Since day 1 i had planned to use pretty much everything but the chassis of an S15 to build this Hilux, over time I’ve slowly learnt and seen a neater, lighter or more functional way of doing things. Its only fitting that i build a tube rear cradle so heres the start!
The factory rear cradle is a heavy item, have you ever pulled out an S series cradle with the diff attached? Ive done it plenty of times and its a pain in the ass. With this new cradle i decided to have the diff bolt into the chassis and then the cradle only supports the suspension arms and uprights. This will make removing the cradle a breeze all while still being able to drop the diff out aswell.
So now its time to bend up the cradle, make the tabs for the arms, then make the arms, all sounds pretty straight forward yes? Ill be making a jig to hold the uprights where they should be first so thats tomorrow nights job! So now the only factory S13/14/15 parts are the knuckles, R200 diff, driveshafts and engine.
Buu
I’m still worried if the chassis will be able to withstand all the stresses when drifting?
Oliver
+1 on this, That plate looks ultra thin Nige, are there going to be any other braces supporting that little plate?
Nigel
Of course, by the way the plates 4mm thick with 3 folded edges, this is super strong but will be gusseted.
Nigel
Really? I can’t think of anything that would be as strong as this, just wait and see, ill prove that it can take it and if it dosnt ill just get the welder out and add a few bars haha.
AJ
I’ve been following your build very closely since it first appeared on Speedhunters (over a year ago??) and look forward to each and every update. It’s rather exciting. I don’t know the first thing about engineering but I’m utterly blown away by what you’ve achieved. To think that a mere mortal (no disrespect intended) is capable of building a vehicle from scratch in a shed at home!! You’re putting a lot of bigger companies to shame here. HUGE props man. Keep it up. Looking forward to the finished product.
B
^^the diff centre will experience minimal forces. its essentially all transfered through the sub frame via the control arms and coils.