Leigh Lifted Vitara on 35s
Posted: Thu Aug 22, 2019 2:02 am
I'm about to lose the garaging of this thing as my mum has just sold her house so it has to sell or come out to the USA.
Therefore I'm putting this here to both list the mods and see how much interest I get.
I've been out of the country for over a decade & I have no idea what it could be worth?
Here's the spec list.....
1993 Vitara JLX to Chevy Tracker conversion. (Badges etc)
Chassis: 8" Leigh Lift. Built in 2003.............................................................£1,500
Engine: stock: 1,600cc with Safari Snorkel.......................................................£150
Gearbox: stock: 5 speed manual
Transfer Case 1: stock Vitara Reduction Box
Doubler Adapter: OTT Kicker 3. The original adapter & NA. In 2003 it was..............£500 as no exchange core to Canada
Transfer Case 2: stock SJ413
Rear Drive Shaft Disconnect (Trail Tough) Actuator Operated................................ £500
Drive Shafts: Custom made by LA SupaTrux......................................................£400
Front Axle: Rear Diff in modified casing. ARB. RCV Hilux IFS Shafts & Toy Hubs.........£2,100
Rear Axle: ARB. LAST Baleno Disc Brake Conversion & Hydraulic Fiddle Brakes..........£1,800
Front Suspension: Calmini A-Arms..................................................................£200
Old Man Emu 1.5" lift coils.................................................£150
Leda +2" Custom Rebuildable 5 Click Adjustable Struts...............£400
Rear Suspension: LA SupaTrux Lengthened Top & Bottom Links...............................£500
Dislocation Cones with axle captive coil springs.......................£100
Old Man Emu 1.5" lift coils.................................................£150
Leda +2" Custom Rebuildable 5 Click Adjustable Shocks..............£400
Exhaust: Custom Rear Twin with Chevy bow-tie tips.............................................£200
Wheels: 12x15 Eaton 16 Bolt Beadlock with 2.75" BackSpace. Powder coated..........£1,000
Tyres: 35/15.50/15 Interco Swampers TSL SX..............................................£1,500
Protection: Custom Front Bumper: Steel 3 piece modular & 8,000lb WinchPlus............£600
LAST Rear Bumper & 5,000lb WinchPlus. Bow-tie exhaust cut-outs..........£400
LAST Side Steps.......................................................................£200
Interior: Calmini Roll Cage...........................................................................£400
Vitara seats fully retrimmed in Red Leather...........................................£600
Red Protect-a-Kote.........................................................................£100
Stereo: JVC with loads of Shark speakers & a big amp in the roof............................£500
Twin Batteries..........................................................................................£100
Body Kit: Front: 2" Lengthened Fat Boy by FibreSports.........................................£100
Rear: Standard Fat Boy...................................................................£20
Removable Aluminium Extensions to cover tyres & pass MOT....................£100
Styling: Tracker Steering Wheel, Tracker Badges & Geo Tracker Grill........................£200
US Sidekick Rear Door Handle with Integral Number Plate Lights..............................£30
Dixie Air Horn...........................................................................................£30
C2 UKY Personalised Registration..................................................................£400
Total modifications...............................................................................£15,180
Then there's the labour which LA SuperTrux (LAST) liked to charge... A lot for. I'm sure my SJ435 Pickup, LJC160 and this went towards funding most of their Bigfoot 17 Monster Truck.
Details
For those that don't know what a Leigh Lift is, it's a body off re-manufactured chassis to lift the body 8" by welding new stronger 2x4 box section 4" above the old chassis: rear, middle and front while maintaining the stock suspension/geometry. Once the new box section is in place and cross braced with new steel from front to back, the old lower chassis pieces are cut away. It's a glorified body-lift that strengthens the chassis with much thicker box section steel and allows for clearance of 35x15.5x15 Swampers on 10" rims.
It's done by Leigh Catherick who's been modifying Suzukis since the late 80s. At the time this conversion the cost was about £1,500.
The tyres have about 300 miles on them still with the bristles.
I think there's room for 37s which I have and will put on if it doesn't sell as I will bring it over to the US.
After the Leigh Lift it went to LA SuperTrux who built Bigfoot 17. LAST installed the longer articulated rear links which were leftovers from an old project of mine. They compensate for the lack of front suspension travel. To make the most of the rear links the coils were made captive on the axle and the top coil locating cones drop down 6" when unladen.
LAST & I also made the one off rear disk brake conversion using Baleno rear calipers with handbrake to keep it all Suzuki, at the time. LAST also installed the custom made Leda shocks. Leda were local to me in Essex & in those days you could just call them, specify what you wanted and a few weeks later they were done.
The Rear Drive Shaft Disconnect lever would have come up through the passenger seat, hardly ideal, so it's operated with an electric actuator triggered by a dash mounted switch.
LAST had both ARBs installed by ProDrive (the rally team) so you know it's a good job.
Rear diff on the front. Yep. It's called a SideKick BackFlip. This is 1 of only 2 ever made by a guy over here in the USA. I paid a fortune to persuade him to part with his second and only production one. It takes Toyota Hilux IFS Front shafts. I used RCVs shafts to keep it non-Toyota. It does have Toy Asin hubs which are stronger than Warn or MileMarker, apparently. The hubs are the only non-Suzuki item on the vehicle. This was installed in about 2012.
The car will cruise at 70mph on the motorway and rides really softly.
Finally, flame decals for added power and improved handling. Product decals increase performance of all modifications by at least 10% and as much as 100% depending on their size and placement. Rebel flag gets you free entrance to Southern states, potentially worth thousands in toll savings if you ever drive it to the USA.
The intention was to keep it for my UK wheeler but I hardly ever go back so I've never used it. It was only finished after I moved to the USA. It just gets taken out every year or so for a check over and MOT. Garaged since Jan 2008
I don't really want to sell it but the steering wheel is on the wrong side for me to bring to the US.
However I'm not going to give it away so I may still keep it as I'd rather ship it out here for a few £ more than lose a bunch of money selling it off cheap.
If I keep it I'll get Leigh to do a Steering wheel flip at the expense of my mum's LHD Vitara from Europe that she no longer drives.
While the front is off for the firewall, dash & steering wheel swap I'll get Leigh to push the front forward 2" for better approach angle while keeping the engine in the same place. Then it would be more prepared to wheel out here.
Bonus would be those 37s will fit under the front easily.
Hmmmm I'm talking my self out of selling it.
I do have a set of 37 Dirt Grips with my initials in the treads. Hmmmmmmm. Even more.
Contact me through here if interested.
Pics to follow.
Therefore I'm putting this here to both list the mods and see how much interest I get.
I've been out of the country for over a decade & I have no idea what it could be worth?
Here's the spec list.....
1993 Vitara JLX to Chevy Tracker conversion. (Badges etc)
Chassis: 8" Leigh Lift. Built in 2003.............................................................£1,500
Engine: stock: 1,600cc with Safari Snorkel.......................................................£150
Gearbox: stock: 5 speed manual
Transfer Case 1: stock Vitara Reduction Box
Doubler Adapter: OTT Kicker 3. The original adapter & NA. In 2003 it was..............£500 as no exchange core to Canada
Transfer Case 2: stock SJ413
Rear Drive Shaft Disconnect (Trail Tough) Actuator Operated................................ £500
Drive Shafts: Custom made by LA SupaTrux......................................................£400
Front Axle: Rear Diff in modified casing. ARB. RCV Hilux IFS Shafts & Toy Hubs.........£2,100
Rear Axle: ARB. LAST Baleno Disc Brake Conversion & Hydraulic Fiddle Brakes..........£1,800
Front Suspension: Calmini A-Arms..................................................................£200
Old Man Emu 1.5" lift coils.................................................£150
Leda +2" Custom Rebuildable 5 Click Adjustable Struts...............£400
Rear Suspension: LA SupaTrux Lengthened Top & Bottom Links...............................£500
Dislocation Cones with axle captive coil springs.......................£100
Old Man Emu 1.5" lift coils.................................................£150
Leda +2" Custom Rebuildable 5 Click Adjustable Shocks..............£400
Exhaust: Custom Rear Twin with Chevy bow-tie tips.............................................£200
Wheels: 12x15 Eaton 16 Bolt Beadlock with 2.75" BackSpace. Powder coated..........£1,000
Tyres: 35/15.50/15 Interco Swampers TSL SX..............................................£1,500
Protection: Custom Front Bumper: Steel 3 piece modular & 8,000lb WinchPlus............£600
LAST Rear Bumper & 5,000lb WinchPlus. Bow-tie exhaust cut-outs..........£400
LAST Side Steps.......................................................................£200
Interior: Calmini Roll Cage...........................................................................£400
Vitara seats fully retrimmed in Red Leather...........................................£600
Red Protect-a-Kote.........................................................................£100
Stereo: JVC with loads of Shark speakers & a big amp in the roof............................£500
Twin Batteries..........................................................................................£100
Body Kit: Front: 2" Lengthened Fat Boy by FibreSports.........................................£100
Rear: Standard Fat Boy...................................................................£20
Removable Aluminium Extensions to cover tyres & pass MOT....................£100
Styling: Tracker Steering Wheel, Tracker Badges & Geo Tracker Grill........................£200
US Sidekick Rear Door Handle with Integral Number Plate Lights..............................£30
Dixie Air Horn...........................................................................................£30
C2 UKY Personalised Registration..................................................................£400
Total modifications...............................................................................£15,180
Then there's the labour which LA SuperTrux (LAST) liked to charge... A lot for. I'm sure my SJ435 Pickup, LJC160 and this went towards funding most of their Bigfoot 17 Monster Truck.
Details
For those that don't know what a Leigh Lift is, it's a body off re-manufactured chassis to lift the body 8" by welding new stronger 2x4 box section 4" above the old chassis: rear, middle and front while maintaining the stock suspension/geometry. Once the new box section is in place and cross braced with new steel from front to back, the old lower chassis pieces are cut away. It's a glorified body-lift that strengthens the chassis with much thicker box section steel and allows for clearance of 35x15.5x15 Swampers on 10" rims.
It's done by Leigh Catherick who's been modifying Suzukis since the late 80s. At the time this conversion the cost was about £1,500.
The tyres have about 300 miles on them still with the bristles.
I think there's room for 37s which I have and will put on if it doesn't sell as I will bring it over to the US.
After the Leigh Lift it went to LA SuperTrux who built Bigfoot 17. LAST installed the longer articulated rear links which were leftovers from an old project of mine. They compensate for the lack of front suspension travel. To make the most of the rear links the coils were made captive on the axle and the top coil locating cones drop down 6" when unladen.
LAST & I also made the one off rear disk brake conversion using Baleno rear calipers with handbrake to keep it all Suzuki, at the time. LAST also installed the custom made Leda shocks. Leda were local to me in Essex & in those days you could just call them, specify what you wanted and a few weeks later they were done.
The Rear Drive Shaft Disconnect lever would have come up through the passenger seat, hardly ideal, so it's operated with an electric actuator triggered by a dash mounted switch.
LAST had both ARBs installed by ProDrive (the rally team) so you know it's a good job.
Rear diff on the front. Yep. It's called a SideKick BackFlip. This is 1 of only 2 ever made by a guy over here in the USA. I paid a fortune to persuade him to part with his second and only production one. It takes Toyota Hilux IFS Front shafts. I used RCVs shafts to keep it non-Toyota. It does have Toy Asin hubs which are stronger than Warn or MileMarker, apparently. The hubs are the only non-Suzuki item on the vehicle. This was installed in about 2012.
The car will cruise at 70mph on the motorway and rides really softly.
Finally, flame decals for added power and improved handling. Product decals increase performance of all modifications by at least 10% and as much as 100% depending on their size and placement. Rebel flag gets you free entrance to Southern states, potentially worth thousands in toll savings if you ever drive it to the USA.
The intention was to keep it for my UK wheeler but I hardly ever go back so I've never used it. It was only finished after I moved to the USA. It just gets taken out every year or so for a check over and MOT. Garaged since Jan 2008
I don't really want to sell it but the steering wheel is on the wrong side for me to bring to the US.
However I'm not going to give it away so I may still keep it as I'd rather ship it out here for a few £ more than lose a bunch of money selling it off cheap.
If I keep it I'll get Leigh to do a Steering wheel flip at the expense of my mum's LHD Vitara from Europe that she no longer drives.
While the front is off for the firewall, dash & steering wheel swap I'll get Leigh to push the front forward 2" for better approach angle while keeping the engine in the same place. Then it would be more prepared to wheel out here.
Bonus would be those 37s will fit under the front easily.
Hmmmm I'm talking my self out of selling it.
I do have a set of 37 Dirt Grips with my initials in the treads. Hmmmmmmm. Even more.
Contact me through here if interested.
Pics to follow.