Positive Review
Ive Always been into sports car , Still have the 86 Porsche 944 Turbo i got for my 16th bday (26 now) sold the 99 prelude that i turboed i bought when i was 18 but still the srt-4 i bought at 21 that has 375 hp with little trouble. I got the suzuki because my mother had a sidekick forever and it was a great car. I"ve always liked the boxy shape of the samurai,ive owned GSXRs and know suzuki makes great machines so when i got into 4 wheelin i knew what i needed.I bought a 88.5 hardtop samurai off a friend with 165k Jan 1st.2011 for 1250 he wanted 2k. it smoked really bad so there was no way he was gettin 2k from me. Sure enough 1.5 months later in devoloped a rod knock. I needed a block which i found one with 50k on its rebuild , however he had a carb on that was runnin rich and i mean rich , and it ruined the rings but thats all it needed it 2 smoked. I took it to a machine shop , had the blocked honed and new flat top pistons installed. I paid 75 for the block and the work cost 150$. I droped the head off at the same time and paid 240$ to have it re-built. New valve guides/seals , new valves , springs , retainers , everything and for the price it came with all Head related gaskets. I bought all new gaskets and quality head studs and put it back together.The og Engine was so loud but the Rebuilt Engine is so quiet. I also put a new water pump, timing belt, and radiator hoses in it.New plugs , wires , cap rotor , fan belt , Aluminum Radiator,Brand new clutch and new brakes all around. With me doing the work to get it running good again and i mean good cost me 500, but its worry free now. I bought all the hardware i needed and a SS CV harley carb and swaped out the stock one, cone filter cold air intake system, Pacesetter header, straightback 2inch exhaust to a flowmaster muffler, and with the flattop pistons it makes around 90hp@ the crank now. Its light and has a lot of low end , so for it is , its quick.I rhino lined the interior black it looks good, carpet floor mats,Black 97 front seats out of a Sidekick,stock black samurai seat out of a 89 my og"s were all torn.It had no Tach stock so it has autometer tach now set to 6k. Had no clock or cupholders stock it does now. I sanded it down including the engine bay n door jams,rocked it primer gray for a while but now ive it painted professionally Porsche Red,new the fender guards are black,carbon fiber =). 15 inch Ultra rims that are powder coated black,ZuksZOR custom off-road bumbers front and back with guards off the lights and front grills that are black,Skid plate on front ,winch setup , chroms transfer case guards, all badges are white with stock white SUZUKI STICKER on back , BIG-0 oversize tires warranty 4 life, stock powder coated white rim on back with the same big-o oversized tire. added a extra after-market leaf spring all around for a 2 inch lift on it, Koni struts all around. The suspension is great stock just i just did a few look goods and smoothed it.Lights are LED in the back and LED in the front Headlights are 8k HID headlights. Shes all finished now , topped it off with a tom-tom gps and a Pioneer 52X4 watt deck , 5 1/4 sony 3 way X-PLODS up front and sony 6x9 3 way X-PLODS in the rear with a Rockford fosgate 100x4 amp. If you know ARIZONA is all types of Terrain. Sand , Dirt , Mud , water , creeks Hill mountains all kinds of stuff. Next to my spare i have a 10 gallon gas can mount so i will take this thing 100 miles out into the desert hunting and never get stock. My friends have wranglers and they get stuck before this does. I have winched them out before. Its not easy to roll , i slide her around dirt corners. It is so well put together its a real joy. Never breaks down , very reliable , i do all services on time myself. Ive taken mine from ARIZONA back home to NOR-CAL napa valley, ive took it from ARIZONA to oregeon ,as far as washington state and back no problems. Mine hits 86 mph before it tops out and i only do on straights , its fast enough to travel in but not fast enough to really get in trouble. I usually keep it at 65-70 . im 6"2 and have plenty of stretching room inside. It fits 2 full sized Adults with Luggage comfortably. Off-road there hard to beat , on road extremely reliable , for a 1.3 it it will suprise you with its speed, with the performance carb set-up i have i average 30mpg. on the highway at low rpm in 5th at 65mph cruiseing i get between 33-35 , 35 is the best ive got though. stock carbs get 25 mixed and 30 highway. I love mine though , it comes in handy in arizona, i wouldnt sell mine because i did everything by myself so its worth a lot to me. It has 12k now since rebuild and still rock solid. Mine is rare and has everything someone could possibly want including upright gunrack for hunting, but i wouldnt let her go for less than 4500 i think , thats about whats in it and theres no suv or truck that can do something this cant. I just picked a 16v ohc 1.6 liter EFI sidekick engine with the ECU,wiring harness, and conversion kit so i can use my samurai engine, paid 650 for everything which is a screamin deal since i could sell it all for 1200 the conversion kit alone is worth 350. They have 110hp and smoother engine since its fuel injected. its out of a 97 with 95k on it. Same as the tracker engines , my friends gran mother totaled hers so i bought. Wish me luck with engine. ill atleast replace all gaskets while its out. if i install it my samurai engine will come up for sale,wish me luck. If you come acorss a Samurai BUY IT. Not to many left and hardtops like mine are extremely rare so dont think twice =p
Critical Review
this car is absolutely amazing foroff road situations... its a good toy... its not good with keepin up with traffic... mine has a 66 hp 4 cyl... not exactly the speen demon nor do i expect it to be. i absolutely love it other that its really coled in the winter and hot in summer... i just need a new ac and heater.the convertable is fantastic though when its not rainin... rough as a cob on the road and highway.. i drove it from hattiesburg ms to gulf shores which is about 100 miles or so it went ok... great mileage i get about 30 and i drive it like crazy... so my advise is to use it for a toy... i am gettin a new everyday truck and gonna use suze for the mud and stuff... get one:)
Showing 8 of 27 reviews.
Fun, fun, fun to drive
not very safe
Kelly Blue Book says I could get from $750.00 for a trade in to $1600.00 selling it my self. I paid $2400.00 and have been offered $5000.00 for it. I think Kelly is out of touch with the actual value of this car. I passed up the $5000.00 I was offered. I just drove it to and from Joshua Tree National Park where I had a great time driving it on two of their off road trails. It went everywhere we ask it to go and without any issues of any kind. I have also driven it to Portland, OR and to and from Los Anegeles CA several times. It can fit in any parking space. My only parking issue is sometimes I can't find it hidden between other cars and others think the space is vacant until they start to pull in behind it. It is perfect for southern California summers when we remove the top and doors. It is just a bit safer than riding a motorcycle and just as much fun. I can say that because I also have a Harley. Kelly has really missed the mark on this vehicle. Boooo! Mine is actually an '88 but Kelly doesn't go back that far.
Great car
gas mileage, simple
ride comfort, electrical system, slow
Unfortunately i was plagued with FORD as my first vehicle, it cost me $50 a mile to run because everything just broke or failed in the short time i had it. i sold it and a year later i bought an '86 samurai for my b-day. it met all my expectations for a vehicle that i am going to have to live with for the next few years. everything that was wrong with it was neglect of previous owners. its not fast and definitely has some issues keeping speed on the freeway, but i was aware of these problems before i bought it. it had been unregistered for over 10 years and was someones weekend 4x4 so not everything was in tip top shape the electrical system was in bad shape and only the break lights and headlights worked when i got it so i immediately started rewiring the rear end and that fixed all the problems with lights. lesser gauge wires and oxidation that plague older electrical systems and i am still trying to fix the blinkers. really good on gas, i only use 2-3 gallons a week but i dont have to travel to far. i have not been off roading in it yet but i will try it out as soon as i have a buddy to go with. it has 31" tires on it. rust cancer spots are common around the windsheild so far it has been a good little 4-wheeler and i am happy with my decision to get it, but very unhappy with previous owners that didnt take good enough care of it. its the least feminine samurai i have ever seen because its flat black with a giant target on the hood. there is a definite fan club for samurais, i know a guy that has 14 and another that has 5, and i get compliments about it all the time.
Execelent buy in 1992. No problem at present . Best buy that jeep an oher
Ive Always been into sports car , Still have the 86 Porsche 944 Turbo i got for my 16th bday (26 now) sold the 99 prelude that i turboed i bought when i was 18 but still the srt-4 i bought at 21 that has 375 hp with little trouble. I got the suzuki because my mother had a sidekick forever and it was a great car. I"ve always liked the boxy shape of the samurai,ive owned GSXRs and know suzuki makes great machines so when i got into 4 wheelin i knew what i needed.I bought a 88.5 hardtop samurai off a friend with 165k Jan 1st.2011 for 1250 he wanted 2k. it smoked really bad so there was no way he was gettin 2k from me. Sure enough 1.5 months later in devoloped a rod knock. I needed a block which i found one with 50k on its rebuild , however he had a carb on that was runnin rich and i mean rich , and it ruined the rings but thats all it needed it 2 smoked. I took it to a machine shop , had the blocked honed and new flat top pistons installed. I paid 75 for the block and the work cost 150$. I droped the head off at the same time and paid 240$ to have it re-built. New valve guides/seals , new valves , springs , retainers , everything and for the price it came with all Head related gaskets. I bought all new gaskets and quality head studs and put it back together.The og Engine was so loud but the Rebuilt Engine is so quiet. I also put a new water pump, timing belt, and radiator hoses in it.New plugs , wires , cap rotor , fan belt , Aluminum Radiator,Brand new clutch and new brakes all around. With me doing the work to get it running good again and i mean good cost me 500, but its worry free now. I bought all the hardware i needed and a SS CV harley carb and swaped out the stock one, cone filter cold air intake system, Pacesetter header, straightback 2inch exhaust to a flowmaster muffler, and with the flattop pistons it makes around 90hp@ the crank now. Its light and has a lot of low end , so for it is , its quick.I rhino lined the interior black it looks good, carpet floor mats,Black 97 front seats out of a Sidekick,stock black samurai seat out of a 89 my og"s were all torn.It had no Tach stock so it has autometer tach now set to 6k. Had no clock or cupholders stock it does now. I sanded it down including the engine bay n door jams,rocked it primer gray for a while but now ive it painted professionally Porsche Red,new the fender guards are black,carbon fiber =). 15 inch Ultra rims that are powder coated black,ZuksZOR custom off-road bumbers front and back with guards off the lights and front grills that are black,Skid plate on front ,winch setup , chroms transfer case guards, all badges are white with stock white SUZUKI STICKER on back , BIG-0 oversize tires warranty 4 life, stock powder coated white rim on back with the same big-o oversized tire. added a extra after-market leaf spring all around for a 2 inch lift on it, Koni struts all around. The suspension is great stock just i just did a few look goods and smoothed it.Lights are LED in the back and LED in the front Headlights are 8k HID headlights. Shes all finished now , topped it off with a tom-tom gps and a Pioneer 52X4 watt deck , 5 1/4 sony 3 way X-PLODS up front and sony 6x9 3 way X-PLODS in the rear with a Rockford fosgate 100x4 amp. If you know ARIZONA is all types of Terrain. Sand , Dirt , Mud , water , creeks Hill mountains all kinds of stuff. Next to my spare i have a 10 gallon gas can mount so i will take this thing 100 miles out into the desert hunting and never get stock. My friends have wranglers and they get stuck before this does. I have winched them out before. Its not easy to roll , i slide her around dirt corners. It is so well put together its a real joy. Never breaks down , very reliable , i do all services on time myself. Ive taken mine from ARIZONA back home to NOR-CAL napa valley, ive took it from ARIZONA to oregeon ,as far as washington state and back no problems. Mine hits 86 mph before it tops out and i only do on straights , its fast enough to travel in but not fast enough to really get in trouble. I usually keep it at 65-70 . im 6"2 and have plenty of stretching room inside. It fits 2 full sized Adults with Luggage comfortably. Off-road there hard to beat , on road extremely reliable , for a 1.3 it it will suprise you with its speed, with the performance carb set-up i have i average 30mpg. on the highway at low rpm in 5th at 65mph cruiseing i get between 33-35 , 35 is the best ive got though. stock carbs get 25 mixed and 30 highway. I love mine though , it comes in handy in arizona, i wouldnt sell mine because i did everything by myself so its worth a lot to me. It has 12k now since rebuild and still rock solid. Mine is rare and has everything someone could possibly want including upright gunrack for hunting, but i wouldnt let her go for less than 4500 i think , thats about whats in it and theres no suv or truck that can do something this cant. I just picked a 16v ohc 1.6 liter EFI sidekick engine with the ECU,wiring harness, and conversion kit so i can use my samurai engine, paid 650 for everything which is a screamin deal since i could sell it all for 1200 the conversion kit alone is worth 350. They have 110hp and smoother engine since its fuel injected. its out of a 97 with 95k on it. Same as the tracker engines , my friends gran mother totaled hers so i bought. Wish me luck with engine. ill atleast replace all gaskets while its out. if i install it my samurai engine will come up for sale,wish me luck. If you come acorss a Samurai BUY IT. Not to many left and hardtops like mine are extremely rare so dont think twice =p
Im 16 had mine for 6 years used to drive it in the fields. has over 190000 on it..odometer stopped working and it runs 8,000 rpms out of it strong yet..love it and go mudding with it all the time