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Isuzu Modifications/Aftermarket/Accessories

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Comments

  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Well we get the bars 4-6 weeks so we'll see how that goes... Probablg in 2 months if I'm luckly I'll have it.

    I'm checking on which JVC unit I have. It is very smooth and works well, no skipping except on realharsh stuff.

    Edit: JVC KDSX-990 http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/S-9Rt04POIPX1/ProdView.asp?s=0- &c=3&g=62700&I=257KDSX990&o=m&a=1&cc=01

    The reason I liked this unit was that it had a lot of black in the face rather than silver so it would blend with the dash better than a lot of the new funky ones out there. Price was also very good, and now even better than when I got mine. I'm gonna likely get this unit for the Trooper as soon as the weather breaks, and throw my stock head unit and 6-disk player up on e-bay.

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    I ordered the JVC kd-sx990 today from etronics. $159.00 + $12.00 shipping. It was 4 dollars more than the cheapest place on the web I could find, but I have dealt with them before and they seem to deliver as promised, so I didn't risk a new vendor.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Sean, did they include a wiring harness? And do you have a link? My auction ends on the stock stereo today so I want to order the replacement this week.

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    Got it off epinions...There are cheaper ones available on ebay, but shipping is slightly more, so net I went with the people I am comfortable with.

    I don't know about the cable, They didn't mention, and crutchfield didn't have one listed for this model? I am hoping it is plug and play, but figure worse case is I have to hit radio shack or bestbuy.

    link:
    http://www.etronics.com/product.asp?stk_code=jvckdsx990&SVBNa- me=279
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    It lists a wiring harness as standard equipment.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Are you gonna put it on the top or the bottom?

    I think I'm gonna mount mine on the bottom and the VDO guages on the top. Still debating though.

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    What are the VDO gauges for? Air locker? Maybe that turbo you are putting in?

    If you are adding round pressure or related gauges I might try mounting them in the plastic center console near where the buttons are?

    Probably the top, I like the space for holding sunglass cases and such.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Gonna get Oil Pressure, ATF Temp and Volts. Always felt they were lacking in the guages. I'm gonna try to put the stereo on the bottom and the guages on the top.

    -mike
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    There is an ATF temp idiot light on dash. Does the 4L30E have some place to attach a gauge to, or is the electronics already in the trooper, but you need to tap into it?
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    The idiot light only shows when you are in the "hot" zone. A guage would actually show you if it's running hotter via towing etc. The way that I generally hookup the ATF temp guages is that you put the sender unit T-ed into the ATF line that goes from the tranny to the cooler. This will show you the absolute hottest temps that the ATF is hitting as it goes to the cooler to get cooled off. Same goes for the Oil Pressure sender you put a T where the idiot light oil pressure sender is and retain the stock one along side the guage one.

    The ATF sensor is actually inside the tranny so that is an "absolute" emergency guage, if that comes on you know you are in trouble.

    -mike
  • boxtrooperboxtrooper Member Posts: 843
    Are your TOD troopers missing the stock gages for oil pressure and volts? My manual transmission 1995 Trooper has these gages already.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    The TOD guage takes up that spot. On post '98 Rodeos they lost the Volts and Pressure as well, and just have blank spots on the dash for em.

    In fact I don't know many '98+ vehicles with those guages except american trucks.

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    I ordered it regular ground, and as per tracking info, it is in my hometown and out for delivery already! I should be getting it today...how about that!
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I'm gonna try to pickup mine this week, as they are located near where I work! :)

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    They do have a NYC location, I imagine it is one of those places where you can go in and haggle for the best price...
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    I did some exploration tonight. There is no plug and play. The wiring harness that came with the radio should work, however I am going to have to do some more research on what wires are what. The Isuzu radio has 14 wires and the JVC harness has 12?

    I may just ante up another $16 and order the easy cookie cutter piece from crutchfield. I am going to do a little more web research, but I think I will have to order.

    I am still saving somewhere between $20-$30 when all is said and done...I hope.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Hey ordered my JVC KD-SX990 yesterday AM and it shipped yesterday, out for delivery today! :)

    So I should have that one in this weekend along with cranking my T-bars. :)

    -mike
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Selling my OME 912 Springs to my friend who has a 2000 also but doesn't offroad barely at all and getting the OME 919 HD springs for my truck. Adding in the 1" poly spacers in the rear, ball-joint flip with spacer in the front, and going for some larger tires. Thinking 305-70 or 305-75s Anyone know the inch measurements on something like a 305-70 or 305-75?

    Also going to be mounting my CB in-dash in the 2nd DIN slot below the JVC head unit and running a speaker under the passenger side dash. My VDO guages will get put into the center-console panel below the cig-lighter area. :)

    -mike
  • leedavidyoungleedavidyoung Member Posts: 102
    Mike,

    If you go to 305's, you may need to look at reducing your gear ratios. I know with my 285's there has been a slight reduction in performance.

    The only other issue I have had with larger tires is the added weight on my rear door. It closes with a lot of force. On rough terrain, the weight causes the door to rattle. Maybe Indy4x could design a swing away tire carrier like Jeeps use to relieve the stress added to the door frame.

    Neither issue is major... just food for thought.

    Lee
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    For the rear door, I keep my stocker there so I'm not worried about that, for the gearing, I'm not that worried either cause i'm running 275-70s now and it reduces acceleration a little but there is plenty of power with the 3.5 for me to get going, if I wanna race, I'll take out my subaru :) hee hee

    Thanks for the input.

    -mike
  • wlbrown9wlbrown9 Member Posts: 867
    On Tirerack they have several 305/70/16. Specs are 19/32 tread depth, 8-9.5 in rim width, overall dia. 33", max inflation, 50psi for a Goodyear Wrangler MT/R. I looked at the specs for the other 5 or so listed and they range from 32.8" overall dia. to 33.1". Tread width seems to run about 8.9" - 9.5" for those that listed that spec. They did not show any 305/75/16...they do show 1 295/75/16, overall dia. is listed as 33.5" ...this one is a BF Goodrich All Terraine T/A KO.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Thank wlbrown9!

    So basically I'm looking at 33"x9.5s

    Not too shabby.

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    I ordered my cable from crutchfield yesterday morning and it got here today. $15.00 OTD.

    How do you like the sway-aways? I have been thinking about upgrading my front torsion bars. Sometime down the line I might add a winch so I want to get the additional support first.

    With that size tires, will you have to get new rims? If so, 15" or 16".

    I got an email from Buddy King last week regarding lockers...he suggests doing the front in the trooper too, either LSD or Locker.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I'm picking up an LSD when I go down to uwharrie next week :)

    Circuit city has the converter cable for $16 local to me :)

    Sway aways are great. They were easy to install and give a much more controlled ride.

    For rims, I'm gonna try to get em on the 16" rims, I don't think 15" ones fit over our brakes. I think they migh need a wider rim but I'm gonna get em mounted on the stockers.

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    Any new pics out there for people who added Bullbars recently?
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    to take a pic last night but it got too dark too quickly. I'll have pics after this weekend for sure.

    -mike
  • boxtrooperboxtrooper Member Posts: 843
    In my opinion the Trooper is geared kind of low, at least my 5 speed manual seems to be kind of high in the RPMs going down the highway, and I have no trouble going up relatively steep hills in 5th gear above 45mph. So I think there is plenty of torque and gear ratio to spare for larger diameter tires.
    ..
    The lower performance in acceleration and stopping with heavier tires is because of the rotational kinetic energy stored in the tires. This amount of energy must be provided to accelerate and removed to slow down. The larger tires are not only heavier but the weight is farther out from center wich stores even more energy. This would be less a problem with a hybrid that stores slow down energy and puts it back to accelerate.
    ..
    Last time I got tires (December 2002) I was intending to go for 275/70R16 or 265/75R16 until I asked the shipping weight of the tires. Going from stock 245/70 to 265/75 just about doubles the tire weight and that is a lot of extra wear and tear on the drive train and brakes and a lot of expensive gasoline. If I had a second car with high MPG for commuting I would probably have gone for the big tires anyway.
    ..
    Just my 2 cents, ask the shipping weight and use it in your size and model selection.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I have 2 vehicles with a 3rd on the way (the 3rd is gonna be a "beater" '89 integra 5MT) so I'm pretty much set for good gas milage when I want it :)

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    Can vary between LT and P rated tires. The 245/70s are P rated and typically 75 series are always LTs. That could contribute to some of the weight difference.
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    My Crutchfield wiring harness came in this morning. Another overnight deliver by luck. I started about 9:30 tonight and was done by 11:15. The Crutchfield harness matched wire for wire by color. I soldered everything together and then electrical taped it.

    The sleeve and square pastic facia around the front didn't fit, but the radio mounted right to stock brackets and fit right into the slot. The sound seems to be very good...nice pick paisan. I cranked it way up and the sound seems significantly cleaner than over stock. Now I need to read the manual on how to use all the features.

    Great upgrade for under $200.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    My buddy put mine in today. The fascia fit perfectly on mine! Got the harness from Best Buy and wired it up. Love having 2 units that are nearly the same in both my cars :)

    Loving it :) Having like 200 songs in there makes it great for trips too.

    -mike
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Here are some more pics of the ARB.

    http://isuzu-suvs.com/events/2003/if-03-03/

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    I probably can make it fit, there is about 1 mm of space it is off. I probably just have to take it out and slightly adjust the mounting brackets. It looks fine without it, so right now it is a coin flip.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Took some pics of the JVC installed.

    http://isuzu-suvs.com/trooper/index.html

    -mike
  • boxtrooperboxtrooper Member Posts: 843
    Paison, I was worried that the ARB bumper would leave a big open hole around the wrap around corner, but it does not leave a hole. It looks really good.
    ..
    How heavy is the ARB bumper? Have you had any bad handling effects from the weight? Are the stiffer torsion bars required?
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    About 100ish lbs.

    I have the upgraded sways and don't notice any ill effects on handling. I mean if you drive it like a truck then you should be fine. Drive it like a sports car and you'll have trouble :)

    -mike
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    I think the weight is slightly under a 100ish lbs. More like 75-85? But that still is in the ball park.

    I noticed more nose dive with the new bumper, until I added the OME N65's up front. The ride w/bumper and new shocks is better than stock.

    I didn't "have" to crank the torsion bars, it only dropped the front end 1/2-3/4", and didn't for about 6 months. I finally did have the front end lifted slightly, I think it looks better, but didn't really change the ride that much.

    If I add a winch, which I believe adds another 75-100 lbs. I will probably upgrade the torsion bars first.
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    Now that I have a cool MP3 player, it is time to ugrade my speakers. I have read a lot about upgrading the rears, and understand 5 1/4" 5 1/2" should fit without a problem.

    How about the fronts? What size will fit without much effort? Do I need to replace the dome tweeters too? or do people feel those are OK?

    In general the front sounds fairly decent, and the rear sounds just OK, so I will be starting rear to front, but may just go hog wild and purchase 4 new at once!

    Thoughts, opinions? Thanks.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Cause I'm thinking of doing the same! :)

    I know there is a how-to on my page but haven't read it in a while.

    -mike
  • boxtrooperboxtrooper Member Posts: 843
    take your Trooper to the store and remove a stock rear speaker and insert different models of replacement speakers until you find one that will fit in.
    ..
    I bought a set of four on special, but ended up trading back the rear two with their carefully protected packing material toward a pair that would fit back there. I ended up with Alpine 5.25" (stock rear speakers were a little over 4") with new mounting screw holes drilled. The big hole is big enough. I looked at the back side of a lot of speakers on that trade in day, the size of their baksides varies greatly between models.
    ..
    Sounds way better.
  • lestatdeleon1lestatdeleon1 Member Posts: 16
    FYI...I'm somewhat of a audiophile, and in general, You get more bang for your buck by replacing your front speakers. Mids and High range sounds are very directionaly and your ears can't pick up alot of sound from the rears when you are in the front seat. If you go the replacement route, I would recommend always doing the fronts first, then the rears...

    Some brands that I fine very nice:

    Boston Accoustic (tend to be a bit "high" or sound tinny to some)

    a/d/s (all around the BEST speaker, IMHO)

    Polk (also nice)
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    What about the component piece of it? Do I need to buy a 6" sub-woofer? or will a 2-way work? I would think that a 2-way setup might be sub optimal because of the intitial component design in the truck?

    I am not sure about replacing the tweeters and sub-woofer at the same time? From what I have read, replacing a component system is harder, that is why I am looking at doing the rears first.
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    I am thinking about getting a set of Polk 352's for the rears. They are 5 1/4" but everything I have read here is that I shouldn't have a problem with the depth, and I will just have to drill new holes.

    For the front, for no real reason, other than they are on sale as a package and have good specifications too, I am thinking about getting the Polk 365's, 6 1/2" speaker. The only issue could be the depth? Crutchfield says I can fit just under 2", these say 1 15/16". I didn't measure, but removed the stock unit tonight to check it out. There are bars across the rear of the speaker well which will limit how deep I can go? I figure that I could probably pad the front with a foam circle/cutout to get that extra 1/16 of an inch?

    Has anyone had success installing front speakers? What depth were you able to get into the front stock cutouts?
  • lestatdeleon1lestatdeleon1 Member Posts: 16
    All the brands I mentioned will sell components. I would say that they are an absolute necessity in the fronts (again, highs are very directional, so having them closer to your ears are better) All three should sell a ~ 5 1/2 mid and 1 tweeter that should work in the fronts.
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    Can I just replace the 6 1/2" door 2-ways and leave the tweeters and crossover cable as stock?
    That is at least my current plan.

    I am not sure if replacing the dome tweeters in the door is absolutely necessary. A component system ups the complexity and cost.

    Thanks for the feedback.
  • boxtrooperboxtrooper Member Posts: 843
    The rear speakers in my 1995 Trooper are for the kids when they are seated back there in the rear facing 3rd row http://www.littlepassengerseats.com bench seat. The third row rear facing seat is a very popular novelty for my kids and their friends it has three seat belts.
    ..
    When it is just me in the Trooper I use the fader to put extra power to the rear speakers and that makes the whole sound in the Trooper fuller.
    ..
    In my 1984 Trooper I made aluminum plates to cover the rear speaker openings above the rear doors. My 1984 did not come with rear speakers above the doors, but the wires were there. So I added a pair of surface mounted high range speakers pointed forward and in the sides of the rear panels I mounted a pair of low range larger speakers 6x9 IIRC. Then the fronts were replaced with the largest thing that would fit in the doors 6.5" IIRC. The radio I used was a high end Clarion that already had 30000 miles on it from my previous Corvair Eight Door Greenbriar Deluxe Van and while I was away in the military the Clarion was used by my brother in his car, but he denies it. Anyway, when I sold my 200K+ miles 1984 Trooper the kid that bought it mostly just wanted the stereo parts and the CB.
  • leedavidyoungleedavidyoung Member Posts: 102
    The crossover for the front is the cheap in-line type found in most stock set ups. I have considered upgrading the factory tweeters, but the originals sound O.K. and I didn't think the improvement would be worth the effort.

    The Polk 6 1/2" will fit the front door panels with no problem. Using the Polk's combined with the factory tweeters worked better for me than by-passing the tweeter and wiring directly to the new 6 1/2" Polks. I guess a cheap tweeter is better than no tweeter.

    My next improvement will be in the base department.
    I really like the under the seat sub-woofer over on Mike's site. I am considering the Infinity brand set up with the built in amp.
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    I spoke with a guy at crutchfield today and he said the same thing regarding the tweeters. They aren't components, but just have an inline filter. I got the Polk EX352s and EX365s. The 365s have too tall of a tweeter to fit under the factory cover, however it is only slightly off, so with some sanding or shaping I can adjust the factory cover to fit over the speaker. For the rears I will have to drill new holes, I am OK with that.
  • sbcookesbcooke Member Posts: 2,297
    My wiring of my ARB bullbar blinkers has caused and interesting effect. I have them wired up so they function as both a blinker and parking light (+ wire to + for turn signal, and - wire to + of parking light). It was a mistake when I did it, but I like the dual function, so I kept it that way.

    However, with the headlights off, the radio illumination blinks when I activate the turn signals. When the headlights are on, it doesn't. So I imagine I am getting a signal up the + side of the parking lights which is making the radio think the headlights/illumination is being activated?

    I am going to try to override this with one of the radio features to disable illunination? I could also cut the orange illumination wire ground it and/or splice it with the hot for the radio?
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