News

Getting my Thar ready for monsoon off-roading; All modifications made!

I'm considering the Windsor EV as a potential replacement for our Honda Jazz.

BHPian Nair.V8 recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Amidst all the hype of 5-door Roxx, my beloved Roxy (yes this has been her name ever since i got her in Jan 2023!) receives a slew of upgrades to make the most of this monsoon off-road season:

Radar Renegade R/T+ (285/60/R18)
The stock Ceat Crossdrive tyres have been replaced (after 21,000kms) with a juicy set of Radar Renegade R/T’s (size: 285/60 R18); these beefy tyres compliment the Fuel rims rather nicely & have uplifted the overall stance to a whole new level. I’ve been using them for over 2,000 kms now & I’ve found the Renegade R/T’s to be rather good. There is no extra weight felt on the steering wheel, grip levels on highways are great, they inspire more confidence in wet conditions than the stock tyres & they superior grip & traction in off-road conditions. The Renegades were purchased from Saifee Tyres Dadar, they gave me a decent buy-back for my old tyres as well.

K&N Air-filter, MagnaFlow Axle-back Exhaust & Damping Sheets
The stock air-filter has been replaced with a K&N drop-in filter, and the stock exhaust muffler has been replaced with a MagnaFlow axle-back unit. The MagnaFlow unit is literally half the size of the stock Petrol Thar’s muffler; the new muffler sits behind the rear bumper & is completely hidden from sight (unlike the large ungainly stock muffler). With the new setup, there is a lovely rumble at cold starts & low-rpm’s that makes every drive thoroughly entertaining! Boy-oh-boy does it sound good now!

Despite keeping the stock resonator intact, I noticed a slight amount of drone in the cabin at certain rpms after the exhaust-job. To counter this issue, damping sheets have been applied to the entire floor & front doors. This has made the overall exhaust setup a lot more enjoyable from within the cabin, with no more loud droning or booming noises. The K&N air filter & MagnaFlow muffler were purchased from N1 Racing, installation was done at Automech Mumbai.

Switched from Ironman4x4 to Toughdog Suspension
I’ve had the Ironman suspension kit since Dec 2023 and have driven ~13,000 kms with them. They’re up for sale now in the classifieds section. The Ironman Nitrogas dampers were stiffer than OEM, and offered excellent handling & body control on highways, I thoroughly enjoyed this setup during road-trips. However, the ride was noticeably stiffer over poor road surfaces, especially at my locality in Mumbai.

After trying a few alternative options, I decided to go ahead with the Toughdog lift-kit. This setup consists of 2x NitroGas shocks at the front, 2 FoamCell shocks at the rear & 4 coil springs. The ToughDog kit offers a relatively softer rider, a slightly higher lift (40mm lift front & rear) & better articulation. The ToughDog lift kit paired with the Rengade R/T+ tyres makes the Thar a formidable off-road machine! I had an absolute blast with this setup when I did the trail at Morbe dam recently. Although with regards to handling and dynamics at higher speeds, I will rate the Ironman as superior. Purchase & Installation of the ToughDog lift kit & the damping sheets were done at Mkraft Mumbai.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

 
Redlining the Indian Scene