Newbie from Bristol.

[Beardy89]

Hey Guys.

I am currently a Green Oval man having had 5 landrovers however I am tempted to join the Suzuki club.

I would have about £1000 to spend, would be looking for something to replace my highly modded Defender but that could still go where it went. What do I need to look for? SJ or Vit? What are the common faults etc to look for when buying.

Any help appreciated and looking forward to not welding my Defender back together every other weekend.


Cheers Beardy

[dan_2k_uk]

Welcome.

I wouldn't put that welder away too quickly.

SJs are the proper offroader. Vitaras suffer with weak front diff's/shafts and are also IFS which causes issues with lift.

SJs tend to rot in the body's but the chassis will nearly always be solid.

What do you want to use if for? PnP?Daily drive and greenlaner?

[donkeychomp]

Glad you have seen the light. SJ is the way to go. Vits are very capable but cost more to modify. But the best of the bunch is an LJ. A grand should find you a nice SJ.

[Ju]

I would check that the chassis number is the same as the one on the V5

[Beardy89]

HI all,

Thanks for the replies!

It will be 95% offroad, greenlane mainly but a few PnP.

Most people have said the same thing, I.e SJ over Vit.

I am not sure what an LJ is?

I am not worried about small amounts of body welding! but I have had enough of spending weekend after weekend patching up landrover chassis's

[Ladaman]

to Club UK

Nice to see you have seen the light.

SJ from me too. May need some body repair initially, but the chassis will be sound.

[Beardy89]

Looks like an SJ it is then. Just got to find one that meets the needs for the right price.

I am trying to get to grips with the mods needed to make it as capable as my Defender.

I am thinking I need at least 31" tyres and therefore some kind of lift...
I am reading alot of negativity about SPOA and it looks like a Reverse Shackle Kit might be the best option, to give me room for the 31's but also giving me enough Flex

[Jordi]

LJs are the model before the SJ. Pretty rare these days and if most of us got our hands on a good un' we polish and garage it.

SJ for an off roader. Solid motors, easy to work on and modify. Reliable drive trains. The body normally needs a bit of TLC but they are easy enough to repair.

As for fitting 31s just virtual lifts it (cut the arches and a bit if bulkhead out) and they will fit on standard suspension.

If you're wanting more flex rear springs up front and lifted SJ springs or YJs on the back. Also gives a couple of inches of lift.

All depends what mods your defender had?

[ScottieJ]

Buy an SJ

Shackle reverse does nothing for flex and actually limits the size tyres you can run as the wheel moves towards the bulkhead during compression instead of away from it as it does with shackles in the front. You wont fit 31" tyres with a 2" shackle reverse kit but you can just about squeeze them on with just 2" lift springs. best option is some decent lift springs in the rear and then to do a rear springs up front conversion (RUF). If you do a virtual lift you can fit 33" tyres with no suspension lift, keep it as low and as stable as possible.

As Jordi says what mods did the defender have? it's not that hard to build a Landy beating SJ on a small budget.

[Beardy89]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the advice.
The defender was +2" lift, sat on 33x12.5R15 BFG MTs.
Standard running gear, no lockers.

Whats needed to do a RUF conversion. Obviously I can use the rear springs off of the SJ and then replace them with some +2" Springs. Move the Rear springs to the front, is there any cutting a welding of mounting brackets?

Lots of the SJs I see for sale of SPOA but everything I've read has been bad news, why do some many people go down that route? Just because it is the cheapest option?