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Suzuki Vitra JLX


snowblind66
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As title any good? Looking for a cheap 4x4 to go shooting in as it's taking the toll on the family car! Seen a 1991 model for 550.....

 

*edit vitara*

 

 

They are a good cheap and cheerful shooting waggon imo. I had one for a couple of years and never had a problem with it. If its a short wheelbase you buy you will end up taking out the back seats (very easy to do) as there is no boot to speak of. Also watch out for signs of the tin worm on the sills :good:

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I have a JLX I leave on the farm now as it will never pass another MOT unless Stevie wonders tests it. We have ripped the rear suspension off, smashed a diff, drowned it for 3 days till we could recover it, Had it on it's side and had it sill deep in slop. It just keeps going. £40 in the tank lasts forever. It hauls a trailer with floaty tyres on it full of chopped wood, gets left for weeks on end without running and always starts, goes all over the farm except the reed beds as we found out and the river in flood. Stripped the rear out and all carpets to stop it stinking when wet.

 

It just keeps running! We have ragged it round rough ground with the farmer having a laugh, hauled trailers across fields, used it as a platform for chopping high branches, use it for shooting, tree felling duties and moving cattle steadily. Only thing that has broken and needs new parts is the elecy windows. Switch has burnt out. 4x4 works well but would benefit from difflock. But this motor cost us £300! it was bought as a farm runner for naff jobs. It has survived 3 years of absolute abuse from us with minor welding and repairs. I am seriously impressed with it's abilities and power for a small 1.6 8v cheap motor.

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I started off-roading LRs many years ago, drove my first Zuk and never looked back, many projects, hundreds of magazine articles, books and founder of, until recently, the best local 4x4 club in the country (ok I may be biased) you could say I was impressed with their abilities!!

 

The only problem with Vits is ground clearance and getting decent sized rubber on them can be expensive, but straight our of the box with some decent tyres they'll probably go anywhere you'll want to go on a shoot and get places most other 4x4s won't becasue of their size.

 

If you want to know more i think my book on modifying Zuks (which was out of print) has now been released as a e-book or talk to my old mate Dave Jones at bits4vits.

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I have a jx4u, love it! Excellent off road, it is a little thirsty but if it has free wheel hubs then you should release a few more mpg. Space is not the best but it is good for all my shooting gear. Havn't got stuck yet!

JR1960 i am very interested in your book/ e-book as i have been thinking about lightly modyfying mine (2 inch lift, winch, sump guard etc). thanks paul.

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2H for general driving, drives the rear axle.

 

4H for wet grass, snow etc. This delivers drive to both axles with the same gearing as normal.

 

4L for more serious off road driving. Delivers drive to both axles but the gear ratios are reduced by roughly a half.

 

Depending on the type of hubs on the front wheels depends whether you need to manually engage them or if they will automatically engage. If the hubs are a smooth front with the 'S' suzuki logo then they will automatically engage when 4wd is selected. To dis-engage you need to reverse for a couple of meters after selecting 2wd. If the hub has two semi circular recesses that can be twisted 90 deg. then you need to engage them manually and dis-engage manually. To select 4L ensure you are travelling at a very slow speed or stationary and the gear selector is in neutral.

 

Hope this helps.

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Great machines just put mine through its mot, they do rust out under the rear boot carpet near the seatbelt anchor points i would get on top of any rust before you start getting it wet and muddy in the winter. Don't use 4wd on the road as could damage the gearbox as there is no centre diff as they rely on wheel slip to stop them winding up. Just put some Insa turbo sahara's on mine 195/80/15 on the front and 215/80/15 on the rear, put all the lads L200's to shame on wet ground.

Edited by Jimmer
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