RRC ute conversion

*Project update*

So in the last few days there has been movement on the ranch.

I have ordered the ute kit from Les Richmond Automotive, they have a backlog with the fibreglass guy, but hopefully it will be here in about 5-6 weeks.

I found a R380 gearbox, LT230 transfer case and front/rear driveshafts from a fella south of Perth who did a fantastic job of sorting out freight and giving me a fantastic price. This is not the gearbox I was after, but for the price I was willing to give it a try. Plus there are two sides to this; If it works with the VM Diesel, fantastic- If not(or does but then I can afford a swap) I have the correct gearbox for the engine. I am going to try Allfour by 4 tomorrow to see if they have a bellhousing.

A local tyre mob are going to put aside a set of second hand tyres so I can have something to put some air in and roll it around. AND if they are cool about it, ie; dont charge a ridiculous fee, I will probably buy a set of new tyres from them.

The weather seems to have settled down. I can go outside after lunch and not instantly melt, so I can try and free up some time to start pulling things apart.

I wont be cutting things straight away, I will wait until I have the kit and some instructions before that happens, but I will start removing trim and the like.

Id like to get an opinion or two also about whether or not I should remove the Boge and supplement the rear suspension with airbags.. Just considering it will be having a tray on it.

Also, do the RRC's have any rust problem areas I should sort out while this is happening?

Thanks guys, I will keep this going until the end.

Pull the trim panels off the front door pillars under the dash and have a good look there and under the carpet.

So over the last few days I have been able to finish half hour early and rush out to do odds on the project.

The main thing I have been concentrating on is getting the engine to run and I can say that after this afternoon, it turns over smoothly and without binding.

I see that as a success..

With that result, I drained what was in the fuel tank and put some fresh stuff in. I attempted to get it to start, but I was using some pretty dead batteries from the spare pile at work. They had half a day on the charger, but not enough. Two new ones are on the way and should see them in the morning and after work, I shall have another go.

The gearbox and bellhousing arrived this week. Was pretty happy with the turn around considering one came from Perth and the other from Newcastle. Will have to get a new thrust bearing and find a pinion bearing that will suit the R380.

The rear D1 prop shaft I got with the transmission has a rubber coupling at the diff end, so it looks like I will have to go back to the drawing bored on that one. See if I can get one in the NT, although that would be unlikely.

Either way, fingers crossed that she fires tomorrow, runs smoothly and then I can breath easy!

I can safely say, for a engine that has been dunked in water, it runs quite smooth!

It took a little longer to bleed up and start than I wanted, which instilled a bit of fear, but once it was running, it was all good. I will need to replace the rear main seal before all the good stuff bolts up, but other than that I think a decent tune and it could be a reliable runner.

With that news, I started planning my attack with striping it. The first thing to come out are the draw system. Was a pretty random find when I got it as it is set up with two draws, fridge slide and 12v wiring. I have already found a buyer for these.

The upper tail gate came off with ease and I didn't expect it to be so heavy.

Thinking I might strip it from the inside out saving the glass and major panels for last in case there is a late rain.

If anyone wants something from the back of the car, let me know, I'm sure we could work something out.

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Just use the rrc shaft and ditch the donut.

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I can't actually do that, the car came without a gearbox and propshafts, thus the search for stuff.

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Mmm Donuts. :ohyes:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Konradical

I can't actually do that, the car came without a gearbox and propshafts, thus the search for stuff.

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You said a few posts up that you got a donut shaft with the transmission ?

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Yeah, the rear prop shaft I got with the transmission is off of a D1. One end has a uni set up which will fit the trans, but the diff end has the rubber coupling. I need two sets of uni's as the RRC is of the uni type.

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It is finally here!

Just awaiting approval from the MVR, then we will begin chopping..

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