Pajero Pinin from Romania- off road prep.
Hello guys and greetings from Romania.
Thank you for letting me join this amazing forum!
Since almost two years ago i am in obssesed with the Pajero Pinin as we call it hear in Europe and i purchased one a year and a half ago.
After making my dream come true(by this i mean buying the car) i started to modify it tu suit different off road terrains, such as mud or rocks, mainly to be able to operate with no problems in forrest conditions.
With help from a friend i found a great garrage where i was able to put my ideas into reality with the help from the guys that have great experience of modifying off road vehicles.
At that time i couldnt find any information about lifting the Pajero or what wheels would be better and, i like to think that with a miracle my car became a great off road prepared Pajero Pinin.
For me modifying this car was a great journey, i learned so much about this amazingly capable vehicle and i really hope i will be pleased with this car for a long time!
My car is a 2001 Pajero Pinin made in Japan with a 1.8 GDI engine 4G93, Super Select, 120 hp.
Here are some photos with some of the steps and also some pictures with the finished project.
Hope you will enjoy!
Thank you!
Thank you!
What i installed/modifyed on it:
- lifted- using a pair of spacers, placed between the front suspenssion and the body(on both sides left and right). The spacers are with the thickness of 50 mm. So in the front the car was lifted 5 cm. The rear end got only longer shock absorbers from Monroe.
- winch- the winch is an 13000 lbs winch. The control box is inside the car so water can not get to it.
- off road lights.
- HD bullbar/fromt bumper- the front bumper was made using 3mm thick steel sheet. After finishning the structure the bullbar was painted in special HD paint. The stock fog lights were adapted to fit perfectly on the bullbar.
- modifyed front mask/grill with a better air flow and better look(in my
opinion).
- 40 mm wheel spacers for increasing the car width.
- special sport exhaust for better flow.
- custom 3mm steel protections/ bash plates underneath the car, protecting the engine and the gearbox.
- negative offset rims- again for increasing the axle width.
- Insa turbo Sahara 235/75/15 tires.
- heavy duty wheel bolts.
- cb radio.
And some more but this are the main things.
kings
type of lifted spring depends on your front struts.,
There are two types of struts found on io's/pinins: low-spring-perch and high-spring-perch.
In Australia the low perch was the standard until around 2001 when they shortened the spring 1" and lifted the spring perch 1" to allow for more tyre clearance.
In Europe they never did this as in 2001 they were preparing the pinin for autobahn performance and left longer springs in.
..so there are TWO types of lifted king springs - one for the lower struts and one for the higher struts.
!!!! if you put the longer low-perch king spring into a high-perch strut you get too much lift and can over extend the strut. !!!!
A good cheaper solution if you have the old low-perch struts is to replace them with the higher struts (this gives you more room for tyres) and put your standard old longer springs back in - will lift it by about 30mm. the old longer standard springs give a softer ride than the kings and for the SWB is probably better due to less weight.
for the REAR of the io we source the FRONT coils from this car (1996 mazda astina, also sold as a KA ford laser and other brands): they are a good lifted replacement for the rear.
you should get about this much lift 
Thank you!
Great info, thank you.
I have the lomger springs model.
I will start looking for Mazda springs and replace those and after that i will be looking for front options.
I just want to know: these cars a a bit lower in front and a bit more lifted at the rear alxe(as stock) is that correct?
little bit
a little bit.
the part number for the higher perch strut is:
KYB 334405
try and get one on ebay.
If you put your old longer springs into this they will lift the front about 20mm, another 20mm possible with a strut-top spacer.
MAX FRONT LIFT IS 50mm BEFORE CV DAMAGE
Thanks
Thank you for the info, i will start searching for some springs.
Those cables protect the windshield for branches, by deflecting the branches away from the windshield.
I think they are called bush cables/limb risers.
If you want more info about mountig some let me know and i will post here.
Monroe D7002 rear shocks
Monroe Adventure D7002
How much lift do they give compared to the original ones as I can see the analogous part from KYB is 343802 which is the short strut.
Maybe you should ask the person recommending them...
The Monroe Adventure series shock is a shock specifically designed for use on 4WD vehicles - these are a high pressure nitrogen gas, monotube shock (less fade under heavy use) which Monroe claims has thicker walls (2mm as compared to 1.27), a larger diameter piston (46mm rather than 35), and stronger piston rods (14mm instead of 11) - all of which supposedly makes them a stronger, more robust shock, and it also has multi-stage valving that allows it to provide superior damping under both on & off road conditons.
Do they live up to these claims? Good question and one that I cannot answer - I have them installed, they are a heck of a lot better than what came off, but, honestly speaking, even an OE replacement would have been better than what were probably the factory original, thirteen year old, 140,000km, shocks that my iO came with.
I bought them because they were what was available and the price was right - the fact that they were 4WD shocks was simply a bonus.
As for suggestions - what exactly are you looking for - suggestions to achieve what?
Clarification
Dear Fordem, as always you are an encyclopedia :)
I was looking for a clarification and you gave it.
What am I lookingto achieve? Just a 50mm lift and I don't wanna play with my family's safety. That's why I ask so many questions because my Pinin is my daily car.
Best regards,
Cristian
Syndicate
IO
Your Pinin look Awesome!!!!
deejay@netactive.co.za
South Africa - 03 Pajero io 2L MPI, 225/70/16 Bridgestone Dueler A/T, 3mm Stainless Steel Bash Plate.