expedition roof rack

[bucknut]

hi everybody, this is my first post on the site so forgive me if im not in the right place for this question.Im planning a trip to morocco towing a caravan and i am looking for a expidition roof rack for a 2nd gen surf.Can anybody help?

[Hazzo]

Before you start with the luggage I recommend you sort a transmission cooler, make sure the viscous fan is up to spec, fit an aftermarket temperature guage and keep an eye on it, towing to Morocco will put a hell of a strain on your cooling system and if its not spot on your very likely to not make the channel tunnel, never mind your final destination. These cars were not designed with towing in mind so loading up the roof, the inside and dragging a large van without upgrading the cooling system is highly likely to give problems in hot climes.

There you go that will give you something to shell out on before the luggage rack, sorry, and welcome to the forum. Hazzo

[wald]

i agree with hazzo, i fell for that 1 full roof cage two cycles 100lts veg oil fishing gear n a 22 foot van full of beer n food, set off to the highlands for a hol 950miles later n only 45 mile from home she'd had enough n blew her head , cracked in 4 places.not takin the bikes next time oh and the girlfreind

[mud skipper]

hello and welcome.
as above plus i would change the cooling system hoses aswell, if money isn't a prob then new cambelt,water pump thermostat etc. etc. and obviously a full service.

[JUDWAK]

welcome dude

[bucknut]

hi, got a trany cooler on order,13 row mocol,while you mention it on the bottom of the rad which connections are flow & return? had my surf for about 4 months now and first job was to flush out the system,rad looks newish and there was no brown gunk or anything came out .also changed ALL belts.new discs,pads,cv boots,oil filters air filter. also, yesterday i fitted new exhaust & oldman emu springs and shocks allround & did all the grease points on the drive train.my trips not planed till next year so plenty of time to sort out any issues.this is a great site with a wealth of info.




i started out with nothing, and ive still got most of it left!

[Hazzo]

i agree with hazzo, i fell for that 1 full roof cage two cycles 100lts veg oil fishing gear n a 22 foot van full of beer n food, set off to the highlands for a hol 950miles later n only 45 mile from home she'd had enough n blew her head , cracked in 4 places.not takin the bikes next time oh and the girlfreind

buy the veg oil on the way too.

by the way whats your van weigh, my landranger is 23ft and about 1900kg, definite head blower but I'm hoping changing driving style and my new mods will help out, if not the van gets the bullet next season. H

[wald]

buy the veg oil on the way too.

by the way whats your van weigh, my landranger is 23ft and about 1900kg, definite head blower but I'm hoping changing driving style and my new mods will help out, if not the van gets the bullet next season. H

just had a look at van n its 1100kg 5.1m lengh but beer musta weighed about 500kg it got lighter tho

[Mrbill]

There is always the cheap second hand roof rack for a transit or the like, cut to size and made it fit option. Worked for me

[Apache]

Dont forget wheel bearings. Fronts can be done 'in the field', rears probably not. Take one, because if it breaks you can hand it to the local mechanic and have it sorted inside a day. If you're trying to get one out there, it could be a while before you get going again. Trust me, I've got the T-shirt!

If you're planning on carrying much weight on top, make some mounting blocks and bolt the rack through the roof stiffening hoops. Strong as bu66ery then. I bolted mounting blocks onto neoprene gaskets. Never had any leaks.

[bucknut]

Mmmm. looks like i need to start geting a list of essential spares compiled for the road.
up to now ive done about 6k miles and had no cooling problems longest round trip of 800 mls. Is it pos to by-pas the temp stat for the elec. rad fan and put it on a switch so it can be turned on manually?

[Hazzo]

thats the air con fan in the front right of grill, I think some here fitted other fans for manual operation, get one from the scrappy. The oil cooler is essential for towing though. I had a smaller van first about 1200kg which caused no bother, couldn't even feel it on there but anything over 1500 is going to cause problems I reckon as thats the rated tow rate, but for what your planning you'll be loaded with extras and essential spares so I'd be pretty meticulous on the items mentioned. The vicious fan needs stripping and adjusting/refilling with the proper oil, I haven't done mine yet but its next on the list. H

[Albannach]

hi everybody, this is my first post on the site so forgive me if im not in the right place for this question.Im planning a trip to morocco towing a caravan and i am looking for a expidition roof rack for a 2nd gen surf.Can anybody help?

Fill in your truck's info on your profile, so we know what you have. 2.4 advice is very different to 3.0 advice.

[Spoggle]

Mmmm. Is it pos to by-pas the temp stat for the elec. rad fan and put it on a switch so it can be turned on manually?

Yes it can be done. Cut into the wire at the front of the thermostat housing and run to the switch. Having said that mines a 2nd gen 2.4 not sure if the same would apply to other models. Do a search, was a thread on here with photos when I did mine. Could I also suggest some sort of air vents for the bonnet, ones that are rear facing towards the windscreen so that hot air is drawn out. Or if you are a tight arse like me, lift the rear edge of the bonnet using a few washers as spacers. North Africa is a long way to go, sure that Crimdon wouldnt be a better idea. Oh yeah, and welcom nice to have another northeast member.

Spoggle

[bucknut]

thats the air con fan in the front right of grill, I think some here fitted other fans for manual operation, get one from the scrappy. The oil cooler is essential for towing though. I had a smaller van first about 1200kg which caused no bother, couldn't even feel it on there but anything over 1500 is going to cause problems I reckon as thats the rated tow rate, but for what your planning you'll be loaded with extras and essential spares so I'd be pretty meticulous on the items mentioned. The vicious fan needs stripping and adjusting/refilling with the proper oil, I haven't done mine yet but its next on the list. H

air con fan? i thought it was a rad cooling fan