Introducing my 98 4Runner DD. (1 Viewer)

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Looking good buddy, way to nice for how I abuse mine.

97 4runner
86 4runner
STLCA
APPALACHIA CRUISERS
 
Thanks guys. I have almost everything to do my timing belt but suffered a setback today. I had gone directly to KOYO in order to get a specific radiator. (More on that later) So anyway they gave me the local distributor who I called and had order me said radiator. So today I go to pick it up, I got it home only to find that I had received a re-boxed TYC radiator... like the staples had been popped, different tape, improper packaging, etc.

Needless to say I am not a happy camper. Tomorrow I will be making some calls and see how these folks intend to fix this for me. What hacks me the most is that I went to such lengths to make sure I got what I wanted and I still got screwed....
 
Radiator Update

Well, I am not as upset anymore. I spent a few days talking to 1800Rad and the guy swore up and down that it was a KOYO, but I still didn't get a solid vibe on it, so last week I called KOYO directly and explained the situation to them.

The guy I ended up talking to was very nice and said take pictures and send them to me so I can check it out for you, so I did. Well he emailed me back and at first he said that it looked like I had gotten a re-box, but then shortly after that he followed it up with a second email saying that he had traced the QC tag on the radiator and that apparently the QC tag did show that it was in fact a real KOYO radiator. I followed up with a "can you please confirm" email which he responded back to and said that I did in fact have a KOYO radiator that for some reason had a TYC stamped on the top tank.

He offered little explanation and did indicate that he too was slightly puzzled by the packaging and labeling.

So with that settled I am going to double check my parts list to make sure I have everything and try to find some time to do my TB and radiator swap in the next few weeks. I will post some picture of the before and after of the radiator itself and let you all know if this was a good experiment or if I regret going to such lengths to gain a couple inches.

And to elaborate a little on the whole story, this radiator is for a MT Tacoma, is a 2 core that is about 2 inches shorter than the factory T4R radiator. My end goal is to try and gain some clearance so I can have cleaner lines on a front skid plate without sacrificing cooling efficiency. I did a lot of reading and researching and when I called KOYO and 1800Rad, I had the exact model that I was wanting to order. Someone needs to build an affordable all aluminum replacement radiator for these rigs, but sadly no one does. I do need to pick up a shorter lower hose for the install as I couldn't convey to Sam what exactly I needed since pretty much every 3rd gen T4R has the exact same Rad, only the Tacoma's had multiple core sizes. And without a VIN, there was no good way to have him send the me the correct lower hose.

Moral of the story, when in doubt, call the manufacturer. :beer:
 
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Shame on me for letting this happen.

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Saturday I will be doing the Tundra brake upgrade. 2005 parts, NAPA reman'd 13WL calipers, ceramic pads and stoptech slotted sport rotors.

Weather is warming up so I guess it's time to get some of these parts I've been collecting put where they belong. May go ahead and reboot the passenger side CV and replace the LBJ while I am at it.

Stay tuned....

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Drivers side done.

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New tundra rotors, ceramic pads, 231mm calipers. I also put in my highlander coils and replaced the soft line, also installed new LBJ while I was in there. Got the PS torn down, but gonna reboot the CV and got skunked by the hub nut. The one odd ball size I don't have. Headed to the parts store after supper.

More pictures tomorrow.

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Not sure who decided the CV "should" come out using a pry bar on the flats, but it took me a double loop of heavy wire, a length of chain and a 15# slide hammer to get that biatch out.

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More pics on the real camera, but to summarize the weekends activities:

Replaced DS and PS LBJ
Replaced DS and PS soft brake lines
New tundra 231mm calipers, slotted stoptech rotors, ceramic pads.
Installed used highlander coils (got about 1" from them, 21" wheel to fender both sides)
Rebooted PS CV and replaced the oil seal in the axle.

As per my usual, if it could go wrong it did and I am going to have to replace the PS bleeder screw because it was rounding and it got the visegrip treatment... also think I will be replacing the caliper hard lines as soon as I can get them.

Overall it was a long weekend, but I got a lot done. Hope to get the pics off the camera tomorrow.

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Well, I started my timing belt last sunday with no intention of doing my valve cover gaskets right now. Well my new crank seal was buggered up so decided to dive in. After some cleaning I scrounged around and found some paint from the spray bomb job on the sami and thought, Army Green, sure why not.
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So now I am waiting on my new crank seal and a few other little things to finish everything up. I also have taken this time to clean out the parts pile. New radiator, BnM trans cooler, Airaid intake tube, plugs, wires and wiring up my light bar. I hope to get everything back together this weekend. More pics later. Honestly I just hope I can get it all back together and make it go vroom again.
 
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So I finally got everything about buttoned up and I thought I would share something that anyone with a 3rd Gen will appreciate.

I picked up a new radiator (see previous posts) and what I had hoped it would accomplish it did. Check out the new bottom of the Tacoma rad. It is almost flush with the front crossmember.
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Got the correct shorter hose from AZ, and everything mounted up perfectly.

I have some more pictures and will try to do a better update tomorrow.
 
Hey folks, little free advice: Make checking your caliper bolts part of your regular maintenance. I went to back out of the drive way last night and the front passenger caliper seemed to be dragging. pulled in and parked for the night. Got out this morning and tried again, same thing. Took it down the road for some hard forward braking tests, no issues. I was gonna dig into the rears tonight since after I pulled both tires I couldn't see anything visually wrong. Had a buddy tell me about loosing a caliper bolt once while telling him about my woes, so I go out and check and low and behold the lower caliper bolt on the passenger side was gone. The caliper was fine while moving forward because it was pulling inward, but in reverse it was pulling out until it contacted the wheel then it would just slide inside the wheel. After I pulled the wheel the second time I noticed the drag lines inside the wheel :doh:

Long story short, I robbed one off the 80 sitting next to it and called Mr. Stewart for some new ones... Blue loctite will be going on all 4 of those beauties.

I need to get a good update together for the rig, been several things to write-up. Soon I hope.
 
Finally got around to remounting my LED bar after I finished my timing belt a few months ago. So after I got it bolted on I decided to go ahead and wire it up. After a bit of an education in switches and wiring, and a call to a buddy, we have light.

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Will have to wait a couple days to get a few good shots of all my lights on. I also have some wiring to clean up since I also have to get a brake controller wired up to this 7 pin plug.

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Gonna have to finally break down and figure out how to mount my blue sea fuse block I reckon. That would let me mount several other electrical goodies.

I also have a line on a 1st gen roll bar that I plan to mod and install to mount my hi-lift and some other misc items.
 
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Shrockworks, limited width and pre-runner hoop. I painted it to match the flares and cladding.
 
For all my 3rd gen friends, ICON Vehicle Dynamics is releasing a Stage 1 suspension kit for the 3rd Gen 4runner just in time for the holidays. They have had front Coilovers for some time and you could get a 2.5 reservoir shock for the rear but that was the only option. This newest kit will feature a 2.0 non-reservoir shock for the rear that is valves specifically for the 3rd gen rigs.

I found this out when I called ICON directly to see if I could find a 2.0 shock that would work for the 3rd gen rear to go with a set of front coilovers.

I ordered a Stage 1 kit thru Metaltech yesterday as part of their Thanksgiving sale event. Anything ICON is 20% off so I basically got the rear shocks for free. They recommend using OME coils out back, so once I get some shipping information I will look to order a set of the 906 rears.

As this is a new rear shock and I believe ICON builds their shocks to order I am not expecting to take delivery until January or February of '15. I will definitely keep you guys posted. Pretty stoked about this upgrade as my front is starting to sag under the weight of the front bumper and the ride is really starting to show signs of the 200k+ miles it has seen. Stay tuned.
 
Anyone ever used an Ironman suspension on their 3rd gen? I am looking at options for rear springs for when my shocks come in and as I am looking for only a couple inches I have come up slim. So far my options are:

New 99 "tall" rear springs and a trim packer
pros: stock ride should be maintained, height control
cons: no real added load capacity

OME 906 springs, advertised at 2" of lift
pros: some additional load capacity
cons: mixed reviews on ride quality

IRONMAN springs, advertised 1.8" lift
pros: ??
cons: ??
Can't find much on them here in the states, and the US online catalog doesn't go back far enough to get the 3rd gen stuff, but the non-domestic catalog shows that it shares the same rear springs as the 90/95 series Prados...

Anyone got any input or thoughts?
 
Well I got shipping confirmation on my ICON fronts yeaterday, rears will be coming sometime in January.

I also am planning to save some of my Christmas monies for a set of sliders from John over at White Knuckle.

I will post some pics when they get here.
 
Shipping notice came today for the rears. They will be here on January 2, so next week I get my fronts on Tuesday and the rears on Friday.... I hit up Steve over at Southeast Overland to see about a set of OME 906 coils for the rear. Trying to get a line on a set of Tacoma hubs and knuckles to do a part-time swap up front while I have the front apart to install the Coilovers.

Maybe I will do a better job of documenting this than I have some of my previous Mods. :p

:beer: here's hoping that 2015 will be a good year for the 3rd Gen.
 
Merry Christmas everyone.

I should have a decent pile of junk to get to in January.

Current To-Do:
  • Install ICON Stage 1 Suspension Kit
  • Install OME 906 rear coils
  • Install and wire a pair of flush mount Lifetime LEDs in the bumper and tie into the existing reverse light circuit
  • Install Blue Sea fuse block under hood
  • Wire Seat heaters
  • Finish wiring my 7 pin for the trailer plug (brakes and auxiliary circuits)
  • Install front door component set and Amp
  • Look into a set of sliders and removing running boards
  • Find a set of Tacoma hubs/knuckles/CV's and do a PT front conversion
Looks like I need to get the Barn finished so I can have somewhere warm and dry to do all this work this winter.
 

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