Newbie, looking at getting a Fourtrak shortly, need some help!

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Hi all,

Thaught I'd sign up, say hello and pick your brains on Fourtraks'.

I'm in the market for a mid 90's one which will mainly be used for the commute to work, but will also be used for mild off-road work (I will be shooting with it and setting up firework displays as well as using it as support vehicle for the odd military vehicle show - not green laneing, but off road enough to need more than a van)

What should I look for when going to view? Are there any major issues which I need to be aware of?
Also are there any places to buy from? Autotrader has very few and so does e-bay, they seem to be kept once baught, which is a good sign to me, but not fun when I will need one within the next 3 weeks!

Any help and advice will be most appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Martin

Good motors

Hi Martin

Generally they are sound mechanically, parts are cheapish, and very very reliable, we now have two - a Fieldman and a TDX - my other half wants me to get rid of one, but I'm holding out on that one at the moment.

The only problem that I have with them is they RUST badly, so if you find one give it a really good check over for that.

Hope you get one

Darfash

Sounds like some of the

Sounds like some of the things I've heard, which is good to know the usual issues are constant with them...I like predictable problems!
Thanks for the advice!

good motors

They are one of the most reliable vehicles ever, nothing ever goes really wrong if they are serviced properly, just one word - rust, made out of kit kat wrappers on the back end wheel arches and rear body mount areas, this is due to the metal not being cleaned properly over the years and they are not overly metal protected, so plenty of wax oil in thses areas, inside and out, i think an independant would suit you the most for what you have described, lots of pulling power with a nice amount of basic off road ability, but this is my opinion.

Full of ideas but no time to do them!!

www.bloodredoffroad.com
www.milneroffroad.com
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youtube: Redfourtrack

Long Live Fourtrak

'92 Fourtrak 2.8 TDX. ( Leaf Sprung owned from '94))

Engine pretty well bullet proof, old design built for use in all parts of the world, with regards to poor servicing, oil and fuel quality. A low tech design and very reliable.

Auto locking hubs ( front axle) a fuel saving idea, tend to a problem if not serviced, and are also subject to wear, and become unreliable , many users swap to manual hubs, as I have.

Wear on 2nd gear/synhro hub, causing gear selection problems, due to the fact that many of these brilliant trucks were used for what they were made for, in the uk's ,case towing farmers live stock trailers.

The infamus NUT, this is a nut within the gearbox, that causes quite a few post's on this site, it comes loose ,resulting in failure to engage 5th gear (I think) lots of posts on this problem and it is easily sorted, and no further problems. ( though never had a problem with this)

Potential problems with the dash switch selection of 4wd Hi , due to vacuum operated switch/lever in gear box, check it works, ( failure is usauly due to spilts in pipe work)

Body work pretty good, except for around wheel arch extensions, due to mud build up, rear load bay potential rust/corosion around the seams ( lift carpet and check). And the sills, inner and outer, tend to go within the specified area for the seat belt mounting. Check rear wiper for operation, as these are as rare as hens teeth, good post on site re servicing this item or get a second hand part. New body panels/ parts very scarce.

Rear wiring harness, ( who ever designed this wants hanging from his thumbs), problems with salt water corrosion in the connectors. Head lights crap, due to shroud around the buld, get replacments, the best thing you will ever do, and there as cheap as chips. ( Milners).

All said, I would not swap my truck for any modern model, though I would be interested in a1950's MK1 Land Rover. Just love low tech, so little to go wrong, check the electric window winders work, both sides.

For parts check out 'Milners' top of page under 'Parts Dealers' they are good, prices and advice.

Edward (ews) '92 Fourtrak 2.8 TDX

Problems

In addition to EWS post:

Check the rear floor area, these can be prone to rusting through continued off road usage, but easily resolved if the floor is in reasonable condition.

Turbo problems on abused or neglected models, check for tell tale signs, and when stopping simply the engine ti idle for 30 seconds before switching off.

Check everything in relation to the servicing of the vehicle, very few will ever have a full or even partial service history. Ensure the engine oil is in good condition, the coolant is full of anti-freeze and free from contamination, and particularly that the fuel filter is fairly new.

Check for off road damage underneath the vehicle, these vehicles are workhorses, and do often work hard in arduous conditions, this said i know of two original hard workers which both have in excess of 500,000 miles and still work as hard as ever.