There are many modified Shoguns and Pajeros out there which have been chopped, hacked, lifted and sliced in the never ending struggle between geography and physics that you become slightly dazed by what was done, why it was done and wondering will it work for me the next time I find myself axle deep in the mud.
Then, you meet a guy who just doesn’t care if his modifications will drag him out of a bomb-hole, help him navigate a rocky mountain lane, or take part in an extreme event. He’s simply modified his truck because he could, it was there and he was curious as to how high he could actually go with the simplest of modifications. His name’s Jetski David, he’s to be found on just about every Pajero and Shogun forum that there is, he’s owns the General Lee and he’s a bit of a legend.
As with all these things, it started out with a standard Pajero which looked the same as just about every other Pajero he passed on the road. So, he decided to add a few little touches just to make it look a bit different and not quite so stock. So on went a set of black light-caps, a roof rack, a roof light pod and sun visor.
All good so far. But, he then started wondering just how high can you lift a Pajero? He was about to show us…
First lift kit
A full set of UHMW 2 inch bodylift spacers and bolts (12 needed for a LWB Pajero or Shogun) were purchased and inserted one weekend. This is an exercise in itself as you need the carpets up to find some of the body mounts and then you need to jack the truck up from side to side in order to insert your new and bigger body mounts spacers. You’re then left with both a front a rear bumper which are now 2 inches too low against the body lines and at some point you needed to wrestle with the viscous fan cowling as the engine stays put whilst the radiator rises up. I have a sneaking suspicion that the General Lee’s radiator fan cowling ended up in the bin at some point. Then, the General got some 37 inch tyres to go with that 2 inch body lift and ended up looking like this.
New lift and rubber
Now, most of us would have stopped at that point, but not Jetski. Sure, the General looked good… but eventually, everyone does a 2 inch bodylift and gets around to putting at least a set of 31 inch rubbers on their truck, or even a set of 33 inch rubbers on. He just wasn’t happy with the General being just another lifted truck, he had to get more extreme.
Custom paint job
A custom paint job and General Lee decals soon followed suit, but limited time in the spray booth only got him half the job done and he wasn’t prepared to let sleeping paint guns lie.
The General complete with his new suit
But, there was still the issue of height to resolve. Sure it was bright, and yes it did look distinctive, but the Generals rise to the clouds was by no means over. It was time to get serious with the lift. The General soon acquired a set of spring extensions as well as clamped on spring stiffeners and a full suite of damper/shock absorber extensions which coupled with the massive tyres too the overall height of the General to an enormous 8 foot 5 inches.
4 inch suspension left over a 6 inch bodylift
Was he happy now? Actually, he wasn’t. Whilst it looked mighty impressive from the side he found that the tank now sat too low in the back and the General looked like it was carrying a full nappy from behind. That would need to be sorted.
How low is that tank?
An 8 inch tank lift was required with a little bit of underbody cosmetic work to ensure the General looked good from the back, front and the side. This wasn’t going to be just any truck, this was going to be a good looking truck, the Tom Cruise ‘Top-Gun’ of trucks and Jetski wanted it to take your breath away.
8 inch tank lift
A bit of love and care
All of which left Jetskidavid with the General Lee we all know and love today. He has the biggest, baddest, best looking truck on the block… until he found this one parked next to him.
Who's bad?
It probably won’t surprise you to know… he’s thinking of another 2 inches, or a set of 44 inch tyres to level the pegging here.
There are some more detailed images of Jetski’s General Lee and the details of his monster lift here: The General Lee at Mitsubishi4×4.co.uk
Finally, just in case you were wondering how on earth you get on board the General Lee, you fit a custom made set of these.
Rock sliders? No, steps for a short-arse!
