99' Baby hauler

[nickswan]

Guess I better start my build thread now. I've got pretty big plans for this one.

brought it home last weekend from ATL. Still trying to talk the CFO into keeping the 40...

its in ridiculously clean shape, first owner drove this when it rained and he couldn't drive his Lambo... Second owner racked up 60k in two years commuting from GA to SC. It has 112k and still smells new inside. It has the AHC suspension, we'll see how long that lasts. no rubbing with the 305 BFG AT's in all modes. cant wait to get it offroad and baseline it.

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/e96da001.jpg

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/dca9c172.jpg

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/2d34b049.jpg

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/bf40e5f8.jpg

http://drewporta.smugmug.com/Cars/Lexus-LX470/i-K7K3P6p/0/M/steeringwheel-M.jpg

First trip to the beach, and it worked flawlessly.

It's got a pretty good rake to it, time to crank the Tbars.

no lockers or ATRAC, maybe a couple of ARB's in the future...

To do list:
Baseline/replace all fluids - DONE!
90k service - replacing everything - DONE!
Brakes feel pretty weak and the rears are squeaking every once in a while
replacing all bulbs front and back; two in the rear and fogs are out - DONE!

Mods to come:
BIOR rear swing /w ladder
Gamiviti Expo rack
50" LED bar
WK sliders
ARB lockers front and rear with an 80 rotary dial selector
Foxwing awning

Its replacing this, as it needs to be able to haul 3 kids to the beach and do some pretty serious wheeling occasionally as well as drive coast to coast reliably.

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/1a0a9a08.jpg

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/e2e8d60c.jpg

You can't help but grin ear to ear driving this thing, gonna miss it...

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/046.jpg

90k service done! new t-belt, water pump, plugs, etc...

I was getting a periodic "OFF" blinking next to my AHC and the fluid in the reservoir was below the MIN level and looked like this

I could get the AHC fluid online for $30 but they wanted $10 a can to ship so I just picked it up at the local dealership for $41 a can the same day. I bought two jugs but only needed one.

This is the reason Toyota is number one, I want to put this thing in a display case its beautiful.

It only took about 30 minutes to flush and replace the fluid and I honestly didn't expect much, but its a noticeable difference in ride quality.

also swapped out the rear bulbs and the fog light bulbs in the ARB. The low beams were useless but with the ARB fogs on, its perfect.

Front and rear diff fluid swapped, Holy s*** 75-90 syn is expensive! I also went ahead and cleaned the MAF and TB and reset the ECU. I picked up a new OEM air and fuel filter, and got the DEX III to start swapping the tranny fluid a few quarts at a time. the rear diff fluid looked new but the front came out red and smelled like a burnt cigar.... is redline red? I should have all my baseline stuff done tomorrow and be good for another 90k!

ARB said it couldn't be done and so did everyone else on the interweb, but they were wrong!

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/af8e5d33.jpg

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/cbf70bfc.jpg

yea, its a winch. but not any winch. look closer

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/a9153d2a.jpg

looks like an integrated solenoid winch in an ARB

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/45aa90c0.jpg

there is about 3/4" clearance from the cross member bolts and half an inch from the front fender brace that holds the Toyota Denso smoke detector. (WTF?)

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/a4e313bc.jpg

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/nickswan/d7a5ae70.jpg

everywhere I looked online everyone said an integrated solenoid winch couldn't fit in an ARB and I needed to spend another $800. I picked up this winch about five years ago and its paid for itself a hundred times over, its a sealed waterproof 10k winch with an additional wireless transmitter as well. I had to use the hawse fairlead but I plan to go to a synthetic line in the near future anyway.

so for anyone else looking at an ARB but turned off by what they've heard about their integrated solenoid winches not fitting, measure first before you blindly follow everyone's advice, yours might fit too.

Obviously in a front end collision that solenoid is going into the crossmember, which is what I assume ARB is trying to protect people from by saying they wont fit. hopefully I wont find out.

 

[nickswan]

I couldn't decide between the Foxwing, fiamma, or arb awning and honestly couldn't afford the hannibal that I want, so since I'm off all week and bored...

Two hours and $76 later I'm sitting in the shade drinking a beer, er, beta testing the homebrew awning against the wind, rain, and elements. So far so good, a trip to the beach this weekend will really test it. I picked up everything from walmart and home-depot:

8' X 10' tarp - $10
40' of 3/4" emt - $16
4 - 3/4" 90* corners - $16
2 - 8' adjustable tent poles - $22
3 - 3/4" conduit clamps - $12

It goes up in about ten minutes and rolls away into a nice little 10' bundle. I used about ten zip ties and two ratchet straps to keep it taught, if it lasts a season and only costs me a $10 tarp and a bag of zip ties I'll be very pleased with it until I can afford a decent rack to support a Hannibal.

I have been getting an intermittent AHC OFF dash light since the day after I brought it home. a quick measurement of the four corners showed that the driver front was a half inch lower than the front passenger side. I cranked away on the driver side T-bar until it was level with the passenger side, and a quick test drive shows the light is out. Would a half inch difference throw the light? I would really like to keep the AHC as long as financially possible, but refuse to sink more money into it than the price of a new OME heavy kit. Im only getting 8 graduation marks from High to Low, so I assume its close to going out.

it passed the beach test!

I wanted the fridge/stove slide combo from AT but didn't want to pay $700 for it...

so I spent $60 and built my own.

I used 100lb slides and 3/4 sanded ply. i set it up so the fridge slide at full extension rests on the tail gate to allow me to exceed the 100lb slide limit.

I cant lie, the fact that every thing fit absolutely perfect was a complete coincidence. there is about 1/8" between the 3rd seats and the angle of the tailgate worked perfect.

the base is 18 x 28 so i when i can afford a legit fridge (probably a cheap edgestar) it should fit perfectly.

I threw a quick coat of rubberized undercoat on it, and will finish it later.

it installs and comes out in about 20 seconds if need be, mounted to the 3rd row seat mounts.

heading to the beach this weekend with burgers, dogs, and beer for a shake down run.

 

[nickswan]

my $300 Engel is here!











plugged it in and it quietly came to life and was freezing s*** with a quickness. both plugs worked, and it came with the original instructions as well as the spare fuses.

its got its bumps and bruises, but I foresee many years of service from a trusted name like Engel. the interior was clean and i can live with a few dents and scratches at 1/3 of the new price.

I used a jumper on the ACC relay for constant 12v to the rear outlet and will keep an eye on it to see if a dual battery setup is even necessary. the 35f only pulls 0.7 - 2.5 amps an hour which is why i went with this model, oh yea and the fact it was 67% off retail. cant wait to get out and use it.

also took the 6 year old bass slayer out.

the trail leading back to this little secret is tight, like 4-wheeler tight. so i striped the s*** out of the LX... i'll get pics later.

 

[nickswan]

Reserved 3

 

[indianporfavor]

nice clean looking new rig. cant wait for the finished product

 

[nickswan]

nice clean looking new rig. cant wait for the finished product

As soon as the 40 sells it's mod'ing time

 

[Yukon LX]

Reserved? What are you pulling your number at the deli?

 

[nickswan]

Reserved? What are you pulling your number at the deli?

I like to take lots of pictures. And hate going through ten pages to get to the pics in build threads.

 

[Griffin]

Hell yeah, now we're talking. Love the color. Welcome to the club!


(I've been drooling over your 40 for a few weeks now. Damn awesome rig)

 

[smm3]

Congrats and welcome!!

 

[pfran42]

Looking forward to the build. From the looks of that 40, the 100 is going to be a masterpiece. I need to piece together a build thread as well.

 

[SmoothLC]

Nice pick up - can't wait to see what you do with it!

 

[ay nako]

Great looking rigs man.. Id love for my LC to look like yours soon!

 

[KlausVanWinkle]

Congratulations on joining the 100 group. I want to buy your 40. Now If only I could find a few extra thousand dollars.

 

[Supra88]

Love that color. Nice find!

 

[Gottagetone]

Nice ride! Congrats!

 

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

Glad my old LX-470 went to an enthusiastic new owner! She's right at home driving on the beach and deep sand...and earned every one of those OBX stickers on her tailgate. I'll admit the URE sticker is poser...we only camped that weekend with no trail rides.

It's a good thing I didn't know you were trying to sell your FJ40 Paki top because I probably would have had us work that into the LX deal. But somehow I just don't think I really NEED 3 tops for my FJ40...

Keep me posted on the LX's evolution...she's a good truck.

 

[ShirazAddict]

Hi Nick,

Are those 16" rims or 18? I like the look of those 305s. Also, what rack/crossbar system is that & how does it attach to the factory rail mounts? Nice looking rig.

 

[nickswan]

Hi Nick,

Are those 16" rims or 18? I like the look of those 305s. Also, what rack/crossbar system is that & how does it attach to the factory rail mounts? Nice looking rig.

they are 16" factory Lexus rims. The rack is ARB feet with 1" square tubing from a hardware store cut to fit and painted with hammerite spray paint. It works very well, and I think set the PO back all of $100. It will be replaced with a Gamiviti expo shortly and will be for sale if you want it.

 

[packetstormin]

Your rig is the shiz