100 series modification for Looks

[Dwon]

Today I installed the ARB Bull Bar and ARB Roof Rack.

The Bull Bar would have been easy if the instructions were written better. There were no explanations as to which of the 100 bolts, nuts, and washers were which and to make matters worse when I went through the supplies list and figured it out, the washers didn't fit on some of the bolts they were supposed to so I had to hammer them on with two hammers. Eventually the washers fit. Didn't damage anything, freaking headache (or so I thought).

Overall it took about an hour of actual installation. Then add on the time it took me to figure out the freaking instructions and get those freaking washers on the bolts and it was a 6 hour job including a trip to Home Depot to try to figure out the washer thing. I guess it wasn't the washer, it was the bolt.

Some of the bolts that were for the same purpose had heads with slightly different size heads. I guess not everyone can make stuff as easy to assemble as Ikea.

Did I mention the inside of the Bull Bar had rust in the weld seams? Yea. A brand new bull bar straight from Australia and it has rust starting inside already. So I sprayed the crap out of the inside with Rust-Olium, problem solved. But kind of troublesome for a new peice of auto equipment. I usually don't put parts on my rig that have rust!

Then comes the roof rack. I ordered the roof rack from 4x4 connection and ARB had it in stock but had to have the install kit flown in from Australia. ARB Washington was in on the whole transaction since they were shipping directly to me instead of to 4x4 and them to me.

So I go to install the roof rack and the rack brackets are too short to reach the front mount brackets on my LC. I call ARB and they say that the long roof rack doesn't work on US Land Cruisers and that only the short roof racks work.

Needless to day I was pissed OFF.
After I let him know how dissatisfied I was. He told me that there is no kit to fit a full size roof rack to a USA LC. I'd have to return the roof rack and kit and get the smaller rack and kit.

I asked why ARB sells these in the USA if they don't work. He didn't know. It sounds a bit more polite than the actual conversation was. He was apologetic, I was livid to say the least.

So I'm not returning it, I attached it using the rear 4 mount points. The front two mount points on my LC are under the front of the rack though they aren't under the mounting points on the rack. So I'm going to mount the foot to the LC and U bolt the rack to it. It should work fine.

Oh yea another thing, they require you use the mounting bolts that are on your LC if you don't have a roof rack. Did anyone buy a LC without a roof rack, they don't come without a roof rack! So I had to make another trip to an auto parts store to get the metric bolts that fit in there.

My total actual working time on the roof rack, 20 minutes. Total with travel and calls to ARB and having a f-ing melt down and aneurism 3 hours.

So to say that my experience so far with ARB and 4x4 Connection is less than stellar is an understatement. I would have bought this stuff from Slee, but every time I called to place an order I got an answering machine, and I'm too impatient for machines. After a couple tries, I went with 4x4 connection. They should have known about the roof racks.

So tomorrow I tackle the Tbars, springs, and shocks. I can't imagine it will be much worse than today was. We'll see.

 

[cpcc]

Thanks for the insight. Sorry you went through all that.

 

[NMuzj100]

Glad to see a vehicle wrap on a 100 even if it's not one I'd want on my own vehicle. Would you mind letting us know what such a thing costs?
A bold yellow stripe few of us need but the vinyl can be done in just about anyway imaginable and I've considered doing something just to make my white LC a bit more recognizable. I friend of mine in the sign making business did a complete wrap on his full size work van. In a couple of months he stopped all his other advertising because he had more work than he could do just from his van.

Some kind of tower to raise on the roof rack for photographic angles angles would be a great advertising gimmick. Just a couple of feet extra will get you out of the traffic jam and into the wilderness. Very National Geographic.

Nothing says professional more than a drawer system. "I have gear so specialized that it has it's own drawers, even in the truck.".

 

[ckkone]

So tomorrow I tackle the Tbars, springs, and shocks. I can't imagine it will be much worse than today was. We'll see.

For some the rear upper shock bolts can be a pain in the arse to remove/reinstall, I didn't think it was that bad but good luck!

 

[Dwon]

Glad to see a vehicle wrap on a 100 even if it's not one I'd want on my own vehicle. Would you mind letting us know what such a thing costs?
A bold yellow stripe few of us need but the vinyl can be done in just about anyway imaginable and I've considered doing something just to make my white LC a bit more recognizable. I friend of mine in the sign making business did a complete wrap on his full size work van. In a couple of months he stopped all his other advertising because he had more work than he could do just from his van.

Some kind of tower to raise on the roof rack for photographic angles angles would be a great advertising gimmick. Just a couple of feet extra will get you out of the traffic jam and into the wilderness. Very National Geographic.

Nothing says professional more than a drawer system. "I have gear so specialized that it has it's own drawers, even in the truck.".

THANKS! It's nice to hear that someone gets it. There were so many bash posts about the body wrap, it's nice to hear from someone who gets that it's for advertising!

The way I did the wrap was to have the yellow vinyl stripe put on and then the logos put on top of that. If you print the whole thing the large colors can fade over time. This way the yellow will stay nice and if I need the logos changed out over time I can do that. The back window is perforated. The total for my wrap was $1,500 (about what a small ad costs in a Portland Magazine).

I'm planning on building my own drawer system that can come out when I need the extra seats.

As far as the roof-rack I'll be happy if I can get the front to bolt in securely.

Thanks.

 

[sleeoffroad]

ARB does not know for what application a dealer is ordering parts, unless the application is discussed with them. The baskets fit multiple vehicles and you choose the fit kit that works for the vehicle.

You can see the applications for the 100 series below. This is accessible from the ARB website.

http://www.arbusa.com/USA-Vehicle-Application-Guides/Toyota-LandCruiser-100_Lexus-470.pdf

As for the washers not fitting the bolts, we have done a lot of these bumpers and have never had that issue. If anything we have bolts and washers left over.

 

[ShottsUZJ100]

The CV kit is about $25 per axle, if you have the FSM it is fairly easy to do the work. The kit comes with the correct grease, the boots, and new clamps. If you do a search you will find threads discussing the clamps and tools required to install them. All it takes is patience and time to do the work, if you lack either take it to a shop. They will charge about $200++ per axle and install rebuilt's.

If you do this it will make you very intamate with the IFS, which can be useful in the field. Very good to know if you plan to go places where AAA won't pay for a tow. (Which is anywhere off pavement, ask me how I know.)

There's been almost zero 100-series CV failures. I'd not be too concerns about this unless you plan on taking buggy-type trails.

 

[ckkone]

As for the washers not fitting the bolts, we have done a lot of these bumpers and have never had that issue. If anything we have bolts and washers left over.

I didn't have that issue either, but did have tons of PLO (parts left over)....

 

[rusty_tlc]

There's been almost zero 100-series CV failures. I'd not be too concerns about this unless you plan on taking buggy-type trails.

Like trails an FJ40 is suited for.

Grease wears out and needs to be replaced, even on 100's.

 

[dclee]

There's been almost zero 100-series CV failures. I'd not be too concerns about this unless you plan on taking buggy-type trails.

Nah, they just blow up their front diffs driving up driveways in the suburbs...

I love the 100, but let's not over-exaggerate its toughness. Like every vehicle, it has its weaknesses.

 

[Dwon]

ARB does not know for what application a dealer is ordering parts, unless the application is discussed with them. The baskets fit multiple vehicles and you choose the fit kit that works for the vehicle.

You can see the applications for the 100 series below. This is accessible from the ARB website.

http://www.arbusa.com/USA-Vehicle-Application-Guides/Toyota-LandCruiser-100_Lexus-470.pdf

As for the washers not fitting the bolts, we have done a lot of these bumpers and have never had that issue. If anything we have bolts and washers left over.

Yea, look at the roof rack section. The long roof rack doesn't fit on the US LC and the front leg on the fit kit doesn't have the holes in the correct position.

I had a lot of washers, nuts and bolts left over, but those bolts that go up under and through the tow loops (had to take off the tow hook because the bolts weren't long enough) had a base that was slightly larger than the 1/2 inch opening of the washers.

I made it fit!
I'll make the roof rack fit. I'm working on a custom front leg. It should work fine.

 

[Dwon]

I installed the front shocks (15 minutes) and the Tbars (30 minutes) (then 25 minutes) (then 20 minutes) (then 15 minutes). I studied the sheit out of this post so I knew how to do this whole install in my sleep.

https://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?p=383741#post383741

I was ready and had it all put together really really quickly. I had absolutely no trouble getting the Tbars off and the OME Tbars back in. I didn't use grease as they recommend because: A. I didn't have any and, B. the parts slid great with no need for lube.

I did have the same problem as listed in the above post however. Once I tightened the Tbar up to raise the front, it would only go up 1.5" because I ran out of thread on the Tbar bolt. So I too had to loosen it back to 0 and then another 2" below that and seat.

I did something that went against the instructions and the post and it worked out great and was why I got it done so fast. I could do it again in under 20 minutes, both sides!

I didn't completely remove the anchor arm seat or bolt, I just left it at 0 (at first and then the second time 2" more than 0). That saved me from having to guess about seating it at 0 since it was set at 0, I just had to align the front torque arm with the tbar twisted up as far as I could get it so when the torque arm bolts go back on they don't raise the tbar out of it's 0 position. Worked great!!!

I noticed something with the OME Tbars that the above post either missed or OME improved their Tbar labeling. The Right Tbar has the letter R at one end with an arrow pointing to the right. That tells me that that end goes to the rear so the arrow continues to point to the right. The Left Tbar has an L with an arrow pointing to the left. That way there was no worries about which way to put them in. It may not matter, but it's nice piece of mind that I know it's installed correctly.

When removing front shocks, use dish soap to clean the carp out of them before using the strap wrench so it has 100% grip. The top was tight, but two sprays of PB and it came loose. The driver side was easier than the passenger side.

I'm ready for the rear suspension, but it has to wait till Monday since I have a marketing event this weekend.

I'm ready to do this again if any of you guys need yours done ($100)!

 

[sleeoffroad]

Yea, look at the roof rack section. The long roof rack doesn't fit on the US LC and the front leg on the fit kit doesn't have the holes in the correct position.

What size rack did you get? There is another ones that is larger than the one listed for the 100. Did you perhaps get that one?

 

[Dwon]

What size rack did you get? There is another ones that is larger than the one listed for the 100. Did you perhaps get that one?

The one I have is the 3813010M and it's about 70" long. The front support leg from the LC rests just under the front of the RR. The RR support is back about 10". Unless I should have received a longer one that was 80" the supports won't line up. Plus the fit kit 3713010 didn't have front support brackets with the holes in the correct place.

I'm going to call 4x4 monday and raise hell. Don't know what I hope to accomplish but it will feel good.

 

[Augie]

I suspect there are actually 8 mounting location on the roof but the other 2 are hidden under the weather strip. If you look at all the Australian LC the mounting location are slightly behind B Pillar where the US version are about 8-10" forward next to the sunroof.

The Aussie are known to overload their roof rack so the closer to B pillar should be stronger mounting location.

 

[Dwon]

How do you get that strip out so I can look for the other mounting point?

 

[Dwon]

I just did a really extensive search and found factory pictures of the top of the LC and this is what I found: two sets of front mounting points, one about 10" back from the front points.

I've got to get that strip up so I can see if they're in there. If so, I'll just cut a new hole and use the old hole covers on the front weather strip hole!!!

So does anyone know how to get the strip up so I can look under there?

 

[dclee]

I just did a really extensive search and found factory pictures of the top of the LC and this is what I found: two sets of front mounting points, one about 10" back from the front points.

I've got to get that strip up so I can see if they're in there. If so, I'll just cut a new hole and use the old hole covers on the front weather strip hole!!!

So does anyone know how to get the strip up so I can look under there?

Man, you're doing a lot of surgery for something that should really not be that invasive. I'd first call 4x4 Connection and see if they will take it back and pay for shipping both ways. If not, raise hell with ARB, since 4x4 Connection is one of their distributors. One way or the other, you've got to get them to take it back, then go buy an AO rack from Christo. The AO rack is a much better rack anyway, for about the same money.

 

[sleeoffroad]

He will probably have the same issue with the AO rack. As far as I know there was only one hole setup on the roofs. There are 4 sets of holes on the roof. On some trucks that had a factory rack with 2 legs, the wrong holes are covered. Personally we have never had one like that at the shop, but I know customers have. Maybe it is a 2001 issue. Probably the same year that had the 2" receiver hole in the back and the 12mm bolts on the front part of the rear receiver.

I have to check how that trim piece comes out. I think it would snap in from the top, but you might have to pull it to the back to get it out.

 

[lcgeek]

I just did a really extensive search and found factory pictures of the top of the LC and this is what I found: two sets of front mounting points, one about 10" back from the front points.

I've got to get that strip up so I can see if they're in there. If so, I'll just cut a new hole and use the old hole covers on the front weather strip hole!!!

So does anyone know how to get the strip up so I can look under there?

The covers just pull out, pry up a bit in front. grab and pull (or at least that is how I did mine then again, I don't plan to re-use them, a bit gnarled after I pulled them

Here's what's under there on a 99' LX470.