Builds Bruiser Cruisah' Build Thread (1 Viewer)

[Sac Cerevisiae]

I'm starting this build thread to document my Land Cruiser's progression. My goals are to keep the Land Cruiser light and close to a family daily driver but lightly modified enough for light off-roading and occasional intermediate/difficult trails. Immediate needs are minimal with goals of bigger upgrades in future years.

I purchased the vehicle to serve as a conduit for future camping and outdoor trips with the family. The hope is to get us outside more but in the comfort the wife and child demand.
Prior to this truck, I have never wrenched or worked on a vehicle so I plan on documenting my build from a layperson's perspective and understanding. Hopefully I can help others on Mud as they have helped me.

Background:
2016 Toyota Land Cruiser; Series: URJ200L; Model: GNZVKA; Trim: VX-R
Manufactured July 2016; Purchased used from one-owner with 6,891 miles in July of 2018
Midnight Black Metallic on Black

Typical Uses
- Daily driver
- Weekend hauler for gear (sports practice, mall crushing)
- Short weekend trips to beach, mountains, and desert.
- Week-long excursions: guys trips, and longer family destination trips

Needs
- Transportation: comfort, safety, ease of use
- Shelter: camp in car or rooftop tent (RTT)
- Cooking: minimal galley: stove, refrigerator, sink
- Comfort: potable water, shower, awning/shade structure
- Storage: clothing/gear, table(s), chairs, tools

Immediate Upgrades
- Off-road/AT tires - DONE: AMP Terrain Pro A/T 285/65R18
- Suspension / Lift: 2.5-3" - DONE: ARB OME: 2702 / 2722 F/R Coils, 91005 / 61029 F/R Shocks, & Light Racing SPC UCAs SUS25465
- Sliders/step bar - DONE: BudBuilt .120 DOM Rock Sliders w/ Kicker & Full Dimple Die Down Fill Plate
- ODB-II readout - DONE: OBD Link MX+
- Rear Shock Armor: DONE: BudBuilt Rear Shock Armor
- Lower Control Arm Skids/Armor - DONE: Trail Tailor Lower Control Arm Skids
- Wheel Spacers - DONE: Motorsport BORA 0.75" aluminum spacers
- Roof rack - DONE: T-Slot aluminum in stock rails or Prinsu/Rhino etc.
- Drawer system - DIY or Land Shark Outfitters KISS Drawers
- Dual battery / Solar Generator
- Lighting: forward flood & spot, rear flood, area/side, rock lights underneath (camp ambiance)

Future Upgrades
- Front Bumper: ARB Deluxe (for crash ratings)
- Rear Bar: Kaymar or Trail Tailor
- Winch
- Air compressor - possibly portable
- Snorkel - ARB after Cole’s mishap...
- Skid plates - BudBuilt, may need earlier
- Extra / new oversized fuel tank

Mods & Projects
- Billet Oil Cap & Drain: DONE: Jowett Performance Billet Oil Cap
- Rear DVD screen delete: DONE: TrekboxX Rear DVD Delete Cover
- Remove Running Boards: DONE
- Build chuckbox/camp kitchen
- Chrome “delete”
- Vinyl decals - Ivan "Ironman" Stewart Toyota Racing inspired
- Ceramic coating (black paint sucks when scratched)

Vendors I support
Rob (@Taco2Cruiser) at BudBuilt
Kurt (@cruiseroutfit) and Bryce at Cruiser Outfitters
Jason (@TRAIL TAILOR ) at Trail Tailor
Brian (@bjowett) at Jowett Performance
David (@TrekboxX ) at TrekBoxX

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

Picture from the day I purchased

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

Installed LT285/65R18 tires

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

First major upgrade is suspension. I'm looking to increase ride height and approach/depart angles as well as firm up the suspension feel.

After much deliberation, I decided on the ARB Old Man Emu (OME) Nitrocharger Sport shock absorbers and springs. "Better" systems are certainly available, but for my needs the OME setup met the requirements at a cost that allowed for other upgrades to happen. I also opted to upgrade the upper control arms to Light Racing SPC UCAs. They may not be "necessary" for a 2" lift but they were highly recommended.

Many thanks to the team at Cruiser Outfitters. @cruiseroutfit Kurt and Bryce were beyond helpful in answering all my questions and helping me decide on the proper options.

Last week my new suspension arrived.

I finally had time to take inventory and start prep for installation this weekend.

I had Cruiser Outfitters pre-assemble the front struts, a great service and they came labeled thankfully.

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

There was some debate recently on OME spring heights not working well with, or not designed for the 2016+ models.

I took initial measurements of the 2722 rear springs and I will measure the oem Toyota springs at take-off.

"A" Lefthand

"B" Righthand

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

Here are the measurements from the OEM Toyota springs.

Driver/Left Side measured ~42cm (about 1cm shorter than the ARB OMEs)

Passenger/Right Side measured ~45.3cm (about 1.4cm TALLER than ARB OME).

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

I completed the install of the ARB OME: 2702 / 2722 F/R Coils, 91005 / 61029 F/R Shocks, and the Light Racing SPC UCAs SUS25465. The project was A LOT harder than I had originally expected. I did not have previous experience working with suspension systems nor did I have assistance. As someone wise once told me, "Experience is the thing you get after you need it." I could have saved hours of time and much frustration if I had someone on hand to help so please don't let my experience dissuade you from trying it yourself.

Big thank you to @Fooness who came to my rescue at one point to help out for a bit.

Here are the before and after measurements I took after install. I will update the values once I've driven more and allowed all the systems to settle. I also plan on opening the KDSS values again to help even things out.

There is a slight lean 0.75 cm between the LR and RR heights. I'm hoping that things will settle, the alternative is to use the 10mm ARB spacer.

All measurements in CM

	Left Front​	Right Front​
Before	88.20​	88.70​
After	97.50​	97.50​
Gain	9.30​	8.80​
	Left Rear​	Right Rear​
Before	91.50​	91.90​
After	99.25​	98.50​
Gain	7.75​	6.60​

Overall I gained about 9.05 cm (3.56 in) in the front and 7.18 cm (2.82 in) in the rear. The Front-Rear difference went from 3.25 cm (1.28 in) to a near-level 1.38 cm (0.54 in) difference.

Here is my "after" shot.

And some comparison shots next to a neighbors 2017.

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

I also installed the Trail Tailor Lower Control Arm Skids after a couple spray coats of Rustoleum rattle can.

For good measure and uniformity, I also sprayed my front tie downs and recovery points.

 

[mcgaskins]

I completed the install of the ARB OME: 2702 / 2722 F/R Coils, 91005 / 61029 F/R Shocks, and the Light Racing SPC UCAs SUS25465. The project was A LOT harder than I had originally expected. I did not have previous experience working with suspension systems nor did I have assistance. As someone wise once told me, "Experience is the thing you get after you need it." I could have saved hours of time and much frustration if I had someone on hand to help so please don't let my experience dissuade you from trying it yourself.

Big thank you to @Fooness who came to my rescue at one point to help out for a bit.

Here are the before and after measurements I took after install. I will update the values once I've driven more and allowed all the systems to settle. I also plan on opening the KDSS values again to help even things out.

There is a slight lean 0.75 cm between the LR and RR heights. I'm hoping that things will settle, the alternative is to use the 10mm ARB spacer.

All measurements in CM

	Left Front​	Right Front​
Before	88.20​	88.70​
After	97.50​	97.50​
Gain	9.30​	8.80​
	Left Rear​	Right Rear​
Before	91.50​	91.90​
After	99.25​	98.50​
Gain	7.75​	6.60​

Overall I gained about 9.05 cm (3.56 in) in the front and 7.18 cm (2.82 in) in the rear. The Front-Rear difference went from 3.25 cm (1.28 in) to a near-level 1.38 cm (0.54 in) difference.

Here is my "after" shot.
View attachment 2037702

And some comparison shots next to a neighbors 2017.
View attachment 2037705
View attachment 2037707
View attachment 2037709
View attachment 2037710

Nice work - I know that takes a lot of time and patience. What are you measuring in your before and after? If you got over 3.5" of lift up front, that would be very unusual (unless you're counting height gained by tires as well which isn't the "right" way to check lift height", and it doesn't look like 3"+ in the photos. See this post here with how I measured and a table to show before/after with mine vs a stock truck sitting on a Toyota lot. If you truly got that much lift, I'd look into a diff drop because your CVs will be at too steep of an angle and will eventually cause issues like torque steer in the short term and leaky CVs in the longer term.

Builds - mcgaskins' 2016 build thread - Ruby

I mounted the Maxtrax on the roof with their universal mounting pin set. I drilled through the factory cross bars because I don’t really have a need for an aftermarket roof rack, and if I’m being honest I’m not a fan of them due to wind noise. I’m the most sensitive person I know to any creaks...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

Nice work - I know that takes a lot of time and patience. What are you measuring in your before and after? If you got over 3.5" of lift up front, that would be very unusual (unless you're counting height gained by tires as well which isn't the "right" way to check lift height", and it doesn't look like 3"+ in the photos. See this post here with how I measured and a table to show before/after with mine vs a stock truck sitting on a Toyota lot. If you truly got that much lift, I'd look into a diff drop because your CVs will be at too steep of an angle and will eventually cause issues like torque steer in the short term and leaky CVs in the longer term.

Builds - mcgaskins' 2016 build thread - Ruby

I mounted the Maxtrax on the roof with their universal mounting pin set. I drilled through the factory cross bars because I don’t really have a need for an aftermarket roof rack, and if I’m being honest I’m not a fan of them due to wind noise. I’m the most sensitive person I know to any creaks...

forum.ih8mud.com

I didn't measure the "proper" way, just ground to bottom of the fender. The tires and wheels were the same in both measurements.
The next time my neighbor leaves his stock LC out, I'll measure his for comparison.

 

[mcgaskins]

I didn't measure the "proper" way, just ground to bottom of the fender. The tires and wheels were the same in both measurements.
The next time my neighbor leaves his stock LC out, I'll measure his for comparison.

View attachment 2037751

View attachment 2037751

Interesting. Hopefully they settle after you drive a bit. I guess now that I think about it mine had been on for a couple months and wheeled by the time I measured, so mine were definitely settled in (still didn't have a front bumper at the time however).

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

Interesting. Hopefully they settle after you drive a bit. I guess now that I think about it mine had been on for a couple months and wheeled by the time I measured, so mine were definitely settled in (still didn't have a front bumper at the time however).

Goal is to remeasure once I put some more miles on. I'm expecting about a 0.5-0.75 in drop in lift once things settle.

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

I took some measurements from center of hub to bottom of the fender as well as some ground to body points on my neighbor's stock 2017. Compared to my tire/suspension upgrades I'm running about +/- 8 cm (3 5/32") higher. I'll monitor the CVs but I'm hoping the SPC UCAs do their job and I don't need a diff drop. I haven't read that anyone doing this OME setup needed a drop.

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

Received my BudBuilt sliders the other day. Planning on installing this weekend before LCDC.

Where’s the beef? Right here. These are nice.

 

[slowride]

Looking Good!!!

Thank you very much for the extremely detailed list of mods...

It is making it easier for me to get ready to make the jump myself...

My 200 has the dreaded cruiser lean syndrome... The left front is low no matter how many tricks we try...

I'm hoping the OME lift will level it out...

Thanks,

Jeff

 

[christianleeboy]

Thank you for sharing your build~
I am thinking of getting the OBDLink MX+ for my 2016 LC200. How has it been treating you? Any issues? Would you consider another OBD scanner?

Christian

 

[Sac Cerevisiae]

Thank you for sharing your build~
I am thinking of getting the OBDLink MX+ for my 2016 LC200. How has it been treating you? Any issues? Would you consider another OBD scanner?

Christian

Having not owned another make/model I can’t compare but the MX+ has been great. I like that it doesn’t require a subscription and that it gets software updates proving that the manufacturer supports the hardware.

I have used it to clear codes and monitor vehicle status. I do wish I could access some of the personalization options of the car. Maybe I’m missing it? I also haven’t tried to link it to a laptop to use TIS yet.

 

[Ozon8r]

Received my BudBuilt sliders the other day. Planning on installing this weekend before LCDC.

Where’s the beef? Right here. These are nice.

View attachment 2039691
View attachment 2039692

any pics with these sliders installed? Debating going with the straight or kicker style from budbuilt. Thx

 

[christianleeboy]

Having not owned another make/model I can’t compare but the MX+ has been great. I like that it doesn’t require a subscription and that it gets software updates proving that the manufacturer supports the hardware.

I have used it to clear codes and monitor vehicle status. I do wish I could access some of the personalization options of the car. Maybe I’m missing it? I also haven’t tried to link it to a laptop to use TIS yet.

Thanks for the report!

 

[reddog90]

Any pics from LCDC?