yecoyer

Hi everyone,

Im new into offroading, and into your beloved forum, ive been reading posts about ZJs for weeks now and i havent been able to find information i want, so i man up and sing up into your site.

So here is the deal, i have a 1997 ZJ Laredo 5.2, she still stock, but want to make mods to her for Sand Offroading and Baja too. (i live in Baja btw)

I just got out off college so i dont make a lot of money, so can you help me whit what mod should i make first. cheap ones specially.

i been told to get rid of the fan clutch and get an electric fan. Temperature here is often 122 farenheit degrees. I'm not into pre running or high speed offroading, i am into expedition trails but in desert environment, like sand, sand dunes, soft sand, rocks, some little bushes , when we go high speeds is when we race, we race uphill in sand dunes but that is not very common and is only a burst. Beacuse of the soft sand motors run on high RPM's, and i am concerned about motor, transmission and differential temperature.

Edit: sorry for my english, i am from Mexico and i dont speak or write in english vey often

SeriousOffroad

Your english skills are fine....and welcome to CF!!

A longarm suspension (front and rear) is going to provide the best ride quality and axle articulation for your terrain.

Consider adding a shock with a remote reservoir for added oil capacity and improved cooling to prevent shock-fade.

A remote transmission cooler should be at the top of your list. Adding one will provide greater cooling for the tranny and there will be less demand on the engine cooling system as well.

yecoyer

i feel welcomed already thanks
i dont got the money for the suspension yet, im focusing in cheap mods that will make big difference like the trans cooler, what kind of cooler should i buy, an aftermarket kind, add another ZJ cooler, or adapt a bigger trans cooler from a diesel engine truck?

SeriousOffroad

Something like this...
http://www.atsdiesel.com/ats2/produc...p?p=3109002000

yecoyer

That is a great cooler! I wish i could buy something like that but can you recommend a cooler like around $100 USD, i know is not much but i am down Mexico and i make like $800USD monthly, so i need really cheap junkyard solutions i guess you called it, no ofense, ghetto/redneck solutions. Or should i start saving for a cooler like this?

SeriousOffroad

Try this:
http://bmracing.com/?page_id=1046


Or you could spend some time scrounging around any junk yards in your area.

yecoyer

Thank you very much, the problem whit myself is that i dont know what to look for, so you are telling me to look for an trans cooler whit fan in a junkyard? or to look for an OEM trans cooler?

i know i may be annoying but i am really new to this stuff

SeriousOffroad

Either will be much better than using the OEM cooler.

yecoyer

I've found cheaper ones on ebay what should i look for BTU, number or rows?

SeriousOffroad

I'll answer more questions after the Super Bowl.....

yecoyer

hahahaha i guess i chose the wrong day, here in Mexico superbowl is no that big, but is a growing sport

yecoyer

i also need a new radiator which should i buy?

SeriousOffroad

12-14K BTU will be fine.

CSF 3 Row Radiator

dave1123

There was a very good write-up on an electric fan conversion on the forum recently. It had the option of a bypass switch to allow the fans to run constantly. A good idea when the air temp is hot.

Another thing. If your A/C doesn't work and you are not going to fix it, remove the condenser from in front of the radiator. It will allow more air flow thru the radiator.

I've seen the down-and-dirty trans cooler conversion of running two OEM coolers in series. It works for them. Just remember if you bypass the radiator's trans cooler, the trans will take a long time to warm up in the cold. I know it gets cold in the desert at night.

yecoyer

i cant live here whit out A/C. Tell me more about two oem coolers, here where i am from, cold is not an issue, the coldest we get down here is 37ºF and only like a month and like at 2:00 A.M. we normally are around 50ºF at sunlight in winter that last around 4 months and 110ºF at shade the rest of the year so i believe COLD is never an issue. BTW the last time when we saw snow around was like a 100 years ago so snow is not in my environment either.