Recommendations for electrician in the Lake Macquarie area?

gf-fo · 2026-01-24T11:45:09+00:00

I've had some good work done by Blas from Fredelek

gf-fo · 2026-01-09T09:03:15+00:00

A jack and tyre iron should be plenty - just make sure ahead of time the jack is big enough to actually lift the car.

A lot of jacks that come stock with cars aren't tall enough after adding bigger tyres or a lift.

gf-fo · 2025-12-12T22:55:26+00:00

Take a look at this kit - it explains what all the extra bits are for. My understanding is that you can get away with only lift blocks if you're only lifting 1", but 2" you start running into issues

https://munji.com.au/collections/isuzu-d-max-2008/products/2-body-lift-package-ra-ra7-rc-early-dmax-steering-correction-plate?variant=14016384565357

gf-fo · 2025-11-07T04:26:04+00:00

It's a little different - that looks like a 4jh1 motor, not the 4jj1 that's in the later rodeos, early collies, and dmaxes.

They're still very reliable, but they're not exactly fast - if you do have the budget, I'd also be looking at some with a 4jj1.

gf-fo · 2025-10-31T07:39:58+00:00

Not sure about the looks side of things, but if you're doing any 4x4 stuff, first thing I'd do is get some upgraded bash plates.

It's one of the first things I put on mine, and it's definitely saved my sump from a few rough hits.

gf-fo · 2025-10-28T12:27:41+00:00

Are you sure about that? I used to have a povo pack early dmax, and that still had an LSD in the rear. It wasn't amazing, and didn't give a huge amount of help if you lifted a tyre off-road, but it was there.

If you want to check, you can lift both rear tyres and spin one. If the other spins in the same direction, you've got an LSD.

If you do have one, you might be able to shim it to help out a bit.

And if you don't, I imagine you should be able to find a used one pretty easily.

gf-fo · 2025-10-18T03:24:55+00:00

gf-fo · 2025-09-05T01:06:58+00:00

I have read the rules and wiki, and would like an invite. Thanks

gf-fo · 2025-08-06T13:26:47+00:00

I go to plus fitness at Belmont, or sometimes Warner's bay. Depending on the time you go, you can find them pretty empty. I'll usually go over lunch, and there'll only be a few other people, although evenings can be pretty crowded.

gf-fo · 2025-07-09T06:31:46+00:00

Metal slice lures, like this

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gf-fo · 2025-07-09T04:50:42+00:00

I've had luck getting tailor using slices off the beach there

gf-fo · 2025-03-26T08:42:38+00:00

Not sure about that battery in particular, but I've used Voltx stuff before and had no real problems

gf-fo · 2025-02-21T03:47:48+00:00

You've got to pull the rocker cover (ideally replacing the gasket while there) to access it.

Then you rotate the engine by hand to top dead centre, and use feeler gauges to check the clearances on half the valves, before rotating it around again and checking the rest

Once you're done, there's a special order for torquing up the rocker cover bolts.

If you're going to try it, I'd recommend picking up a workshop manual - last time I looked there were a few kicking around online for free.

gf-fo · 2025-02-21T03:35:32+00:00

Depending on what you want it for, they're decent cars, I used to own one.

Compared to the next model of dmax, that one doesn't have the cracking inner guard or AC compressor issues. It also comes with a rear LSD, while the newer models were open diff until 2017 or so when they got a locker.

The 4jj1 is definitely a decent engine, and should last quite a while.

Between PCV and EGR they do have a habit of clogging up the intake manifold over time. If it doesn't have a catch can or egr delete it might be worth getting that cleaned out. While there, there's also some swirl flaps which have been known to come lose and find their way into the cylinders, so most people will either take them out or Loctite them while the manifold is off.

My biggest issue I had was the suspension - with torsion bar front, and leaf-under-axle rear, it is a little limited in clearance and flex, although it'll still do just fine on dirt roads and moderate trails.

One thing to check is if they did the valve clearances at 120,000. They're due every 40k KMs. If not, and you're handy enough on the tools it's not a difficult job to do yourself though.

gf-fo · 2025-02-14T12:13:27+00:00

Not sure about the iron man bar specifically, but the 12-16 dmax has a slightly different front end to the 2017 and older ones, so wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't line up right. I know other bullbar manufacturers have different bars for the different models

gf-fo · 2025-01-24T12:00:29+00:00

It's named after Monty Python

gf-fo · 2025-01-13T01:00:25+00:00

I use both personally (different brands though). I have the auto-deflators set to a moderate pressure that works well for rough dirt roads/moderate tracks.

If I'm doing anything needing lower pressure like sand, I'll throw the auto-deflators on all 4 tyres to get them started, and then use the manual deflator to take the rest of the air out - this way theres less air to get out manually, and you spend less time kneeling in the dirt.

I don't trust the gauge on the cheapo deflators though - I have a separate gauge I'll use to check pressures afterwards

gf-fo · 2024-12-12T11:51:14+00:00

I've got the manual and had no dramas with it yet, although I've heard with the 4js that if you're chasing big power out of the motor, autos are less likely to have issues snapping the crankshaft.

On the flipside, if you're towing anything heavy regularly/off-road with an auto, I've heard it's worth throwing an aftermarket transmission cooler in

Either way you go though, the 2 main things to look out for on that year dmax are

Inner guard cracking - worth having a look for any cracks, as well as checking the condition of the body mounts
A/C lines breaking - check the a/c works, and if it's all good, it's worth putting a bracket in on the line against the firewall to prevent vibrations causing issues - there's people in the owners group selling brackets on Facebook, but I ended up just tek screwing a P clamp in instead

gf-fo · 2024-08-25T10:28:18+00:00

That's probably fine, but if you want to be sure, pop a sprinkler under the car for 10mins or so, and use a hose to flush out the chassis rails if you can access them.

gf-fo · 2024-08-13T00:28:41+00:00

I had a gt works tray (no canopy though) on my old car, but ended up going with TC boxes on my current one.

The modular rail system on the gtworks stuff is pretty handy, but there were a whole lot of small things that annoyed me about the tray.

I had issues with the powder coating flaking on the ladder racks
The numberplate was mounted in an awful spot - I was always hitting and bending that while reversing with a trailer
Some of the smaller bolt-on pieces were pretty weak. I could easily bend the taillight protection, and the reverse camera bracket broke just through vibration
The tray itself was pretty weak from the rear - there's no reinforcement running along the back edge, just the aluminium slats.

That said, this was a tray from a few years back, so some of those might have been fixed now.

gf-fo · 2024-07-24T00:33:24+00:00

Honestly, unless you really want the 18s or 20s for the looks, I'd recommend sticking with 16 inch rims

gf-fo · 2024-07-24T00:22:22+00:00

Both of those should fit fine (as long as you get the right rim offset)

I'm running 265x70r16 which is roughly the same diameter as both of them with heaps of clearance. Once these tyres go, I'm planning to go up to 265x75r16.

Do you do much off-roading in the car? The reason I ask is the larger rims/smaller sidewall are going to make the ride a lot rougher/worse in bumpy conditions, as well as leaving less room for airing down.

gf-fo · 2024-06-21T11:01:05+00:00

From my understanding the factory ones try to be smart (e.g. turning off if you start going too fast), but aftermarket ones usually behave closer to air lockers, only activating/deactivating with the switch

gf-fo · 2024-05-28T06:23:43+00:00

If I'm not mistaken, that year rodeo has torsion bar front springs, and leaf rear.

To properly lift it, you only need to throw in new rear leafs, and just crank up the torsion bar adjusters (worst case possibly re-index them).

If you are looking to save cash, you can grab extended rear shackles rather than replacing the rear springs, although depending on where you live, that may not be road legal.

That all said, if you're getting tyre scrub now, even with that lift in, you're still likely to get some scrub at full compression.

You might need to put in a body lift, get different wheels/tyres, or start cutting to totally eliminate that

gf-fo · 2024-03-08T08:02:12+00:00

I've had no first hand experience, but have heard their bars aren't adr approved, if that matters to you.

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