Diesel

[Timelord]

Hello NR, that was the trouble I had with the Jimny. It was the most uncomfortable road vehicle I have driven. Ok, so it was built as an offroader and it excels at that, but it was a nightmare for the 98% of the other driving I did on tarmac. You had to constantly concentrate on the road ahead. If you looked sideways for even a few seconds, when you looked forwards again, the Jimny would be wandering off course. This was not a fault with the car, it was due to the suspension & steering geometry. The seats were uncomfortable & every single bump in the road made the car bounce around as it drove along. Also I could not carry v.much inside it. In some ways it is a great vehicle and I admire its capabilities for that, especially the 41.5mpg on petrol, but for normal driving it was most unpleasant. I have driven Sherpa vans many times over the years and I thought they were bad. I drove one briefly again while I still owned the Jimny and it felt like pure luxury and comfort. That's saying something!!

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(14 June 2012, 16:02)00111001 Wrote: I'll have a look to see if I have locking diff - dumb question here, but how would I tell? I presume I'd have something in the cab to lock the diffs?

Can't remember. The info is on the HiluxSurf forum. Mine got stuck up the mountain track in snow. It was a slightly steeper gradiant at one part that was compressed snow like ice & the truck would not go up it , even after a few attempts. Eventually it slid back sideways and blocked the track. The diffs are normal open diffs, just two of them instead of one as on a car.

I seem to remember something about jacking an axle off the floor and turning one wheel forward by hand. the opposing wheel should move in the same direction for a locking diff. If it moves backwards, then it is an open diff. yes there should be a button on the 4wd gear selector or possibly an extra position in its movement. I would check it out on the forums first though.
You could sell the truck for more if it has a locking diff. I did like my surf a lot, but after that episode - it had to go. I need to be able to rely on my vehicle. In that snowy scenario, I would rather have turned up in a car, knowing I had a 2 mile trek up a mountain and so would have packed accordingly. As it was, I and two others had to lug a large amount of heavy gear up the track on foot. I was not going to repeat that event again!! lol (now)