I have a '49 112" Dakota 4x4 with the 318 and the NV3500 stick.
At optimum I get close to 20 mpg no matter where I drive. I recently put
on a new set of larger tires and am ready for a tune-up, so I'm down to 17
currently.
Mods: I shoehorned a 14x4" K&N filter with an AirForce precleaner foam
wrap under the hood. MP computer, Jacobs Ceramic wires, Champion Gold
plugs with a 0.042 gap, all synthetic lube in the engine and drivetrain.
As for tires, its really mostly your choice. I tend to stay away from Good
Year if you travel off-road, they have notoriously weak sidewalls. This
gives them a smoother ride, but in the rough, not very strong.
Possibly the best all around tire (and you can check with all the off-road
groups on this) is the BF Goodrich TA Radial AT. One of the quietest on
the road, awsome in snow and sand, and very long treadlife. Sears and
other tire retailers have these on sale for $99 (31x10.5R-15) every once in
a while.
Myself, I ran a Super Swamper 31x9.5R-15 radial for a while. Great
traction off-road, but the on-road howl is horrible. I now have a set of
Mickey Thompson Baja Belted HP's on an American Racing rim. Nice quiet
tire, does FANTASTIC in snow (my 4WD is currently broken, so this is 2WD
traction I'm talking) and the side biters have great traction off-road. If
you want a size equal to the stock tires, check out the radial versions,
they won't be as heavy. Only problem with the MT's is they are not cheap.
I paid $150 each. Mail order is cheaper, but I like buying expensive stuff
from my local specialty shop because he tosses in all the extras which
removes the mail order savings.
By the way, I'm still running stock suspention and have NOT adjusted the
torsion bars. Some 31" tires may require a slight torsion bar adjustment.
I plan to upgrade the shocks soon as the heavier tire is working the stock
ones a bit too hard.
By the way, anybody have trouble with the upper radiator hose yet? That
thing rubs on the hood padding and doesn't look like a long life is
expected.
One more question. For all of you with the airbag and got those little
rubber plugs in the mail, how many actually installed them? I didn't
because I don't have a key ring that could reach the holes.
Christopher Siano | Work Sucks... I'm going
CSiano@Banyan.com | Camping, Mountain Biking
| Sailing, Snowboarding, Wheeling.
----------------------------------------------------------
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Fri Jun 20 2003 - 12:07:19 EDT