Builds Bunny: 40th Anniversary FZJ80 / 6BT / NV4500 build (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter thegogglesdonothing
- Start date
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- Thread starter
- #142
Got another of my major planned upgrades installed - I put together a dual battery system and did basic electrical distribution around the truck to suit my needs. As always, it was great to cruise through Mud and put together a bunch of other people's ideas and products into the solution for my own truck. The "last" upgrade I'll do is a full-on rear storage project and stereo upgrade, so I tried to take everyone's advice here and be thoughtful about where I located all the elements in the rear of the truck so as not to get in the way of future drawers.
- From Slee I ordered the factory washer bottle relocate kit, OEM Toyota right side battery tray, an IBS dual battery monitor / control system.
- From Labrak I ordered a factory rear accessory panel - and will eventually buy Shane's 10" subwoofer mount panel as well.
- From Amazon I ordered Bluesea components: a number of fast-charge USB outlets and fuse panel, a Samlex 450w inverter and an Optima redtop as the auxiliary battery.
After about three minutes' thought, I occured to me that I could either choose to badly mess up the install myself, or just pay a professional to do it... professionally. My friend Mike Kirk at MBS Auto here in Albuquerque did the install for me, and I'm pumped at how it came out.
The IBS unit stays out of my way mounted to the side of the shift console, and I located dual USBs beneath the head unit, in the center armrest and to the rear of the center console, at foot level for rear passengers (good for charging iPads and storing them in the map pockets on the front seats) and adjacent to a re-wired 8 gauge 12v circuit for my fridge. That last one is a temporary solution, until Joey @ Wits End gets done assembling the dedicated Anderson fridge plug kit I'd ordered.
I'm currently struggling to justify spending $80 each on OEM seat heater switches, so until that time comes I'm having to do my best not to freak out about circular switches in rectangular knockouts.
Out back, I used the convenient spot formed by removing the rear cubby to locate the fuse box and inverter. This way, should I need to power both my curlers and hair dryer at the same time, I'll have the ability. Lastly, one more dual USB plug in the space in the curve of the rear panel - there's a negative space there on the body of the truck, for... rear air conditioning or something? The good news is, when it comes time to finally do a subwoofer and amp and all that, there's ample space left to use Labrak's sub / accessory mount, then cover it all up with drawers.
I was impressed with how cleanly the whole passenger side of the engine bay came together, even with the different dimensions of the Cummins versus the stock gas motor. There was minor cutting of the battery tray needed, but Slee was communicative about that.
- From Slee I ordered the factory washer bottle relocate kit, OEM Toyota right side battery tray, an IBS dual battery monitor / control system.
- From Labrak I ordered a factory rear accessory panel - and will eventually buy Shane's 10" subwoofer mount panel as well.
- From Amazon I ordered Bluesea components: a number of fast-charge USB outlets and fuse panel, a Samlex 450w inverter and an Optima redtop as the auxiliary battery.
After about three minutes' thought, I occured to me that I could either choose to badly mess up the install myself, or just pay a professional to do it... professionally. My friend Mike Kirk at MBS Auto here in Albuquerque did the install for me, and I'm pumped at how it came out.
The IBS unit stays out of my way mounted to the side of the shift console, and I located dual USBs beneath the head unit, in the center armrest and to the rear of the center console, at foot level for rear passengers (good for charging iPads and storing them in the map pockets on the front seats) and adjacent to a re-wired 8 gauge 12v circuit for my fridge. That last one is a temporary solution, until Joey @ Wits End gets done assembling the dedicated Anderson fridge plug kit I'd ordered.
I'm currently struggling to justify spending $80 each on OEM seat heater switches, so until that time comes I'm having to do my best not to freak out about circular switches in rectangular knockouts.
Out back, I used the convenient spot formed by removing the rear cubby to locate the fuse box and inverter. This way, should I need to power both my curlers and hair dryer at the same time, I'll have the ability. Lastly, one more dual USB plug in the space in the curve of the rear panel - there's a negative space there on the body of the truck, for... rear air conditioning or something? The good news is, when it comes time to finally do a subwoofer and amp and all that, there's ample space left to use Labrak's sub / accessory mount, then cover it all up with drawers.
I was impressed with how cleanly the whole passenger side of the engine bay came together, even with the different dimensions of the Cummins versus the stock gas motor. There was minor cutting of the battery tray needed, but Slee was communicative about that.
- Thread starter
- #143
Mercifully, all quiet on the cruiser front for me lately, have just been driving it around and enjoying. My next priorities for further mods have to do with the pair of husky puppies we rescued - I need to sort out how to transport them safely, and over time how to transport them on 4x4 camping trips. First up, a Raingler net so I can isolate them in the rear, but for the time being, we found an Orvis sling / hammock that covers the back seats and gives them someplace to be a little constrained, and it works in all of our cars. They both seem to love sticking their faces out the window so my plan is to isolate them in the cargo area... but I need to figure out drawers and long-term storage before that's super viable.
Funny to say, but I really missed nose prints on the inside of all my windows.
Funny to say, but I really missed nose prints on the inside of all my windows.
Dirty Koala
SILVER Star
How are the seats holding up? Did you get the seat base shaved down? i see that is an option from corbeau. How is the seat height an leg room compared to the stock seat? I picked up an LX450 that need some help in the seat department and these look appealing.
- Thread starter
- #145
Seats are great. There’s a lot of bolster at the hips and around your ribs, and I think 5 more seasons of ingress/egress with fishing waders and work pants might beat up the foam, particularly at the hip. One thing I found is that I do have to kind of drop my ass in the seat because the bolsters make sliding on/off the side of the seat less easy - they’re just foam with not a ton of structure in them, so my bet is that’s what will wear down first.
As for install, it was a straight bolt-in, no shaving of anything at all, using Corbeau’s bracket product. The brackets lined up with the factory holes nearly perfectly so I didn’t have much wrestling to do.
I sit with the slider all the way back and it feels pretty good on the ergonomics, and the seat height is just right. I need to move the pedal and pedal box slightly, but that’s more to do with how the throttle pedal sits relative to the transmission tunnel than it is the seat. It's a small thing but I do wish the headrest was positioned a little further forward - I have to lean my head at a weird angle backward to really use it. After about hour 8 of a driving day, that's a tiny bummer.
As for install, it was a straight bolt-in, no shaving of anything at all, using Corbeau’s bracket product. The brackets lined up with the factory holes nearly perfectly so I didn’t have much wrestling to do.
I sit with the slider all the way back and it feels pretty good on the ergonomics, and the seat height is just right. I need to move the pedal and pedal box slightly, but that’s more to do with how the throttle pedal sits relative to the transmission tunnel than it is the seat. It's a small thing but I do wish the headrest was positioned a little further forward - I have to lean my head at a weird angle backward to really use it. After about hour 8 of a driving day, that's a tiny bummer.
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #146
Here's photos, seems like people are curious about these seats so hopefully this gives a reference. The grey cloth is staining a bit and Corbeau doesn't make a tight-fit cover for it yet - I've asked. Maybe with a darker color, you wouldn't see staining as much.
The two pictures here are with the steering wheel tilt all the way up, then all the way down.
The two pictures here are with the steering wheel tilt all the way up, then all the way down.
Dirty Koala
SILVER Star
Thanks this is very helpful...now to figure out which color would work in the silver LX450 with tan interior.
Will Van
GOLD Star
Could someone expound on this point a bit? You have one seal for the t-case adapter plate (to keep fluid in the NV4500) and one seal on the HF2AV itself?
Dirty Koala
SILVER Star
Yes that is correct. Originally the adapter plate didn't have a seal design built in and unfortunately @thegogglesdonothing had all his gear oil migrate from the NV4500 into the HF2AV killing his transmission. The redesigned adapter plate now has a hole designed to take a xfer case inputseal...same one used in the xfer case input. Since those seals are designed to hold fluid in one direction only, you press the seal into the plate in the opposite orientation as the one in the xfer case. With this setup you have one seal in the xfer case (factory) to keep gear oil in the xfer case and one seal in the adapter plate to keep fluid in the trans.
Will Van
GOLD Star
Great explanation! Thanks!
Will Van
GOLD Star
If you're running competition coils in the front with the 6BT, what do you recommend for the rear? I have sliders, drawers, fridge, and rear plate bumper with full size spare (and potentially sub-tank). J-coils? I'd like 2.5" to 3" of lift.
- Thread starter
- #152
Your truck looks great man!
I've got 4" OME comp coils in the rear and with a full load of camping crap, full rear bumper and single 35" spare, the truck is starting to lose some rear ride height for me. I plan for a larger fuel tank and drawer system too, so the weight will only be going up, but I will say that as it stands I've got "enough" lift in the rear. Moab-grade rock crawling is still totally possible with a full load on the suspension setup I've got, but I think I'm due for a stouter suspension setup overall when I take the next step, gear-wise.
Attached are photos of how the truck sits *mostly* loaded (just my table and 60lb. box of gear unloaded) as well as a representative picture of how much crap I haul.
I'm still running the Slee 4" mediums in the rear. They work just fine and the truck seems to be level front to rear with my setup. New build will probably have 4" comp springs all around.
Great write up and excellent journey so far!
I've sent @thegogglesdonothing a PM, but would anyone happen to know what the airbox is out of?
The airbox is custom diesel adapters piece, if you want one I'll send you one i have
Thanks for the offer mate, I'm in Australia though so it might be a bit expensive to ship.
True and it's just an airbox, easy enough to make up something else
- Thread starter
- #159
Made some livability changes in preparation for a big multi-week trip coming up in July. First and foremost goal was increasing organization and packing for camping, and I scored a sweet used ARB / Alucab setup. It's going to be a fun process trying to organize the whole cargo storage for optimum camping attack!
I finally was able to use my @NLXTACY Anderson SB50 wiring kit for the fridge too. It's stout and solid and will fall very nicely in small gap between the edge of the seat and front edge of the drawers. I'm pretty sure this new setup will be the first time my fridge has actually run with a proper operating envelope around it, too.
Also I replaced the s***ty rubber pedal covers I had on with some grippy billet aluminum jobs - they pass the wet fishing boot test with flying colors, and I was able to finally get my fuel pedal arm straightened and lowered a bit, so the front of my shin and numb sciatic nerve will thank me for the ergonomics. I'm using the pedal box out of a 1995 Dodge Ram, and with the transmission tunnel based into the footwell a bit to accommodate the NV4500, it's taken some fiddling with the pedal position to get it all working right. No more accidental pedal crossover or clunky on/off the throttle.
I finally was able to use my @NLXTACY Anderson SB50 wiring kit for the fridge too. It's stout and solid and will fall very nicely in small gap between the edge of the seat and front edge of the drawers. I'm pretty sure this new setup will be the first time my fridge has actually run with a proper operating envelope around it, too.
Also I replaced the s***ty rubber pedal covers I had on with some grippy billet aluminum jobs - they pass the wet fishing boot test with flying colors, and I was able to finally get my fuel pedal arm straightened and lowered a bit, so the front of my shin and numb sciatic nerve will thank me for the ergonomics. I'm using the pedal box out of a 1995 Dodge Ram, and with the transmission tunnel based into the footwell a bit to accommodate the NV4500, it's taken some fiddling with the pedal position to get it all working right. No more accidental pedal crossover or clunky on/off the throttle.
- Thread starter
- #160
Lastly, hacked together a gauge pod solution for EGTs and turbo pressure out of an incorrect Acura Integra (Autometer 20100) and am calling it good enough until a more elegant solution comes onto the marketplace. I did a ton of searching and @boydmick 's thread helped me figure out what was gonna do the trick.
Next up, a rear ceiling attic net and a cargo barrier, and then some tuning on the motor to get a bit more power. I'm pushing 50k on the motor and transmission swap now, so feels like the time is right to stop messing around with stock tuning.
Next up, a rear ceiling attic net and a cargo barrier, and then some tuning on the motor to get a bit more power. I'm pushing 50k on the motor and transmission swap now, so feels like the time is right to stop messing around with stock tuning.
