ZUK - BROKEN TCASE

Headed to the Backcountry Summer Event in Greenwood this weekend.

Since the Zuk has been working so well, I decided to take the 1h30m route via the highway instead of the 2h20m slow route.

Big mistake!

20 minutes into the highway, at 90 km/h, Zuk was running well, there were no rattles, no noises, no warning.....then boom, it felt like the Zuk shut off, followed by a bang as the driveshaft ujoint exploded.

So driveshaft was removed on the highway and I crawled off in 4LO at exit 3 and on to Weir Field to repair the shaft.

Got it all back together, then I realized when trying to use the HI side of the tcase, both 4H and 2H gears felt seized solid.

So I put it in 4L and crawled my way home.

This is an earlier '82 case, so I took it apart expecting carnage, it had oil, nothing is broken and bearings are ok. One shaft has a very minor wiggle.

When I shift the fork, it seems to be free in all gears.

I've got 5 tcases in various states of bad bearings. One of them is the same as the broken one, and with all the recent tcase swapping I cant remember if I tried it. So it's in, I just need to test it. hoping the bearings are ok in it :-)

ZUK - GAS CAN

The Zuk has no speedo and no gas gauge, so I've no way of knowing how much fuel is in the gas tank. 

I carry a Jerry Can in the back of the truck, but it leaks, and expels gas fumes in the cab....not good!!

The Zuk has very little real-estate on the tailgate to install even a small 2 gallon Jerry Can.

I found a Daystar Cam Can locally at an incredibly low low price, so I had to buy it!

The Cam Can has a spare tire mount, with a pole that you slide the can over. Then the can locks into place with a twist. It's pretty neat and solves my space issue too :)

ZUK - FINDING SUSPENSION MEASUREMENTS

There was a thread on FB regarding shock lengths, and somebody posted this response. I thought it was a great simple method, so I'm sharing :)

"
Get the suspension to the point where you have the ride height and articulation that you want, then take it to a ditch.
Remove the shocks.
Then park diagonally in the ditch so that a front and the opposite rear tires are almost off the ground. 

Here you can measure for both extended and compressed shock lengths at both ends.

Add an inch for the extended length and subtract an inch for the compressed length and you will have the right measurements for YOUR setup.

Because there are so many options out there, we all tend to mix and match components so there really isn't any sure fire standard lengths for a lifted Zook.
"

ZUK - HOOD PAINT

Decided to pay homage to the old Xterra's flat-black hood....with a twist :)

Initially I was going to make a vinyl decal, but that would be waaay to shiny for the old girl.