ProTouring Wagoneer?

[ProTouring442]

Originally Posted by Che70velle

Looks like hood clearance will be close. Does it close? Nice rig BTW.

Thanks! I originally bought it as a utility vehicle/"Go Vehicle" (like a "Go Bag: or "Bug Out Bag"), but it's really grown on me... except for its lack of mileage (13mpg highway) and lack of overdrive. The engine swap and other things will make it a great everyday driver, plus I can get rid of one car, and thus all the car's maintenance, insurance, etc.

Without the cover and the fancy ducting (to quiet intake noise) it misses by a good inch. I am hoping to modify the cover to sit lower (no fancy ducting to clear), but if not, I'll run it sans cover. Won't be a pretty, but pretty isn't my main goal here.

Once the mechanical stuff is completed, I plan on installing Ford Thunderbird Turbo Coupe seats, recovered to match the rest of the interior (with seat heaters added), new front carpet, and then a repaint. I'll remove the woodgrain, install "Wide Trac" flares, and paint a Cherokee style stripe.

The stripe and flare will be this style (though my stripe will be a solid color).

[badmatt]

I like this project... Check out Icon 4x4 they do some cool stuff with bronco's jeeps and FJ's Lots of neat little idea's.

Keep up the good work!

Matt

[fleetus macmullitz]

Seems very well thought out.

[57hemicuda]

I do love these old trucks, they were run for quite a few years without much change. Did a J10 with a small block Chrysler conversion about 10 years ago, was one of my favorite trucks.

[ProTouring442]

Well, the weather has not cooperated. Still, I had to get something done...

First up, mirrors.

A bit of looking turned up a mirror head I liked, so I bought a couple off the dreaded Ebay. They are from a '91-'97 Toyota Previa.

At first, I had planned on making a spacer to adapt them. But after some thought and a bit of guessuring, I decided I could install the mirror head on the original base. Of course, if I was wrong, the attempt would lead to the destruction of both pieces, but when has anything like that stopped me?

The result.




I don't think they turned out too badly. The transition between the new and old is a little obvious, but I have an idea to fix that. Of course, I will also be painting the base to match the mirror head.




Since the humidity made even a small job like the conversion of one mirror a way to sweaty endeavor, I decided I should do something inside where it is air conditioned. So I will be sitting down shortly to design the new dash layout.

Here are the gauges I will be using.


They are made by Speehut. They have LED lighting, and are built to order (about a week). You can customize their look too! These have red pointers and white numbers during the day, and red pointers with red numbers at night. The speedometer and tachometer are CAN-BUS, and derive their information from the ECM. The quad gauge is not yet available in CAN-BUS, so it will require individual sending units.

The speedometer.


Tachometer.


Quad gauge with oil pressure, coolant temperature, system voltage, and fuel level. The fuel level gauge can be used with any sending unit that works in any range below 300 ohms. I had them preset mine to work with the Suburban sending unit. All the gauges feature an LED warning light that can be set to your specs.


A slow day, but at least I accomplished something!

'Till next time!

[ProTouring442]

We have more progress!

Here is the radiator "module" all put together. I'm using a Lincoln Mark VIII two-speed fan (moves something like 4,500 cfm on high!), along with a triple-pass A/C condenser and a 30,000 gvw transmission cooler.



Here you can see the outer side. The transmission cooler has its own fan, and I will run the oil through a thermostat to ensure the oil reaches operating temperature quickly, even in cold weather.

H

The radiator "module" has been bolted in place. The assembly sits a lot further forward than original!



As you can see, there is not a lot of clearance between the fan and the water pump! You can also see how much further forward it all sits.



I had to modify the hood release bar, raising it to clear the radiator. Here you can see I had to shorten the pull lever. I'll use a Lokar hood release lever to release the hood. It will give me more leverage than the original.



Driver's side latch. You can see how much I raised the cross bar.



Passenger's side.



Marked the front valance so I could cut it to clear the radiator assembly.



Once the valance was cut, it bolted on with no difficulty, as did the grill.



I bought an early style hood, but wanted to use my late style grill. As you know, the hood hits the grill at the corners of the "scoop" section. A little cutting and a little hammer and dolly work, and it fits pretty well. I also think the center section of the hood is more squared off than the early style, making the "scoop" section seem taller and more defined.



The straps in the picture above are to hold the shelter down in wind. My calls them "Jeep Bondage." :shock:

That's all for now. My FI harness, cruise control, and remote start module arrived today. Tomorrow I hope to get the front valance finished (trimming to fit around the new radiator/condenser/trans cooler), and maybe install the harness. Naturally, pics to follow.

[Ron in SoCal]

Looking good Bill!