Additional images taken during construction:
All eight leaf-spring mounts were moved up 1" to increase clearance and to improve approach & departure angles. At rest, the coil springs carry the entire weight of the vehicle and the leaf springs are completely slack. This provides a smooth ride for small bumps while the combined springs absorb large bumps without big travel. Raising the leaf mounts reduces the amount of lift necessary for this setup. Front mount of the rear-leaf was cut and moved up (left image). Rear mount of the front-leaf was moved forward 3" and up along the frame rail (center image). 1" was sectioned out of all shackle mounts (right image).
A 15-gallon plastic petroworks gas tank was used for increased fuel capacity and to eliminate the possibility of rust contaminating the fuel injectors. These enlarged tanks are designed to hang low in the back (left side of left image), which reduces the vehicle's rear clearance. In this application, the rear floor was raised 4" to provide more internal room for the tank (right side of left image). This required a hole to be drilled through the frame to accommodate the repositioned filler inlet (filler hole is painted red in the center image). The increased floor height also provided room for a stowable seat and under-floor storage of a portable winch (compartments are taking shape in the right image). Since the external stainless-steel gas can is tubed into the fuel system, it was necessary to have both filler inlets at about the same level. Otherwise, fuel would leak out of the lower one when the tanks are full. For this reason, the main fuel filler inlet was moved up.
Construction of the under-floor storage box that will contain the portable winch. The winch is bolted directly to the frame and is concealed by a hinged segment of the floor.
Construction of the transfer case mount skid plate. The plate is bolted to the frame using 6 half-inch bolts. For safety and for ease of installation & removal, the plate is designed to remain in position even when all 6 bolts are removed (this is achieved using extensions found on the plate's corners). The plate can be slid off only after the transfer case is detached, lifted, and supported separately.
Construction of the mounts for the disk brakes calipers. The mounts are attached to the existing drum brake backing using the existing axle bolts. Roters are from the front end of a Samurai and were modified slightly to fit the drums. Calipers were taken from the rear end of an Audi 5000. Besides their compatibility, these calipers were selected because they had emergency brake components built in.
Most diesel Samurai conversions require a lift to prevent the front differential from crashing into the motor's oil pan at full suspension compression. For this installation, a lift was avoided through several changes: 1) The motor was lifted in the engine compartment to just below the bottom of the hood; 2) The engine was rotated about 15 degrees away from the high point of the differential, and tilted back around 5 degrees (this tilting was actually done to reduce rear driveshaft angle, but also provided more clearance in the front); 3) The oil pan depth was reduced in the front to provide the minimal clearance necessary for piston rotation. To offset the oil volume lost by shortening the front of the oil pan, an additional reservoir was welded to the back. The left image shows the original Volkswagen pan (right) next to the pan that will donate the reservoir. The center image shows the combined pan and the extended oil-draw tube. The right image shows the pan in relation to the front differential.
Modifications were necessary to bolt the Samurai alternator to the Volkswagen motor. Left image shows the alternator mount. Center image shows the new belt pulley. Right image shows the final setup.
Construction of the air filter box mount. Left image shows the fabricated mount. Center image shows the mount bolted to the shock support. Right image shows the air box bolted in place.
Construction of the ECU mount. Left image shows the fabricated mount, complete with vibration isolating spacers. Center image shows the portion of the mount that is welded to the firewall. Right image shows the ECU mounted in place. This location is inside the cab beneath the dash.
Additional electronics related modifications. The plastic clippy that fastened the main wire-cluster to the motor broke, so a mount was fabricated to allow the plug to be fastened using bolts (left image). The Volkswagen ECU required signals from the clutch for correct operation, so an additional switch was welded in (center image). Existing warning lights from the Samurai instrument cluster were repurposed for use with the Volkswagen motor (right image).
Left image shows modification to the firewall that was necessary to allow transverse mounting of the battery, instead of the standard Samurai longitudinal mounting. This provided more room for the airfilter box. Center image shows the addition of the battery tray (bottom-left) and the mount for the radiator overflow bottle. The right image shows the overflow bottle in place.
Construction of the glow-plug relay mount (left image) and the fuse & relay bank (center image). Right image shows the items in place.
Construction of the throttle position sensor mount (left image). Center image shows the position sensor in place, with a short cable running through the firewall toward the throttle pedal. Right image shows the sensor next to the installed fuel filter.
Modification of the clutch pedal necessary to convert it from a cable operated system to a hydraulic system. Left image shows the pedal with an extension welded near the hinge. Center image shows the pedal in place, attached through the firewall to the hydraulic plunger. Right image shows the clutch master cylinder bolted to a mount on the firewall.
Construction of the intercooler mount. Left image shows the frame mount. The red metal bars on the ground pass through the slots visible in the intercooler, allowing it to be bolted to the frame. Center image shows the front view of the mounted intercooler. Right image shows the bottom view of the intercooler mount, which doubles as a steering stabilizer mount.
Construction of the intercooler tubing. Left image shows the separated pieces of the intercooler tubing. Center image shows the connected tubing. Right image shows the tubing and intercooler in place.
Construction of the fan and radiator mounts. Left image shows the mounts. Center image shows the mounts attached to the radiator and fan. Right image shows the radiator in place.
Construction of the intake and oil cooler tubing. Left image shows just the intake tubing. Center image shows the intake tubing in place. Right image shows the oil cooler tubing separately and in place.
Construction of the exhaust pipe and mounts. Left image shows the mounts. Center image shows the exhaust pipe and muffler. Right image shows the exhaust in place.
Fitting Jeep fenders to the Suzuki. Left image shows rear body modifications necessary to allow a clean fit. Center image shows the rear fender in place. The front Jeep fender was too long for the Samurai, so a 3.5" section was cut from the center of the fender (right image top), and a metal plate was cut and bolted to secure the two halves (right image bottom).