NButler's River Rock Green 100 Series (2 Viewers)

[NButler]

Hey Mud,

I've been a long time 80 series owner but as of this week Im coming on over to join you fine people in as a new 100 series owner!

I've been a big fan of the 100 series since they were new but bought an 80 series years ago when I finally got my first 4WD. I hardly off road any more since I have two toddlers and daily driving an 80 is getting old.. or maybe its me who's getting older? Anyway, I wanted the heated seats, IFS, V8 and build quality for something that I'll daily drive. So here we are.

1999
198,500 miles
eLocker
River Rock Green
Ivory interior
Black pearl badges


2 owner truck
She came with 17 years worth of maintenance records!

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr



First thing I did was give it a good cleaning and then take off the running boards

Before
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

After
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Then I took off the bug deflector.. which Im not sure will stay off. I kinda like it.

Before
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

After
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Looking like a base model

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


So thats where are now after two days of ownership. She has 4,000 miles on her current oil so I'll change that soon enough. Other plans are 33s immediately and then fixing up some broken interior bits.

I'd love to hear some feedback on the following few things:

• The suspension needs to be freshened up. Is it a waste to just get new shocks without any lift? Also why is the front so much lower than the rear - is this due to age?

• The center console cup holder is missing its spring is there a replacement or DIY for this?

Thanks for reading. I'll keep posting updates here.

Nick

 

[trdcorolla]

Nice 100, same color as mine! Regarding your suspension questions, Toyota shocks are dirt cheap, if you don't want to lift it, just change the shocks with factory one's. The front is lower on these 100's from the factory, not because of age.

 

[NButler]

Nice 100, same color as mine! Regarding your suspension questions, Toyota shocks are dirt cheap, if you don't want to lift it, just change the shocks with factory one's. The front is lower on these 100's from the factory, not because of age.

Thanks for the suggestion. I hadn't considered new OEM shocks since everyone only talked about IronMan and OEM. After a quick search it looks like $450 or less for a set of 4 Bilsteins which seems pretty cheap. I've been using these on my BMWs for like 15 years.


Curious to hear from the group, what your favorite places online to buy OEM parts from?

 

[ShenValley100LC]

Nice truck, love the color.

Tough Dog is another suspension set up a lot of people like here in addition to Ironman and Old Man Emu. The back to front lean is called the rake, lots here on it...but basically you do want at an inch from back to front if your measuring from the ground/center of hub to the fender and comparing those measurements (again lots on this forum about). If your rake is above that you can adjust the torsion bars to get it slightly more even, though for ride quality sake you dont want totally even. It's not that its a waste to get shocks without a lift its just that for basically $200 or so more if you could have a whole 1-1.5" lift kit (which for these is really just shocks and springs) Its really the torsion bars that lift the front and the springs that lift the rear. A lot of people just get OME springs and use regular OEM shocks and crank the torsion bars. If you want more lift than that most will recommend a diff drop kit to alleviate some of the extreme angle put on the front CV's from the lift which can result in the rubber boots tearing and premature wear.

McGeorge Toyota and Camelback toyota are THE places online to buy parts from.

 

[LETSROLLEM]

Hey Mud,

I've been a long time 80 series owner but as of this week Im coming on over to join you fine people in as a new 100 series owner!

I've been a big fan of the 100 series since they were new but bought an 80 series years ago when I finally got my first 4WD. I hardly off road any more since I have two toddlers and daily driving an 80 is getting old.. or maybe its me who's getting older? Anyway, I wanted the heated seats, IFS, V8 and build quality for something that I'll daily drive. So here we are.

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr



First thing I did was give it a good cleaning and then take off the running boards

Before
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

After
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Then I took off the bug deflector.. which Im not sure will stay off. I kinda like it.

Before
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

After
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Looking like a base model

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


So thats where are now after two days of ownership. She has 4,000 miles on her current oil so I'll change that soon enough. Other plans are 33s immediately and then fixing up some broken interior bits.

I'd love to hear some feedback on the following few things:

• The suspension needs to be freshened up. Is it a waste to just get new shocks without any lift? Also why is the front so much lower than the rear - is this due to age?

• The center console cup holder is missing its spring is there a replacement or DIY for this?

Thanks for reading. I'll keep posting updates here.

Nick

@NButler, if your interior is tan, let me know what interior “broken bits” you need. I have a box with some parts I have collected

 

[suprarx7nut]

Hey Mud,

I've been a long time 80 series owner but as of this week Im coming on over to join you fine people in as a new 100 series owner!

I've been a big fan of the 100 series since they were new but bought an 80 series years ago when I finally got my first 4WD. I hardly off road any more since I have two toddlers and daily driving an 80 is getting old.. or maybe its me who's getting older? Anyway, I wanted the heated seats, IFS, V8 and build quality for something that I'll daily drive. So here we are.

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr



First thing I did was give it a good cleaning and then take off the running boards

Before
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

After
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Then I took off the bug deflector.. which Im not sure will stay off. I kinda like it.

Before
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

After
Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Looking like a base model

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


So thats where are now after two days of ownership. She has 4,000 miles on her current oil so I'll change that soon enough. Other plans are 33s immediately and then fixing up some broken interior bits.

I'd love to hear some feedback on the following few things:

• The suspension needs to be freshened up. Is it a waste to just get new shocks without any lift? Also why is the front so much lower than the rear - is this due to age?

• The center console cup holder is missing its spring is there a replacement or DIY for this?

Thanks for reading. I'll keep posting updates here.

Nick

Very cool! Looks really clean. I got a good amount of hood paint damage along that front edge. I'd leave that deflector on just to save some paint damage, unless you really dislike the look.

For shocks, I think the OEM Toyota shocks are awesome considering how crazy cheap they are. They work well for a factory height or a slight lift. OME shocks are very rough unless you're armored up and looking for a sport shock. Can't speak to Ironman, but IMO, it's a steep challenge to beat out OEM given how durable, cheap and functional they are.

Welcome to the light(?) side!

 

[NButler]

@NButler, if your interior is tan, let me know what interior “broken bits” you need. I have a box with some parts I have collected

Tan being Ivory, yes! I’m looking for the rear seat bracket covers? (They are normally snapped in under the rear seats) I need two of the arrow shaped and 1 of the rectangular shaped. Do you happen to have any?

 

[NButler]

Nice truck, love the color.

Tough Dog is another suspension set up a lot of people like here in addition to Ironman and Old Man Emu. The back to front lean is called the rake, lots here on it...but basically you do want at an inch from back to front if your measuring from the ground/center of hub to the fender and comparing those measurements (again lots on this forum about). If your rake is above that you can adjust the torsion bars to get it slightly more even, though for ride quality sake you dont want totally even. It's not that its a waste to get shocks without a lift its just that for basically $200 or so more if you could have a whole 1-1.5" lift kit (which for these is really just shocks and springs) Its really the torsion bars that lift the front and the springs that lift the rear. A lot of people just get OME springs and use regular OEM shocks and crank the torsion bars. If you want more lift than that most will recommend a diff drop kit to alleviate some of the extreme angle put on the front CV's from the lift which can result in the rubber boots tearing and premature wear.

McGeorge Toyota and Camelback toyota are THE places online to buy parts from.

Very cool! Looks really clean. I got a good amount of hood paint damage along that front edge. I'd leave that deflector on just to save some paint damage, unless you really dislike the look.

For shocks, I think the OEM Toyota shocks are awesome considering how crazy cheap they are. They work well for a factory height or a slight lift. OME shocks are very rough unless you're armored up and looking for a sport shock. Can't speak to Ironman, but IMO, it's a steep challenge to beat out OEM given how durable, cheap and functional they are.

Welcome to the light(?) side!

Thank you for the comments and suggestions gents! I can’t go wrong with 4 new shocks delivered to my door for $230. So insanely cheap I just went for it. No reason not to start here with some fresh OEM parts and upgrade to something heavy duty when I’ve earned it.

 

[aging fleet]

Congrats on the new LC

 

[Mike NXP]

Keep the stock height, put some nice OEM shocks on there and be done with it, keep that smooth ride. These rigs don't need any work to get you through 80% of trails

May want to replace the bushing and other components on top of the shocks, I think when I did mine there was a handful of rubber that made the cost go up but seemed worth it.

 

[LETSROLLEM]

Tan being Ivory, yes! I’m looking for the rear seat bracket covers? (They are normally snapped in under the rear seats) I need two of the arrow shaped and 1 of the rectangular shaped. Do you happen to have any?

@NButler PM me and snap a pic of the exact area you are talking about. I have a couple of seat bracket covers that might be the ones you need, if so you can have them

 

[NButler]

Got my new tires installed. White letters out of course!

295/75/16 KO2

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr

 

[Kabanstva]

I thought white letter out was a Jeep thing...

 

[NButler]

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr
I just got back from a morning trip to get some more seat time in the truck. Felt great to be out.

Since getting the tires installed 24hrs ago I now have a steering wheel shake from about 55 mph and above. Not a good feeling at all.

I have the front of the truck up in the air in my driveway and I'm able to rock the front tires side to side, while holding at 9 and 3 clock positions. From under the truck it looks like its all coming from the steering rack. I'll dive in and search around in the mean time for some suggestions. Please let me know if you've solved something similar on your own.

Thanks

 

[MountaineerLC]

Are you confident it's not a balance issue? Seems odd to me to go from no issue to a vibration simply because you changed tires. I'm not sure that the different in size and weight stepping up to a 33" wound make a hidden problem rear its head.

 

[LETSROLLEM]

Are you confident it's not a balance issue? Seems odd to me to go from no issue to a vibration simply because you changed tires. I'm not sure that the different in size and weight stepping up to a 33" wound make a hidden problem rear its head.

I agree, although great tires (that's all I run on my rigs), it sometimes takes me a few trips to Discount Tire to get them balanced. Did you get them road force balanced? That seems to be the only way I get mine to balance

 

[Battleship]

Looks good, did you say what year it is? I keep hoping the 2001 RRG I sold in 2007 will pop up someday.

 

[NButler]

Are you confident it's not a balance issue? Seems odd to me to go from no issue to a vibration simply because you changed tires. I'm not sure that the different in size and weight stepping up to a 33" wound make a hidden problem rear its head.

I agree, although great tires (that's all I run on my rigs), it sometimes takes me a few trips to Discount Tire to get them balanced. Did you get them road force balanced? That seems to be the only way I get mine to balance

Interesting, I have seen a few threads about road force balancing. Its not something Im familiar with. I'll be headed to Discount Tire ASAP to check about road force balancing. Either way, I'll have them balanced again since I had no issues at all before the new tires. She was smooth as glass on the highway.

Thanks for the input gents!

 

[NButler]

Looks good, did you say what year it is? I keep hoping the 2001 RRG I sold in 2007 will pop up someday.

Dang, I didn't post any specs in my first post. Opps lol. The truck is a 2 owner, 1999 with 198,500 miles!

I love this color btw the way. Super interesting how it changes shades depending on how the light hits it.

 

[jammingator]

Nice rig! A couple of things from my view:

• OEM shocks are great if no armor
• Change all sway bar bushings - inexpensive, fairly easy, and will make a noticeable difference if still original
• with that many miles I'd also be thinking inner and outer tie rods (probably source of tires rocking back and forth when you checked them - also fairly easy) as well as ball joints (more challenging but doable)

I just did all of 2nd and 3rd point and it transformed the ride of my 2001 with 150k (with some dirt road miles on it). There quite a few excellent threads on here to guide you through (ball joints especially)