4D55 Performance
Explorer
About 5 months ago I received a call from a good friend. He asked me if I knew any one that would be interested in purchasing his near fully restored 1983 Mitsubishi Turbo Diesel 4x4. He needs to make room for two other Mitsubishi Diesels he is planning to restore this winter. To his surprise I told him I was interested even though I have the highly modified 1985 Mitsubishi Turbo Diesel. The truck is located in SoCal but over the past 4 years I have helped with some of the restoration, but ultimately he has done most of the restoration on this classic.
He said it was still in need of a few items to complete the restoration. It needed an engine, rear bumper, and a few other odds and ends like AC and wheels and tires. In July I ordered a brand new 2.5L Mitsubishi Turbo Diesel Crate Motor and had it imported. After several months of waiting the engine finally arrived yesterday and is ready to be installed.
This was a complete frame off restoration of a clean SoCal truck. Every nut and bolt was replaced with OEM hardware, the suspension was completely replaced with Sway-A-Way torsion bars and Alcan leaf springs. All the ball joints were replaced with Moog's. The interior was completely redone including a new dash carpet and door panels. All the glass was recently replaced. It was recently painted inside and out and received a fresh set of the original graphics on the sides and tailgate. A spray in bed liner was added so it will be a functional pickup. All the chrome and bumpers was sent off and returned to their original luster. All the rubber and seals and gaskets have been swapped out and all the plastics have been replaced. Ultimately so much has been done it is hard to list everything.
So what does this have to do with Overlanding?
Well, the plan is to keep it stock use it as a daily driver for 9 months of the year, but I want it to be set up for mild overland use. It will be great to have a little 4wd overlanding rigs that gets excellent MPG for those long adventures to southern Utah.
A few of the mods that are planned are pretty straight forward because they are share components with my other Mitsubishi pickup.
-Defender rack mounted to the cab.
-CVT 6 man Mt. McKinley RTT over the bed.
-Bed Rack
-Camp Chef stove/oven/grill combo.
-BFG KO 215/75/15 Tire with original wheels.
Here are a few teaser pics for ya.
This is what she looked like after 30 years of exposure to the sun, prior to the restoration
Here's a beautiful shot of her restored to her original glory. I love those bright graphic from the 80's.
This is the new 2.5L Mitsubishi turbo diesel that came in yesterday. It makes about 100hp and 150ft lbs of torque. It will have no issue motivating this pickup. In 1983 these were the fastest production pickup sold in the US and that includes all the fullsize big block pickups.
Beautiful water cooled Garrett Turbo
Dual V-Belts
He said it was still in need of a few items to complete the restoration. It needed an engine, rear bumper, and a few other odds and ends like AC and wheels and tires. In July I ordered a brand new 2.5L Mitsubishi Turbo Diesel Crate Motor and had it imported. After several months of waiting the engine finally arrived yesterday and is ready to be installed.
This was a complete frame off restoration of a clean SoCal truck. Every nut and bolt was replaced with OEM hardware, the suspension was completely replaced with Sway-A-Way torsion bars and Alcan leaf springs. All the ball joints were replaced with Moog's. The interior was completely redone including a new dash carpet and door panels. All the glass was recently replaced. It was recently painted inside and out and received a fresh set of the original graphics on the sides and tailgate. A spray in bed liner was added so it will be a functional pickup. All the chrome and bumpers was sent off and returned to their original luster. All the rubber and seals and gaskets have been swapped out and all the plastics have been replaced. Ultimately so much has been done it is hard to list everything.
So what does this have to do with Overlanding?
Well, the plan is to keep it stock use it as a daily driver for 9 months of the year, but I want it to be set up for mild overland use. It will be great to have a little 4wd overlanding rigs that gets excellent MPG for those long adventures to southern Utah.
A few of the mods that are planned are pretty straight forward because they are share components with my other Mitsubishi pickup.
-Defender rack mounted to the cab.
-CVT 6 man Mt. McKinley RTT over the bed.
-Bed Rack
-Camp Chef stove/oven/grill combo.
-BFG KO 215/75/15 Tire with original wheels.
Here are a few teaser pics for ya.
This is what she looked like after 30 years of exposure to the sun, prior to the restoration
Here's a beautiful shot of her restored to her original glory. I love those bright graphic from the 80's.
This is the new 2.5L Mitsubishi turbo diesel that came in yesterday. It makes about 100hp and 150ft lbs of torque. It will have no issue motivating this pickup. In 1983 these were the fastest production pickup sold in the US and that includes all the fullsize big block pickups.
Beautiful water cooled Garrett Turbo
Dual V-Belts
Nice looking truck! Love the graphics!
