Beating on a VX.... Top ten things that would break?

[Triathlete]

I like the VX because of the price for what you get: $4.5k to $5k for IFS (which just destroyed King of the Hammers and Baja) along with the solid rear on long arms.

I have seen Shannons KOH rig up close and personal....believe me, his IFS does not even come close to looking like anything you will find under your VX!

Not sure how the rules work for the class you are entering...If your vehicle comes from the factory with some sort of traction device can you add a locker to the other axle and still comply with the rules? If so your VX has a limited slip in the rear so the best bang for your bucks would be a front locker (ARB or an Aussie with manual hubs).

Also I would definately beef up your rear links.

[REDLYNER]

I have seen Shannons KOH rig up close and personal....believe me, his IFS does not even come close to looking like anything you will find under your VX!

Not sure how the rules work for the class you are entering...If your vehicle comes from the factory with some sort of traction device can you add a locker to the other axle and still comply with the rules? If so your VX has a limited slip in the rear so the best bang for your bucks would be a front locker (ARB or an Aussie with manual hubs).

Also I would definately beef up your rear links.

You could probably go as far as saying Shannon's IFS doesn't look like anyone's on the planet. My comment was based more on principal.


Rules for Class A:

• Any axle swap is ok as long as it maintains stock suspension symmetry. So if it is IFS, you can't swap in a solid axle. If it is leaf sprung, you can't switch it to coils and links.
• Limited slips do NOT count as lockers and are ok.
• You can race with 33" tires and one locker
• Or
• 35" tires and no locker.

Does not matter what it came with from the factory (LSD, Open, Locker).

As an example, the 2009 Hummer H3 Adv pkg come with 33" tires and front and rear lockers. Even though that is a factory option, it would still be bumped up to Class B. The 2006 H3 comes with front and rear limited slips. So I could race that on 35"s and still be in Class A.


Do they make ARBs for the front and rear of a Vehi? I'll do more research on this too.

[Triathlete]

Front ARB yes, Todd Adams & Swordy have 'em. Rear can be done but mods are neccesary, Swordy has done that.
From the rules sounds like your best bet would be leave the lsd in rear and lock the front.

[SlowPro48]

From the rules sounds like your best bet would be leave the lsd in rear and lock the front.

Billy check the vids - it looks like there's a speed element to these events - not just rock crawling - so high speed (relatively speaking) handling is a factor. Doesn't a locker in front adversely effect handling? That's why I was thinking locker in back and LSD in the front would be ideal.

Going up steep hills when traction is critical, weight bias shifts to the rear so the locked diff would be feeding torque through stronger components to the tires with the most traction. Meanwhile the front with LSD would slip a little when needed which would yield better handling in tight corners and also hopefully keep the driveline intact for the whole race. From what I've gathered, the CVs are a weak link and front lockers put a lot more stress on them...

But hey - I'm not an off-road VXer - I readily admit I've never driven a VX (or anything else) that had a locker - so this is all theory. Considering Redlyner is interested in going fast rather than crawling, what are your thoughts?

[Triathlete]

Ideally an ARB in the front. It is selectable on the fly. Flip a switch you are locked, flip it again you are open. That being said with a non selectable locker in front there is a learning curve for driving with it. Manual hubs will cure any on road issues.

[REDLYNER]

An auto locker up front is not an option, it would have to be selectable. Hitting any high speed turn on 33"s in a VX (from what I have seen) would destroy the front end.

Ideally I would run an ARB in the rear and probably keep it open up front. Problem is, an ARB plus 33" tires would run me right up to $1800, leaving me around $200 for the rest of the race mod fund.


Trying to get the best initial bang for the buck setup. Later mods will come.... later.



Also, most important: to finish first, first you must finish.

[Triathlete]

HERE is an ARB for 650 obo on the Planet...

[REDLYNER]

There is a '99 Ironman on Ebay with 187,000 miles on it. Hypothetically, if I were to be able to get this in the mid to upper $3k range, anyone think it would be a decent platform for the race rig?

Or should I run in the opposite direction from it?

[REDLYNER]

Any objection to this pre-race mod list:

33" Tires: $900
Rear HD Links: $300
HD Tie rods: $250
Comp 912 springs: $175
1" Wheel Spacers: $120
Fire Suit: $100
Alignment: $75
New Bushings: $30
1" to 2" torsion crank: $0


Roughly $2k. Does that look like a decent initial strength build up plan? Anything I am leaving off that is more important?


Down the road I would like airbumps, resi shocks, internal cage, maybe some exo-skeleton tubes, 5 point harness, and what ever else I am forgetting.


I've narrowed it down to a few vehicles- VX, WJ (Grand Cherokee), and TJ (Wrangler). But the wife likes the Vehi the most, so I'm doing the most research on it. There are only 4 races left this year and I probably couldn't be ready for the next one (April), but would like to have this completed by the July race.

[ZEUS]

Any objection to this pre-race mod list:

33" Tires: $900
Rear HD Links: $300
HD Tie rods: $250
Comp 912 springs: $175
1" Wheel Spacers: $120
Fire Suit: $100
Alignment: $75
New Bushings: $30
1" to 2" torsion crank: $0


Roughly $2k. Does that look like a decent initial strength build up plan? Anything I am leaving off that is more important?

I wouldn't hit one of those races without at least one skid plate. And for sure on the bump stops - protect the tires and the body with them for cheap. Here is how I did mine:

After a few hits over a couple years the zinc coated plate bent a lil bit and I noticed a crack in the poly so it really needs a full plate to mount against.