Good evening, I will try to keep this short, apologize if I fail.
So, my family and I inherited a 1985 Toyota Dolphin 22re with the infamous 5 lug rear. The vehicle has about 40k mi on it and, with the fuel system gone through, runs quite well.
I know that this might be perceived as fishing for answers that I want to hear, but I truly am looking for solutions.
Regarding the rear axle, most info I have come across is 6 years old or more. Is it fair to assume that finding the proper, full floating rear in a scrap yard is becoming less of a likelihood? And if so, has anyone come across any other solutions, such as a rear axle from another vehicle that is up to the task of handling the weight of the dolphin?
In the short term, I would be happy to be able to use the vehicle without filling the water tank (that's gotta be a good bit of weight right there). If I remove the Onan generator and avoid using the water tank, would that possibly be enough of a weight reduction to make the 5 lug foolie rear sufficient?
The camper definitely needs some work to resolve damage incurred from leaks in the roof; this alone doesn't dissuade me as I am quite capable of these repairs. I just don't want to waste a lot of time on something that, at the end of the day, isn't legitimately roadworthy. Not that it matters, but our use of the vehicle will be for frequent, short distance travel.
If money were no object, I'm sure these issues wouldn't be insurmountable....my daily driver pickup is a 1967 Dodge D200 Sweptline "Camper Special" (ironically) that I acquired as a rolling chassis and retrofitted a 5.3l vortec / 4l60e combo from an 02 Silverado. I mention this only to demonstrate that I am capable of doing the work. In the case of the Dolphin, I just need a little direction.
Thanks and Happy New Year!
Nick
Rare