To locate the axles, Ellinger designed a kit to replace the independent front suspension with leaf springs. The front springs are 3-inch Downey models intended for an earlier Toyota pickup and coupled with 15-inch-travel BBCS shocks from Poly Performance. The rear is similarly sprung, with stock leaf springs from a Mazda truck combined with 14-inch-travel Rancho shocks and a custom traction bar. This suspension setup is simple and surprisingly effective, providing the low center of gravity and stable, predictable characteristics that Ellinger prefers.
The cab of the truck is relatively stock, though it seems to undergo massaging every time Ellinger takes it out on the trail. Take the dent on the roof Ellinger added in Moab's Upper Proving Grounds. The obstacles necessary to challenge this rig are typically considered "buggy only." The front fenders have been cut to fit the massive Swampers, and the entire thing was covered in yellow paint. "I wanted the most obnoxious yellow I could find," Ellinger explained. "I ended up just getting the yellow pigment that they use to mix other colors. You can't get any brighter than that." The stock seats and dash have remained in the cab, with the addition of some strategically placed duct tape. It seems that the airbags had been deployed before Ellinger purchased the truck, and since it was never intended to see more than crawling speeds, he didn't see the need to replace them. A 'cage from Off Road Solutions protects the occupants better than any airbags ever could and clears the dash and doors nicely, while a custom-added crossbar provides a mounting location for the M&R harnesses.
 The rear of the truck features...  The rear of the truck features a flatbed made from box tubing and diamond plate. The wheelwells allow for additional uptravel relative to a traditional flatbed, and the tubing is far more resistant to dents than the stock bed. |  The front axle, a Diamond...  The front axle, a Diamond Axles-fabricated Ford 9-inch 'housing with Dana 60 outers, is stuffed with an ARB Air Locker, chrome-moly shafts, and 5.43 gears. |  The interior of the truck...  The interior of the truck is basically stock, with the exception of the Off Road Solutions 'cage and the M&R four-point harnesses. Note the duct tape on the steering wheel and dash. The truck was purchased as a salvaged vehicle, and with its new life as a trail rig, there's no need to repair the airbags. |
The suspension is simple,...
The suspension is simple, consisting of inexpensive leaf springs and a single shock at each corner. With a wide stance and low center of gravity, Ellinger finds that this setup is perfect for both the budget and trail.
Behind the cab, the wheelbase of the truck was shortened from 120 to 114-1/2 inches, providing more maneuverability and a better breakover angle. This was accomplished by moving the rear axle forward 12 inches, then shoving the front axle 4-1/2 inches forward to allow the tires to clear the cab. A custom flatbed was fabricated out of 1-1/2-inch box tubing and diamond plate to cover the big meats and provide storage space. The unique design of the bed is not actually flat, but rather has raised wheelwells to allow more uptravel for the rear tires. A Hi-Lift jack, CB antenna, and two ammo cans reside on the bed, while the spare tire stays back on the trailer.
The end result is a reasonably priced truck that flirts with buggies. Unlike full tube buggies, though, Ellinger did not have to deal with time-consuming issues such as fabricating a firewall or adding additional components for legality. And he still has a fully enclosed cab with a heater for foul-weather 'wheeling when the buggies are back in camp. To us, that sounds like a winning combination.