Builds 2003 LX470 Overland Build (5 Viewers)

[AlamoCruiser]

Due to the weather that the San Juan Mountains have been getting (daily rain) and where my cooking surface is located, I called an audible and ordered the Ironman DeltaWing 270 degree awning. I didn’t really want to get this before the trip, but I think it’ll be for the best in the long run when it’s raining and I need to make dinner.

The awning brackets didn’t fit with the OEM roof rack, so I also had to get a roof basket from Harbor Freight. Definitely not what I wanted, but oh well.

 

[AlamoCruiser]

My radio has been non-functional for around 3 months now. No sound but nav still worked. The ML system is stupid proprietary, so converting it to something else is quite a tall order. As a result, I decided to maintain the OG system, so I purchased a ML amp to solve what I thought was an amp that overheated. I replaced it and it did not fix my issue.

I searched and searched and asked on every LC/LX forum I could to try and find a solution. Nobody had a real straight answer but thanks to some great advice on the functionality that the ML used to deliver sound (provided by a user here on Mud), I decided to swing for the fences and try to replace the stereo receiver. I ordered it on eBay and installed the new unit today.

The sound is now back, and I forgot how amazing it is to have a car stereo!! So glad it’s fixed, but I sure wish I hadn’t bought an amp first considering the cost of them. I’m going to check my old amp and if it’s still functional, I’ll probably try to recoup some of my loss by reselling one of them.

 

[AlamoCruiser]

More progress on the stereo. I replaced the rear OEM sub (that no longer existed) with the Skar Audio 4ohm dual input sub that others have used, and wired in series to get an 8ohm impedance.
I replaced the absolutely MAULED rear door speakers with some Kicker speakers, and I replaced the front door speakers with some JBL speakers. I didn’t swap any of the tweeters, but I definitely will do that in the future to get those cleaner high end sounds. The sound is so unreal, it’s nothing like the stereo this truck has had since I bought it.

Why did I wait this long to fix these speakers??

 

[AlamoCruiser]

Tomorrow we start our two week trip through Colorado and Moab. I've been so busy doing stuff on the Lexus that I haven't been able to post many updates of all the things I've been doing to it. Recent work I've done is complete the plumbing for my running water system and wire the electric pump up. I designed it in a way that it can either pull water from a water source outside the vehicle, or pump water back out to wash hands, do dishes, fill water bottle, etc. I think it came out pretty good and will likely prove to be a useful part of our setup.

I also finished the dual battery system and have it fully operational. It took some tinkering and reading the dc dc charger manual like ten times, but it's all working now. I'll post some more details of those builds when I have the time.

Here's hoping to a trouble free two weeks!

 

[AlamoCruiser]

Well we're back from home from the trip safe and sound. The Lexus performed beautifully all around, with zero complaints on my actual vehicle. My creature-comfort modifications definitely left a lot to be desired , unfortunately. I'll start posting to log the days and events that took place for those who care, and for my own record keeping of the truck's life. Enjoy!


My brother shipped his 1985 4Runner up to my apartment a few days prior to him arriving so he didn't have the stress of a ton of highway miles coming up from Texas. The day we left, we took off the from Denver metro area and headed to Leadville, CO where my pops met up with us. We took a short, scenic, and easy trail drive to our first dispersed camp spot southbound along Weston Pass. The initial idea with my routing was for us to take trails when we could to avoid highway travel as much as possible. It was a great first campsite to have, with plenty of room to set up, an established fire ring, and minimal traffic passing by (I'd guess 6 total vehicles passed by).

My pullout kitchen setup worked great at this point, and I was able to cook chicken fajitas, rice, beans, tortillas, and grilled vegetables for dinner. My pops did breakfast the next morning while I used my coffee percolator to provide Stumptown coffee for everyone. I'm no coffee snob, but I definitely enjoyed these beans! Maybe it was the atmosphere more than anything though

 

[AlamoCruiser]

The next morning, we had breakfast and packed up the campsite. I used my 10 gallon on-board water system with a water pump to provide running water to fill up our water bottles and give the dogs water. The system was working beautifully so far, and the pump had pretty good flow. I purchased the pump based on recommendations on RV forums for a reliable and long lasting water pump. More on that later..

For our routing, we continued down Weston Pass heading southbound, using the Ruby offshoot for a slightly more challenging route (though admittedly still tame). All of us had a pretty rough night's sleep however, thanks to the temperature unexpectedly dropping to below freezing. Considering it's summer, we weren't exactly expecting that, so we all froze our a**es off for not being prepared for that cold of weather.

 

[AlamoCruiser]

After finishing Weston Pass, we took a dirt road and a small section of paved road to Buena Vista, CO for lunch and a beer. After some deliberation and hem-hawing, the majority of the group decided to get an AirBnB for the next two nights to be sure we didn't freeze again. We wanted to get as close to Ouray as we could for an affordable price, since that was our first week's destination anyways. We found a place in Montrose, CO, which was a 4 hours' drive from where we were, but only 1 from Ouray trailheads. This decision unfortunately knocked off my route/plan for us to take Tincup & Cumberland Pass and then camping along Los Pinos - Cebolla Pass to push us towards the Alpine Loop.

What we didn't realize, was that the highway we were taking to Montrose, CO was the subject of overnight construction closures and detours. That pushed our travel time from 4 hours to 7 hours. We would've made the 7 hour drive time had it not been for the detour being pitch black, all along a mountain's large canyon, and being stuck behind an 18-wheeler for probably 30 miles in a single-lane "no passing" zone. That was lots of fun! The good news is, once we passed the 18-wheeler, my 9" Ironman driving lights earned their money's worth 10x over by illuminating our path for the remainder of the highway.

The AirBnB we rented ended up being really nice, and was definitely built by a car guy. 3 car garage with oversized garage doors, epoxied floors, and a full handwashing sink and bathroom downstairs in the garage! Upstairs was pretty basic, as would be expected, but at least it had heat. My pops was warming up the grill while I was prepping the brauts I was cooking for dinner, only to find that someone left a lighter in the gas grill (didn't need a lighter to get going). That led to an unexpected explosion that ended up being pretty damn funny.

 

[AlamoCruiser]

After the long and tiring highway drive, we set out to do a more challenging trail the next day. We had our eyes set on the wall at Poughkeepsie Gulch just outside Ouray. My dad (LR4) had intentions to run the bypass while my brother and I had intentions to make it through the The Wall. I really enjoyed the scenic hill climb up the rock ledge that had the water flowing down it. Such a cool vibe

 

[AlamoCruiser]

More Poughkeepsie Gulch photos

 

[AlamoCruiser]

Around 1/4mi away from the Wall / Bypass split, my pops caught a particularly sharp rock that shredded the two passenger tire sidewalls of his LR4. This was ironically the only time he has ever ran tires that weren't BFG mud terrains, which never gave him a flat on the trail in 20+ years of off-roading. Those Toyo Open Country A/Ts have the weakest sidewalls I've ever seen on an "off road" tire. I definitely wouldn't ever recommend them to someone.

I used my ARB tire patch kit to repair the front passenger tire (~1.5" tear) and we put the spare tire in the passenger rear location due to it having a larger gash (~3" tear). For my first time repairing a tire on the trail, I am pretty proud with my execution and quality of the repair.

 

[AlamoCruiser]

Due to the nature of the punctures, we made the reasonable but sad decision to retreat back the way we came to make sure my dad got his LR4 off the trail.

We got back safely into Ouray and went straight to Ouray Brewing to have a beer about it while we searched for replacement tires for the LR4. Unfortunately the tires were an odd size to run, thanks to Land Rover’s 19” wheel size and limited tire space. My dad headed back to the AirBnB, and my brother, his girlfriend, and my wife and I went to Ouray Hot Springs for a nice dip in the warm water.

My dad ended up leaving for Grand Junction the next morning to get street tires to make the drive back to Texas, since those were the only available option. He was in good spirits as he left, however, and made sure to say he’s coming back with better tires soon and wants to hit the trails again!

 

[AlamoCruiser]

When my dad left in the morning, my brother and I set off for Ouray, this time to run Imogene Pass into Telluride where we would camp nearby. Imogene was an awesome trail and we had an absolute blast. Getting my LX up on Power Rock for "the photo" was pretty nerve wracking, but the picture was 100% worth it! This whole climb up to the summit, I chose all of the hardest lines I could find, and I made it up every one without a spotter. Did I mention how much I LOVE this truck??

At this point, I found out that my DC to DC battery charger from Renogy (40A unit) was not working. In fact, not only was it not working, it was actively doing the OPPOSITE of what it was supposed to be doing. Instead of charging the house battery every time I had the truck running, it was pulling power into the starter battery and creating a quicker drain on the house battery. I know this to be a defect in the charger, because I poured over the manual and insured probably 5 times over that every setting and wire was in it's correct spot. I thought maybe I had gotten the input and output sides mixed up, but when I switched them, the charger didn't turn on. I'm not new to electrical systems or wiring, so my deductive reasoning led to this being a defect in the unit. Definitely NOT ideal.

The unfortunate thing is that I used the house battery to run my Ironman driving lights, my inverter (which ran my fridge, aired up/down our air mattresses, and charged appliances like our GMRS radios), and my water pump. I only had about 4.5 Ah remaining in my 100Ah battery, so I had to make some risky decisions and modify the system on the fly. I left the water pump connected to the house and disconnected everything else from it. I then wired the inverter and the driving lights to my starter and just made sure to run the truck anytime I was using either system for more than a few minutes.

This proved to be a viable solution and I had no other problems with getting power to the house systems. I'm thankful that the Optima red top stood up to the task; it is truly an awesome battery.

 

[AlamoCruiser]

After camping at Mary E Campground and dealing with a grumpy permit maid at the campsite, we packed up and decided that today was the day we make it to The Wall on Poughkeepsie Gulch, so we're giving it a second try. This time we made it! I didn't get all the way up The Wall unfortunately, which was probably a combination of wheelbase, weight, and not really understanding where I needed to take my line. I think lockers and a lift would've made this climb a cinch, but alas, I'm still running AHC and ATRAC. No shame though, I had fun making a run at it and we still had a good time. My brother did make it up the wall first try in his unlocked 4runner though.. I was only a little bit jealous

After finishing Poughkeepsie, we connected into Hurricane Pass and took that trail back to civilization. We had a fun time at dinner when we found out they were doing karaoke. Always a good time and some of the locals were very entertaining lol

Feel free to flame me on my Wall attempt! This was my first of 4 attempts and just couldn't get past that same spot. I could've probably been a bit better with throttle control and gotten over it, but hindsight is 4-20 and in the moment I was staring at the sky with no idea where I was

 

[AlamoCruiser]

The next day saw our next departure from the party. Unfortunately Colorado is much more expensive than Texas and the funds didn't allow my brother to stick around for the next week in Moab, so that morning he headed home and we headed to Montrose to fill up on fuel and water before we began Rim Rocker into Moab. Our plan was to try and get at least halfway if not more before setting up camp for the night, and then finishing the trail the next day.

I picked up a 5 gallon gas jerry can at the Harbor Freight in Montrose in the event I got low on gas along Rim Rocker. Thankfully, I didn't come within 1/4 tank of needing it, but it was nice insurance to have when there are zero services or cell service around.

Also, big shoutout to Gaia Maps and Trails Offroad. Without those two subscriptions, I'd have been up a creek without a paddle. Those two services allowed me to not only plan routes, but have navigation and situational awareness during times when I had zero service. Big fan of both of them

 

[AlamoCruiser]

What a camp spot!! We had the best dispersed camp spot in a canyon along Rim Rocker. We didn't see a single soul the entire time we were out there, and had a completely unpolluted sky to stargaze as the sun went down. The weather was perfect and the solitude was unmatched. I wish we could've stayed at more camp spots like that one. I would like to note that my favorite photo of my truck was taken on this day (front of the truck under the overhanging rock face). What a cool a** photo!

But of course, we had to pack up and continue on. We finished the last half of Rim Rocker and arrived in Moab, where we had a campground reserved at Ken's Lake just south of Moab. This ended up being our least favorite camp spot for the entire trip; all of our neighbors partied LATE into the nights (I'm talking 5-6am), driving their stupid rented side by sides with the radio blasting, doing donuts just down the road from where we were trying to sleep, and overall just being inconsiderate leaving trash around. What a stark contrast that was coming from the pure bliss of solitude the night before.

With about 25 miles left in Rim Rocker, we started to notice my front suspension sounding like an old, creaking bed with every suspension movement. This ended up being the lower ball joints and tire rod ends drying out from lack of grease, thanks to the 9 million water crossings we did in Colorado. Once we got into town, it was an easy fix. I picked up a grease gun and needle, and injected more grease into the joints. After getting ~20 miles in, the squeaks were gone. It pays off to know how to work on your own vehicle!!

 

[AlamoCruiser]

Today brought more frustrations with my "house" modifications. After filling up 10 gallons of fresh water into my water tank, we headed to the lake for a little swim and relaxing. I found a great secluded spot along the coast, set up the 270* awning, and we jumped in the water. After a bit we decided to get some fresh water for ourselves and the dogs to avoid dehydrating, as the heat was consistently reach over 100*F every day while we were there. I click the button to turn on the water pump and.....nothing. I see a light, I know the switch is getting power. Maybe the waning second battery had reached a point of not having enough power?

I spent the next 30 minutes rewiring the water pump to pull from the starter. We were dying of thirst, ready to hydrate. I flick the switch, see the power light, and....nothing again. The pump died. 9 days into using this almost $200 water pump, it has unexpectedly failed without warning. Now I have 10 gallons of water in a HIGHLY inaccessible spot and no way to pump it out.

Bummed out, I packed up the truck and we headed to an outdoor supply store and I bought a 7 gallon jerry can that had a water spout. This would be our water source for the rest of the trip, and I would have a 10 gallon water ballast behind the back seats. Cool.

 

[AlamoCruiser]

The next day we traveled to Arches National Park to see some of the sights and drive down the Eye of the Whale and Tower Arch 4x4 trails in the park. The reviews on Trails Offroad sure didn't get into how technical parts of Tower Arch had become, and was certainly more than I had planned on doing (more because we were driving solo, not because of the difficulty). We pushed through and passed a Navtec 80 series along the way, which was nice validation that we were getting to see views that people pay $500+ to ride along and see. I had a blast on the trails, and feel my technique and finesse really shined on this trail.

 

[AlamoCruiser]

More photos of the Tower Arch trail and Arches NP

 

[AlamoCruiser]

Upon finishing Tower Arch trail, we headed back into town and had dinner and some decent beer at Moab brewing. The dogs absolutely loved going on this trip and we were so glad we could give them an opportunity to experience just being dogs and running around in water and mud and dirt and exploring off their leashes

 

[AlamoCruiser]

Our last full day in Moab allowed us for one more trail to run. I tried to find people to run Fins and Things and/or Hells Revenge this entire time in Moab with no luck. It seems like everybody I met was either on their way out of town, was getting into town just after we were leaving, or was renting their Jeep and didn't know s**t about driving harder trails. It was unfortunate timing, and I would definitely like to come back and run those two legendary trails sometime.

That being said, we decided to make the most of it and run a trail that has portions of it at risk for closure by the BLM office. Those were the Gemini Bridges and Seven Mile Rim trails. We took the opportunity to explore the dinosaur bones exposed in the rock about 1.5 miles off the trailhead of Seven Mile Rim before beginning the trail, which was pretty cool to see!

The main attraction for this trail was to see Uranium Arch, named so due to the government mining for Uranium to use in the first nuclear bombs in the vicinity of the arch. This was hands down my favorite arch to see, as we could walk up directly underneath it and there wasn't another person around for miles. The size of them really are stunning!