Beating on a VX.... Top ten things that would break?

[circmand]

CD Changer
Rims


They break w/o hardship

[Ebenezr]

LL's are the 2 bars that attach to your rear axle housing that keep it tracking straight.

My understanding is that those are called lateral rods by Isuzu in the manual. In steering terminology the center link or I believe upper link is the long rod that connects to each inner tie rod end, the pitman arm, and the idler arm. So I made an assumption that lower links were the name for the tie rod (also called an adjuster sleeve). Without those lateral rods (that your calling lower links) if you hit the gas your rear axle would go flying out your front end and you'd be staring at it. Those lateral rods ought to be called push rods ha ha ha cause that is exactly what they do. They push the vehicle forward or pull it backward.

[REDLYNER]

Limited slips are ok, so you could do the rear locker/front limited slip. Do you have to reset the gears for either of those? I know in jeeps the Aussie is a bolt in driveway job.

My main concerns now are the engine and transmission. The races are between 30 and 50 miles and last around 2 hours. Highspeed, rocks, some mud, and everything in-between. 3 classes- A is stock modified and is where the Vehi would run. Each class has a harder track (A, B, C)

[ZEUS]

Hmm... Ebz the VX has a 3-link rear suspension which is misleading since there are actually 4 links/bars/arms/rods to locate the axle. "Link" is common terminology in live axle suspension design whereas "lateral rods" is something I have never heard before so it must not truly exist. HAHA! J/K However, the term 'lateral rod' seems like it would better apply to the track bar/panhard bar since it locates the axle laterally.

[ZEUS]

Limited slips are ok, so you could do the rear locker/front limited slip. Do you have to reset the gears for either of those? I know in jeeps the Aussie is a bolt in driveway job.

My main concerns now are the engine and transmission. The races are between 30 and 50 miles and last around 2 hours. Highspeed, rocks, some mud, and everything in-between. 3 classes- A is stock modified and is where the Vehi would run. Each class has a harder track (A, B, C)

If you were to replace your rear limited slip with a locker of any type then yes you would have to reinstall your gears with a new carrier/diff. Going from an open carrier to a carrier with ratcheting halves tho only means you need to remove the 3rd, remove the spider gears, and install the locker in the original carrier, so tolerances are not changed. That is just my understanding tho, the Isuzu carrier accepts the Aussie from what I have heard...

[ZEUS]

deermagnet, could you post up one of those iso-schematics with the steering parts identified as well please? I'd like to see some of the terms they used for that stuff...

[deermagnet]

deermagnet, could you post up one of those iso-schematics with the steering parts identified as well please?

I don't got one. Ya might find something like that in the repair manual or at www.myisuzuparts.com.

Mark

[VX KAT]

hey Mark, where/what is that "driveHQ" ? Is that like a CD or disc or something with all that Isuzu/VX info & great diagrams? Can I get a copy?

[Riff Raff]

Class A racing allows one locker and 33" tires, or no locker and up to 35" tires. Originally I was thinking 33"s for the VX (285/75 16's), but was also thinking about about 32"s (265/75 16's) just for the sake of less stress on the parts.

Thoughts on tire size??

For a wider alternate size M/T tire in the 32" O.D. range, check-out the 285/70R16 (32" O.D.) tires from TOYO and NITTO tire brands (they are the only two tire manufacturers that make this rare unique size). It may be just what you're looking for instead of the narrower 265/75R16 size. Best of luck to you on your racing endeavors. Please put the website of "Vehicross.Info" somewhere on the exterior of your VX when it's ready for racing. Cheers.

[Ebenezr]

Here's a good look at the VX rear so ya can point things out-



And the front-



Mark

Thanks Mark. Good diagrams. When I was reading the manual I mistook Lateral rod for the trailing links. On page 2a-37 of the manual or thereabouts is a diagram of the steering linkage. The terminology used by Isuzu is center track rod for the large linkage that the pitman arm attaches to and "outer track rod" for tie rods. I could swear that several months ago when I was going through all this stuff at other websites and parts websites that somewhere someone labeled them center link and lower links.?????

[Ebenezr]

You know what would be funny...?? disconnect all those rear axle links then put the VX in reverse and gun it hard. ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. Make sure someones behind you. the driveshaft would disconnect at the splines and someone would be wearing the rear axle. ha ha ha ha. Hey would one of you like to try that.???? If you do please set up a video recorder for us..:

[ZEUS]

"Wait for it........."

[Ebenezr]

Zeus..ha ha ha. I just can't wait any longer I been thinking about this. We could have an axle throwing contest. kinda like a watermelon seed spitting contest. Maybe when you all get to Moab you could line up and disconnect your links then everybody 1..2..3.. gun it. backward ha ha ha.

[DutchKiwi]

I work a lot with rally (WRC Style) and Off-Road Racing Cars and Teams.

Important parts overlooked by many (and yes, me too on my own VX) are:
- Brake Pads
- Brake Rotors
- Front Hub
- Front Wheel Bearing/Seal Kit (at least one!)
- Brake Hoses (luckily I manufacture these for a living :-)
- Uprights ("Knuckles") left and right
OR preferably complete (preset) assemblies for left and right "corners" - makes changeovers a breeze.

Although I keep the caining to "occasional" I keep the following as spares in my own workshop:
- Trailing Arms (make these myself from Chromoly)
- Adjustable Top Link
- Adjustable Panard Rod/ Lateral Link
- Left and Right Front Corner Assemblies complete with Brake Hoses and HalfShafts
- EXTRA Set of CV Joint (outer) (1 only)
- Top Ball Joint (1)
- Lower Ball Joint (1)
- Wheel Bearing Kit (1)

Still needed (on my to-get-list):
- Lower Control A-Arms (L&R)
- Upper Control Arms (L&R)
- Beefy Adjustable Sway Bar (may have to make this sucker)
- a pair of nice adjustable Bilstein Shocks!
OMG where does it end???? $$$$$
Perhaps purchasing a spare BigHorn or Trooper to Pirate the parts of.....

[LittleBeast]

I love how even in their description just above the photo they use different wordage:

Trailing links = trailing arms
Lateral rod link = lateral rod

And then it states "the same shocks are used on the front"..... What? No they are not. The reservoir on the fronts points upwards and on the rear it points down. The attachment is totally different and the travel on the rear shocks is much greater than the front. Hmmmm