Featured 100 - Snook

[Snook]

Let see where do I start?

I have owned Toyota models ever since 1981:

1981 - New 1980 Supra. (Sold to my sister when I moved to NorCal from Show Me State)

1989 - New 1990 4Runner (My kids, dog & mother-in-law didn't exist at that time so I had to sell it after running out of interior space)

2000 - Used 1992 FJ-80 (Much better interior space but underpower and afterward the sunroof started to leak, making the smell inside totally unacceptable)

2004 - Used 2000 UZJ-100 (After looking at Amando's UZJ-100 next door almost daily, I realized that my FJ-80 was doomed)

[Snook]

The transistion from 4Runner to FJ80 turned out to be more than I expected.

The FJ80 served me well as a workhorse at our family cabin at High Sierra. Moving logs and splits firewoods is piece of cake thank to FJ80 with portable winch and deep rear cargo space.

I also found FJ80 alot more stable than the narrow 4Runner when it comes to off camber trail.

So I knew it is time to upgrade from FJ80 to UZJ100. It took me awhile to choose 1999 or 2000 then settled for 2000 due to safety features such as VSC since UZJ100 will be on road 99.9 percent of the time.

[Snook]

2000 UZJ-100

Tires:
MTR Goodyear 315/75/16
1" spacers front and rear

Lift:
OME N133 front shocks
Slee T-Bars
Slee rear springs SOF2RH
OME N74 rear shocks
Slee diff drop

External Items:
Dual ARB Air lockers w/ small ARB air compressor
ARB Winch Bull Bar w/ custom tow hooks
M8000 w/ Nylon rope
Hella 4000
Slee sliders
Safari Snorkel w/ GPS
120v LED String lights under the body/frame
Custom Mini-springs connections to Sway Bar (rear)
New tint windshield film
(blocked 99% UV & 30% heat ray, lightest tint film as possible)

Internal Items:
Dual battery (Hell Roaring)
Custom Water shower system w/ heat exchange
Custom laptop bracket
ARB fridge
AC Converter 3000 Watts with four 120 volts GDI plugs
Marine Fuse Block
Toyota dual locker switch (replaced ARB lockers switches into one)

Ordered Item:
4x4Labs rear bumper w/ tire carrier and ladder swing. Gas/water carrier not included.

Future Plans:
Gas/water aux tank (slow feedback from Long Ranger)
Underneath body armor (Slee?)
No plan for drawer system due to need for third row seats for our kids.

I will post more details & photos on some items tomorrow.

Cheers,

[ShottsUZJ100]

Originally Posted by Snook

After looking at Amando's UZJ-100 next door almost daily, I realized that my FJ-80 was doomed

LUV THAT! HILARIOUS! GO SNOOK!

[e9999]

looks great!
can you elaborate a tad on the tow hooks if not found elsewhere?

[ChuckB]

I really like the mod'd ARB bumper!

[spressomon]

You d'man Snook! Look'n good! And the on-board shower...too cool!

[pint]

Great truck and nice choice of mods. Love the tweaked front bumper. Bye the way, your videos are killer!

[tacollie]

I dig it. The rig looks great. Love seeing 100's in the air. I also love custom "trail made" skid plates.

[Snook]

After my front axle exploded at (moderate) Slick Rock trail. Duh, I forgot to enabled center locker but that's ok with me.

The ARB lockers was installed and regear to 4.88 (due to 35" tires) on both front and rear axles.

However I found the ARB locker switches a bit too cluttered on my dashboard and too close to my knee. Thanks to Rohitash, two ARB locker switches was replaced with single Toyota dual locker.

[Snook]

I always feeling uneasy with a single battery on my truck.

Everytime my wife borrowed my truck and returned (intacted), the next day the battery is dead. I don't know how she managed to that.

So I decided to follow Amando's dual battery setup so I ordered Hell Roaring unit.

As for holding the second battery, Slee battery tray was used but I decided to enlarged it by adding piece of sheet metal to the side of tray for fuse block.

Based on Amando's , the Hell Roaring switch was installed next to 12v plug on the center console since I know that every slots on the left dashboard will be taken.

[Snook]

I used my laptop for my work daily between six remote branchesa and want to use it for offroading trip, too.

The application is Google Earth Pro & Franson GPS Gate w/ Garmin USB 18.

Instead of drilling on the side of transmission wall (it is only a sheet metal), "very large visegrip" holding both side of transmission wall is preferred.

The tube is swivelable and removeable when not in use.

[Snook]

I like Amando's dark tinting on driver side but my eye sight at night is not great as it used to be.

So I picked the lightest tint flim for windshield and first row of side doors.

After this tint film was installed, my upper steering wheel (facing forward) is no longer "a bit sticky" due to lack of UV rays. The tint film I picked blocked 99% UV rays.

The heat ray is only a bit less but more bearable this time. The tint film is covered with lifetime coverage and there is no air bubbles at all, amazing.

[Snook]

After using a portable 750watts for laptop, digitial camera, video camera, GPS, pager and other items, the portable converter inside the center console pocket becomes too hot to touch.

I liked what I saw on Desertdude's 80 rig, new 3000 watts marina converter was installed inside the wall of rear cargo. Some sheets metals has to be grinded out to make some room around converter.

The plastic pockets (never used by my kids) was simply snapped out, giving two inches airspace in the front of two converter cooling fans.

[hoser]

Snook, sweet rig and a perfectly fitting inverter install. Can you give the details on the brand/model inverter and which gauge wire/fuse you used?

[Snook]

All power lines are protect inside flexible metal tube and covered with heat shrink for rattle-free.

During the installation of 120v plug inside my center console pocket, I was dismayed to find a very rusty metal underneath the front and rear cup holders. So this bare metal panel was sanded, primed and coated in black.

The remote control (thru the phone line) show the power status of AC converter.

[Snook]

The AC converter is wired to two internal and two external plug ports. One of the external plug is installed on the top of ARB bumper. The GDI is rated at 15 amps each.

[Snook]

Even after the upper bull bar was chopped off, the ARB front bumper is still extuding too much and often rubbing againist the rocks & tries during very tight turning.

[Snook]

The ARB bumper was shortened by 3.5 inches with two new tow points attached to the frames directly.

[Snook]

During the tight turning with MTR 315, it is rubbing.

During the extreme frame twister, the rear tires is rubbing inside.

Not anymore for both after the installation of 1" spacers.( I still preferred 1/2" spacers but it doesn't work that way.

[Snook]

The rear sway bar's connection was modifed with new extra long bracket that included very stiff small springs.

This setting enabled some rear axle twisting movements before the swap bar is being used. I might do the same thing for front but I'm not sure due to tighter space.

[e9999]

man, that is a *lot* of work. Nicely done too! I'm impressed.

[Snook]

During the Rubithion 2005, Jim Pismo's awesome FJ 60 comes with hot shower system, using the motor's heat to warm up the cold & frigid (from recent snow melting) water from his suction pipe into a perfect warm water. I almost passed out inside the shower bin from two days of hot and dusty of video shooting.

So I decided my truck should have a hot water system. Since the water system is EXPECT to leak, those piping system were located above the side pit, instead of above the rear cargo floor.