TDeSanto's Montero Mod Thread

tdesanto

Expedition Leader
eurorom said:
Congratulations on the BFG all terrain tires, I like you wanted the Mud terrains in Hankook, bfg, and yokos, however I desided on the all terrains, since I do most of my drive on pavment 80 to 90%. I think you will be happy with this tire, I also considered the toyo nitto all terrain, however because of the side walls I went to bfg.
I used them on deep sand on the beach and some trails and they did great!

You will be happy!

Enjoy the ride!:friday:

Now if I could only get a rack to carry 4 5 gallon gas cans!!!!hummm!

Thanks for the info. I'm already enjoying these tires. The ride quality is superior to the Toyo Open Country A/T's that I had. I don't know enough about different tires and design factors, so I'm not sure if this improved ride is simply due to the different tire or the increased size and PSI. I really did like the Toyos, which makes me wonder if one of those in the same larger size would ride similarly to the BFG's.

Anyway, I'm enjoying them and will be testing them out this weekend on the trails.

Regarding your desire for a rack for 4 5-gallon jerry cans--don't you have a Land Cruiser? I figured there are 3rd party custom racks for those, considering the overwhelming popularity of that vehicle. I've never put 4 jerry cans on my rack, but I do carry 2 (70lbs), a pull-pal (45lbs), a hi-lift (48lbs), and probably another 25lbs in gear. My rack is a simple Yakima Load Warrior on top of the factory roof rack, which is rated by the conservative manufacturer to support only 100lbs total (this would, therefore, include the 50-60lbs for the Yakima rack too). So, as you can see, I'm way over the limit, but haven't had a problem yet. I keep daring the thing to break so that I could start the difficult search for 3rd party support for a custom rack for the Montero.
 

LexusAllTerrain

Expedition Leader
tdesanto said:
Thanks for the info. I'm already enjoying these tires. The ride quality is superior to the Toyo Open Country A/T's that I had. I don't know enough about different tires and design factors, so I'm not sure if this improved ride is simply due to the different tire or the increased size and PSI. I really did like the Toyos, which makes me wonder if one of those in the same larger size would ride similarly to the BFG's.

Anyway, I'm enjoying them and will be testing them out this weekend on the trails.

Regarding your desire for a rack for 4 5-gallon jerry cans--don't you have a Land Cruiser? I figured there are 3rd party custom racks for those, considering the overwhelming popularity of that vehicle. I've never put 4 jerry cans on my rack, but I do carry 2 (70lbs), a pull-pal (45lbs), a hi-lift (48lbs), and probably another 25lbs in gear. My rack is a simple Yakima Load Warrior on top of the factory roof rack, which is rated by the conservative manufacturer to support only 100lbs total (this would, therefore, include the 50-60lbs for the Yakima rack too). So, as you can see, I'm way over the limit, but haven't had a problem yet. I keep daring the thing to break so that I could start the difficult search for 3rd party support for a custom rack for the Montero.

Well I am building a 03' 4Runner V8, my 3" Old Man Emu lift will be done next week, followed by the Shrockworks bumper, then I need a roof rack or a trailer.As for the LX-450 it is on a break! just for a little while!:safari-rig:
 

tdesanto

Expedition Leader
Outstanding Roof Rack Accessory

Here's a photo of my new Liquid Logic Manta Ray 14 (driver's side).

Kayaking has started to open up a whole new type of exploring for me; not to mention the great fishing opportunities.

DSCN0060-edit for web.jpg
 
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tdesanto

Expedition Leader
eurorom said:
Nice shot on the woods!:arabia:

Thanks! That's in the Quachita National Forest. We were up paddling on Broken Bow Lake this last weekend...what a beautiful lake.
 

DavidG

Adventurer
Nice Gen3 TD! First post from a fellow Montero owner...greetings to all. I need to spend some time exploring the site, then I'll post a 'proper' introduction.
 

tdesanto

Expedition Leader
DavidG said:
Nice Gen3 TD! First post from a fellow Montero owner...greetings to all. I need to spend some time exploring the site, then I'll post a 'proper' introduction.

Thanks David.

Welcome to Expedition Portal. Glad to hear we've added another Montero owner to the group!

Post up an intro about yourself soon.

Cheers,

TD
 

articulate

Expedition Leader
tdesanto said:
The platform is the 2001 Mitsubishi Montero (gen III).
I already told you this, but your Montero is fantastic, and inspiring in the sense that you're using an uncommon vehicle. What are the differences between this and the "sport" version, other than the body styling?

Montero 2001:
5OD-4.JPG


Montero Sport 2001:
01monterosport.jpg



Is the after market any better or worse for either of these? Will any U.S. ARB dealers import ARB products for you on a special order basis? It might be more complicated than I know, but still I wonder.

Do you have any plans for a roof tent? :) I suppose that might be tough with the kayak. Again, beautiful machine.
 

tdesanto

Expedition Leader
Thanks, Mark, for all the compliments and support.

Starting with the last question first: RTT. I'm not sure. I would have to completely reconfigure the way I carry some of my gear and get a new roof rack (or modify my existing rack) in order to support such an option.

I'm not sure what I'd do with the jerry cans, plus I like the convenience of putting the table, chairs, and anything wet up on the roof. And, I have to be able to take my kayak to anywhere there's water.:snorkel:

Differences between vehicles:

First off, I'm only somewhat familiar with the Montero Sport. I liken it to a 4Runner. When I was replacing my '94 Montero, I ruled it out due to the lack of headroom and cargo space. However, it's a very capable truck.

So, here's what I know:

1. Montero--uni-body; Montero Sport--body on chasis. The Sport is actually based on the Triton/L200 (not available in the US) truck(another name for it).
2. Montero (GenIII) has IRS; Sport has a solid axle in the rear.
3. Wheelbase: Montero=109.5; Sport=107.3
4. Weight: Montero=4630 ; Sport=4233lbs.

Pretty good info on the Montero is available here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pajero
http://specs.amayama.com/mitsubishi/pajero/2001_8/
http://www.mitsubishi-motors.com.au/mitssite/jsp/pages/vehicles/vehicles_group.jsp?group=pajero

On the Sport/Challenger:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsubishi_Montero_Sport
http://www.mitsubishi-motors.com.au/mitssite/jsp/pages/vehicles/vehicles.jsp?groupId=15

Aftermarket support: My impression is that aftermarket support for both of these sucks in comparison to Land Rover, Nissan, or Toyota. ARB is pretty good, as it has front and rear lockers, winch bumpers, OME suspension upgrades, and snorkels available. That's about all they list though. You can find sliders elsewhere for the Montero Sport, but not for the GenIII Montero. Actually, GenII Monteros have a little better aftermarket support than the newer models.

http://www.arbusa.com/USA-Vehicle-Application-Guides/Mitsubishi-Montero-NM.pdf

http://www.arbusa.com/USA-Vehicle-Application-Guides/Mitsubishi-Montero-Sport-Challenger.pdf

Regarding ARB product availability, I'm not entirely sure. I was able to get the bumper, OME shocks/springs easily. I haven't tried getting the lockers...yet.

Finally and sadly, Mitsubishi has discontinued selling the Montero (US market only) as of 2006. So, that sweet looking Gen IV is not available to us yanks. I also understand that they've stopped selling the Montero Sport here in the US as well.

So, I love the vehicle; but, I think I'm gonna have to go elsewhere for a replacement whenever this one finally gives out. I still am not sure what that would be, however. So, I'm hoping that time is long into the future.

Cheers,

TD
 
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tdesanto

Expedition Leader
Sliders and Skid Plates

Finally, some protection underneath and another couple items to cross off the wish list.

Since the monty is pretty much maxed out on lift,as I understand anyway being a uni-body with IFS/IRS, I decided some stout protection underneath was well warranted.

I wish I already knew how to work with metal, but unfortunately I don't...yet. I'm already thinking it would be a good idea to get some tools and learn how to MIG and arc weld. :Mechanic:

So, I turned to the guys at Expert Off-Road in Plano, TX. They helped me out a great deal over the last 2 weeks.

They built 5 skid plates and sliders for me.

The sliders were the easy part. There were actually great places just inside the rocker panels to mount these to the frame. They used rectangular tubing for the sliders and then round tubing for the nerf bars. These will provide serious protection for the sides and rocker panels, and in addition, provide me some steps to get to the entire roof rack. This is something I've been wanting for a long time now.

_DSC3775-edit for web.jpg

The skids were the challenge. First up, replace the plastic, er, skid plate? that was directly under the engine. I'm not sure what Mitsubishi was thinking. My Gen II had a metal one in the same place, but plastic it was and we had to get rid of that.

Next, they created a set of plates for the transmission/transfer case, center diff, and front & rear drive shafts. This turned out to be three plates. They had to remove the fiberglass/plastic skid on the gas tank. Then, since there weren't that many places for all the plates to tie into, they created 2 custom cross members from one slider to the other out of square tubing. This provided a solid platform to mount these skid plates, and also allowed them to keep the skids as close to the body as possible and clearance as high as possible.

_DSC3757-edit for web.jpg
_DSC3791-edit for web.jpg
_DSC3794-edit for web.jpg
_DSC3799-edit for web.jpg
_DSC3800-edit for web.jpg

I even had to get the muffler replaced with a slimmer model (Magnaflow) to allow more clearance for the new plates. I'm not sure I'm crazy about the sound--it's too refined now.:) But hey, at least it works and I got a little more clearance out of the deal too.

_DSC3756-edit for web.jpg

Finally, I wanted some protection for the rear. The departure angle is nowhere near as great as the outstanding approach angle of this vehicle. I know that for most vehicles the departure angle is always lower than the approach angle, but this is a bit extreme. In addition, I wanted to keep my rear A/C compressor. In the high heat it helps cool the cabin down. It is located just above the right rear quarter panel, behind the tire. It's just asking to be smashed...almost like it was an afterthought to add this right before production began.

So, they created another plate and tied it into the receiver hitch. It extends the entire width between tires, and covers the A/C compressor. It should allow me to slide off of things that are too tall for me to traverse. Sure, more lift or completely re-building the rear end would have been more elegant.

But, again, I was faced with not knowing how else to get any more lift out of it than I already have, and not wanting to butcher the rear body panels, lose the rear A/C, and the massive extra storage I have under the rear floor (where most trucks would have a spare tire or a gas tank). So, this was the best option that presented itself after several ideas were tossed around with the specialists at Expert Off-Road over the course of 3 days.

It's not a great picture, but here's the rear skid plate:

_DSC3763-edit for web.jpg

So, now I'm wondering if I helped lower the COG of this tall vehicle with all that 1/4" steel under there. :rolleyes:

Anyway, now I've got the protection to start taking this thing places I probably shouldn't. :smiley_drive:
 
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hattrik21

Adventurer
Sadly nothing new has been added. Too many bills right now and trying to save up for my Colorado trip. The only thing I have planned is to hook up my CB until I can upgrade to a HAM in the future.
 

Monstero

Adventurer
Speaking from experience its a great reassurance to hear a big rock hit underneath now that you have all those done. Instead of cringing and then stopping to look what it damaged. And you will DEFINATELY find yourself tackling harder spots cause your not worried about damage underneath.....

Every time I hit a rock or land on something underneath I just smile. They look great...and thanks for the pics as well.
 

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