[venkyhere]

Hello Tejas, Does the 'fly-deflector' on your bonnet actually work, as advertised ?

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Originally Posted by venkyhere

Hello Tejas, Does the 'fly-deflector' on your bonnet actually work, as advertised ?

Yes the bug deflector is very effective!

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Went on a small trail drive last Sunday to welcome the first monsoon showers of the season.

A few snaps from the drive:





















From the pics you will notice that my hi lift jack has changed colour from red to black. No, it's not a new jack but I rebuilt the existing one.

You can read about it in detail here:

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/4x4-t...k-rebuild.html (Hi-Lift Jack Rebuild)

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Update:

Yesterday when I sat in the vehicle and switched on the wiper, it moved agonisingly slow. The first thought in my head was that the wiper blades are old and become hard. I already had bought a spare set and fixed them but the wipers still moved slow.

This generation of Pajero has an history of spindles getting jammed so I liberally sprayed WD40 on the spindles and left for work. Thankfully there was a slight drizzle and not full rain and I could get to work without using the wipers.

After work, tried the wipers, but still slow.

If I used the wipers now, I risked burning the motor out. So immediately drove to the local wiper mechanic. He's the same lock repair guy I use and in mumbai sits just before French Bridge in Town.

He removed the fascia and linkage:



Had to use a vice to help pry out the spindle. Both were jammed:



Used a file to remove rust and clean the surface:



Liberal amount of greasing:



Now the wipers move fantastically fast.

On hindsight, I think they had started jamming a few months ago but I didn't realise it. Only now that I see the speed that I can confidently say that yes the jamming was there.

So this time I've made a note of how many sweeps I get in ten seconds.

This is my benchmark to compare every six months or a year.

[Traveler]

Great job. My Pajero had a similar problem last year. I did this repair myself at home. First time in 8 years. I think once greased it will last for a long time. The ideal grease for this application is the waterproof type, but normal grease should also last quite long. Other people on international forums have removed the poly bush in which the spindles get inserted. They have replaced those poly bushes with rubber tubing.

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Few updates over the weekend.

Being a weekend with no offroad plans and the wife and kid at my inlaws place meant I got time to attend to a lot of pending stuff with the vehicle.

First off, service. Was due a month and finally got some time off to go back to Noble Hub at Chandivali, Mumbai to get the service done. I still recommend the place very highly.

Usually, they do the under today wash last but I released that the high pressure jet lands up washing off some of the greasing that has been done.

So this time I insisted that the underbody wash be done first:



Once that was done, the vehicle was put on the ramp:



I had a problem with my front suspension linkage. After ~122,000kms, they were shot and making noises.

So first off, the skid plates were removed:



You can see by the marks on the plate, that it's been well used and has served it's purpose of protecting what's underneath.

Even the inside had a lot of muck. That would actually be a good MEME: You know you've had a good offroad session when you find muck on the inside of your skid plate !!!



The old linkage removed:



New linkage fixed:



The best part of the Pajero is that she still takes mineral oil so I never do top ups, I just replace the oil every time. It's not expensive.



The other chronic problem of this generation of Pajeros are the 4wd actuator switches. The hubs are locking via these actuators. Every time you switch off the vehicle, these actuators will lock the hubs and when you switch on the vehicle, it would disengage - assuming of course you are in 2wd mode and not AWD mode.

These actuators are controlled by switches and if they fail, you have a problem. One switch is for engaging and one for disengaging. Usually the disengaging one fails. Why, no idea. So if you hear grinding noises from the hub when in 2WD, just slot to AWD and problem solved.

These switches are expensive. A set of both costs nearly 18000 rupees.

The advantage of having a good relationship with the service centre comes in now. They had removed a pair from one car. One was working and the other was shot. So the mechanic just swapped the non working one from my vehicle and put the working one from the one he had removed.

Oh, and no extra cost

The actuator switch:



It's fit behind the Air filter box on the front wheel well:



Now, an unrelated issue:

This is the space under the bumper. A winch is supposed to fit on the inside of the bumper. However, the rear AC condenser is sitting right there. If the winch bird nests, then the cable will chew into the condenser! Still trying to figure out what to do. Finding a place to relocate the condenser:



Coming back to the service. Once all done, time to wash the car. Mandatory soap shot:



All shiny:



Lastly, the internal vacuuming and cleaning:

[venkyhere]

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

These switches are expensive. A set of both costs nearly 18000 rupees.

These look like relays from the pics. Why do they cost so much ?

[cool_dube]

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

I had a problem with my front suspension linkage. After ~122,000kms, they were shot and making noises.

I presume you are referring to tie-rod ends. If so, which brand did you get and how much did they cost?

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

The best part of the Pajero is that she still takes mineral oil so I never do top ups, I just replace the oil every time. It's not expensive.

Agreed! Which brand/rating do you use? I did try and feed mine with synthetic but found it be to detrimental to the engine's performance, hence switched back to good old Motul 10W30. At Rs. 2000 per change, it is well worth the money

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

Every time you switch off the vehicle, these actuators will lock the hubs and when you switch on the vehicle, it would disengage - assuming of course you are in 2wd mode and not AWD mode.

Are you sure about this? I do not think the hubs get engaged till you manually shift the lever from 2H to 4H.

So, here is my understanding of Pajero's SSII system - the moment you flip the small lever from 2H to 4H, the transfer case engages the front propeller shaft. This will happen, irrespective of whatever state the indicator lights are in, since it is entirely a mechanical operation. However, this will only ensure that the front propeller shaft is powering the front differential and axle. To transfer power to the front wheels, the hubs need to be engaged. This is where the whole vacuum solenoid business comes in - this system ensures that the free wheel hubs on the front axle are engaged - in other words, the power coming from the front prop shaft is transferred to the front wheels. If the green lights are blinking, it means that your front wheel hubs are NOT engaged and therefore, even though your front prop shaft is rotating, your front wheels will not be powered and effectively, you are in 2WD mode.

Now coming to the C/D lock i.e. the orange light - here again, the moment you flip the small lever from 4H to 4HLc, the center diff is locked (50-50 power split b/w both shafts/axles), since it is entirely a mechanical operation. That's it - you are done! Your center diff is locked and you are in "proper" 4x4 mode with both axles getting equal power, rotating independent of each other. That is the reason, while turning in this more on a hard surface, both axles travel different distances and therefore, transmission windup happens. In this case, the orange light blinking merely indicates an electrical issue with one of the sensors - in no way does it indicate that the C/D is not locked.

Please correct me if I am mistaken on any of the above.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by cool_dube

.........
Agreed! Which brand/rating do you use? I did try and feed mine with synthetic but found it be to detrimental to the engine's performance, hence switched back to good old Motul 10W30. At Rs. 2000 per change, it is well worth the money
.
.......

In general with older engines (and Pajero engine is really old) Synthetic Oil will spoil the rubber seals, resulting in oil leakage. That is why it is essential to use only mineral oil, unless all the seals are changed to Synthetic Oil Friendly ones.

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Originally Posted by cool_dube

If so, which brand did you get and how much did they cost?

OE mitsubishi.

Are you sure about this?

yes sure about it.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by Aroy

In general with older engines (and Pajero engine is really old) Synthetic Oil will spoil the rubber seals, resulting in oil leakage. That is why it is essential to use only mineral oil, unless all the seals are changed to Synthetic Oil Friendly ones.

Here is a link
https://www.yourmechanic.com/article...-in-older-cars

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Coming back to the weekend projects.

Up next was repairing the hole in the 3D mat.

I love how the 3D mats are. They fit well, don't move and water doesn't seep through to the carpets.

However, the driver's side mat wore out due to constant friction from the heel of my feet.

The hole:



When I removed the mat, I realised that even the company had given a fixed rubber mat on the carpet for this very same reason:



Thus, I thought of fixing the patch with a rubber mat.

I'm like my dad. I don't throw things away. So I had an old rubber mat from my Honda City - the middle person mat which goes over the hump.

That would be a perfect fit on this mat:



What you need:

Aluminium rivets and rivet 'gun' to hold the mat in place:



Rubber based adhesive. I use SEB. That will prevent water from seeping between the two:



Apply the Seb to the borders of the rubber mat and insides, let it dry a bit and place on the 3D mat.

Then drill a hole through and through and use the rivet to join the two pieces for additional stabilisation:



That's when I realised, the rivets are punching through because the mats aren't that strong!



Both sides need reinforcement!

The rivet out:



So now I need something at the back to stabilise the rivet and form a wider layer.

Rummaging through pieces of saved stuff I found a small strip of aluminium.

Drill through it:



The hole should be such that the rivet is snug fit and not loose.

Then using a metal cutting plier, cut the AL strip into a small square:



Now the rivet is fixed properly:



On the top side, I used a round washer:



All six rivets in place:



With a spare piece of rubber I even sealed the underside of the torn mat using SEB:



The mat is back in the car:




Such small DIYs for me give immense satisfaction! It's not about saving money only, but also about pride and joy of the job!

[Tejas@perioimpl]

The last part of the weekend project:

Remember I had made those drawers?

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

In continuation with the above, finally got time this weekend to complete the project.

Got time to finish it up.

The unfinished drawer:



The plan is to wrap the front of the drawers with a CF wrap that was procured from amazon. For that I needed to fill in the screw holes and slots. Counter sunk these and then the plan was to fill it with Mseal. ideally a putty would be nice but I didn't have it and being a Sunday everything would have been shut. I use these small finger gloves. Very useful and highly recommended.



Applied the Mseal:



So, im a hoarder. I don't like throwing things away. I had a rusted but sharp enough blade lying around. Used that as a scrapper:



Scrapped away the excess with the blade:



After drying and setting of the Mseal, sandpapered it with a fine paper:



This is the CF wrap:



This the first time I have every tried to apply a wrap and disaster! Air bubbles galore! It was like my drawer had Von Recklinghausen's disease!



Tried multiple times with swigees but still had bubbles. Then I remembered a trick to puncture the bubbles with a pin and squeeze the air out. Managed to get a decent job done, though not perfectly perfect. Fit the handle:



Both drawers together:



Next up was a put a rubber mat. The plan is to screw the mat in pace on the sides. For that it is important to mark where existing screws are:



I had strips of formica lying and used that as a straight clamp to avoid the rubber tearing through the screws:



I had left a small gap between the cabinet and the drawers so I could fold the rubber inside as well:





At the back, I stretched and used screws with washers to secure it.



I had contemplated using rubber solution everywhere but thought against it because I may need to open it up for any future modifications.

All ready and fit it into the vehicle:



From here:



To here:



Next time I get time, the project is to finish the inside of the drawers.

[Sheel]

Request you to please post that rain picture of the Pajero driving down the highway which was on Instagram. That picture was amazing.

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Originally Posted by Sheel

Request you to please post that rain picture of the Pajero driving down the highway which was on Instagram. That picture was amazing.

Here you go: