The 200 is extremely capable in stock form, and the biggest thing it needs is clearance and rocker protection. The way to truly increase ground clearance is with bigger tires (a suspension lift doesn't actually increase ground clearance without increasing the diameter of the tire), and I'm a big fan of going with the biggest possible tires without any major work like cutting a body mount. I am a big of fan of Nitto Ridge Grapplers after running them on the 14, so it was logical to go with them on this truck. My bro in law has a Tundra with 295/70/18 RGs, so we swapped one of his onto my truck to see if it would work. It wasn't even close - WAY too big and would require a ton of work to get it to function, and I know from personal experience the compromises wouldn't be worth the marginal gains - I tried 3 different tire sizes on the 14 including a full 35x12.50x17 before going with a 285/75/17. His wheels also have 0 offset, so that certainly impacted the fitment.
I wanted to keep the stock 16 wheel for a few reasons - I like the way they look, they're likely to be fairly easy to replace for cheap in the event of damage, and it keeps a nice stock look. I narrowed down the tire size options to 285/70/18 which is essentially a 34x11x18, but the down side is the size isn't all that popular which means the available tires are expensive. I figured it was cheaper to spend a little more on the tires than to buy all new wheels, so it was worth it. Here is the truck totally stock with 285/70/18 RGs, ARB tow points, and running boards removed, and I think the simple changes transformed the look pretty dramatically. If I wasn't planning to wheel, this would be enough of an improvement to stop right there and is likely all 90% of the trucks out there "need".
The next step was something I've done to my 100 and 200 before and something I can't imagine going without - storage drawers. There are a few options on the market which have been discussed at length here, but I'll just say for me the ARB drawers are hard to beat. They function well, they look great, and they are cost effective and pretty light. I went with a roller top and a fixed top (RDRF 1045 and RD1045) along with the fit kit from Slee Off Road, and my bro in law with the Tundra and I tackled the job. He helped me install the drawers in my 100 and is one of those kind of guys who can figure anything out and make it look simple. He's also a big strong hockey player and can easily lift the completed assembly by himself which is pretty awesome if you've ever seen how awkward they are assembled!
Having installed them in the past, I knew if I wanted to do any sort of electrical in the back, this was the time to add it. I wanted to run power from the battery to a fuse block in the back to run the fridge, charging points, voltmeter, hatch lighting, and provide room to easily add accessories in the future. I wanted to do it right, so I ordered only Blue Sea and Anchor Marine stuff which I highly recommend. In general, anything marine rated will be high quality and corrosion resistant and more than sufficient for my needs. This was also the ideal time to add Slee's group 31 battery tray and the Interstate 31P-AGM7 battery. I don't believe my needs require a dual battery setup, but if that changes in the future it can easily be added. I also thought this was a good time to add the third row exit kit from Cruiser Outfitters as well as a National Luna hatch light from Equipt.
Here's a list of the equipment added at the same time as the drawers:
- Slee group 31 tray / Interstate AGM battery
- Blue Sea 285 series 100 amp circuit breaker
- Ancor Marine 6 gauge duplex wire (2 insulated wires within one thick rubber sheath)
- Blue Sea 5025 6 circuit fuse block with negative bus
- Blue Sea fuse kit
- Blue Sea 4356 Below Deck outlet with USB and 12v charging ports along with voltmeter
- Ancor marine lugs, heat shrink insulated ring terminals, tubing, wire loom and braided sleeving
- National Luna touch light white/amber (
Touch Light)
- Cruiser Outfitters third row exit kit (
Cruiser Outfitters)
- LED license plate lights
After wrapping up the drawers and electrical, I dropped it off at Slee for some big upgrades. I had the standard Old Man Emu lift kit on the 14, and it was good, even great - especially for the money. For this truck, I wanted something a bit more robust, and the Icons on the Tacoma had spoiled me. Slee installed BP51s along with SPC UCAs and aligned it to help clear the new tires. I suggest when building a truck to get the tires you want on it before you get the lift and alignment done so the shop (if they know what they're doing) can make adjustments to clear the tires. Of course Slee is a world class shop and did a perfect job getting it right, and they also installed sliders at the same time.
I picked up the truck and headed to Moab the next morning to test it out. I slept in the back of the truck on the drawers (my preferred camp set up when solo) and wheeled several trails - Metal Masher, Dome Plateau and Wipe Out Hill. Everything worked flawlessly, and the only issue I noticed was the departure angle left something to be desired which wasn't shocking. A rear bumper was always going to be part of the build plan, so I didn't mind a couple scratches. It was pretty funny to see people's reaction to a 200 with temp tags wheeling with 3 triple locked 80s and a built mini truck with tube doors and Super Swampers
Fun stuff!
