Marlin Crawler's New Rock Crawling Long Travel IFS Suspension System (#RCLT)

New customers arent going to be aware of this. When I ordered it appeared that they were ready to ship the kits. I had no idea I was in for what's been 6 months of delays.

 

I'm in the middle of installing mine and I know of 2 people with GXs who are also installing theirs.

 

When I picked up my kit Mike told me they had a several month delay because an OSHA inspection temporarily shut them down. They didn't have proper ventilation for the amount of welding they were doing and subsequently had to add a bigger electrical panel, get the ventilation equipment installed, etc. Just what I was told. But by now they should be absolutely cranking out kits. There were a number of LCAs, spindles, and UCAs on the shelves when I was there (3 weeks ago). I'm installing mine now, and I'll get some pics together tonight and post them up. I'm still working on the rack but won't have a chance to pick it back up until this weekend. I will say that the rack does NOT fit V8 4Runners (at least non-vvti versions). I had to loosen up the motor mounts just to get it in there. I ended up making some motor mount spacers out of 1/4" bar stock, but might have to step that up to 3/8". Mike told me that they fit it in the Dirt Everyday 4Runner (same as mine) without modification, but I just don't see how that's possible. I'm gonna replace my motor mounts while I'm in there for good measure. I knew this was a possibility because of the experience the Sherpa guys had installing the 200 series rack on their 4Runner. Now I have to find a balance between clearance between the rack and upper oil pan, and the fan and shroud. Not a huge deal for me but it might be for others, or shops doing these installs. Aside from that it's been pretty straightforward. The rack is in and clears and I am modifying the sector shaft to clear the body mount (per the instructions). Pics are coming, I promise. Been busy AF with this install, buttoning up my rear, and ya know... work and kids and stuff.

***Edit: I have plenty of room between the fan and shroud with the motor raised 1/4" (at least an inch of clearance). I must have been looking at it before I set it down on the spacers. I might step the spacers up to 1/2" for peace of mind.

 

I am talking about (from there Instagram page) seeing this 86 weeks ago. I understand the need to get the word out about products in development especially when seeking patents. But there is a time frame that you must stay within from when you start promoting a product, taking deposits and actually delivering or you will just loose the interest and faith that you can deliver. I understand there are always going to be challenges and Covid was/is a major one for all. I do hope they can deliver and we will all see if the RCLT is what it claims. I for one would not want to run 40's with the stock front or even rear diff. But if those that do can make them last and justify 37-40's more power to you.

 

Are you a customer or just some dude talking shit? That must you dropped in there is actually a should. There is a time frame you should stay within, but now marlin gets to play with the repercussions. If they deliver a great product they may be able to get away with it, if it’s terrible they already got people’s money.

 

I got mine before him, which I was happy about since I was one of the first to order the kit when it was released. I would have been beyond disappointed to see him jump the queue.

 

I think you placed your order 2 days before I did and you got your kit 3 weeks ago. I haven't received anything.

 

My order was completed at 5:03pm and it went live at 5:00pm. The two people I know of with GXs placed theirs before me and we all got our kits around the same time. There's no telling how many orders were placed in the first 2 days. At 6 kits per week going out (what they said in their last email) I would think yours should be coming up soon. They definitely need to work on communicating delays to customers, and it would be even better if they would let you know how many people are ahead of you in the queue.

 

I didnt realize there was such a mad dash to order. They said there was 20 orders total in the first batch. 6 months to make 20 kits seems unreal. Anyway, my last update 2 weeks ago was that I would receive the kit in 2 weeks. Today I am told that it is not ready to ship and no further ETA was supplied. It would be amazing to have proactive communication. I feel like I am being a pest, but all I am doing is asking for an update whenever the time expires on the last update.

 

I know exactly how you feel. I was calling them every week or 2 for a few months and I felt like a pest. The kit is insanely nice, very well packaged, and should work well (a lot of R&D was put into it). They need to do better with communication, no doubt. For what it's worth, they didn't give me an ETA when I called in the week before it was ready. Then I called them the following Thursday and was told it was ready for pickup, just like that. I almost couldn't believe my ears. I took Friday off and drove up to get it. I met Marlin and Mike and some of the other guys. Mike answered a bunch of my questions, gave me a full walkaround of his Taco, and showed me around the shop. I'm not making excuses for their delays or lack of communication, but from what I saw they're a pretty small operation and are most likely struggling to keep up with demand.

 

That is good to hear. I ordered a small item from some other shop about 4 weeks ago. I've sent 2 emails and had zero response. Finally found a phone number and got someone on the phone, they said it will ship next week. I dont get why communication is so hard. It is the key to a happy customer. If the shop reaches out to me I feel much better about delays.

 

Just heard it will be "a few more weeks". wow.

 

Yeesh, sorry to hear that. I wonder why the continued delays, and if they're shipping out 6 kits per week like they said.

 

After each ETA approaches/lapses I inquire by email and receive a response quickly. Proactive communication would be preferred/nice but I get it.... not always possible. I just hope to install everything soon as all the other components are ready to go and have been taking up a lot of space. Also Winter is coming....and I am running out of available install weekends.

 

This is the MC way and has been for a long time no communication and long long wait times far exceeding promised times.

 

I dont understand how they can be so off with their time estimates. It doesn't seem like they are shipping 6 kits a week, if there are only 20 kits in the first production batch, then that would be just over 3 weeks total.

 

Did you read up on MC reviews on any platform before buying your parts?

 

Maybe they are planning on sending out 1 kit every 6 weeks? Seems like it fits the timeline a little better

 

No, I've seen their name around and people have suggested other parts, like their crawl boxes, so I assumed they were a legit company that has been in business for years and years.

 

I mean most of that is true. They have been around for years and years and they are a legit company. They just never have parts in stock