• Hello Guest, welcome to the initial stages of our new platform!
    You can find some additional information about where we are in the process of migrating the board and setting up our new software here

    Thank you for being a part of our community!

Building an Off-road/Soft Road 240 Wagon?

oh and on the bfgs.... i was set on getting them...
then i was actually at the counter to pay for them....
discount tires had a 100 off for 4 tires, and i got them to match tireracks prices with shipping..... and i still could not justify paying for the bfgs.... when the car will still mostly see normal roads with some gravel and some dirt....
this is also supposed to be my wifes commuter.... so the tire need to be decent on the highway...

soooo... i ended up with YOKOHAMA Y356 supervans, which should look amazingly period on the 77...
they are light truck tires and come in 1600 1720 and 1850 lb load rating flavors.... and are all 25.7-25.8 and weigh out at 23-24 lbs while the bfg was far heavier at 31

i have not actually driven the car yet with them since the car is still apart... but i will let you guys know how it goes... NO, not really an "off road tire" but they should be decent on dirt and pretty stout. seemed like a nice all rounder till the season gets sloppy and it is time for snows... not convinced they will be all that great in mud lol
if i lived out in the boonies with only dirt paths i probably would have flopped the extra cash for the bfg ats
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...&sidewall=Blackwall&partnum=8R43566&tab=Specs

and here they are on the "gt option" wheels
7522903846_7ec09d6d9f_h.jpg
 
Last edited:
I am running on the front coil-over sleeves 2.5" ID springs 10" length #325 rate. This raised the front of the wagon about 1.75 over stock height. This is with the perch at the lowest setting.
Rear I have 14" #220 rate. With some rear coil-over hardware made by Jerd. Rears are at least 2" higher then stock. Rides great no body roll, corners excellent, best mod yet.
 
I am running on the front coil-over sleeves 2.5" ID springs 10" length #325 rate. This raised the front of the wagon about 1.75 over stock height. This is with the perch at the lowest setting.
Rear I have 14" #220 rate. With some rear coil-over hardware made by Jerd. Rears are at least 2" higher then stock. Rides great no body roll, corners excellent, best mod yet.

pics! i demand pics!
 
That skid plate stops at the cross-member and does not protect the sump. If you're serious about going off-road, might be wiser to go with a bigger skidplate, but then you start dealing with heat issues (doesn't dissipate from the engine bay).

Ie (extends to the output shaft of the trans):
main.php


But then this is overkill and for going fast over rocky roads, not trail crawling. Per John Lane "Overkill is consistently more fun."

HDPE from McMaster-Carr is also a good solution. Slick, so it slides over rocks pretty well, it's light, and can be cut easily. Aluminum channel stock or L-brackets (readily available at Home Depot) work well to secure it in place and form it.

The skidplate in the rallycar is one intended for a VW Golf or Scirocco from a million years ago. Aluminum, strong and we built steel brackets so that we could bolt it to the car and to the crossmember. It has served well + adds strength.

Lots of room around the engine for heated air to get out..... Use enough radiator and fan to do the job.
 
Got the spring cups raised 2", cherokee springs under the rear, S10 shocks on the rear and a set of 235/75r15s on it this weekend. Trimmed the front lip of both the front and rear fenders. Lots of rubbing on the stock mudflaps so they are coming off with more trimming to see how that works. May also add Jeep XJ front levelers in the rear to raise it up a little further. Found the front frame is so out of shape that the IPD skid plate won't remotely fit. Fun regardless!
 
Didn't realize the 500 was next week. Would totally go in my stock wagon if I had a co-driver. Know anyone who's looking? ;-)
 
Chris in Austin (crazychopstick) lifted his 245 with spacers up front, jeep wrangler front springs and modified wrangler shocks out back.
If you could find someone to weld, you could raise the front even more by extending the strut tubes and putting a spacer in the bottom of the housing. Or, you could just cut and re-weld the lower front spring perch higher(2.5" is about as high as you want to go) This was done on mine up front with V8 Cherokee springs and dodge van shocks drilled out to fit the volvo hardware in the back.
wjghH69.jpg
 
I did do the cut and weld on the front spring hats, though after extensive trimming i found 235s were just too big. I think there is something in between 205s and 235s that would be perfect, though budget was my main consideration. Plus time before being ready for the Gambler 500 off road relay!
 
On the rear use adjustable spring perches with Moog heavy duty coil springs part number CC217. This will net you anywhere from 2 to 3 inches of lift. The limiting factor on how much lift you can go with is predominately the steering geometry in the front end and the ability to align the car properly with stock lower control arms. As you go higher in the rear the pinion angle needs to be addressed with adjustable control arms and the side to side location of the axle can be corrected with an adjustable Panhard bar, both available from IPD. I have each and they are very high quality.

With this set-up I can fit 27" tall tires.
 

Attachments

  • AMG_CC217_P04_TOP__ra_p.jpg
    AMG_CC217_P04_TOP__ra_p.jpg
    55.3 KB · Views: 464
  • fullsize_7531.jpg
    fullsize_7531.jpg
    139.9 KB · Views: 463
  • fullsize_20313.jpg
    fullsize_20313.jpg
    74.9 KB · Views: 461
  • Rear_Perch_SpringAssembly_1024x1024.jpg
    Rear_Perch_SpringAssembly_1024x1024.jpg
    21 KB · Views: 460
I was going to run this set-up on my wagon, but that car ended up being too rusty and a less than desirable candidate. I am now thinking my higher mileage 240 sedan would be a prime candidate for a turbo swap out of a squirter block 940 with the suspension components and larger tires just for something with a different stance.

Keep us posted on your progress.
 
On the rear use adjustable spring perches with Moog heavy duty coil springs part number CC217.

How does this work with Ben's adjustable rear perches?

I'm in the process of getting a bit of ground clearance as well for rallyX

Edit: never mind a quick look at his site got me the answer I was looking for.
 
Last edited:
Got the spring cups raised 2", cherokee springs under the rear, S10 shocks on the rear and a set of 235/75r15s on it this weekend. Trimmed the front lip of both the front and rear fenders. Lots of rubbing on the stock mudflaps so they are coming off with more trimming to see how that works. May also add Jeep XJ front levelers in the rear to raise it up a little further. Found the front frame is so out of shape that the IPD skid plate won't remotely fit. Fun regardless!

Any negatives to raising the spring cups versus just extending the strut bodies? Have you noticed any ill effects of doing this? I could get away with just raising the cups i think running the 27" mud tires i have.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top