From a Fiesta ST to a GX, the Natural Progression (1 Viewer)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

I did a couple of things over the weekend:

Added a ProSpeed roof rack that I picked up from their introductory group buy a few months ago. Install was very straightforward with a buddy or 2 to help. Everything fits together nicely and Prospeed's customer service response was excellent for a couple of follow up questions I had. If you open the interior sunroof cover, you get a bit of wind noise at 65+, but it might only be noticeable because Lexus quiet. With the sunroof cover closed, there is no additional noise.

Also added Multi-Terrain Select. This is really straightforward assuming you have some interior panel tools or a decent spatula and can follow instructions and/or YouTube.

20210718_204110.jpg


20210718_164548.jpg
 
Last edited:
How's wind noise?
And just a heads up, if you place anything heavy over the entire length of your rack that may cause the center (width wise) to flex (e.g. large canoe, heavy lumber in the center or?), just make sure that front fairing isn't touching your roof top!
 
r2m said:
How's wind noise?
And just a heads up, if you place anything heavy over the entire length of your rack that may cause the center (width wise) to flex (e.g. large canoe, heavy lumber in the center or?), just make sure that front fairing isn't touching your roof top!
Click to expand...
I didn't notice any wind noise with the sunroof cover closed. If I opened the interior sunroof cover, there is some noise at highway speeds but it's not bad.

The crossbars seem pretty beefy and there is one right behind the front fairing so nothing canoe sized would rest on the fairing itself, but that is something I will look out for.
 
  • Like
Reactions: r2m
Well I think I'm reaching the point of no return and this is actually becoming a build.

I have a Victory 4x4 Blitz bumper in the garage and waiting on AlphaEquipt rock sliders to arrive before installing both. I'm a little worried the Alpha sliders will look short between the fenders but $750, in stock, and free shipping was too good a deal to pass up. I recently added the OEM hitch receiver and it is hilariously apparent that the 265/70/17 Pirellis will no longer fit the spare tire cut out. Some kind of swingout carrier is in my future I'm just debating how to do that since the "good" hitch mounted swingouts are close to the price of a full rear bumper. Once the bumper and sliders are on I think I will go back and restructure this into an actual build thread.
 
Banandalorian said:
Well I think I'm reaching the point of no return and this is actually becoming a build.

I have a Victory 4x4 Blitz bumper in the garage and waiting on AlphaEquipt rock sliders to arrive before installing both. I'm a little worried the Alpha sliders will look short between the fenders but $750, in stock, and free shipping was too good a deal to pass up. I recently added the OEM hitch receiver and it is hilariously apparent that the 265/70/17 Pirellis will no longer fit the spare tire cut out. Some kind of swingout carrier is in my future I'm just debating how to do that since the "good" hitch mounted swingouts are close to the price of a full rear bumper. Once the bumper and sliders are on I think I will go back and restructure this into an actual build thread.
Click to expand...
And so it begins...
 
Well I've been busy and am terrible at taking pictures/documenting when I actually install stuff. I suppose I can just add pictures later.
  • Installed my Victory Blitz front bumper and a Diode Dynamics Stage Series light bar up front.
    • For anyone installing a bumper, or at least a "low profile" one like the Victory or CBI steal I'd suggest making some kind of template to plan your cuts. It took a couple hours of test fitting and trimming over and over to finally get everything set.
    • After a few hours of test fitting for the front bumper cuts, I stopped paying attention and hacked off too much of the fender liner. I've fixed this temporarily with some ultra sticky duct tape until I decide I need new fender liners. Don't do this, as you'll get a lot of unnecessary wind noise.
    • The lightbar is good. I went with the amber flood/driving combo light and mounted low in the bumper it's kind of like a super fog light.
  • Installed my Alphaequipt sliders and rigged up some cheapo Amazon rock lights to the factory courtesy lights.
    • Installing the sliders was a breeze. I think it took longer to get the OEM sidesteps taken apart than it did to cut them and get the sliders on.
    • I saved the OEM wiring and the bolts used to mount the sidesteps to the body.
    • Ordered some $20.00 Amazon rocklights and a couple feet of 1/16th aluminum bar. Wired the lights to the OEM harness, "fabricated" (lol) some brackets and bolted back to the thread holes used to mount the original steps.
  • I've order Bud Built's full GX skids back in November. I got in touch with Bud last week and they're just waiting on the last plate to come back from powdercoating. I am looking forward to these so I can stop living in fear for my transfer case and fuel tank.
  • Picking up all the random odds and ends like a real air compressor, recovery boards, ropes, shackles, etc etc.
After all that, it's time to fall deep into the rabbit hole of winches, lifting a GX without ruining the ride and finding a better solution than strapping my spare to the roof. I also may pick up a Dr. KDSS controller as I find the 12mph limit to be just a tad low on a lot of trails.
 
Banandalorian said:
Well I've been busy and am terrible at taking pictures/documenting when I actually install stuff. I suppose I can just add pictures later.
  • Installed my Victory Blitz front bumper and a Diode Dynamics Stage Series light bar up front.
    • For anyone installing a bumper, or at least a "low profile" one like the Victory or CBI steal I'd suggest making some kind of template to plan your cuts. It took a couple hours of test fitting and trimming over and over to finally get everything set.
    • After a few hours of test fitting for the front bumper cuts, I stopped paying attention and hacked off too much of the fender liner. I've fixed this temporarily with some ultra sticky duct tape until I decide I need new fender liners. Don't do this, as you'll get a lot of unnecessary wind noise.
    • The lightbar is good. I went with the amber flood/driving combo light and mounted low in the bumper it's kind of like a super fog light.
  • Installed my Alphaequipt sliders and rigged up some cheapo Amazon rock lights to the factory courtesy lights.
    • Installing the sliders was a breeze. I think it took longer to get the OEM sidesteps taken apart than it did to cut them and get the sliders on.
    • I saved the OEM wiring and the bolts used to mount the sidesteps to the body.
    • Ordered some $20.00 Amazon rocklights and a couple feet of 1/16th aluminum bar. Wired the lights to the OEM harness, "fabricated" (lol) some brackets and bolted back to the thread holes used to mount the original steps.
  • I've order Bud Built's full GX skids back in November. I got in touch with Bud last week and they're just waiting on the last plate to come back from powdercoating. I am looking forward to these so I can stop living in fear for my transfer case and fuel tank.
  • Picking up all the random odds and ends like a real air compressor, recovery boards, ropes, shackles, etc etc.
After all that, it's time to fall deep into the rabbit hole of winches, lifting a GX without ruining the ride and finding a better solution than strapping my spare to the roof. I also may pick up a Dr. KDSS controller as I find the 12mph limit to be just a tad low on a lot of trails.
Click to expand...
Cannot wait for the pics. LOL
 
Banandalorian said:
Well I've been busy and am terrible at taking pictures/documenting when I actually install stuff. I suppose I can just add pictures later.
  • Installed my Victory Blitz front bumper and a Diode Dynamics Stage Series light bar up front.
    • For anyone installing a bumper, or at least a "low profile" one like the Victory or CBI steal I'd suggest making some kind of template to plan your cuts. It took a couple hours of test fitting and trimming over and over to finally get everything set.
    • After a few hours of test fitting for the front bumper cuts, I stopped paying attention and hacked off too much of the fender liner. I've fixed this temporarily with some ultra sticky duct tape until I decide I need new fender liners. Don't do this, as you'll get a lot of unnecessary wind noise.
    • The lightbar is good. I went with the amber flood/driving combo light and mounted low in the bumper it's kind of like a super fog light.
  • Installed my Alphaequipt sliders and rigged up some cheapo Amazon rock lights to the factory courtesy lights.
    • Installing the sliders was a breeze. I think it took longer to get the OEM sidesteps taken apart than it did to cut them and get the sliders on.
    • I saved the OEM wiring and the bolts used to mount the sidesteps to the body.
    • Ordered some $20.00 Amazon rocklights and a couple feet of 1/16th aluminum bar. Wired the lights to the OEM harness, "fabricated" (lol) some brackets and bolted back to the thread holes used to mount the original steps.
  • I've order Bud Built's full GX skids back in November. I got in touch with Bud last week and they're just waiting on the last plate to come back from powdercoating. I am looking forward to these so I can stop living in fear for my transfer case and fuel tank.
  • Picking up all the random odds and ends like a real air compressor, recovery boards, ropes, shackles, etc etc.
After all that, it's time to fall deep into the rabbit hole of winches, lifting a GX without ruining the ride and finding a better solution than strapping my spare to the roof. I also may pick up a Dr. KDSS controller as I find the 12mph limit to be just a tad low on a lot of trails.
Click to expand...
For all your smaller recovery gear (except the MaxTrax), I really love the rear quarter panel MOLLE plates and upper rear shelf! They keep everything tight, secure and off the floor.
Mine are all from Victory and have been very pleased with them.
My compressor mount is from Slee, again another great vendor.
 
I continue to be busy and not document any of it for internet clout.

I've finally come up with a nickname for the GX because all the extra weight is now enough to sag the OEM suspension and generally feel undersprung. I call her Mrs. Incredible because the GX's Pixar Mom-sized ass drags on everything :D

I got my full Budbuilt skids installed. They don't come with instructions but it's mostly straightforward once you figure out how to orient the threaded inserts for the extra cross bar. You might be able to do this yourself with a jack or 2 but it's much easier with a couple buddies.
I also added the Dirtcom Trailswing. It's expensive but it is very well built with no rattles and easy install/uninstall as needed. I vastly prefer dealing with the tire swingout vs strapping a spare to the roof.
I moved my backup camera from the OEM spot to underneath the 3rd brakelight in the rear spoiler. This works great with or without the trailswing installed. I probably should have documented this because it seems useful for others. I also added some Diode Dynamics reverse lights as the OEM incandescent bulbs were a little dim for the new camera location.
I did the filter mod for the SAIS system and am getting into my 60,000 mile maintenance schedule - debating whether I need transmission fluid flush/fill now as preventative maintenance or if I should hold off for another 10 or 20k.

I just (finally) placed an order for Dobinson's MRA kit. Those 15% off sales were too good to pass up and I think a 2 inch adjustable lift is just right for the GX. I have new bumpstops, UCAs, Dr. KDSS Panhard correction and other Dr. KDSS goodies to install with the lift. I won't have a free weekend to get into any of that until at least mid-December but I am excited to get the truck up off the ground a bit and nerd out with triple adjustable shocks.

The only thing I "need" after all that is maybe KDSS spacers/correction. I'd like to pick up a winch and a crawl control module and maybe add some additional courtesy/rock lights under the rear hatch.
 
  • Like
Reactions: r2m
Regarding your last line about picking up other little goodies, Christmas is just around the corner.
Any relatives/wife/kids in need of finding you a gift????
 
r2m said:
Regarding your last line about picking up other little goodies, Christmas is just around the corner.
Any relatives/wife/kids in need of finding you a gift????
Click to expand...
My wife's gift to me is the MRAs. My early Christmas present to her was keeping my explanation of why I need remote reservoirs and 3 way damping adjustment under 5 minutes lol.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: r2m
That wonderful moment where FedEx emails you on 11/21/2022 to say that your MRAs were delivered on 11/10/2022 to a different city...

I'm hoping they just have them at their freight depot/regional hub and this is a communication breakdown.
 
Update: FedEx actually did deliver my MRAs which required a signature and secure delivery to a different city, so that's cool. It only took like a week and 6 different customer service tickets for someone to finally recognize that the reason I can't find my package they delivered is because they delivered it somewhere else...(throws laptop out window)

Mike from Exit Offroad has been very helpful dealing with this and getting the lost package claim started from his side. I was just excited to get my lift installed ASAP because there are a lot of wet leaves in the Starbucks parking lot this time of year.
 
Update: MRAs were delivered at the end of December. Exit Offroad and Dobsinsons USA were super helpful and awesome getting that sorted out. They sat in my garage until February until I could finally get them installed at my buddy's giant garage/workshop. We took it slow and steady but install is relatively straightforward as long as you have the right tools and follow the KDSS procedure. External resevoirs complicate things a little but we just installed rivnuts where needed to get those mounted. After everything settled I ended up right about 2.3 inches of lift front/rear which is exactly what I was hoping for. I added Perryparts front and rear bumpstops and Ironman UCAs at the same time. My local Lexus dealer aligned everything a couple days later with no issues.

I also installed the Treaty Oak rear KDSS spacers and DrKDSS panhard correction. After driving for a couple weeks lifted without them, I would say they are both must haves for a lift. There was some odd chassis behavior prior to install - it was subtle, but I could definitely feel a little shimmy in certain instances while turning in, hitting bumps, or higher speed bumps. That is gone now.

The MRAs themselves ride great. I have them set a couple clicks softer than Dob's recommendation and it is Lexus smooth in normal driving. I haven't been able to do any actual off-roading yet but I've been in DC enough to know the new setup handles big bumps a lot better than OEM. I think the rear rebound could be increased a couple of clicks, which is a reminder that the rebound adjusters on all the shocks are annoying to access and manipulate.

I still have DrKDSS front brackets, lock rings, and controller, an Accesorides remote start, and an Auxbeam 8 gang switch panel sitting on my desk reminding me I need more free time.
 
Looks like you and I have pretty similar build philosophies. Wanting to keep the road manners while still being able to do more. Love it!
 
285/70/17 Mickey Thompson Baja Boss installed today. No rubbing on anything driving around on the street. Will need to cycle the suspension a bit and make sure that remains the case because the clearance to the body mount is going to be awfully tight.
Will update once i have more miles but they look awesome, which is the most important thing.
1000012663.jpg
 
Last edited:
Banandalorian said:
285/70/17 Mickey Thompson Baja Boss installed today. No rubbing on anything driving around on the street. Will need to cycle the suspension a bit and make sure that remains the case because the clearance to the body mount is going to be awfully tight.
Will update once i have more miles but they look awesome, which is the most important thing.
Click to expand...
Happy with your Alphaequipt wheels? Any install issues with their 2 valve design?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

T
Help from Wisconsin. (before I trade my 23' GX 460 for a LC 250)
2
Replies
21
Views
1K
TEQLC
T
F
Anyone done a power steering swap to the GX? - Needed for Comma Ai
2
Replies
25
Views
2K
Fractal
F
LXJake93
LX to GX - First Time GX Owner
2
Replies
31
Views
2K
LXJake93
LXJake93
M
Starting build 18 GX advice
Replies
12
Views
708
tech703
T

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)

Share this page

Back
Top Bottom