Here is what I have to add to what has been said previously. I am what you would call an owner of an odball rig. I have started with stock Isuzu Rodeo. In last three years it has come a long way. There isn't too many of them on the trails and it is a pretty stout vehicle right from factory. First off it comes with D44 rear end 4.30 gears and LSD. I started wheeling it in stock form and decided it wasn't enough. Build 1 was with IFS, added 3" suspension lift, 33's, 4.56 r&p, ARB air locker front / Lockrite rear and of course lot of armor. It did really well but I wasn't very happy with ground clearance, no body lift for me as I hate them, and also those IFS parts such as tierods, centerlink, idler arm and such they wear out pretty fast if you use your truck hard. Mind you, I did have it out on most of 3,4 and 4+ trails. Never broke a CV but I do drive as slow as I can lug it, not a big fan of skinny pedal.. This lasted about a year or so, then for the type of wheeling I wanted to do with it, I decided to go with something sturdier. Build 2: I got together with good friend of mine, JR from Ms Conception Motorsports (out of business now) and we did my SAS in front of his house in 2 weeks or so. In its current incarnation it is on D44 frnt and rear, 35's, and it sits just about perfect for my needs. We decided to do my SAS in front as SUA to help with street manners and sway, and it has worked out really good, rear was flipped from SUA to SOA, traction bar and voila. Still some things that I want to tweak on, overall pretty happy. It is your money afterall, but beware as this sport costs a lot of green. You will be changing/altering. My advice is don't put a lot of money into your IFS, lock the rear, add some bigger tires and have fun, as with time you will want to do more with it and make some changes again. I am also not too big on bying built rigs on the cheap as you really don't know who built, if they cut the corners, after all it is your life on the line here. I don't mind spending extra money on somehing that I know is unique, built stout, and maintenance is the key here, good lubes, oils and such, and you can really enjoy it for time to come. Start small and see where you want to go. Sorry about the long post, but I was in same boat, so this is firsthand experience. Adem
Will have to take a closer look back there.
