|
Making Big Tracks
|
||
  This
is what he brought to the 2006 'Melt... it was a stunner! He basically
ripped out everything under the body and designed and built a whole new
suspension. The Tracker was now sitting on 37's running 17" Walker beadlock
rims on narrowed Dana 44 axles. He is running 5.89 axle gears with Detroit
lockers for great reduction on the trails. Those Fox Air Shocks give him a
full 12" of travel. |
||
   Jim
designed a two link radius rod style front suspension with a 1.75" panhard
bar. He stayed Chevy by using the power steering box from a Chevy van and
gave it some help with a hydraulic assist ram. |
||
  Out
back Jim designed a new four link suspension with 2" spherical joints at one
end and full rubber isolated joints at the other end for a smooth yet
controlled ride. You can also see the Currie Anti-Rock sway bar he
incorporated into the design. |
||
   He
kept the stock 2.5ltr V6 and the 4spd automatic transmission, but as you can
see in the pictures there is now a large suspension brace crossing the
engine to tie both sides together for added strength. |
||
 As
I said, it is his wife's Tracker, so when they got it they made sure it had
all the options like leather heated seats, electric windows and locks, etc.
The only real change to the interior was the addition of another shifter
handle for the second transfer case. He added a Toyota case behind the
Tracker case using a Kicker 2 adapter. The custom belly skid and rockrails
keep the rocks away from the major components. |
||
  The
body has a bit of protection also, in the form of full perimeter rock rails
and rub bars. The rear fender rub bars are actually formed to the curvature
of the rear doors, letting them swing open without any trouble. The front
and rear bumpers are also a Mazzola design that tie into the rub bars.
As you can tell by the photos below, this isn't Jims first dance. The first Tracker he built has seen many 'Melts and is now owned by Rae and Mitch Champoux. The one in the middle there is a monster in it's own right owned by his son. They made a great family picture parked altogether in the parking lot at the Badlands Offroad Park during the 2006 ZookiMelt. So what do you think? Should he go ahead and build one for himself? |
||
|
|
||
| Built By:
Jim Mazzola |
07/24/10 08:20
|
|
|
