Add a bottle of “ water wetter” from red line to your jeep. I never believed in it until i put it in my CTS-V. Absolutely lowers the engine and supercharger temps by 15-20 degrees. Its a polymer that.... does something lol. It works.
The Samurai needs up grading. Like what Tommy said, needs lockers, rear and front... maybe a.winch but definitely more,.much much more, aggressive off road tyres.
@@francesco1998 your front tire catches a rock and rips the steering wheel from your hand. If your thumb is inside, wrapped around, well, that is also ripped from your hand. Probably just break it really but it still hurts
Here in Australia we'd put a corolla motor in the zuk's for power and some 31inch muddies and they were absolute weapons. Jeeps, well we saw some in movies.
I know the 1.6 originally but I'm sure a few got the later engine. The corolla engine had heaps of potential for custom work and was a real game changer. 4wd burnouts and broken drivelines were common.
Best lines in the video... Tommy: "What the hell am I gonna do here?!" Roman: "That Samurai is like a mountain goat" 😂😂😂 Ya did good Tommy!...& you too Roman!👏👏👏. It was nice to see ya both cut loose a bit & not be so timid about pressin' on the skinny pedal & throwin' caution into the wind for once!👍
The low weight of the Samurai has a downside. I was following a hardtop Samurai on the Trans Canada Hwy in mountainous eastern BC. It was the early eighties and I was driving an FJ40. There was a considerable, gusty wind that day and the FJ was getting pushed around. We entered a tunnel which turned around 60 to 70 degrees as we passed through. When the Samurai emerged from the tunnel, a gust from the driver side hit it. The gust pushed the rear end sideways. The car rotated 90 degrees and fell over on the passenger side at 50 miles an hour. It proceeded roof first and slowly rotating. It made a shower of sparks and stopped quickly, still in its lane. In short, no injuries and little but cosmetic damage. The driver immediately turned off the motor. 6 passers-by and the driver actually returned the vehicle to its wheels and it departed under its own power after around 10 minutes. The most significant issue seemed to be the loss of the passenger mirror (or perhaps the loss of the personal composure of the passenger who seemed somewhat put out).
Yeah but apart from all those Jeeps, Nissan Patrols, Toyota Landcruisers, Daihatsu Fourtaks, Mitsubishi Shoguns Landrovers, Rangerovers etc etc there were hardly any 4x4s...…...
Lol. My first truck, IN THE EARLY 80S, after I got my licence was a 75 GMC 25 4x4. My current truck is a 78 Chevy 30 4x4. Over the years I've owned a few 70s 4x4. I agree, maybe for city boys it new. But us country boys have had them. I hear a lot of garbage about the old trucks. But There are reasons I returned to the old trucks. THEY ARE MORE RELIABLE. As much as b.s. as you hear. They fuel economy is really the same. 14mpg compared to 16 mpg. And even that is questionable. Just depends how you drive. I've drove coast to coast a few times. With what? 70s GM 4x4s And also I'm sick of hearing how the new engines are so much better. If you want to go 100% stock a 350 will take the new engine. If you want to go built, a 350 will take a new engine. Those are both in speed and pulling. If anyone wish to challenge this. By all means my 78 will gladly take you on. Stock I'LL drop a rebuilt 78 350 in it. If builds we can do that as well. $50,000 says I can win. Oh Btw, my truck running gears are stock for the truck. But be warned. They are STOCK for the truck, not for normal GM. Meaning due to what it started out as, it was standard for the truck. Which is kinda funny because my 75 was the exact same. 78 engine and the same running gears. And yes the 78 350 in some applications was "interesting " from the factory. If in the right vehical for the right reasons, even in California smog / emissions did NOT APPLY.
I also love how these guys go down roads like my 12 mile driveway and think it's 4xing. You ain't 4xing until your truck is stuck to top of the hood in quicksand and still sinking. ( that little fun thing ended up costing me engine, transmission, and transfer case. Lucky for me they didn't all go at once.) Complaint about carburated I love carburetor. I remember everyone wanted fuel injected. I suppose if someone said a dildo up your bottom was great everyone would want that too. You just need to know how to use a carburetor. HINT, you need to adjust it to what you are doing. 10 seconds under the hood. Now what is not crossing his mind is with modern vehicals. Yes it AUTOMATICLY adjust. But when you come back. Now you have a engine light on. And will now cost you thousands of dollars, because the stuipid pc doesn't know why it changed, then changed back.
Btw what the F is the problem. The commanche has something wrong with it. It basicly a Cherokee. I had NO problem with my Cherokee overheating ever. The 4.0 engine is a good engine. And the 4.2 was a good engine. I forgot about the eagle I owned as well. It had the 4.2 For those that don't know the 4.2 was the carburated strait 6 in AMC and first Wranglers. My current wrangled has the 4.2. But some DA put an electric fuel pump on it. So I need to redo the fuel line.
I have owned a Sami and seeing yours off road brought back such great memories! They really were very capable off road out of the box, as long as you were not concerned about hitting things every now and then.
I had an 86 samurai. Bought it brand new and took it everywhere from Northern California to Mexico. We took it to Rosarito Beach with 4 of us total and passed around a Jeep stuck in the sand going uphill. It was so stinkin light and I miss that thing but it was pretty gutless at altitude even in 4 wheel low. It was definitely a blast!
This was one of my favorite videos you guys have done so far. The vehicles were great, and did amazing. The video tracking bars in the beginning were perfect!
In the early 90s, my first truck was a 79 Chevy Luv 4x4 (1.8L 4cyl, manual trans), never had a problem off road in the Black Hills of SD and no problems handling the severe winters. Small, light, narrow, and would float across the mud/snow areas where big trucks would sink in.
Damn this samurai is not crawling on rocks... it's bouncing everywhere ! "Rolling my way up like a goat B**ch " xD ahaha Tommy's Face @ 10:10 - Nice Video Btw !
I can’t wait to see what you do with your Samurai! I had a 1987 Suzuki Samurai that I lifted with a Calmini shackle reversal kit; I put 30x9.5 tires on it, and it was amazing off road. The shackle reversal really improved the on road handling. I also had a 1994 Zuk, andI put a 3” Trailmaster lift on it- the springs were harder than an unloaded 1 ton pickup, and the bumpsteer was terrible, even with drop pitman arm.
I have wanted a samurai since I was a kid and seeing these videos makes me want one even more. I love my Toyota pickup but I wanna get something to be a dedicated off-road vehicle and not worry if I mess up my daily driver.
My old 93 Toyota is running 36x13.50x 15 Super Swamper IRoks and a 3" suspension lift with a 3" body lift. Onboard air rock slider quarter panel gaurds with gnarley front bumper with winch mount n plow brackets
well, like you said, in the 80's it was mostly 2 wheel drive. We couldn't afford those nice 4X4's so we learned real fast about picking lines and speed. We used to go to Azusa a lot and in order to get pulled out you had to have beer for payment, we also learned to carry lots of beer. LOL.
Your videos are amazing. Love the 80’s intro. That Samurai is quite capable. It would be great if Suzuki offered the Jimny in the US Do you guys still own Tommy’s JK and the Cherokee?
Gets wild @9:55! Sweet vid capture! @9:20. the Sammy is amazing, look at this trail. I used to take my Sammy up very similar trail, uses 4WD low, in first gear and ride the clutch. Do a wheel swap on these two beauts, give the Sammy the Jeep wheels and tires, give the Jeep the Sammy wheels and tires. Hopefully these guys treated that rust @4:10 would be an easy job and the proper thing to do. @4:20.. my Sammy towed my FJ60 for over 30 miles up and down the hills in the Texas Hill Country.. note:mostly in 2nd gear, 4wd high. Used a synthetic tow strap. One tow hook on the Sammy snapped open, the other held fast. the FJ60 likely weighed in at 5,500 pounds or so
You should try hypercool additive in the jeep about 2 bottles will do it. I was sceptical but my older 4.8 had overheating problems so I drained my coolant added 2 bottles of Hypercool went a little more water than antifreeze bc it works better that way and now my truck with 221,976 miles runs about 25° cooler. My race car buddy said that's all he runs at the track bc its NHRA approved.
Now wait Tommy, I have to agree with old Dad here. Samurai not a Jeep. I had more confidence in Jeep's ability to go up that hill at end. But, little Suzuki did it too!
Comanche all day long. I have owned 3. Mid 20's for fuel milage, fairly comfortable on long trips, rated as a 1/2 ton, and worth upgrading. With the proper tires great on icy highways, and I pulled three deep powder snowmobiles on a flatbed trailer up into the mountains with no real issues.
Two of friends had samurai’s back in high school, we used take them Offroad where 4wheeler went. One was carbureted, had a Weber and pacesetter header...lol....slow as balls. The other was fuel injected, and that little thing screamed and it was basically stock if I remember correctly(this was over 20 years ago) Fun little toys.
In South America you can find these still in service in Brazil and the Amazon regions, along with the Suzuki Trackers (Chevy Geo Trackers too) have or would you consider doing an 80's Off-road with one of those, they are so light that in Brazil they go everywhere with them including mud ridden sloppy trails, crossing streams, and small shallow rivers.
I was in tge Army in tge 1980s, My then wife and I bought one of the Comanche's. The second year edition, Yup it did come close more often than not to overheating. the first thing I did was to remove the thermostat in the spring and summer months, this was a common cure that helped greatly. The thermostat are very restrictive in volume flow of water, The second big thing was adding a modified Chevy heavy duty 4 core radiator. Modified by a reputable radiator shop to move the water hose inlet and outlets ports and adding the bottom seating mounts, and to securing bracketing to fit the Comanche. JC Whitney sold aftermarket electric dual radiator fans that when properly modified fit the Chevy 4 core radiators perfectly with custom made to shrouds. These greatly and I mean greatly removed any near overheating issues. Come the fall season I put the thermostat back into its housing, our engine had a four barrel aftermarket carburetor by Holly mounted to the stock intake manifold. These truck cabs were thinsolated meaning it got very cold without the heater running. We lived off base and had a long 20 minute drive to base then an additional 20 minute drive to my unit hq parking lot from the main gate. The thermostat was needed in the winter, for cabin heat and to warm the carb in order to properly operate. We loved our comanche very much, my wife worked at a small affees store on base and she had the closing shift so more than me she drove the jeep were I either drove the Ford pinto or my motorcycle. The four wheel drive system with installed Goodyear pg tracker tires was phenomenal on and off road in snow, slush, and ice with chains installed on extremely icy roads, But we had to put three big cinder concrete blocks in the back over each wheel to push the bed down compressing the suspension to make the rear tires bite into the road. Still a great truck. So much so when AMC came out with the Eagle my wife traded the pinto in for the wagon eagle with four wheel drive. Great vehicle as well.
I like both the commanche and the Samurai. But given the choice between the two, I'd still take the Samurai. I'm just a sucker for small, capable vehicles.
A big fan of Suxukis. I even bought an SX4 a few years ago, in part because of your video showing an SX4 going offroad. Was sorry to see the company leave the US market
Big fan of you guys! Thanks for the entertainment. I love seeing your budget builds, insights, and lifts for these older vehicles, I am saving my penny’s to upgrade my TJ.
The problem I have had with that 1.3 liter engine that the samurai has was not on the off road, or the highway. However, in dense stop and go city traffic on a very warm day that engine overheats whenever you use the AC unit.
A local radio station in MPLS had a contest. They were giving away a Samurai, they were known to roll over. So they called it the rock and roll over give away
In the 80s I was wheeling a K5 Blazer and a CJ7. Those were good times. Though I get the point on the Samurai being reliable. My first car was a 59 Kaiser-Willys CJ and it was a challenge to keep running. People look at them with nostalgia now but when its your daily driver it's less romantic.
Properly maintained cherokee and Comanche cooling systems worked great. Over time the factory radiator crusts over, thermostats get loaded up, and you would be surprised at how much of the water pump fins will corrode away. Leaking or not just replace the radiator, thermostat, water pump, and flush the system with a cleaner to get rid of three decades of crap.
The cooling issue with the commanche can be slightly resolved by making sure the clutch and electric fans work. You may also want to try to raise the hood at the brackets with longer bolts and washers .
4:24 You can absolutely pull the Comanche out with the Samurai. I have fun pulling stuck jeeps out with mine. Its interesting to see how much you have to modify a more normal 4wd just so it can keep up with a samurai.
Great video. Knew that the little Samurai had it in it. ;) Had a couple of friends who were stationed in Guam and they would go literately all over the island in their SJ40's. Virtually unstoppable. Samurai's got a bad rap in the US market because they were easily tipped over on the road. They were never meant to be driven like they were in the US. Same thing that ended the CJ-7 design and why the YJ came out. Their popularity played part in their demise. Too many people throwing them into corners and tipping them over. Had a 78 CJ-7 with the straight six myself. It rattled me a couple of times. Caused by my own stupidity by driving too fast for the conditions. The Jeep pickup was pretty awesome too, as it should be. Perhaps an upgrade to the cooling system is in order.
Really commendable effort, totally appreciated the attention to detail and kind of effort you guys put out there. Jeep is my favourite in this one and it made it look effortless as well 👏👍
A friend had an EARLY Samurai with 2 cycle (ring a ding etc) we found some guys in Jeeps, Blazers, Broncos Scouts etc trying to climb a BIG hill with running starts my buddy pulled up to bottom revved it a couple times with blue smoke it went up that like it was flat it had a snorkel went thru a 3’ river he had a cut-off broom to push throttle and keep foot dry. Flat out in 2WD high 50MPH he trailered it when going camping/hunting/etc
70's There were No 40 or 33 tires on our Mountain trails. Mostly hunter roads as far as Jeeps or Farm Trucks could go. 6 ply or radial snow tires. Challenges around each curve. I'm on my 7th Jeep. 3 Renegades 304 V8. One AMC CJ-5 360 V8. 2 CJ-7. 2 TJ 4 Bangers. (2000 TJ Currently) It's a Jeep Thang Ya'll. East Tn.
Those Geolanders are solid tires. I have them on my Rav4 and have made it through plenty of spots I probably should not have. Only lost about 1 mpg going from the city tires too.
How funny.. 😜 My BUTT was a clenchin just watchin you guys..!! Another good father-son moment together..!! And you didn't break anything..!! Good job Roman and Tommy..!!
I remember watching an old Land Rover Slll 88" diesel out perform a Land Rover 90" TDi that had expensive dislocating suspension to improve wheel travel simply because the Slll had front and rear locking diffs, if the Suzuki in this video had locking diffs it would have completed the track at a more sedate speed and not subjected either driver or vehicle to so much crashing about.
Love the old Comanche pickups...one of my Aunts had one I believe it was an 87, they pulled a boat with it, a travel trailer, they did a lot of stuff with their Comanche as well as a lot of work around their property with it too. My aunt killed it because she never checked the oil, ran it out of oil and well you can guess the rest of that story. I'd love to get a Comanche someday, but the ones I have found are either ridiculously priced or completely trashed and still want a ridiculous price...or they're already in the scrap yard. Wouldn't mind getting a Jeep Cherokee XJ at some point as well.
In 1985 Subaru had the 4wd GL a 2 door & a 4 door version, these where very popular, and also big in Colorado. You could get a 4wd small & good gas mileage, affordable, without buying a truck. The used ones stayed around for a while. In Colorado, the people who worked at resorts used these vehicles, just to get around easier. I did not sell mine till 1999. But these where affordable vehicles, not the 40 & 50k entry points that you have today.
Im huge into Jeep's and I had no idea the 4.0s were prone to over heating, guess that would explain part of mine over heating huh lmao. That or the 3 feet of mud I drove through could've done the trick. However I'm surprised she's still running great after all the over heating. Truly a tank!
Back in the 80s we still had a massive number of straight axle Toyotas available for not much money and we had many more off roading areas available to us. I miss those days......
Hey guys! So I have a 2001 GMC Yukon 4x4. I did a level which gave it quite a bit of clearance. Went to a pretty tough trail on some 265/65/18s with a friend in a really capable Lexus GS and a 2020 Tacoma. I didn't have much articulation but I found out my rear diff and front have LSD. This Yukon was really capable. I guess LSD is really rare in the Yukons and Tahoes but even more rare in the front. You guys should really look into one of them. Super impressed.
@Sandy Lee Jeeps are not good as they were once before in terms of reliability because they are using FIAT engines from italy. Some of them are actually made in Italy
@@arielsanca7956 I disagree. Ok, before I go farther. The old Wiley hurcalee engine was great. It was beautiful. But they were not made for speed. Now, the 4.2, 4.0, and the 4cyl from 80s after Chrysler bought jeep. We're all good engines. I do not like fuel injection engines. But I will say the 4.0 is equal to a small v8. They have lots of power. 4.2 was a good engine. I've owned a few. Now they are not equal to the 4.0, but are a good strait 6. And the 4cyl, well the one I drove for a while was nice no problems. Out of those three, I did have problem with 4.2, but after looking back at others. I think it was just a very worn engine. The only problem I had with a 4.0 and I've owned a few. Is the girl never did an oil change. When I repo it. The oil looked like mud. And the engine blew about 15 miles away. In all honesty, any engine would have blown. And I've had engines with more going for them blow. I really was amazed when I got it home, after it blew, and pulled the dipstick. It saddened me she took such poor care of the poor thing. I've NEVER seen oil that bad before, or after for that matter. Let's put it this way. When I pulled the dipstick. It looked like you used the dipstick to mix grease and dust. It was bad. Way I figured she had drove it for 2 years. And never did an oil change. And I also bet she put non detergent oil in it of a lower grade.
the way the samurai jumps when you go over rocks makes me nervous but i can imagine if both vehicles were properly set up lockers,tires lift ,ect they would probably crawl really well and make easy work of that hill
Comanches and Cherokees were great looking in the day and have worn well. Would love to have either...but lean toward the Comanche. Enjoying the videos with the Comanche very much. Good job guys.
The 80s were the best time to 4wd. So many more trails were open around the Boulder, Colorado area you guys are in that have been closed over the years. I had an 86 4runner. It was awesome. Just offroaded one yesterday in the Colorado Gambler 500 when I broke my 73 pinzgauer. 86 runner is still awesome. The new stuff is too expensive. Too fragile.
As a mechanic on your Jeep put a 1 lower temperature thermostat it will help with over heating and over time your radiator does get some corrosion on the inside and the fins get filled in with dead bugs and dirt And amazon usually sells bigger aluminum radiators for cheap as well and both of those things should take care of 80% of your over heating worries. Plus from owning one they run a little better a little cooler. Also if you want to go more cooler than that you can put on a higher flowing water pump in and gain a little power and cooler by adding a electric fan. And the samurai work much better with a 2” spring lift to something a little softer with some better shocks and that not so much you loose it’s small wheelbase. Also not a Milwaukee salesmen or anything but for like $150 they sell a portable cordless air compressor that will air all my truck 285/75/16 tires for 25 psi to 45 psi all easy on one battery it will air anything up to 120psi you literally turn it on screw on the end to the valve stem and input the psi you want hit enter and it will air it to that on its own. Also has little attachments so you can air football and air mattresses and stuff as well. Best wishes maybe some of this info helps ya out, keep up the good works and thanks !
Lower teperature thermostat will have no effect. The thermostat has zero impact on maximum temperature, it only controls minimum operating temperature.
First time I saw a Suzuki Samurai was at a monster truck show when I was about 10 years old. Dude was kind of the time filler, he drove the shit out of that thing on the washboard ramps, it bounced up and down so hard, it looked like it might do a front flip lol. Ran it with an open header, sounded like a hive of angry bees. The announcer of course was just ripping on him, screaming "ZZZZSSSUUUKKKKEEEEEE!!!!!!!" Always thought the Samauri, Geo Tracker, etc were a joke of a truck, until recently when I watched some videos like this and realized off road they will get you anywhere, even with small tires.
The Landy, the Jeep, and the Samurai are just so cool! I’m jealous I don’t get to do this kind of off-roading. Love the videos ! Thanks for dedicating so much time and effort.
What is Tommy planning to do with the Suzuki Samurai? Here's his plan: ua-cam.com/video/zI_ZtgB98eQ/v-deo.html
Keep the 80s intro theme please.
Sandy Lee you cant on a stock samurai. Locking HUBS are different than locking AXLES.
Man if you can not use stran valve you should not four wheeling and watching you drive up that hill is pain full how the hell did you get a channel
Add a bottle of “ water wetter” from red line to your jeep. I never believed in it until i put it in my CTS-V. Absolutely lowers the engine and supercharger temps by 15-20 degrees. Its a polymer that.... does something lol. It works.
The Samurai needs up grading. Like what Tommy said, needs lockers, rear and front... maybe a.winch but definitely more,.much much more, aggressive off road tyres.
One lesson we learned wheeling in the late 70's and 80's- Don't wrap your thumb around the steering wheel. :-)
13 people and counting know exactly why haha
Jack Hamrick
I don’t know why please tell me
@@francesco1998 your front tire catches a rock and rips the steering wheel from your hand. If your thumb is inside, wrapped around, well, that is also ripped from your hand. Probably just break it really but it still hurts
Jack Hamrick
Yea that’d be shitty wouldn’t it.
@@francesco1998 yes sir. The harder you hit the Rock, the more your thumb would hate you too. But one nice thing about it, you only do it once
“I don’t think I have the clearance. Oh well.” Goes for it anyway. LIKE A REAL MAN!
It's nice when you don't have a budget.
hahahaha not a care in the world
Those 80s graphics and music was on point.
Same thing I was thinking !
Awesome so the key to off roading in the eighties was momentum and neck braces
@benz merc that's 84$ per dent sir
You know what would be a good video? Suzuki samurai vs Isuzu trooper
Gopro Jock I second this!!!!! I Love my Trooper more than my own legs!
You made it a serious 80's flash back when you pulled out the Rambo knife!
You mean $7 harbor freight knife?
@@michaelm8138 you call that a knife? Now that's a knife.
EXACTLY! I have seen that. Rambo wannabe at best.
Here in Australia we'd put a corolla motor in the zuk's for power and some 31inch muddies and they were absolute weapons. Jeeps, well we saw some in movies.
1.8 chain drive or the older 1.6 belt driven? I've seen 22REs in Samurais but it's a tight fit. The Corolla engine sounds perfect.
I know the 1.6 originally but I'm sure a few got the later engine. The corolla engine had heaps of potential for custom work and was a real game changer. 4wd burnouts and broken drivelines were common.
Plenty of room for a small turbo under there. That little 1.3 is bullet proof.
Best lines in the video...
Tommy: "What the hell am I gonna do here?!"
Roman: "That Samurai is like a mountain goat"
😂😂😂
Ya did good Tommy!...& you too Roman!👏👏👏. It was nice to see ya both cut loose a bit & not be so timid about pressin' on the skinny pedal & throwin' caution into the wind for once!👍
The low weight of the Samurai has a downside. I was following a hardtop Samurai on the Trans Canada Hwy in mountainous eastern BC. It was the early eighties and I was driving an FJ40. There was a considerable, gusty wind that day and the FJ was getting pushed around. We entered a tunnel which turned around 60 to 70 degrees as we passed through. When the Samurai emerged from the tunnel, a gust from the driver side hit it. The gust pushed the rear end sideways. The car rotated 90 degrees and fell over on the passenger side at 50 miles an hour. It proceeded roof first and slowly rotating. It made a shower of sparks and stopped quickly, still in its lane.
In short, no injuries and little but cosmetic damage. The driver immediately turned off the motor. 6 passers-by and the driver actually returned the vehicle to its wheels and it departed under its own power after around 10 minutes. The most significant issue seemed to be the loss of the passenger mirror (or perhaps the loss of the personal composure of the passenger who seemed somewhat put out).
cool story bro
The wind also blows a Jeep Wrangler around.
For the love of God, put a small lift kit and rear locker on the Samurai!
...and tires
And a Sierra t case...
No, leave it alone. It’s a time capsule. How many unmolested Samurais still exist?
locking differentials or limited slip differentials as well as grippier (not larger tho) tires would be good
80's soundtrack is perfect
should have went with the jan hammer miami vice theme song
Synth Wave For TLF YESSSS!!!!
That's a beautiful Comanche, I daily one myself, 5 speed manual, 4.0L, favorite vehicle I've ever owned
Charles Garrity Hell yeah man i’ve wanted so bad i got a 84 XJ so i guess i’m cool but i don’t have a bed :/
Cable Nowadays I just bought an xj because I don’t wanna put tons of miles on my mj, it’s a 4.0 auto 2x4 but only 50k miles
"Quite unusual to have a vehicle that was 4x4 in those days" maybe for a city boy it was! Its tons of 1970-80 4x4s in use today!
Yeah but apart from all those Jeeps, Nissan Patrols, Toyota Landcruisers, Daihatsu Fourtaks, Mitsubishi Shoguns Landrovers, Rangerovers etc etc there were hardly any 4x4s...…...
Are you serious.... chevy k10s 20s 30s blazers ford f150 250 350 broncos gmcs that were copys of chevys there were a ton of badass 4x4 trucks...
Lol. My first truck, IN THE EARLY 80S, after I got my licence was a 75 GMC 25 4x4.
My current truck is a 78 Chevy 30 4x4.
Over the years I've owned a few 70s 4x4.
I agree, maybe for city boys it new. But us country boys have had them.
I hear a lot of garbage about the old trucks.
But There are reasons I returned to the old trucks.
THEY ARE MORE RELIABLE.
As much as b.s. as you hear. They fuel economy is really the same. 14mpg compared to 16 mpg. And even that is questionable. Just depends how you drive.
I've drove coast to coast a few times. With what? 70s GM 4x4s
And also I'm sick of hearing how the new engines are so much better.
If you want to go 100% stock a 350 will take the new engine.
If you want to go built, a 350 will take a new engine.
Those are both in speed and pulling.
If anyone wish to challenge this. By all means my 78 will gladly take you on.
Stock I'LL drop a rebuilt 78 350 in it.
If builds we can do that as well.
$50,000 says I can win.
Oh Btw, my truck running gears are stock for the truck. But be warned. They are STOCK for the truck, not for normal GM. Meaning due to what it started out as, it was standard for the truck. Which is kinda funny because my 75 was the exact same. 78 engine and the same running gears. And yes the 78 350 in some applications was "interesting " from the factory. If in the right vehical for the right reasons, even in California smog / emissions did NOT APPLY.
I also love how these guys go down roads like my 12 mile driveway and think it's 4xing.
You ain't 4xing until your truck is stuck to top of the hood in quicksand and still sinking.
( that little fun thing ended up costing me engine, transmission, and transfer case. Lucky for me they didn't all go at once.)
Complaint about carburated I love carburetor. I remember everyone wanted fuel injected. I suppose if someone said a dildo up your bottom was great everyone would want that too.
You just need to know how to use a carburetor. HINT, you need to adjust it to what you are doing. 10 seconds under the hood.
Now what is not crossing his mind is with modern vehicals. Yes it AUTOMATICLY adjust. But when you come back. Now you have a engine light on. And will now cost you thousands of dollars, because the stuipid pc doesn't know why it changed, then changed back.
Btw what the F is the problem.
The commanche has something wrong with it. It basicly a Cherokee. I had NO problem with my Cherokee overheating ever.
The 4.0 engine is a good engine.
And the 4.2 was a good engine.
I forgot about the eagle I owned as well. It had the 4.2
For those that don't know the 4.2 was the carburated strait 6 in AMC and first Wranglers.
My current wrangled has the 4.2. But some DA put an electric fuel pump on it. So I need to redo the fuel line.
Great video. I love seeing the common mans builds getting out in the wild.
I second, love seeing stuff that we can all do
You mean not sponsored instalanders???
I want to do a little offroad, but I do not know where to go. :(
One of the coolest videos you guys have ever made!
I have owned a Sami and seeing yours off road brought back such great memories! They really were very capable off road out of the box, as long as you were not concerned about hitting things every now and then.
Brings me back to high school! Made me better offroad today; picking lines and focusing on the fundamentals..cool episode👍
Great intro dudes! I for one miss being a kid in the 80s...
I had an 86 samurai. Bought it brand new and took it everywhere from Northern California to Mexico. We took it to Rosarito Beach with 4 of us total and passed around a Jeep stuck in the sand going uphill. It was so stinkin light and I miss that thing but it was pretty gutless at altitude even in 4 wheel low. It was definitely a blast!
Dang 80's, now I have to clean the VCR heads because the picture won't track!!!!! 😁😁😁😁
😁😁😁
This was one of my favorite videos you guys have done so far. The vehicles were great, and did amazing. The video tracking bars in the beginning were perfect!
Tommy at 10.26 thinking he still had his glasses on lol. I feel you man
I've done that too quite often LOL.
Lol those things bounced off a ways back, he did better without them....
As a Wrangler owner in the 90's I took great offense when Zuke owners told me they could hang. 20+years later I'm glad I didn't challenge them
Im really hyped about the Suzuki build... Please put a lunch box locker in the back! It's really worth the $200!
Love watching these retro vehicle videos, more about driver skill then vehicle tech and you guys are fun to watch. Keep it up.
Hands down the best video and best driving you have done...👏
Omg, this video was pure awesomeness. Wow
Tommy I must say when you first started doing videos you were derpy as hell, but now you are my favorite car reviewer
well, except for Sarah I liked her a bit more
He has come around
I laugh at the fake offroader Jeep guys who poke fun at the Samurai. But I know the real Jeepers respect and know how good they are.
That little Samurai was amazing. Nice driving Tommy.
In the early 90s, my first truck was a 79 Chevy Luv 4x4 (1.8L 4cyl, manual trans), never had a problem off road in the Black Hills of SD and no problems handling the severe winters. Small, light, narrow, and would float across the mud/snow areas where big trucks would sink in.
Damn this samurai is not crawling on rocks... it's bouncing everywhere ! "Rolling my way up like a goat B**ch " xD ahaha Tommy's Face @ 10:10 - Nice Video Btw !
After owning a Land Rover I don't think I would make that my recovery truck. Samurai would be more trustworthy and reliable.
Wouldn’t be able to pull anything out though.
That's a low burn.
Are land rover really that bad?
Jeep added an auxiliary electric cooling fan later to the Cherokee for the overheating. Might want to do this mod on the Comanche.
Or pull the entire front clip. Seen that before too. Seems easier in the long run to put a fan on, but heck, what do I know.
I can’t wait to see what you do with your Samurai! I had a 1987 Suzuki Samurai that I lifted with a Calmini shackle reversal kit; I put 30x9.5 tires on it, and it was amazing off road. The shackle reversal really improved the on road handling. I also had a 1994 Zuk, andI put a 3” Trailmaster lift on it- the springs were harder than an unloaded 1 ton pickup, and the bumpsteer was terrible, even with drop pitman arm.
I have wanted a samurai since I was a kid and seeing these videos makes me want one even more. I love my Toyota pickup but I wanna get something to be a dedicated off-road vehicle and not worry if I mess up my daily driver.
The last part of the trail was epic. It was totally tubular and righteous 80's 4x4 action!
jimny/samurai is a monster! great tiny machine
The Suzuki did pretty good considering it's on all season tires. They look like all seasons anyway.
My old 93 Toyota is running 36x13.50x 15 Super Swamper IRoks and a 3" suspension lift with a 3" body lift. Onboard air rock slider quarter panel gaurds with gnarley front bumper with winch mount n plow brackets
Well that bought back some memories. New clutch, wheel shims and tyres make the Suzuki a weapon.
well, like you said, in the 80's it was mostly 2 wheel drive. We couldn't afford those nice 4X4's so we learned real fast about picking lines and speed. We used to go to Azusa a lot and in order to get pulled out you had to have beer for payment, we also learned to carry lots of beer. LOL.
Could you put the heat on full blast so it could take some heat away from the engine so it won't over heat?
And keep the hood popped on the trail.
Yeah if you don't mind cooking yourself hahaha
The music with the scene of the samari on the final hill was awesome!! Great foot work tommy
You guys crack me up with your enthusiasm of discovering the basics with analog tech.
Your videos are amazing. Love the 80’s intro. That Samurai is quite capable. It would be great if Suzuki offered the Jimny in the US
Do you guys still own Tommy’s JK and the Cherokee?
Our work had 70’s short bed Chev 4X4s pickups and 4X4 Chev Blazer. We worked in the forests of Oregon.
Gets wild @9:55! Sweet vid capture! @9:20. the Sammy is amazing, look at this trail. I used to take my Sammy up very similar trail, uses 4WD low, in first gear and ride the clutch. Do a wheel swap on these two beauts, give the Sammy the Jeep wheels and tires, give the Jeep the Sammy wheels and tires. Hopefully these guys treated that rust @4:10 would be an easy job and the proper thing to do. @4:20.. my Sammy towed my FJ60 for over 30 miles up and down the hills in the Texas Hill Country.. note:mostly in 2nd gear, 4wd high. Used a synthetic tow strap. One tow hook on the Sammy snapped open, the other held fast. the FJ60 likely weighed in at 5,500 pounds or so
You should try hypercool additive in the jeep about 2 bottles will do it. I was sceptical but my older 4.8 had overheating problems so I drained my coolant added 2 bottles of Hypercool went a little more water than antifreeze bc it works better that way and now my truck with 221,976 miles runs about 25° cooler. My race car buddy said that's all he runs at the track bc its NHRA approved.
Now wait Tommy, I have to agree with old Dad here. Samurai not a Jeep. I had more confidence in Jeep's ability to go up that hill at end. But, little Suzuki did it too!
Comanche all day long. I have owned 3. Mid 20's for fuel milage, fairly comfortable on long trips, rated as a 1/2 ton, and worth upgrading. With the proper tires great on icy highways, and I pulled three deep powder snowmobiles on a flatbed trailer up into the mountains with no real issues.
Everybody: Our Recovery Vehicle is Heavily Modified Wrangler or Landcruiser
TFL: Our Recovery Vehicle is 'Not So Modified' Disco2
Those Jeep XJs & Comanches are timeless - love them. Rode in a Samurai before; no thanks -
tin can.
Two of friends had samurai’s back in high school, we used take them Offroad where 4wheeler went. One was carbureted, had a Weber and pacesetter header...lol....slow as balls. The other was fuel injected, and that little thing screamed and it was basically stock if I remember correctly(this was over 20 years ago)
Fun little toys.
Love it! That Comanche is just plain badass! That whole series of the build is awesome!!! Comanche versus Tacoma versus ZR2 up cliffhanger!!!
In South America you can find these still in service in Brazil and the Amazon regions, along with the Suzuki Trackers (Chevy Geo Trackers too) have or would you consider doing an 80's Off-road with one of those, they are so light that in Brazil they go everywhere with them including mud ridden sloppy trails, crossing streams, and small shallow rivers.
Here in Brasil, the Samurai is a classic 4x4, and is a cheap price. The dificult is find one to buy.
I was in tge Army in tge 1980s, My then wife and I bought one of the Comanche's. The second year edition, Yup it did come close more often than not to overheating. the first thing I did was to remove the thermostat in the spring and summer months, this was a common cure that helped greatly. The thermostat are very restrictive in volume flow of water, The second big thing was adding a modified Chevy heavy duty 4 core radiator. Modified by a reputable radiator shop to move the water hose inlet and outlets ports and adding the bottom seating mounts, and to securing bracketing to fit the Comanche. JC Whitney sold aftermarket electric dual radiator fans that when properly modified fit the Chevy 4 core radiators perfectly with custom made to shrouds. These greatly and I mean greatly removed any near overheating issues.
Come the fall season I put the thermostat back into its housing, our engine had a four barrel aftermarket carburetor by Holly mounted to the stock intake manifold. These truck cabs were thinsolated meaning it got very cold without the heater running. We lived off base and had a long 20 minute drive to base then an additional 20 minute drive to my unit hq parking lot from the main gate. The thermostat was needed in the winter, for cabin heat and to warm the carb in order to properly operate. We loved our comanche very much, my wife worked at a small affees store on base and she had the closing shift so more than me she drove the jeep were I either drove the Ford pinto or my motorcycle. The four wheel drive system with installed Goodyear pg tracker tires was phenomenal on and off road in snow, slush, and ice with chains installed on extremely icy roads, But we had to put three big cinder concrete blocks in the back over each wheel to push the bed down compressing the suspension to make the rear tires bite into the road. Still a great truck. So much so when AMC came out with the Eagle my wife traded the pinto in for the wagon eagle with four wheel drive. Great vehicle as well.
His natural reaction after the first climb to grab his glasses was lol 😂
Mod the samurai please. It's very thought trough the trails.
We are and here's the plan: ua-cam.com/video/zI_ZtgB98eQ/v-deo.html
I like both the commanche and the Samurai. But given the choice between the two, I'd still take the Samurai. I'm just a sucker for small, capable vehicles.
A big fan of Suxukis. I even bought an SX4 a few years ago, in part because of your video showing an SX4 going offroad. Was sorry to see the company leave the US market
That was probably one of the better videos I've seen you guys do. Momentum momentum momentum!!
Big fan of you guys! Thanks for the entertainment. I love seeing your budget builds, insights, and lifts for these older vehicles, I am saving my penny’s to upgrade my TJ.
The problem I have had with that 1.3 liter engine that the samurai has was not on the off road, or the highway. However, in dense stop and go city traffic on a very warm day that engine overheats whenever you use the AC unit.
A local radio station in MPLS had a contest. They were giving away a Samurai, they were known to roll over. So they called it the rock and roll over give away
Jeep xj or mj . Sway bar disconnect and a locker + decent tires = good to go just about anywhere.
I dont know what their aversion is to lockers. A lunchbox in the front of that comanche would have fit right into their "cheap jeep " build.
@@jeepinbanditrider it would of done the world of difference in there
In the 80s I was wheeling a K5 Blazer and a CJ7. Those were good times. Though I get the point on the Samurai being reliable. My first car was a 59 Kaiser-Willys CJ and it was a challenge to keep running. People look at them with nostalgia now but when its your daily driver it's less romantic.
Properly maintained cherokee and Comanche cooling systems worked great. Over time the factory radiator crusts over, thermostats get loaded up, and you would be surprised at how much of the water pump fins will corrode away. Leaking or not just replace the radiator, thermostat, water pump, and flush the system with a cleaner to get rid of three decades of crap.
The cooling issue with the commanche can be slightly resolved by making sure the clutch and electric fans work. You may also want to try to raise the hood at the brackets with longer bolts and washers .
The 80's rocked!👊🍻...we had lots of more trails and freedom ....
4:24 You can absolutely pull the Comanche out with the Samurai. I have fun pulling stuck jeeps out with mine. Its interesting to see how much you have to modify a more normal 4wd just so it can keep up with a samurai.
Great video. Knew that the little Samurai had it in it. ;) Had a couple of friends who were stationed in Guam and they would go literately all over the island in their SJ40's. Virtually unstoppable. Samurai's got a bad rap in the US market because they were easily tipped over on the road. They were never meant to be driven like they were in the US. Same thing that ended the CJ-7 design and why the YJ came out. Their popularity played part in their demise. Too many people throwing them into corners and tipping them over. Had a 78 CJ-7 with the straight six myself. It rattled me a couple of times. Caused by my own stupidity by driving too fast for the conditions. The Jeep pickup was pretty awesome too, as it should be. Perhaps an upgrade to the cooling system is in order.
This episode has got to be one of my favorites..... the real adventure of off road back in the day👍👍💪💪💪💪
Really commendable effort, totally appreciated the attention to detail and kind of effort you guys put out there. Jeep is my favourite in this one and it made it look effortless as well 👏👍
"I don't think I have the clearance... Oh, well." *mashes gas*
Lol when is that Suzuki going to get some love and by love I mean small lift and tires. Great video!
A friend had an EARLY Samurai with 2 cycle (ring a ding etc) we found some guys in Jeeps, Blazers, Broncos Scouts etc trying to climb a BIG hill with running starts my buddy pulled up to bottom revved it a couple times with blue smoke it went up that like it was flat it had a snorkel went thru a 3’ river he had a cut-off broom to push throttle and keep foot dry. Flat out in 2WD high 50MPH he trailered it when going camping/hunting/etc
70's There were No 40 or 33 tires on our Mountain trails. Mostly hunter roads as far as Jeeps or Farm Trucks could go.
6 ply or radial snow tires.
Challenges around each curve. I'm on my 7th Jeep.
3 Renegades 304 V8.
One AMC CJ-5 360 V8.
2 CJ-7.
2 TJ 4 Bangers.
(2000 TJ Currently)
It's a Jeep Thang Ya'll.
East Tn.
Those Geolanders are solid tires. I have them on my Rav4 and have made it through plenty of spots I probably should not have. Only lost about 1 mpg going from the city tires too.
Those KM3s will be my next set of tires for my Grand Vitara
How funny.. 😜
My BUTT was a clenchin just watchin you guys..!! Another good father-son moment together..!! And you didn't break anything..!!
Good job Roman and Tommy..!!
I remember watching an old Land Rover Slll 88" diesel out perform a Land Rover 90" TDi that had expensive dislocating suspension to improve wheel travel simply because the Slll had front and rear locking diffs, if the Suzuki in this video had locking diffs it would have completed the track at a more sedate speed and not subjected either driver or vehicle to so much crashing about.
Love the old Comanche pickups...one of my Aunts had one I believe it was an 87, they pulled a boat with it, a travel trailer, they did a lot of stuff with their Comanche as well as a lot of work around their property with it too. My aunt killed it because she never checked the oil, ran it out of oil and well you can guess the rest of that story. I'd love to get a Comanche someday, but the ones I have found are either ridiculously priced or completely trashed and still want a ridiculous price...or they're already in the scrap yard. Wouldn't mind getting a Jeep Cherokee XJ at some point as well.
In 1985 Subaru had the 4wd GL a 2 door & a 4 door version, these where very popular, and also big in Colorado. You could get a 4wd small & good gas mileage, affordable, without buying a truck. The used ones stayed around for a while. In Colorado, the people who worked at resorts used these vehicles, just to get around easier. I did not sell mine till 1999. But these where affordable vehicles, not the 40 & 50k entry points that you have today.
Favourite video you've ever made. Great fun with simple real off-roading and well presented. Good stuff.
Im huge into Jeep's and I had no idea the 4.0s were prone to over heating, guess that would explain part of mine over heating huh lmao. That or the 3 feet of mud I drove through could've done the trick. However I'm surprised she's still running great after all the over heating. Truly a tank!
Back in the 80s we still had a massive number of straight axle Toyotas available for not much money and we had many more off roading areas available to us. I miss those days......
Hey guys! So I have a 2001 GMC Yukon 4x4. I did a level which gave it quite a bit of clearance. Went to a pretty tough trail on some 265/65/18s with a friend in a really capable Lexus GS and a 2020 Tacoma. I didn't have much articulation but I found out my rear diff and front have LSD. This Yukon was really capable. I guess LSD is really rare in the Yukons and Tahoes but even more rare in the front. You guys should really look into one of them. Super impressed.
Great job guys 👍 Had a laugh when Tommy @10:26 goes to take off his invisible glasses 🤓
Now this is some awesome Father and Son activities i wanna do with my children
I hope you get to do it. I never got to go off roading with my father and he is the one who got me interested in it. Life goes by too fast.
u guys got me thinking as a teen in the 80s with the commanche n samurai-jeep !!! the disco musc n the scratchy video - awesome !!!!!!!!!
Lift kit, tires ..... or just show up & gun it. Awesomely fun video ... shows why good 80’s off-roaders are hard to find ...
3:40 Actually, everywhere else in the world, it's a Jimny.
I drove one when I was vacationing in Cape Verde islands
It would be awesome if they sold the new Jimny here in the states
@Sandy Lee Jeeps are not good as they were once before in terms of reliability because they are using FIAT engines from italy. Some of them are actually made in Italy
Suzuki sierra in Australia.
@@arielsanca7956 I disagree.
Ok, before I go farther. The old Wiley hurcalee engine was great. It was beautiful. But they were not made for speed.
Now, the 4.2, 4.0, and the 4cyl from 80s after Chrysler bought jeep. We're all good engines.
I do not like fuel injection engines. But I will say the 4.0 is equal to a small v8. They have lots of power.
4.2 was a good engine. I've owned a few. Now they are not equal to the 4.0, but are a good strait 6.
And the 4cyl, well the one I drove for a while was nice no problems.
Out of those three, I did have problem with 4.2, but after looking back at others. I think it was just a very worn engine.
The only problem I had with a 4.0 and I've owned a few. Is the girl never did an oil change. When I repo it. The oil looked like mud. And the engine blew about 15 miles away. In all honesty, any engine would have blown. And I've had engines with more going for them blow.
I really was amazed when I got it home, after it blew, and pulled the dipstick. It saddened me she took such poor care of the poor thing. I've NEVER seen oil that bad before, or after for that matter. Let's put it this way. When I pulled the dipstick. It looked like you used the dipstick to mix grease and dust. It was bad. Way I figured she had drove it for 2 years. And never did an oil change. And I also bet she put non detergent oil in it of a lower grade.
the way the samurai jumps when you go over rocks makes me nervous but i can imagine if both vehicles were properly set up lockers,tires lift ,ect they would probably crawl really well and make easy work of that hill
Comanches and Cherokees were great looking in the day and have worn well. Would love to have either...but lean toward the Comanche. Enjoying the videos with the Comanche very much. Good job guys.
The 80s were the best time to 4wd. So many more trails were open around the Boulder, Colorado area you guys are in that have been closed over the years. I had an 86 4runner. It was awesome. Just offroaded one yesterday in the Colorado Gambler 500 when I broke my 73 pinzgauer. 86 runner is still awesome. The new stuff is too expensive. Too fragile.
As a mechanic on your Jeep put a 1 lower temperature thermostat it will help with over heating and over time your radiator does get some corrosion on the inside and the fins get filled in with dead bugs and dirt And amazon usually sells bigger aluminum radiators for cheap as well and both of those things should take care of 80% of your over heating worries. Plus from owning one they run a little better a little cooler. Also if you want to go more cooler than that you can put on a higher flowing water pump in and gain a little power and cooler by adding a electric fan. And the samurai work much better with a 2” spring lift to something a little softer with some better shocks and that not so much you loose it’s small wheelbase.
Also not a Milwaukee salesmen or anything but for like $150 they sell a portable cordless air compressor that will air all my truck 285/75/16 tires for 25 psi to 45 psi all easy on one battery it will air anything up to 120psi you literally turn it on screw on the end to the valve stem and input the psi you want hit enter and it will air it to that on its own. Also has little attachments so you can air football and air mattresses and stuff as well. Best wishes maybe some of this info helps ya out, keep up the good works and thanks !
Lower teperature thermostat will have no effect. The thermostat has zero impact on maximum temperature, it only controls minimum operating temperature.
First time I saw a Suzuki Samurai was at a monster truck show when I was about 10 years old. Dude was kind of the time filler, he drove the shit out of that thing on the washboard ramps, it bounced up and down so hard, it looked like it might do a front flip lol. Ran it with an open header, sounded like a hive of angry bees. The announcer of course was just ripping on him, screaming "ZZZZSSSUUUKKKKEEEEEE!!!!!!!" Always thought the Samauri, Geo Tracker, etc were a joke of a truck, until recently when I watched some videos like this and realized off road they will get you anywhere, even with small tires.
It did not suck in the 70’s or the 80’s! My Scout terra pickup was a beast!!! Rarely did I not get to where I was going! Wish I’d have kept it!
The Landy, the Jeep, and the Samurai are just so cool! I’m jealous I don’t get to do this kind of off-roading.
Love the videos ! Thanks for dedicating so much time and effort.