bamachem's 2000 UZJ build thread (6 Viewers)

[bamachem]

Just putting it all in one thread like I should have done.

It's been a slow process, and mostly cosmetic, but it may help others starting from scratch.

Anyway, here goes...

Purshased June 2006, one previous owner, with 62k miles.

@ home...

 

[bamachem]

First thing to go was the anemic stereo with so-called "sub".

Link to the Speaker-Swap thread

I put some Pold DB675's 6.75" in all 4 doors using the stock speaker basket as a mounting point.

For an AMP, I currently have an Alpine V12 (old school) 4X40W for mids/highs and a JL 12W3 on another V12 to fill in the low end.

I recently changed the headunit (finally) to a Pioneer Premier FH 800 BT. Pretty nice unit for the price considering it has bluetooth connectivity to a phone or MP3 device, Ipod control, USB plug, 7-band EQ, Sub Controls, etc... All for under $300 shipped.

 

[bamachem]

I stripped off the Flares and cleaned up all the mess that the fender gasket adhesieve made. Uffff... (Notice the nice StinkBug stance here)

The bad news is that I found body damage (dents) on both rear panels from the damn flares pushing into the body by exterior contact. Nice - adding more to the "to-do" list.

Next, I cranked the torsion bars to raise the front just over an inch. It had over 2" of rake. I got it back to 1", and may go just a hair higher after the new tires are on.

 

[bamachem]

At this point, the UZJ was still my wife's and I had a 4runner. Last summer, we got her a convertible Solara, and I took the Cruiser.

I found some 06 Gunmetal 18" OEM wheels and put some Cooper Zeon LTZ tires on them, cranked the torsion bars to level it out some, and took off the running boards.

I've had a built trail rig, but since we're living at the beach now, it's kind of useless to have a double-locked truck on MT's with no trails within 300-miles of me and no time to drive that far to have some fun. With this truck - for now - I'm just going to eventually have a mild lift, 33's, and some mile steel armor, hence the 18's and 32" AT tires. I have to frequently use it for work, so it also has to be dependable (no trail breakage) as well.

285/60/18 Cooper Zeon LTZ.

 

[bamachem]

tires and wheels on... MUCH BETTER.

 

[bamachem]

pic @ 14,300 miles:

 

[bamachem]

Posted this @ 10/27:

116k miles.

(6) qts Royal Purple 5W30
(1) Mobile 1 M1-109 Filter
(8) Denso Platinum+ Plugs
(4) qts Synthetic ATF (drain and refill pan)
(1.6) qts Royal Purple 75W90 in front diff
(1.4) qts Royal Purple 75W90 in transfer case
(3.4) qts Royal Purple 75W90 in rear diff
Greased zirks in driveshafts

Cleaned Air Filter, MAF, and Throttle Body

Checked air pressure in tires (38 PSIG all around)

Besides laying off the skinny pedal, anything else that I'm missing for fuel economy???

I'm hanging at around 13MPG when it used to get around 16-ish in mixed conditions. I'm thinking I may have an O2 sensor on the way out. Similar thing happened on a 4Runner I had, and changing the front O2 sensor put the mileage back where it belonged.

Do the O2 sensors "fade" when they are on thier way out on the UZJ's?

In April, I got a CEL:

I got a pair of front DENSO oxygen sensors off of Amazon.

They were $53 and change each, then I signed up for some deal where they gave me 2-day air for free. All you have to do is then "opt-out" of the renewal and the shipping becomes completely free and they don't charge you for the service.

Anyway, for $106 shipped via 2nd day for the pair was just too good to pass on. I've had a CEL for Bank 2 Sensor 1 for about 6 weeks now and I'm just now getting around to getting it taken care of.

There hasn't been any appreciable change in the "average" mileage, but occasionally, I'll have a "bad" tank where I'll get 13MPG or so compared to the normal 15-16MPG (300 miles before the idiot light comes on).

I swapped them out in my garage in all of about 20-min for the pair. These are OEM @ 128K, and the truck has zero rust (10-years in the south).

 

[bamachem]

Built a bumper.... link to the thread

crappy blackberry pics...

7018 stick = stacked dimes on the frame bracket

fitting things up...

getting there. just a little more wing trimming...

some 6010 stick on the 1/8" plate on the insides:

more 7018 stacked dimes- this is on the outside where the 1/8" sheet meets the 3/8" plate.

7018 on the winch plate - not a high-stress piece, just for placement.

final shop fitting...

profile:

i'm really pleased w/ how the lines turned out.

didn't get a chance for any decent pics, but here's a couple more w/ the HELLA 2000's on it...

 

[bamachem]

I finally got around to getting the fog lights mounted in the bumper and painted the gray cladding and read bumper to match the truck.

 

[bamachem]

Now it's time to get the front bumper powder coated. That means it has to come off for at least a week, probably more. I went ahead and took it off and put the stock plastic back on, then sprayed it to match as a temp fix. Painted the grill black and the T emblem with some Hammered Gray.

 

[bamachem]

Playing around w/ the airbox and intake: link to thread

Of course I can't quantify how much of a difference it made, but I can say that it's very noticable at higher RPM, and even made some improvements at initial light-footed take-offs from a stop. It's basically the stock airbox w/ a re-sealable hole in the front which feeds to the throttle body via a custom intake tube.

The tube is a 3" rubber coupling, a 10" piece of 304L SS Sanitary Process Tubing, and a 3" 90* Rubber Elbow.

Idle sound is pretty much unchanged w/ the hood shut. Get on the throttle a little (1800-2000 RPM) and you can just start to hear it. Open it up and it's a NICE deep V8 sound with a MUCH improved throttle response.

Vids: **Right-Click, Save-As: Vid-1** **Right-Click, Save-As: Vid-2**



There's actually an open spot between the radiator and the headlight bucket that will allow some airflow into this area at higher speeds. If I'm going to cross some water or in a dusty area, just pop the deckplate back in and it's sealed (o-ring) and back to OEM.

 

[bamachem]

Next up: Electric Cooling Fan with Variable Speed Controller.

I'm mounting a Ford V8 19" Electric Radiator Fan inside the UZJ OEM Shroud, similar to an install I did on my 99 4Runner back in 2005. I will be using a 50-amp Variable Speed Fan Controller made by Delta Current Control.

From the 4Runner install:

The idea is to get rid of the mechanical fan, install the electric fan into the OEM shroud, and let the VSC control the fan speed based on the cooling duty that is required to maintain a constant radiator temperature. I had it installed in the 4Runner for two years before selling it and was very pleased with the added performance gain, quiet engine, and how well the controller ramped fan speed up and down as needed instead of the constant whirrrr of the mechanical fan. The zeihl-abegg type blade design of these fans are not only more efficient, but MUCH more quiet than the OEM design.

 

[deerhunter1557]

Great looking 100. did your CV axles leak any after you cranked your torsion bars?

 

[LCHardriver_02]

Looking forward to seeing more close ups of the final front bumper, with the fogs installed. Looking good!

Jonathan

 

[Skolfoppa]

Well done. Want to get rid of those oem fogs? I am waiting for feedback from the air intake set up before I go that route. Did you reset the ECU before testing? Skol.

 

[bamachem]

Great looking 100. did your CV axles leak any after you cranked your torsion bars?

They leaked a little. A zip tie "helper" @ each boot/axle shaft interface helped stop it.

Looking forward to seeing more close ups of the final front bumper, with the fogs installed. Looking good!

Jonathan

I'll see if I have some - might have to wait until I get it back on from the powder coater.

Well done. Want to get rid of those oem fogs? I am waiting for feedback from the air intake set up before I go that route. Did you reset the ECU before testing? Skol.

The OEM fogs go in the steel bumper. So far, the intake is nice, but I have only driven it about 40 miles since last week when I put it on. Once I have it on a while, I'll let you know. If it looks like my mileage fell off, then I'll just put the stock intake back on and keep the deckplate open. I did not reset the ECU. The MAF sensor still measures airflow at the same place - the only thing is now it will have an incremental amount of more airflow than it used to at the same RPM due to the less-restrictive inlet to the box. The tube should only impact sound, not performance according to the pressure drop numbers I saw for a Tundra, unless there's something funky going on w/ the resonance pressure waves as the valves cycle as was insenuated by Hoser in the other thread.

 

[Bighead]

Nice work Andy.

 

[bkgee]

The tube should only impact sound, not performance according to the pressure drop numbers I saw for a Tundra, unless there's something funky going on w/ the resonance pressure waves as the valves cycle as was insenuated by Hoser in the other thread.

The straight smooth tube will have substantially less "head loss" than a convoluted pipe with joints in it, ie will be less restrictive. The performance change due to the tube removal is not really a function of the resonator being removed as a resonator, but rather resonator being removed as an obstacle to air flow. I believe it would make a substantial difference, on the order of the difference between a K&N vs paper filter. Again, just my opinion.

PS, I've liked electric fans in the past for a couple of reasons, but I ended up removing them after I had an overheating event on a steep climb one day - the in-line fuse got melted and I did not know the fan was inoperable until i saw the temperature skyrocketing - luckily i was able to shut down, cool off and limp out without too much trouble. But the performance gain was not worth the risk, back to clutch fans for me.

 

[bamachem]

So far, the Electric Fan combined with the Deck Plate in the airbox really has helped with the throttle response. My fuel economy is up by about 1 MPG, but I want to get a few more tank-fulls on it to make sure.

Someone a week or so ago was asking about doing something like this. Here's a pic of my Sirius Starmate mounted where the ash tray used to be...

 

[uzj100]

Ever considered a ram air inlet through the hood or fender? Would it help at all?