Moved on up: 40 to 200 - what to do first? (1 Viewer)

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Goldbug

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Rhode Island
I joined the LC club a few years ago with my beloved 1978 40 series but my 2014 4Runner wasn't really big enough to tow it. So might as well by a 200! There were other reasons of course too..

I bought it 2 weeks ago through Mud. Great seller, great vehicle. It's a 2011 with 180k miles on it now after driving it back from SC. It will be my daily driver but I'd like to do some serious cross country type road trips and moderate wheeling in it. The 40 will be for the east coast rock crawling stuff, but I'd love to get the 200 out to Colorado, Utah, etc. I'm debating what mods to do first and would love input. I have gone through most of the FAQs and "what have you done" threads, which helped me narrow it down.

It is bone stock now, first thing is to baseline it and take care of any preventive maintenance. I wasn't going to pull the trigger on a lift or new tires until the spring, but there are some great sales going on now. I'm considering ordering the Dobinsons 2" IMS kit here and then would do probably a set of KO2s since I've liked them in the past and I need something that can handle snow well. Do I have to do new Upper Control Arms too, or is that only above a 2" lift? I've done steering and suspension and a lot of other stuff on the 40, but the 200 is a different animal.

Thanks for the intel!

200 & 40.jpg
 
Great looking 40!

Here's an internet stranger's opinion on what to mod first:

 
Going from a 40 to a 200, the first thing I'd do is enjoy the heated steering wheel and seats this winter... For more "internet stranger" advice, I'd spend some time thinking about your use case(s) if you haven't already done so. There are so many things that can be done. I just jumped in and started by moding the last thing I broke so I wouldn't break it next time. Now I'm regearing and adding lockers. I still struggle with a consistent use case/theme at times. Is my 200 a rock crawler or an overlanding rig? I don't really know.

Really nice looking 40 there.
 
The stranger did a nice thread! I've been a fan of the approach of @wngrog on his 40s and on his 200, so borrowing liberally from him. I'm only rushing the lift because 15% off is a pretty darned good deal!

I like the comment @tbisaacs made about more restrained builds. That's what I tried for with the 40 and will he hoping for with the 200.

@kcjaz as for the creature comforts, so far the cool box is the big winner for me and my boys. I don't think mine has heated steering wheel, but I'll take the heated seats.

Any knocks on a 2" Dobinsons IMS lift?
 
I’d do lift and tires right away and go enjoy the beautiful mountains in Colorado and canyons in Utah. The question is what offset of wheels and size of tires do you want.
 
I’d do lift and tires right away and go enjoy the beautiful mountains in Colorado and canyons in Utah. The question is what offset of wheels and size of tires do you want.
Thinking 275/70/18s on the stock rims. But current Michelin road tires have plenty of tread, so not as big a rush. $300 off on a suspension upgrade is hard to pass up, plus the existing suspension has 180k miles and 11 years on it.
 
Nice pickup, and nice Mustard '40.
I'd do the lift now, and tires whenever you get to it, especially as the factory springs and shocks are certainly tired. You can get by with lower lift heights on stock UCAs. I'm on ~1.75-2" of lift with factory UCAs and it drives and rides well, and wears tires as evenly as a heavy full time 4x4 can. We use our 200 at least yearly on big road trips that include some moderate off-roading and it's great. What else can hold it's own high in the Colorado mountains, and then do 90 MPH across Kansas comfortably?
I do generally recommend a winch if you'll be travelling remote alone, but a hidden mount like @wngrog has will work fine. A bigger bumper like TJM or ARB does provide peace of mind when it comes to animal strikes and nudging trees though...
 
Thinking 275/70/18s on the stock rims. But current Michelin road tires have plenty of tread, so not as big a rush. $300 off on a suspension upgrade is hard to pass up, plus the existing suspension has 180k miles and 11 years on it.
I was skeptical with stock tires when I took my stock lc off-roading. Sharp and rough terrains scare me too much with the stock tires.
 
Stock tires or stock rims? What tires are you running or do you recommend? I'd basically like to do the biggest ATs I can reasonably fit without mods other than a 2" lift.
 

Check my thread out. I’ll show you what worked for me and what didn’t work.

Hit up @Ozark cruiser at Ozark Overland Outfitters for the “Nolen” package lift lol
 
Stock tires or stock rims? What tires are you running or do you recommend? I'd basically like to do the biggest ATs I can reasonably fit without mods other than a 2" lift.
285/70-18 on stock rims is a true 33 (sold as a 34”) and I’m super happy with it. I tow a lot and they don’t effect it at all
 
Welcome, stranger.

No. 1 on my list? Un-highlander it.

Where would I start?

New grill (easy and cheap)
Spacers (easy and cheap)
Tires (thanos level inevitable purchase and can take you where a 200 is supposed to go)

Im sure youll get to the bumpers eventually but the above is the biggest bang for the buck shift i can think of off the bat.
I can give you a laundry list of what i would do to that afterwards as well if you like...
 
I like the Iron man stuff and they run a lot of 25% off sales and free shipping. I've got the 2.5" lift , front bumper, 12K winch, and an RTT. Got them all when they were on sale and got free shipping. Shipping is a huge factor. About $300 + on an RTT or bumper.

I went with the Gamiviti Expo ++ for the rack. Very stout and can hold about anything. Lots of other stuff in my build thread( link in signature below). The Keon shelf is one of my favorite easy mods. Several other companies making similar shelves in the US now.
200a.jpeg
200b.jpeg
 
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Nice combo. I'd love to have both the 200 and a 40. The 200 can do so much, but has limitations that are starting to bother me (departure angle is my latest frustration, even with a nicely tucked dissent bumper).
 
There aren't many things better than a 40 and a 200. I towed my first gen pickup a few times with my 80 back in the day and I always felt the Toyota Gods appreciated the extra effort.

If you plan to tow, I would pick and choose my mods accordingly.
 
There aren't many things better than a 40 and a 200. I towed my first gen pickup a few times with my 80 back in the day and I always felt the Toyota Gods appreciated the extra effort.

If you plan to tow, I would pick and choose my mods accordingly.

200's Tow great.


200.jpeg
 
B963B183-B9C8-49B5-9481-ED5036A6A98A.jpeg

Yes, the 200 tows and hauls all the things 😆. Just watch the tongue weight and don’t expect to go much more than 200 miles on a tank….
 
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Yes, the 200 tows and hauls all the things 😆. Just watch the tongue weight and don’t expect to go much more than 200 miles on a tank….

I need to sort this achilles heel asap myself. I get around 250 city, and dont run past a 1/4 tank.
 
I need to sort this achilles heel asap myself. I get around 250 city, and dont run past a 1/4 tank.
I take it to the light pretty much every time, but I see sub 200 per tank Towing, 250-275 in town, and 275-300 on the highway at a reasonable speed. Best tank ever was 400 miles, but that was all at 50-55 mph through Teton and Yellowstone NP. I'd love to add the aux tank, especially for longer trips and heavier loads. When towing, even my 5 year old's bladder lasts longer than a tank of fuel. I just can't justify the cost.
 

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