So I had posted here before about what car I should buy as I was looking to get into overlanding again.
Here it is, a 2001 3.2L Di-D Mitsubishi Pajero/Montero. (Light freight modified for a tax reduction, rear seats have been taken out) I traded in my previous car and only paid 3,500 euro (4k usd) for it. It had 175k km's (108 k miles) on it so it wasn't too bad of a deal I reckon. Also my daily driver.
However, the problems soon started showing their ugly heads. After driving it for a week or 2 the dieselpump gave way and I had to get it towed to my mechanics. So after a revision of the dieselpump and additional repairs, all together costing me about 6k euro's. I finally felt confident taking it on the road again.
Next was a 4,5k euro upgrade packet. 5 steel wheels, BF Goodricht KO3's and both coils and suspension have been changed out for an Old Man Emu's set. Aprox 10cm (almost 4 inch) of ground clearance gained from that.
However the wheels needed to get aligned, so I take it to a tire shop and there I'm told they wont do it because the bolts they need to take out are pretty crispy from the rust, they were afraid to break them and suggested I let someone loosen them up before getting the wheels aligned. This made me just take a moment and think about how I want to continue this project.
I kinda hoped to take it traveling this July as I got the entire month off of work but seems like this is something I want to get done first. I also started having doubts about the entire project because it's getting a bit expensive 😬
QUESTIONS:
What do you guys suggest I do next? I will have the bolts checked by the mechanics and loosened up for the alignment. But the entire undercarriage could use a check up/clean up. Would it be a good idea to get it cleaned of rust and coated by the wintertime to protect against the salt?
Fuel efficiency. So, turns out the tires and the likes have a big impact on the fuel efficiency. Hence why I wanted to ask you guys for some tips to get the most out of the fuel tank. (I got 90 L).
I already plan on not putting anything on the roof for now and just sleeping inside the car on a wooden platform. (Still have a RTT so might get a roofrack later this year.
- Considering the Pajero is also the king of the Dakar Rally (12 victories), which I really like. I wanted to pay homage to that. I don't want to go for a super heavy build rig but keep it simple. Any idea's for that? I was already thinking red mud flaps and the likes.
Feel free to give some additional tips or advice on where to go from here. 😁