Hello everyone, got a classic dream Mu :)

[mumanbeing]

So I have found the dream Mu to do up. Getting ready for the apocalypse. I paid next to nothing for a solid yet time worn 2.8 Mu... In MANUAL BABY!!!! I'm told and have read that the 2.8 4jb1 motor is the more reliable and easier to work on. I have a Haynes manual cheap from eBay, some good basic tools, and limited basic mechanical skill ( did all the non risky work on my Honda sports bikes years ago.)

My Mu has need of a gearbox ( current one failing badly) hence it was cheap. It's rust free, motor starts first go every time, I haven't seen and puff of smoke ever, hot of cold. (!!??) And no oil drops on the ground or evident when crawling underneath. Stoked!

My first car was a 3.1 auto Mu and I loved it to bits, many epic fishing hiking and snowboarding trips in South island were enabled by it before I moved to motorcycles. So I know how tough and capable a mu can be in the right setup and hands.

It's been upgraded with the recommended bighorn intercooler/scoop mod, and a friend and I gave the motor a good long working test in a 300km house move. After the gearbox I'm sorting out tyres and rims hoping to work out 32" / 33"AT setup and ultimately a set of muds once I'm ready to get more seriously offroad.

Things to do: general tidy up, futureproofing, egt guage, oil catch, dual battery, paint, sort the non functioning turbo timer, tidy the gongshow home job wiring all over the place, back leafsprings are saggy I suspect. And the stereo is dead!! Heater is a beast and toasty hot for cold southern winters thankfully. One-day a winch, compressor, rescue and camping setup for the deer/thar harvesting missions.

My dream is to set up my mobile espresso business in it (a coverstory for having a solid apocalypse 4x4) and use it for light trailer work (lightweight coffee cart towed, and on the off days a light trailer of garden materials)

I get snow and ice now and then and will be moving back to the southern Alps for mountain life again next year, plenty of deer to harvest in them mountains. Hope I can find the advice and parts I need with you help folks, and If I ever have to sell the mighty Mu, you will be the first people to hear about it.

Plenty of project to get into. Would anyone care to share thoughts on a specialist 4wd mechanic in Dunedin to take care of the more involved work my baby will need that's out of my scope in terms of skills/tools? Primarily sorting the suspension/rims/tyres after replacing my bust gearbox Have started making enquiries, but love to back up the calls and web search with first-hand accounts of a reliable mechanic, I'm sure I'm not the only person who's been ripped off and lied to AND had dodgey even dangerous work done on their car before. (Like the time my front left wheel parted company from my car while driving, after getting new tyres put on at a "reputable mechanics"... $!!?@&)

Take care out there, it's strange days we live in

[mumanbeing]

And heres a dank shot of the Muteris. She's not pretty (yet) but has good bones.

Excuse my mates graffiti. He drives a Fix Or Repair Daily.... And scoffed at the old gal. Until I drove him around the farms hill block and scared the shit out of him. Reckoned he'd never take his Ford Wan**r, I mean Ranger onto terrain that steep. Pussy.

[geeves]

I wouldnt laugh too much at those Rangers. They are better than most people realize as long as you can look past that badge

[mumanbeing]

geeves wrote:I wouldnt laugh too much at those Rangers. They are better than most people realize as long as you can look past that badge

A good craftsman doesn't blame his tools aye