65 Patrol Rebuild Starts Here

[L60Boerne]

We found this old war dog sitting in the Napa Automotive shop in Presidio, TX last month. It spent most of its life in NM, but it might have originated in AZ. Lots of bondo but little rust. We knew it could see better days with us so we stopped to see if it was for sale. It was, the owner gave up trying to find parts. Ian at RMPO and others from this forum have provided us a lifeline to all the advice spares we need, so far.... It will take about 6 months to get it the way we want, but it runs very smooth. Our Patrol will be used off road for Chihuahuan Desert and Hill Country hunting/patrols. We need every HP and this is not my first rodeo with off road mocheens.
Questions?
a). What is max tire geometry for stock suspension whereby the fenders are not contacted under max stock articulation?
b). What, if any, lift can be added without any adverse effects on any other part of patrol?
c). Is there any tire geometry greater than stock that does not sacrifice low end torque?
Thanks in advance,
L60Boerne

[moore_rb]

The biggest challenge to lifting a Patrol is the relationship of the front driveshaft to the transmission cross-member. 2 inch lift is about the max before the driveshaft will hit the crossmember at full droop.

So any lift above 2 inches takes you into the custom fabrication-zone

Regarding HOW to lift a Patrol- There is only one non-custom way to do it, and that's to change the leaf springs - Alcan in Colorado offers 2 inch springs for the Patrol, as does Dobbinson's in Australia.

Regarding wheels and tires- 31 inch tall tires are about as big as you can go with stock suspension, but standard 31 x 10.50 off road tires are too wide unless you have custom 7 inch wheels made with 5 inch backspacing and 2 inch front spacing. The stock patrol 16 inch wheels were 6 inches wide (they actually had two versions of this wheel- one was 5.75 wide, and the other was 6.25 wide) and the stockers had 4 inch/2 inch spacing

7x16 bias ply tires work well on stock patrol wheels, as do 235/85-16 radials

There are many other threads on the forum discussing lift, suspension, and tires and wheels - the search feature is your friend

[L60Boerne]

Thank you, I really appreciate your reply. I had read the others but your wording made it clear. We are keeping the stock suspension and I should have clarified my rim diameter. The aftermarket rims are 15". But we will stick to the 31' max diameter you indicated and hope to find the right tire at a max of 9" width. Do you agree with our max tire width?
Kind regards,
L60Boerne

[RiverPatrol]

Sorry if I've done this already: Welcome to 60Patrol! I remember seeing pictures of this Patrol a while back. Good to see that you took on the challenge that the previous owners gave up - finding parts. You've come to the right place.

Someone has done some interesting re-reouting of your water hoses. I'm not sure that the flow through the engine is right with that setup. Just something to think about before you take it out in the desert.

Really great to see the route you're taking with your Patrol. While it's cool to see the restos people are doing, and keeping the original patina look, off-road is what these were built for. And they're so good at it, too. The type of terrain you describe is perfect for a Patrol. Your rear fenders are already cut so you don't have to worry about tires hitting there.

My '69 Patrol has been used off-road extensively. When I was doing some black diamond trails I had 31's on it and never had a problem. Now I have 32x11.50R15 MTR's. I haven't done as much off road with the 32's, but I am confident that they wouldn't interfere anywhere. I have a 2" spring lift, and that's it. Here is the ugly beast:

[L60Boerne]

RiverPatrol - Awesome info. Thanks for the tip on the water hoses and the rear fender cut. We are learning as we go and basically only know what we have learned from this forum...which is significant. I think we will go with 31" x 9.5" wide tires. Sounds like we will be ok with those with a stock suspension.

[moore_rb]

I think we will go with 31" x 9.5" wide tires. Sounds like we will be ok with those with a stock suspension.

yes, you should be fine. Are you planning to keep those 15 inch white steel wheels? or are you thinking of changing the wheels?

There is only one choice in radial tires that I am aware of that come in 31x9.5-15 size, and that is the Super Swamper radial:

https://tiresize.com/tires/Interco-Supe ... .50R15.htm

If you like the super skinny tire look, and can live with tubed bias ply tires, then 7x15's would also work with your existing wheels:

http://simpletire.com/jetzon-7.0015lt-a ... AgtX8P8HAQ

If you change the wheels to 16's, then you will have a few more choices available, since the following metric sized tires would all fit, which would give you more choices in tread patterns, etc:

225/85R16
235/85R16
265/75R16

Also = take a look at how RJiggy set up his Patrol, using junk yard Toyota steel wheels:

http://60patrol.com/forum/viewtopic.php ... 246#p32246

[L60Boerne]

Thank you Robert, I am so thankful for the generosity of this forum. Our preference is to find one piece 16" wheels that are as close as possible to the stock look. We do want the narrow retro look. Furthermore, I don't want to lose any torque from larger than design tires.

Our Patrol will roll through Moab when complete so we need the best possible brake, power/driveline, tires and suspension combination, which to me means keeping it as close to stock as possible. First outing will be Big Bend State Park, 330,000 acres of unimproved roads. Pics from last month's trek there forthcoming.


Thank you for your specific reply. Patrols to Paradise, L60Boerne

[L60Boerne]

Pics from Big Bend State Park. We are going next Feb too.

[moore_rb]

Cool... chillin the wine in the creek, I like it

Looking forward to next year's pics (of a Patrol in the group )

[L60Boerne]

Moore_rb, It was an awesome trek into solitude. The lux resort that SCJ Scalia died at (Cibolo Creek Ranch) is at North edge of this ranch. We stay there too. At least one Patrol will be in the pics next time. I'm already itchin for a second. The roads are washed out in spots but generally passable with climbs unlikely to flip a Patrol so it is good and safe off roading. Anyone is welcome to join us! Load your Patrol with food, fuel, friends and maybe a firearm if you have CHL.