

yes from a 2nd gen montero - I got one from a 95 montero - its a 9" not 8" with 4.63 gears, locker, disc brakes, and I got the suspension arms, panhard rod, the driveshaft stub and all the mounts for 250. Need to find higher gears for it, more like 3.91 or 4.22s so my low profile tires on my 1980 spin at a reasonable rpm at highway speeds. Supposibly, the gears from a ford 9" fit, as the mitsu 9" is a copy, abeit a stronger one

[PowerRam348]

as some of you may or may not know, i was hit by a car in front of my house and have been recuperating since then. my sister has been using my truck since then because i am not. well, the starter goes out about a day ago. she comes over to my house and sits down on the couch next to me and says "hey, the starter went out on your truck. fix it so i drive it some more.". i just kinda looked at her and said "does it look like i can fix it right now?". she turns and looks at me and says "oh ya, you were hit by a car, you can't do shit.". gotta love family.

[crvtec90]

guess u dont get a lot of wrenches turned......id bet the gears in your head are moving along

[camoit]

LOL..... You may not be able to turn a wrench, but I bet you can still smack her up side the head with one....

[pennyman1]

sounds like something my sister would say ... actually she did that to my Dad all the time when we were growing up...:lmao:

[PowerRam348]

i felt like whacking her with my crutch... actually tried to, in fact. i told her to fix it herself if she wanted to continue driving it. i'm getting better and am out and about more often. been going to physical therapy and walking a couple days a week and getting the strength back in my arm and leg. no more crutches as of yesterday:thumbup:. not to sound too juvenile... but i feel a little like wolverine when i look at the x-rays:grin:. won't ever be able to pass through a metal detector again with these metal plates in my arm and leg. my doctor says that i'm healing really well and i should be good to go back to work in a month or so. i hate the sitting around:bang:. at least i have had some excitement lately though. i had been having some remodeling done before the accident and it resumed a week ago. well, the contractor found black mold in the basement. in tearing out the walls in the basement they found a crack in the wall of the foundation. it was just a hairline crack inside, but outside...
324732503251325232493248

at least it got found and dealt with now. there is a lot of rain up here in portland and a crack like that could have been a really bad day during the future winter months. other than that BS, i'm healing good and getting stronger every day. again, thanks for the support guys.

[bobsnewdirection]

You would be suprised at how little the metal detectors at airports pick up. My entire left shin is titanium, the piece they put in looks like a pry bar. I've never had a problem, although when I was on the beach with my friend, one of those guys looking around with a metal det went by and he got a signal from me!

[DroppedMitsu]

Yea i too have plates in my left wrist and I have never gone off. Maybe it has something to do with being titanium? Anyways glad to hear you're healing up good and good to see you found that crack before anything bad happened.

[PowerRam348]

i found out today what happens when you use a hydraulic valve-train with heavy duty valve springs. this...

3264

crushed two lifters yesterday. my sister was driving it down the freeway when they went and she thought the motor was gonna come apart:lmao:. i think i'm gonna need to get a machanical valve-train.

[DroppedMitsu]

Dang!! Lol , yup looks like time to do what LSRMike did and get some 1.8l mechanical rocker arms.

[PowerRam348]

For sure. I do remember lsrmike saying that he had the same problem and went machanical cause he had crushed some lifters as well. Gonna need to get a hold of a machanical valve train.

[camoit]

Did you ever get the bar mounted into the back?

[Acuta73]

Bah, first a starter and now...bad fortune.

Good luck on finding the Mech rockers...I STILL haven't found a set yet. Still need to try the junk yard, though.

Makes me glad I didn't go ahead with the top end without them!

[PowerRam348]

i did get the light bar in and it looks real good...

32903291

thanks camoit.

[PowerRam348]

been a while since i've been on. although on monday i spun either a main bearing or a rod bearing. gonna pull it apart this weekend and replace the bearings. thinking of getting the rotating assembly re-balanced and see if that helps. hopefully i won't need to have the crank journals ground. good times ahead. pictures to come.

[pennyman1]

Glad to see you're up and around enjoying the truck(and rescueing it as well). Now to keep your sis from driving it once its fixed...:shrug:

[PowerRam348]

got the motor pulled yesterday and found a problem immediately. when i pulled the clutch off the flywheel there was this..
5251
one of the springs in the friction plate had decided to remove itself and i found that my flywheel was loose:shock:. so that pretty much tells me why i spun a main bearing. now for the fun part.

[PowerRam348]

finally got the light bar painted and even color matched the paint pretty good.

1081010811108121081310814

[geezer101]

Light bar - awesome. Clutch plate - ouch. Hopefully it's only a quick linish up on the crank and some fresh bearings.

[PowerRam348]

It turned out that I didn't spin a bearing after all. I had too much oil clearance. Thankfully all that needed to be done was to have the crank ground and new bearings. But a short while after I got it back together and driving it this happened...

154971549815499155001550115502

The bolt that holds the sprocket on the oil pump backed out and cracked my timing chain cover. Thankfully pick and pull has an abundance of d-50's in portland and I was able to get a used timing chain cover for $20. I replaced the oil pump and timing chain cover and then I got this awesome present from camoit

15508155071550615505155041550315509

[geezer101]

I had that happen to me once. Destroyed my chain sprockets and blew a hole in the timing cover exactly the same as yours. But I never got a present like those headers! You are gonna let us know how it runs once you're back on the road - RIGHT? :P

[pennyman1]

Great to see you still have the truck and you are OK. Keep us posted!

[PowerRam348]

Here is what the new header sounds like on the truck before it was hooked up to the exhaust.

https://youtu.be/Lc0Ugwk61Y0

[McDodgers]

Here is what the new header sounds like on the truck before it was hooked up to the exhaust.

https://youtu.be/Lc0Ugwk61Y0

that sounds aggressive. great work!

[geezer101]

Here is what the new header sounds like on the truck before it was hooked up to the exhaust.

https://youtu.be/Lc0Ugwk61Y0

Holy...shitballs. Once I spied the crank trigger in the video and realised this is something different, I'm going off to have a good read of your thread.

p.s. hope you're making a speedy recovery from your accident - and family can be such a-holes :shakehead:

[PowerRam348]

I went distributorless with this build. Best thing I ever did for the truck.

[Chargerx3]

Fun build. Love the timeline of events.

[circuits]

Hey man, great build! I look forward to more, and that rubicon build :)

[87d50]

I have a 1987 power ram 50 4x4 and I'm looking for a lift kit any places to look for one thanks

[camoit]

I have a 1987 power ram 50 4x4 and I'm looking for a lift kit any places to look for one thanks

There is no "kit" per-say but there are ways of lifting it using Montero parts and blocks.

[87d50]

what size tires and what lift did you use I have a 87 power ram 4x4 with the 2.6L looking to lift mine also thanks

87d50.

[PowerRam348]

I didn't put the lift on the truck and there are no kits you can buy. The lift blocks that lifted the body were homemade. Cut from some sort of plastic round stock. The tires on it at the time I built the motor were 33's but I went down to 31's so that I didn't need to put lower gears in the differentials.

[tortron]

Can get body lift kits here in NZ. We have legal limits for road cars tho so they don't go too high

[pennyman1]

On the Mitsubishi Montero Facebook page, they said that the sway-away torsion bars for the 1st gen Monteros are a direct fit for the trucks. Here is the link: http://adventuredrivendesign.com/ocart/index.php?route=product/category&path=71_72