Loading…

Saturday near Pinhoti made me forget 3 months of gremlins | 4x4 Builds - nhfree.com

amy975•17d ago

Saturday near Pinhoti made me forget 3 months of gremlins

Last Saturday I took the old Montero up to the Pinhoti area and it was just one of those days where nothing fought back. I've been chasing a weird vibration for like 3 months, replaced the u-joints and even rebalanced the tires twice, and it turned out to be a loose transfer case mount that I'd ignored since last fall. We hit this rocky climb that's given me trouble before and the rig walked right up it on the first try, no locker needed. My buddy in his Tacoma had to take three attempts at the same line and we ended up winching him off a ledge after his rear diff locked up weird. I didn't break anything, didn't even roast the clutch, and we got back to the truck stop by 4 pm for burgers. Makes me wonder if I should just go over every mount and bushing on this thing before they fail, or keep fixing stuff as it breaks. Anyone else had a day where one small fix made the whole truck feel brand new again?

2 comments

2 Comments

jones.brooke9d ago

Honestly, chasing every mount and bushing before it fails is a rabbit hole that will eat your whole summer and your wallet. Plenty of those parts will outlast the truck, and swapping good ones just because they got old can introduce new problems you didn't have before. That loose transfer case mount probably sat there for two years doing nothing, so it's not like the rig was about to leave you stranded on the trail. Fixing stuff as it breaks means you learn the truck and you're not throwing money at parts that are still fine. Plus your buddy on the winch had a real failure, and no amount of pre trip inspecting would have caught a diff locking up weird like that.

jason5249d ago

Ha, if I fixed everything before it broke I'd never actually get to drive the thing anywhere! You're right that old parts can outlast the truck, and half the time I create a new rattle just by touching something that was working fine. My wallet hurts enough from the parts that actually let go on the trail, so I'll let the mounts ride until they earn their replacement.