From looking at the pictures online it looks like the steering on the 4x4 doesn't use the centre idler pin and 2 long tie rods like a stock bay but has 2 short tie rods with some sort of extra link between the two. I'd love to see a piccy of the front end with the sump guard removed.
G'day all. For those who haven't read my build here's the front end set up ready to build the mountings for the diff & power steering. Tha axles are away being cut & joined to suit Isuzu drive flanges & commodore diff centre
Nice work. Just had a look at your thread. Very cool. I just googled what an Isuzu Rodeo is and it was sold in the europe as a vauxhaul frontera. Funny as I was just looking at some Vauxhaul Frontera front spindles last weekend and thought they'd work OK on a bay.
g'day Zebedee. I had to spread the beam tubes 8cm's to fit the spindles between the ball joints. ernie
Thats what VW did on their prototypes from the look of it. The brazilian version is the same though it has two sets of bump stops each side.
Few more piccies of the syncro bay prototype. Front driveshaft and hub Repositioned front crossmember and jacking point. Jacking point moved a couple of inches backwards. Bulge where new crossmember is.
This thread has really evolved since the last time I was here! The pics of the 'other' prototype are fantastic, it certainly looks to be real from the details there. They have probably removed other pictures to keep it out of public view. Shame!
Found some more info and it is indeed T4 front suspension possibly with audi hubs. Sounds like that was his first attempt but just went with a different approach and used the complete t25 chassis. Not sure where the extra 40mm in wheelbase will make the wheels sit.
A few more piccies turned up. Protection bars. Engine mounting bar ends. Front arch. Does this rear arch look raised?
A 2wd stock bay will get suprisingly far offroad. We used to camp at Castlerigg Farm in Keswick and were always put at the top of the muddy hill to keep us out of the way. The bays would always make it to the top of the hill but all the T4s got stuck and some of the T3s had problems too. 50/50 weight distribution isn't much use offroad with only 2wd. The blue bay in this video is 2wd with just bigger tyres and apparently it made it everywhere the T3 syncro did. The shasta show trip the splitscreen bus guys do every year proves how far your can get a bus too. The locking diff from a syncro can be retro fitted to a 2L 091 box pretty easily, though using a syncro centre section of the box makes it even easier as the boss for the diff lock actuator is already there. A locking diff would make a bay pretty capable off road, though being able to say you have a 4wd bay can't be beaten. If i could find a solid double cab bay shell i'd be seriously tempted to build one with syncro running gear just for Marmites and giggles.
Here is a link to a manual of the 4WD prototyp. http://www.michaelknappmann.de/bulli/michaelk/vw_bus_d/allrad/frame.html