New here, with a new-to-me Trooper

[CJones]

Hey Everyone,
I'm new to this forum. I just drove home a new to me 2002 Trooper. It is stock. One owner who was an older lady that used it for groceries so it only has 90k on the odo. I am on a tight budget and will be needing tires shortly. Someone mentioned to me that I can get 265/75/16 in the stock set up with room to spare. Anyone else done that? What are some good tires for commuting (slower to wear, quiet, etc) but also handle well off road?
My wife and I are excited to start adventuring!
Thanks

 

[SuperTrooper]

Welcome! I'm on my third Trooper. 265/75/16 (32") fit and are a great balance for mixed on/off road use. 285/75/16 (33") also fit but you will notice more power loss and MPGs will suffer as well. I've always run 265s for a DD but plan on trying 255/85/16 (skinny 33") once my current tires wear out.
I'm not much of a tire expert but I've read BFG ATs have great tread life. I've also heard nothing but great reviews of Cooper AT3s and Cooper ST Maxx (more aggressive AT). Tight budget and new tires don't go together tho. Don't cheap out on some off brand tire. They usually won't balance and won't last. Good luck!

Oh, and check out planetisuzoo.com if you haven't already.

 

[BigSwede]

Agreed with the above, 265/75s fit no problem. They are roughly 7% bigger than stock.

Get some nice AT tires, avoid MTs for your projected use. In addition to the above, Nitto Terra Grapplers are a nice tire.

 

[double moo]

Just put General Grabber AT2s on my Trooper... Wish I'd have read Scott Brady's latest tire review on this site before buying. He is highly recomending the Cooper AT3s for both on and off road. I've had BFGs on for the past few years and though I love them off road and in the snow, they are a bit loud on the road and the new Grabbers are both quieter and smoother.

For less than new tires you should be able to upgrade your suspension - OME coils and some HD torsion bars... will be the best mod you will ever do on the Trooper. Ive had mine since I rolled it off the showroom floor in 1993. Wish I'd have changed out the suspension from the start!

 

[CJones]

Thanks for the info. Much Appreciated.

 

[hobbner]

Change the transmission fluid pronto.
I love my trooper its a great rig, but the Achilles heel is the transmission. Baby it, and you will be good. I cant tell you what size will fit stock as I bought mine with a 4 inch lift, but I would say be mindful of the tire weight and size, I have some 33 stmaxx tires that are simply too much. I have to slow down and take a few breaks on highway hillclimbs on hot days because the transmission heats up.

 

[CJones]

Change the transmission fluid pronto.
I love my trooper its a great rig, but the Achilles heel is the transmission.

Yeah. I found that out yesterday. Needs a rebuild already. I don't have the funds. Looks like I'm back to riding my bike.

 

[Clutch]

Just put General Grabber AT2s on my Trooper... Wish I'd have read Scott Brady's latest tire review on this site before buying. He is highly recomending the Cooper AT3s for both on and off road. I've had BFGs on for the past few years and though I love them off road and in the snow, they are a bit loud on the road and the new Grabbers are both quieter and smoother.

Don't feel too guilty just yet that you didn't go for the AT3's

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/134972-Cooper-Discoverer-AT3-in-snow

 

[CJones]

Just a quick update. Transmission has been finished for a couple months now (even got a 3 year warranty on the rebuild) and it drives great.

I took all the advice on tire size and got em in 265/75/16. Unfortunately, the Coopers were out of my price range, but there was a "promotion" (helps to know people) on the BFG T/A KO2 tire that fit nicely into my budget. I was a little nervous about the potential noise at first, but figured it wouldn't matter too much since I started using my motorcycle to commute. I am very impressed, though. I can't hear them, at all, on the road. I have only had them for a few days so I suppose that could change. They handle well, the vehicle feels more stable in corners (probably the wider tire), and they grip phenomenally.

Thanks for all the advice. I can't wait to hit the trail.

 

[justbecause]

what transmission does it have?

I have a yard ornament disguised as a beautiful 97, ARB, OME lift, 33 skinnys, etc.

I priced a jasper, it came in just over 3k. a factory re-man with only a 1 year warranty is slightly less. but I believe it is a more complete rebuild, maybe,depending on who you ask.

 

[CJones]

what transmission does it have?

I think I have the 4L30-E. The plan is to save up and gather parts necessary to swap it out with a manual transmission when the warranty is up. The guys I had doing the rebuild were very thorough. It took them a few weeks but they kept sending parts back that they didn't like much until they had the exact combination of trans. innards they wanted. Added a shift kit as well.

 

[justbecause]

I should have been more specific, I was asking if it was a Jasper rebuild, a local shop, factory re-man, ETC.

It sounds like it was a local shop, do you have a trans cooler, and fan? keeping it cool and not working it to hard seem to be the key points in keeping these units on the road. I am shopping for a good 5 speed truck.

 

[CJones]

Local Shop. No cooler yet. Will be doing that as we get into summer and I start driving it more.

 

[TheOneKnownAsMe]

The transmissions are definitely the ticking time bomb in these things, but I absolutely love mine. Going to put in a transmission cooler to help it live a long life. I have a co-worker who is the process of building up his XJ, and he was pretty blown away when I told him a lot of the factory specs of the trooper, haha. Fit 285/75r16 tires with very minimal lift, 4.56 gearing, massive amounts of space inside. His XJ is lifted 3" and my Trooper still sits about 1" - 1 1/2" taller, and that's just with 265/75r16 tires on it with no lift.

Have any pics of the new tires on there?

 

[BigSwede]

Years ago I was told by an Isuzu expert that the 4L30E can be a reliable transmission with regular fluid changes (as in every 30K miles). Unfortunately most people don't do that...