Suzuki Samurai

80W90 in both use lucas or some type of synthetic like redline.

Before starting work disconnect the battery for safety purposes. Unplug the electrical connector from the alternator and undo the main connection to the battery (Normally a 10mm nut) under a black rubber boot on the alternator.

Undo the plastic tray that is situated under the front of the engine bay. It is secured with two Phillips screws accessible by reaching down from the top of the engine bay. Once these are removed the tray unclips at the front (Under the radiator).

The bottom two alternator nuts and bolts should now be accessible. Undo them (Normally 12mm spanner / socket). Undo the top bolt on the tensioning bracket and withdraw the alternator from above.

Matt.

Mine takes 5qt. But check the dipstick it will tell you when its full.

Since the samaurai uses a timing belt it can jump but not in this case. Jumping time would not make it hit the spark plug it would come very close to the valves and hit those before it hit the spark plug. You may have a problem either with the piston rist pin or with the piston rod cap coming loose. Hope this helps

To rephrase the question:

If a piston in a 4 cylinder 1.3 samurai engine hits a spark plug could it cause the timing belt to jump time?

If the rotating mass of the cam and valves versus the crankshaft has enough kinetic energy to overrun the timing belt, then yes, it is possible. It does seem very unlikely fundamentally because the mass of the piston would either flatten the spark plug or the piston would dent and if forced too far by the spark plug it would fail catastrophically and would have metal failure such as holes or cracks.

In other words, it depends on how many RPM's the engine was running at, when it hit the spark plug.

There is a 'T' handle in the glove box, pull it and the hood will pop open. Release the safety catch under the hood in the middle and the hood will fold back to the windshield rubber stopper.

At one time my son and I owned 4 Samurais between us...2 runners, 2 parts cars. two '86's, an 87, and an 88. You didn't say if you were looking for pros and cons of an 88 compared to other Samurai's, or of Samurai's in general...

88 compared to other years: There were only minor changes in most of the years that Samurai's were imported, and I have found almost anything from one year fit another. In later years they switched to fuel injection, but they are rare to find. I believe by the 88 they made some changes in how the anti-sway bar was connected to make the car more stable than earlier models. (earlier ones the swaybar attached inside leaf springs, later the swaybar was wider and attached outside leaf springs, I think.)

Samurai pros and cons in general: The "rollover danger" is highly overstated...ANY short wheelbase vehicle , especially if lifted, is more prone to rolling over than a car. I told my kid and others, "If you don't drive it on the street like it was a 'vette you'll be fine. And if you don't drive a 'vette offroad like it was a Samurai you'll be fine then too. Two different designs with two different functions, don't try to interchange them."

The more I used and modified my Samurai the more I appreciated the initial engineering. Mine would go places jeeps wouldn't go...once I changed gear ratios and did some other customizing.

The bad:

Factory setup is overgeared...you have to rev the engine up too high to have the torque for steep climbs, which meant you have to drive up steep inclines too fast for safety so it won't stall. The carbs tend to run rich, which can ruin your catalytic converter and cause trouble passing smog. I replaced my carb with rebuilts a couple times, seemed to happen again anyway. I did replumb my exhaust so I could use a cheap (~$80) flanged catalytic converter rather than the $600 stock catalytic converter. Parts used to be plentiful but most of the teen-age girl Samurai's are long gone, and most that remain are 4-wheelers, so you can no longer buy axles and transmissions for <$100 at local "pick your parts" junkyards.

the good:

With some modifications it can be a VERY capable off roader while also being street legal. I had well under $8000 invested and the only other vehicles that came close on the trail were $20K and up Rubicon Jeeps. Most fun for the buck of any vehicle I've owned. I had over 250K miles, and my kid had over 180K miles, on ours when we finally got tired of fighting the carbs and catalytic converters to keep them smog legal in CA. And I did lots of week long hardcore off-road and back trail sojourns through Death Valley, Panamint Valley, the Mojave Trail, and central NV...besides using it as my daily commuter.

Had I kept it, I would have investigated putting in a VW Diesal engine.

it doesn't have one you have to take the carburetor apart and bend the paddle on it. Then put it all back together. Then if it was not done right the first time, you repeat. Using a new gasket each time, or al least not more than once.

The answer is, it depends.

I always look at the weight rating on the side of the tire, consider this calculation:

Weight rating of tire is 1200 pounds at 32 psi.

The Samurai is roughly 2400 pounds with people and gear.

That means there is 600 pounds on each tire (600 X 4 = 2400)

If each tire is rated at 1200 pounds at 32 psi then it will handle 600 pounds at 16 psi.

Therefore the minimum pressure is 16 PSI and probably half that for sand, say 8 psi.

Remember the softer the tire the softer the ride but the harder the steering and Vice Versa (the reverse) the harder the tire pressure the easier to steer but the bumps will put you in the hospital!

I like to get good mileage and somewhat easy steering but still soften the ride so I run 20 psi. Using the above calculation works well for me.

Please Note: This assumes the pressure and weight capacity are linear with each other, please contact the tire manufacturer for your tires specific relationship.

in the glove box

it already is an offroading vehicle.. it's a fricken samurai!!

i believe it should be around 6 psi that's what mine was at after i installed my new pump

Not hardly, although hinges and latches look similar they are completely different. As an example, the Samurai hinges are on the outside of the door and on Sidekick they are concealed in between the door and front fender.

They will not fit.

what is the fuel pressure on 660 fi engine.

I am guessing the pin being referred to is the fuel pump rod that rides on the cam lobe and creates the in and out motion required to activate the fuel pump lever that pushes on the diaphragm of the fuel pump to make it work.

For the Suzuki Samurai the VIN is pop riveted to the dash on the drivers side, visible from outside the vehicle. I think that location is required of all manufacturers. A second location (on the Samurai, at least) is the right front frame area behind the tire. Check that area for your chassis/VIN number.

I used to own a number of Samurai's, and had the mechanical fuel pumps go bad a couple times. But not the way you'd expect: It would still pump fuel, but I'd have engine oil leak out of the tube that came out of the pump and run down the back side of the engine and over the bell housing. It seemed to be the diaphragm would spring a leak, at least that's what I think it was. And since the mechanical fuel pump was bolted to the passenger side of the head near the back of the engine is powered by a rod that gets driven off the camshaft, if there is an internal fault in the pump you can end up running low on oil! I think it is just something that happens..no big deal, not hard to replace. Good luck!

IIRC it bolts into the top of the intake manifold, right between the carb and the valve cover, a little to the rear of the carb. You should find a rubber hose from it to the top of your air cleaner or vavle cover, I forget which. Note I always had success as they aged by removing them and cleaning them well with carb cleaner, so when you shake it you can hear the inside moving back and forth. I was still using my original PCV and passing smog with it at 250,000 miles.

Do use caution threading it back in. The intake manifold is aluminum and it is easy to cross thread the PCV valve into it. I did this once, and then had to remove the manifold until a friend heli-arc welded and redrilled and retapped my original manifold for me. A lot of wok for not taking enough care screwing it back in.

1,3,4,2

On the stock steering wheel the triangle shaped horn cover in the center just pulls off the front. There are plastic 'plugs' that squeeze into rubber 'donuts' behind the horn cover, so just pull it off!

yes, all 8v are free running. (SOHC)

You would have to literally run a wire from the battery through a fuse and then to a toggle switch and then on to the backup lights, this will only function when the switch is on and will have nothing to do with the transmission being in reverse.

This is essentially the same as putting a toggle switch across the transmission mounted switch (assuming the transmission switch is not shorted).

the pin is broke inside the shifter case. put it in neutral, if possible, and unbolt the 4 bolts holding the case in place. it should take a 12mm. once you remove the shifter, the little pin inside the shifter case should be wiggly. just replace it. i did it when i was 12

You don't NEED any gearing changes to run 31's. I run 33's with all stock drivetrain and engine. you wont have 5th gear....but also your fourth gear will make up for it.

for instance when my speedo reads 60mph on the freeway I'm actually going 75 and 60 in fourth is a little high on the rpms but its fine if its not for long periods of time. I am however upgrading my ring and pinion gears to 4.57s with 6.5 transfer case gears n then 5th gear will be back to normal and off road power will be insane =)

Not sure exactly what your question is...I put over 250K miles on my Samurai, a fair amount of that hard core rock crawling. My son had 180K miles on his. I found they liked to run at around 4000 RPM for best power and cruising. I seldom revved it over 4500. Hope that helps.