The Tan Hot Dog Build

[rallypanam]

Originally Posted by Jsweezy

Ya it is, I'm seriously blown away at the results and how much of a difference ball joints can make to a front end. These brakes don't even feel bad now compared to before when I felt like they weren't gonna cut it.

I still want to do MGs conversion once it's ready to go (Dana 60, bigger brakes) but now I'm not in any hurry which is a good feeling since it's about to be summer time and I wanna go on adventures.

And now you know a decent place to take it to who can diagnose and fix it!

[arctictraveller]

Glad you got to the bottom of the problem. Now go out and enjoy driving your van

[Jsweezy]

Thanks guys!

[Jsweezy]

Alright I got some photos to share because everyone loves photos...

Here are the new ball joints, don't know who makes them because I forgot to ask but they sure are pretty...


Got the rear fox shocks today so of course they had to go in.
Old shocks in...


Old shocks meeting their replacement...


New shocks in...


I have a full day ahead of me tomorrow so I will be able to give a review of my initial reaction to them soon!

[rallypanam]

Looks like those tie rod ends could use some grease... or replacement. Are they moving at all?

This is top of mind because I need tie rod ends!

[Jsweezy]

I asked him the shop to look over everything since they would already be in there and let me know if there was anything else they thought needed changing and they said no. I even specifically asked about the tie rod end and they said they thought it was fine. Doesn't mean it doesn't need to that's just what they said.

He wasn't too thrilled with the front end and all of its "custom" stuff ha ha.

[Jsweezy]

OK - So do you want the good news or the bad news first?... Bad news so we can end on good news?... Deal

So my AC had been doing ok when it was cool out but as soon as it would get hot or we would be parked for too long it would start to suck. So basically when I actually want it, it doesn't work for me.

Took it to Macs Radiator and ac in Beaverton, cool guys that were super nice and told me I needed a new compressor and some other corresponding parts. Awesome, because 900 dollars on new ac parts is exactly what I wanted to spend my money on. Either way it has to get done because I have a 7 month old son and he doesn't like hanging out in a hot van.

Now for the good news, its two fold.

First - I figured out that my awesome cooler fits beautifully in between my drivers seat and rear bench...


Second - I finally got those damn tires/wheels off of my van. I know it looked super cool having big meaty bastards on there with super wide wheels but it doesn't look cool when you can't turn left and hit a bump at the same time without sounding like you've been in a wreck. And no I don't want to trim half my wheel well off (I know I am exaggerating). I also don't like having larger/wider wheels than I have to because it just doesn't make sense to me unless your doing it to clear the brakes or wanna jump to 22s.

Side note - I actually did see a quigley converted e350 at car toys the other day with some big rims, not my style but looked pretty cool.

I went with the BFG K02s 265/75r16 on the set of stock e350 rims I had lying around because they get decent reviews by everyone and I got a good deal with a warranty on them from costco. They were also kind enough to swap the TPMS sensors from the current wheel/tire combo to the new one.





My plan initially was to paint the wheels with some rattle can black but after seeing the grayish green stock rims on there it kind of reminds me of a military type setup. I may end up leaving it just because it does look so unique and then I won't have to spray paint anything.

On top of not rubbing and actually being able to take advantage of every millimeter of my turn radius these things feel alot lighter (even though they aren't) and my transmission doesn't feel like its straining as much which makes me happy. As much as I would like to get some gears other than 3.73 under here its just not in the bank for me anymore.

Hope you all are enjoying following along and as always thanks for your help!

[Jsweezy]

OOOHHHH and I totally forgot to add my initial response to the shocks. If your over on the expedition portal (which most of you are im sure) then you saw me post in the Ujoint thread but if not.

Basically, they need to come stock with these vans. I dont dodge potholes and when we hit them its like they barely existed. All I did was swap out the shocks and nothing else. So if you think you would like to go with a full leaf pack but dont have the funds then just swap out the shocks for the rear ones Ujoint sells and you will be happy. I will give another report on them after I've had a chance to do some more cruising.

[Jsweezy]

I haven't gotten much else done on the Dog but I did get a chance to add a SG2 and after spending a good hour trying to figure out where I wanted to put it I realized the best place is the same place everyone else has been putting theirs...



I tried to route the wire through that dummy button right below it so I didnt have to drill a new hole but it sat too low and was more in the way. Where it is positioned now I am able to see it perfectly while cruising and am excited to get to know what normal operating temps, etc for my system are.

[Jsweezy]

Ok guys quick question for all of you suspension gurus out there...

Why would Advanced use this funky triangle looking contraption instead of just your typical style shackle assembly? Is there any benefit to this, does the front point of the triangle act as some sort of bump stop for the leaf spring?


Thanks!