Attention mini-truck loving race fans... Latest project - convert a 1992 Mitsu U42T into a push truck traveling between area Wisconsin dirt ovals for the Sprint cars and Midgets. Why an old body Mitsu? Simple... my personal favorite body style along with cab space and the proper driveline to support this endeavor. I know we're not the first to do it, but no one ever posted success or failure and what truck they used. A friend of mine who races dirt tracks came up with the idea which started the project. We finished the early fab work this week and did a large series of test-pushes against his 99 GMC crew cab (much more weight than a Sprint car but on more solid ground). Alongside testing the push bumper & mount we fab'd, I wanted to see what the max speed of the gears were in 4WD. I was actually surprised to see that we were able to hit nearly 20 mph in 1st gear (per the GMC Speedo). There is no doubt that I'm going to have to hit 2nd gear to get the Sprints up to speed to fire their engine. It's going to be interesting to see how well the Mitsu pushes a larger displacement Sprint car with a cold engine. Time will tell! We were hoping to do testing this weekend with the Sprint drivers who had their last shot at testing before opening weekend next week, but heavy rains all day put the kabosh on that. The look on the guys faces at the tracks today was priceless...can't wait to see their reaction (and the crowds) once we're live hot-lapping. The truck is just plain-jane looking for now until we're able to complete testing and make necessary changes as part of the K.I.S.S. principle (keep it simple, stupid). Here's the current specs: One fine 1992 U42T 4x4 Hi-Lo 2" Lift 23" All Trails Super Grip Black Wheels Rear 2" Rec Bumper Front 2" Rec Hitch modified Front 48" Fab'd Push Bumper (wood on steel) All removable LED Warning Lights We're working on a custom headache rack to mount extinguishers, tools, etc, but are waiting for initial track testing to be complete first for tires, mount, power, etc. Here's a couple shots in the crappy weather today... I'll post more follow-up once we get further along. op: - Dan
Congrats. That thing is nice. I am looking for a lockable tool box like you have there. Do you know where I can find one to mount? I have looked everywhere. Thanks. Great looking truck.
Thanks and I'll have to look into that for you. That is a factory frame mounted tool box and I have yet to find a close replacement for it. I've been wanting to talk with our fab co to see if we can recreate it at a reasonable cost. It sure would be a nice touch to have double-barrel tool boxes to cover the open frame rail on the other side (maybe even a longer box to compliment the factory size behind the battery). I'll see what I can find out. Thanks! We're going to jazz it up a little more once time permits. I'd like to add some light guards off the top. The truck currently has 23" x 8" All Trails mounted on 12 x 8 Super Grip black wheels. This tire and wheel combo does require a 2" lift and a wee bit of trimming on the bottom of the door panel corner for clearance. The tires will be one of the keys to being successful on the track. We chose these tires because of their well-rounded behavior - good grip in the dirt while providing a nice hard surface ride. If these do not provide enough grip, then we're mounting Bear Claws as the next step for more aggressive grip on loose dirt.
