The Story of Cage's New Triton

[lgil86]

I did t have to drill anything to get my mcc rear bar on

I've never fitted one mate but from researching on here I think I read there is a couple of holes to drill and bolt through that lock the bar in place...??? Some one with experience hopefully be able to provide definitive answer....

[Duck]

You don't want to cover a beautiful leather steering wheel with a wraparound IF & when the wheel gets a bit worn then you could cover it, mine is 6 years old now & has lived in the sun its whole life & still looks & feels good, a bit of spray on whatever Dubbin etc will keep it in good nick I reckon.

[Cage]

@macca..... The new GLX Plus comes with the GLX-R rear end. I cant post a pic 'coz my photo processor is playing up.

@Duck...... My thoughts exactly. I'll go the Dubbin route from Day 1 and see how it goes. The trick is to apply the Dubbin when the leather is hot so it works it's way into the pores in the leather. All my bike leathers are still supple as are my good leather RMW's.

[Cage]

Well almost a new ute owner.

Was hoping to get it this week but my bull-bar is somewhere on the Nullabor and my rear bar is on the way from Victoria.

Joining this forum has prevented me from making a few decisions that I'm bloody sure I'd have regretted not too far down the track. The feedback and support has been excellent, and nobody has taken the piss out of me for some of the dumb newbie questions I've asked.

Being retired, I probably spend far too much time on the internet doing 'research', but I justify that by telling myself that as an OAP I have to watch my spending, and make sure that I get value for my dollar.

Thanks to the info I've been given on here, I've dodged the dealers 'must have' after marked crap, made a sensible decision on a rear bar and generally learnt a whole lot about twin cabs and there foibles.

I'm setting my ute up for long distance travel, and not to tackle the torture trails, not that I deride those who like that challenge. As I said in my intro, I've had fast cars and fast bikes (still have a 1200 Suzuki Bandit) and I figure I'm over my 'testing man against machine' period.

What I can say is that I looked at most of the twin cabs, drove most of them, and the GLX+ that I've ordered is an absolute standout for value.

Sh!t, I hope I don't get a lemon.

[Geoff3DMN]

The factory towbar on the GLX-R kills the departure angle. The factory towbar on the GLX is up higher and out of the way, unless they are putting the GLXR rears on the GLX's these days?

I found out the hard way that the GLX+ (the GLX deal they are doing with side steps, alloys, leather steering wheel and leather gear knob) also comes with the lower GLX-R towbar because the GLX+ has the OEM rear step fitted and yes... it kills the rear departure angle.

When I ordered a GLX originally I was expecting a much higher tow bar and less impact on the rear departure angle.

[Cage]

Laughed out loud when I read your reply 5th.

My little mate would only stand tall in a crowd of leprechauns. Only drinks middies (don't think he can get his hand around a schooner) and buys his clothes in the boy's dept.

Having said that, he is a top bloke who would rather do you a good turn than a bad one, and I haven't said anything here that I haven't said to his face.

[hvac guy]

enjoy the new wheels

[Duck]

Nice post Cage, AM sure you will love the new ute Look forward to some photos when you take delivery.

Half your luck being retired you will have plenty of time to think of new things you can add to the ute

[salt36]

That's a great post Cage, well written... this community is full of information and decent people, now you add to the positive experience that only Triton owners can know

Lets hope you get the same enjoyment from the new Ute as you have from the forum

[NowForThe5th]

Sh!t, I hope I don't get a lemon.

Unlikely mate. They send the yellow ones to South America.

Nice post BTW. We're pretty proud of our little community here.

[sydneymark]

Given I hope to spend some time on the road hopefully we can meet up and share a beer or three

[NowForThe5th]

I found this the best solution. No real impact on departure angle and I had to have the step so I could reach the roof.

[Cage]

@ Geoff..... I hear you mate. I'm getting the feeling that all the twin cab manufacturers are leaning more towards designing for Mum's Taxi use rather than what the original 4 X 4 design brief intended. Seems like a waste to remove a brand new rear step because it's just not practical for a vehicle primarily designed for off-road use.

@ 5th....... Is that the ARB bar?

[macca002]

Looks like the difference between the GLX and GLX-R are becoming less and less. Would make it even harder to justify the price of the GLX-R.

[Cage]

Hopefully I should be getting my new GLX ute around the middle of next week.

I'm getting an Ironman Protector Bull Bar and an ARB Rear Step Bar fitted, so I figure that I'm going to lose a tad of clearance, maybe 10mm or so.

I've been in the Tyre threads so long my head hurts but it seems like I can go to a 265/75/R16 on the standard 16 x 7 alloys without any rubbing problems. Am I correct in this assumption?

However I did read somewhere that there may be some problems with insurance claims if larger tyres that those nominated on the affixed tyre card are fitted. Anyone have any info on this?

Thanks

[nealh82]

http://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/registration/ ... i/vsi6.pdf

Insurance can't have a problem as long as whatever tyres you put on are within the legal size limits for your state.

From how i read the link above, you can go up to 7% wider (in diameter) in NSW without certification and up to 25mm wider than the largest tyre size shown on the tyre placard on the MN.

[NowForThe5th]

Consider the effect on performance as well. I ran 265/70R16 road tyres and had little effect from the standard 245s, but my offroad tyres were 265/75R16 and the difference was particularly noticeable. Really struggled and fuel consumption went up as well. Even with the 4.3 diffs (and yours are taller) it wasn't a happy combination.

[shortSteve]

i run 265/75/16's (Bridgestone 697 lt) on std mn glx alloys (16x7), no clearence issues or rubbing, but is only about an inch clearance to front mudflaps/inner guard on turning. Made the speedo read EXACTLY the same as the gps i use, put odo/trip meter out about 3-4% iirc. Change in diameter is around 7% iirc. Fuel economy is around 10% worse before recalculating odo change, so in reality less than half a litre/100km's. Worth the gain in diff clearance imho.

sS

[Homer]

Personally for on road I wouldn't necessarily bother with 32' (265/75) due to the extra fuel etc.
They do fill out the wheel arch much better with lifted suspension, but IMO the Triton's perform better on 31's for fuel and power etc.

You will go a long way to find better rubber (on road) in any form (AT or HT) than Bridgestone D697's. I'd almost bet money there is no better on road tyre for these cars and they are tough enough off road albeit they are no mud tyre.

Just make sure they are LT (light truck) construction and you will get plenty of miles and high grip in the wet - and of course dry.

The tyre size you are looking at wont rub either

[Cage]

Thank you all for your informative replies.

My main reason for going for the bigger bag was to hopefully pinch back the bit of clearance I may have lost.

Being retired, I don't do a lot of day-to-day kilometers, so the fuel cost jump wouldn't be a big factor in my decision.

And hey, I may be old, but I'm also an old rev-head who also likes his wheels to look schmick, and I think the 265/75's would look pretty damn schmick.

Going out to the dealers tomorrow to actually eyeball my new wheels as I haven't seen it yet, and also to remind them that the rear step bumper that will come off to fit the ARB rear bar is not a present to the dealership.

Cheers

[lgil86]

Yokohama Geolander come with a replacement warranty if you damage them they get replaced for free or a charge depending on wear determined by tread depth. I traded in stock rubber against them, think I paid $870.00 for five with $100 trade in on stock.

(265/70 r16, no noticeable difference in performance)

P.s know what you mean about having a headache after reading the tyre threads!!

[Homer]

And hey, I may be old, but I'm also an old rev-head who also likes his wheels to look schmick, and I think the 265/75's would look pretty damn schmick.

Cheers

yeah it's the same reason I went 275/65/17 on mine

[Cage]

OK, just did the numbers, I think I have the formula right.

Standard Tyre: 245/70/R16

16" Radius = 406.40mm
245mm x 70% x 2 = 343.00mm

749.40mm
=========


Upgrade 265/75/R16

16" Radius = 406.40mm
265mm x 75% x 2 = 397.50mm

803.90mm
=========

So, 803.90mm
- 749.40mm

54.50mm
=========

Therefore 54.5mm as a percentage increase of 749.40mm is, faaaaaaarrrrkkkkk.............. 7.27% which is outside the 7% limit allowable, if I read the vsi6 regs correctly.

Replacement of tyres that change tyre overall diameter by more than 7% of the overall original diameter*. * ’overall original diameter’ means the maximum outside diameter of the largest tyre specified by the vehicle’s original manufacturer as an option for the vehicle, as shown on the vehicle’s tyre placard.

Now I don't have access to the tyre placard, but if 245/70/16 is the max shown on the placard, well 265/75/16's would seem to be 0.0027% outside the allowable increase.

Now I've just finished my fifth stubbie of Dr Tooths Old embalming fluid, so it is more than possible I've stuffed the calcs up, big time. If I haven't, I certainly won't be risking an insurance cop out over 0.0027%.

Would any of you mathematically enhanced folk like to check my maths, and I really do hope I've stuffed up.

Cheers

[Cowboy Dave]

Might be worth double checking the manufacturer's site for actual dimensions for the size and tread pattern in question. You never know, not all tyres are created equal what with tread depth and so on.

[Cage]

Dave, I think I read somewhere that the measurement is from the base of the tread pattern.