Early Trooper with solid skid plate!

[rocmoc]

Has anyone made mods to the solid skid plate on the earlier Trooper? I know there was a post about cutting a hole to drain the Engine Oil. Has anyone did anything else. I want to be able be able to work on the thing without pulling the engine. I am also thinking of lighting wieght in the future.

Thanks,

rocmoc n AZ/Mexico

[brostar]

rocmoc, without no doubt at all, this was one design oversight on the earlier T2 that is very frustrating. The only 2 ways around it in my view is to cut a larger hole for easier access to the drain plug or go the whole hog and remove the welded panel directly beneath the sump and relocate the T connection housing the hydraulic rear parking brake hoses. The T connection could stay put if a supporting 4cm east to west boxed brace is welded in place of the now removed panel for it to bolt onto. If you do weld on a supporting brace, all that's need is to add another brace further up for the original panel to bolt onto, otherwise replace the cut off panel with a new oversize panel and bolt onto existing panels. I know rocmoc, easier said than done and I haven't made the effort but I think this is your only answer and you are gaining a little weight in doing it.

Cheers Mike

[flatbed]

rocmoc The troopers that have a skid pan that you can take off are a pain. mine comes off and i want to change how it is mounted. On a seprate issue don"t forget about the carrier bearing on the front drive-line, there is a zert on the very top of it.

[Kinarfi]

did you see what I did to my bolts for the skid plates? look at my" Oil Changes Xmission & Diff " thread

Also check out the oil drain link on Parts & Pieces, I put it on mine and attached a hose to it, now all I have to do is bring the hose out through a hole in the plate, stick the end in a bottle and reach in and flip the lever to let the oil out.

[Paiute3]

rocmoc The troopers that have a skid pan that you can take off are a pain. mine comes off and i want to change how it is mounted. On a seprate issue don"t forget about the carrier bearing on the front drive-line, there is a zert on the very top of it.

Is there a zert fitting on all the drivelines or just the new ones?

Cinda

[rocmoc]

Yes there is a zert fitting in all of the Troopers on the front driveline carrier bearing. It is located under the plastic housing island between the seats under the shifter. The plastic is a pain to remove the first time. I did a lot of cutting an made it much simpler to remove & replace the plastic. I also removed the plastic under the dash for ease of access.

rocmoc n AZ/Mexico

[4x4x454]

Has anyone made mods to the solid skid plate on the earlier Trooper? I know there was a post about cutting a hole to drain the Engine Oil. Has anyone did anything else. I want to be able be able to work on the thing without pulling the engine. I am also thinking of lighting wieght in the future.

Thanks,

rocmoc n AZ/Mexico

What you could do is cut the old one of leaving 1-2" of the old one. Cut the new one just a bit smaller then the old one over lap and attach it to what is left of the old one with nuts and bolts. the first time I changed my diffs and oil i scraped the screws went with hex head bolts put nuts on the top side. I had a hell of a time getting some of them off from buggering them up on the rocks. Just what I did. Todd

[Paiute3]

Yes there is a zert fitting in all of the Troopers on the front driveline carrier bearing. It is located under the plastic housing island between the seats under the shifter. The plastic is a pain to remove the first time. I did a lot of cutting an made it much simpler to remove & replace the plastic. I also removed the plastic under the dash for ease of access.

rocmoc n AZ/Mexico

Thank you Rocmoc!

Cinda