My 1999 Land Cruiser Build (1 Viewer)

[OffRoadRN]

I started getting interested in the idea of off roading/overlanding a couple years ago. I had a DRZ that I loved riding, but wanted something that the whole family could do together. I was looking at XJ's, 4runners, and other less expensive options. I eventually found a 1999 Land Cruiser for sale just around the corner from me that was within my budget. It was a two owner vehicle, and had spent the last 20 years here in California. The original owner brought it in from Colorado in 2001 with only 20k miles on it. They didn't have a lot of maintenance records for it, but car fax showed a lot of consistent service at the local quick lube in town.

Here she is the day I brought her home, Nov 2021:

It came with the OEM wheels (thankfully) and two keys, one master, and one valet key. My cousin bought a third gen 4R around the same time, and we started doing some maintenance and mods together, which was a lot of fun.

Here is the truck as it sits today (Updated 12/27/22):

Current List of Mods:

• Dobinsons IMS lift, 2.5" including torsion bars and UCA's
• Trail Tailor differential drop and extended sway bar end links
• White Knuckle rock sliders
• Slee steel skid plate set
• Maxxis Razr M/T's
• Loncky steering wheel cover
• Weathertech mats (front and middle)
• Iggee vinyl seat covers
• Maxi Trac awning
• Onboard air (Smittybilt compressor, custom manifold)
• Dissent front bumper with Diode Dynamics fog lights
• Smittybilt X20 Gen 3 12k Winch with control box relocation and in cab controls
• Auxbeam 8 gang tied to OEM style switch
• Prinsu roof rack

Maintenance items completed:

• Front/Rear differential and transfer case oil
• Engine oil and filter change (Mobil 1 Full Synthetic/Filter)
• Battery replaced (Interstate Group 27)
• CSF Radiator with Gates hoses (using Toyota Red coolant)
• Heater T's and hoses (OEM)
• Fuel filter (OEM)
• Magnaflow muffler and resonator delete
• Lower ball joints (ACDelco)
• Inner/Outer tie rod ends (555)
• CV Axles (OEM)

Thanks for checking out my thread, check below for the progression of the build!

 

[OffRoadRN]

My cousin and I decided to head to Knoxville OHV park for our first adventure with the new rigs. He was in his 96 4Runner, I had the 100, and my dad tagged along in a stock Frontier. The day started out great:

But soon enough, tragedy struck. My cousin was leading us down one of the main trails, with myself in the middle, and my dad bringing up the rear. My cousin braked while reaching for his walkie, which had fallen down to his floorboard, wanting to take a side trail we had just past. I wasn't looking ahead because I kept hearing some sort of knocking coming from the back of my vehicle (spoiler it was the third row seats ). I looked up to find him stopped and slammed on the brakes, but it was too late. Sorry Nate!

A few days later, I began to assess the damage. Luckily, it wasn't too bad, and in the end neither of the vehicles were totaled.

My initial estimate was missing so much. Luckily my wife's cousin managed a collision shop, so I took it to him and got a proper estimate. Aside from the dented bumper, there was no structural or mechanical damage, all cosmetic!!! I decided to take the cash out, which allowed me to buy all new OEM parts, get the hood and quarter panels painted, but save enough from labor to drop $3k on upgrades!! My cousin also basically got $5k for taking the hit, so everyone was happy in the end.

 

[OffRoadRN]

After I had all of the cosmetic parts already ordered, I bought a Dobinson's IMS lift from Exit Off Road. I also got a differential drop and swaybar endlinks from Trail Tailor.

My cousin and I installed the lift in his garage, it went pretty smooth. I had to get a little help from Mike via telephone; what a great person to deal with!!!

The stink bug was strong before adjusting the torsion bars. I bought the 440 constant weight springs, thinking I would get drawers and a rear bumper sooner than was realistic. Eventually I stepped down to a lighter weight spring. I had also swapped out those god awful chrome wheels, putting the cheapie A/T tires that came with the truck onto the OEM wheels. No center caps, unfortunately.

I decided to sell the OEM corner lights, the one good headlight I had, and the rear seats. I went with some Depo's from eBay and am super pleased with them!

 

[OffRoadRN]

I got the hood painted and the quarter panels "blended". Not very pleased with the quarter panels, and this was after a couple tries. But I guess it is hard to replicate a 23 year old patina. I also picked up a knock off grill on ebay to save some money. Like an idiot, I had accidentally thrown away the Toyota logo from my damaged grill. Whoops!!

I was debating not buying a bumper, since I planned on getting a steel bumper anyway, but got lucky and scored a third party bumper on offer up for only $60! I set up a make shift paint booth to spray it with some Rustoleum Trim and Bumper paint, it turned out pretty good IMO! I also decided to black out the rear bumper, as well as the silver cladding and logos on the back.

I put some yellow tint film on the fogs for extra overlanding points And with that, the 100, who my daughter has affectionately named Pearl, was as good as she was before that fateful crash a couple months earlier. You may also notice that some White Knuckle rock sliders snuck their way into this pic, after getting some love in the DIY paint booth.

 

[OffRoadRN]

Here is a better picture of the White Knucke sliders. I got DOM tubing, a fifteen degree flare, no top plate, and opted to paint them instead of powder coating.

Around this time I also replaced the radiator and hoses, heater T's and hoses, and the fuel filter. I also got a new emblem for the front. I really want a Sharknet grill, but since that's not available for the foreseeable future, I plan to make something similar myself.

I also started hunting for a new steering wheel, since mine was pretty beat up. I quickly realized I didn't want to spend the money it would take to get a nice one, and decided to go the Lonky leather cover route. The process wasn't too bad. In hindsight, I wouldn't use the adhesive tape next time. I feel like it prohibited the leather from stretching into place like it should.

I also added a couple of choice stickers I had picked up. I bought the accompanying mileage stickers up to 500,000+ with high hopes to make it there someday!!

 

[OffRoadRN]

Here I am swapping the rear springs. Originally I had bought part number C59-185, which provided 1.5" lift with a constant load of 440 lbs, thinking it would be fine to cruise around like that until I had the time to build drawers and could afford a rear bumper. After a while, the constant stink bug look started to wear on me, and I broke down and bought a set of the C59-167, which provide a 2" lift with stock weight, or 1.5" with 150-220 lbs. I'm so much happier with the newer springs.

Before:

And after:

It may seem subtle, but I can definitely notice it visually. It also rides way better now (duh). You may notice some extra dents above the rear wheel well. My 2 year old grabbed the tire iron and helped "fix it dada" .

 

[OffRoadRN]

While taking care of the springs I realized my mufflers heat shield had rusted so bad it was hanging, and there was also a hole in the actual body of the muffler. I had to get this taken care of as I had a set of skid plates on the way. Here is a screen grab from a video I shot so you can see the damage.

I put in a Magnaflow 11225 for a little extra rumble, and also had the muffler shop delete the resonator for better clearance in the rear. I'm happy with the effect. It has a nice growl too it, but isn't obnoxious inside or outside of the cab.

Here is a video of the first cold start the next day. I've read it takes a couple hundred miles to break in the muffler and for the tone to even out. It will be interesting to see if it actually changes.



A couple days later I got a full set of steel skids from Slee delivered. Overall I am super pleased with the quality. I will say I have to points of disappointment. The first is that literally the day after I took delivery, I got the in stock alert from Dissent that they had their skid plates available again. I definitely wanted to try these out. The second is that the same day I also discovered that Victory 4x4 had a set of steel skids. For the $300 less delivered I could have had 4 skids from Victory vs the 3 I got from Slee. I had can't find any mention of Victory skids on a Land Cruiser, and would be interested to hear if anyone has them. That said, the Slee skids are top notch and they now use a better steel than Victory (HSLA vs A36 mild).

Finally, my most recent upgrade is a brand new set of Maxxis Razr M/T's in 285/75r16. I also did new inner/out tie rods, lower ball joints, and OEM CV axles. Man, I was really tempted to go with 35's, but it didn't seem worth the trade off after reading a lot of info on forums. I think these look great, but I am a sucker for a 100 on 35's!!

 

[OffRoadRN]

My seats were in decent enough condition, no rips or anything of that sort, but I wanted to make sure they stayed protected. I have Carhartt Precision Fit seat covers in my F250 which are great, but I wanted something had had more of a stock look to it. I didn't want to spend the money on reupholstering the seats, or leather seat covers for that matter, so I set out to find some good vinyl covers. A few of the companies I had heard of didn't offer anything for the 100, but I finally stumbled on the company Iggee somehwere on this forum. Pictures looked great and initial reviews from other members were good, so I decided to take the plunge. I paid $421 shiped for the front and middle row, with arm rest and console covers.

I pulled the front passenger out for the install, but on the drivers seat I just took out the bolts and then rocked the seat backwards. Obviously the back seats flip forward, making the install fairly easy. Overall I like the seat covers, but I have some gripes that I will address below...

 

[OffRoadRN]

So now for my gripes. I have never owned any synthetic leather covers before, but I was expecting something a little more thick. I am wondering how many years will these hold up? I already had a tear at one seam when stretching the fasteners on, which I had to sew myself. This brings me to another issue, the fasteners for the bottoms are an elastic material which connect with plastic hooks. There was also some parts of the cover that didn't have corresponding elastic bands on the opposite side, making it confusing on how to best connect all of these straps, particularly on the 2/3 side of the middle row. Over time these are going to lose elasticity and the covers won't fit as well. My Carhartt covers have nylon webbing with luggage style buckles, a much better solution in my mind. Also, some of the seems seem junky, and the holes for the levers on the middle row BARELY matched up. What do you guys think?

That completes what I am calling Version 1 of my 100!! I have a few other things planned, but nothing major. Next phase will be tailgate storage and a drawer/sleeping platform build. Following that I plan on a Dissent front bumper and Gamiviti roof rack. I am undecided on the rear bumper...maybe I'll buy a welder and build it myself?!!

 

[GTV]

I think for covers that go over your existing seat material it is exactly what I’d expect. Also “synthetic leather” = vinyl.

 

[OffRoadRN]

I think for covers that go over your existing seat material it is exactly what I’d expect. Also “synthetic leather” = vinyl.

Yeah you are probably right. My only point of reference is the Carhart covers in my super duty, which are extremely good quality, although they are more expensive. They wouldn’t look as nice though.

 

[OffRoadRN]

So today is my (second) maiden voyage. Heading out for a day trip to the Sierra Nevada. I knew I didn’t want to risk damaging my spare tire by keeping it in the stock location, and also didn’t want to keep it on my roof rack. I decided to make a tire carrier in the trunk. I saw there are some premade options from companies like ADD, but that was about $700 and I do plan on a rear bumper in the future.

I got a piece of three-quarter inch plywood and tied it into the factory third row seat mounts with you bolts. I got a couple of the rings, And a set of folding wheel chocks from Harbor freight. I also picked up and e-track kit from Home Depot.

It seems pretty solid, but will get tested on the trail later today!

 

[awesomeissquid]

So today is my (second) maiden voyage. Heading out for a day trip to the Sierra Nevada. I knew I didn’t want to risk damaging my spare tire by keeping it in the stock location, and also didn’t want to keep it on my roof rack. I decided to make a tire carrier in the trunk. I saw there are some premade options from companies like ADD, but that was about $700 and I do plan on a rear bumper in the future.

View attachment 3058762

I got a piece of three-quarter inch plywood and tied it into the factory third row seat mounts with you bolts. I got a couple of the rings, And a set of folding wheel chocks from Harbor freight. I also picked up and e-track kit from Home Depot.

View attachment 3058763

View attachment 3058764

It seems pretty solid, but will get tested on the trail later today!

Your build really came along nice! Your tires are 285/75R16 right? Have you thought about the mod to raise the stock tire carrier up higher? I run the same size and with that mod the spare pulls up nicely and is out of the way. Enjoy the Sierras, we just spent a week out there hitting a bunch of cool spots. Some of the higher trails were still snow covered and impassable at parts.

 

[OffRoadRN]

Your build really came along nice! Your tires are 285/75R16 right? Have you thought about the mod to raise the stock tire carrier up higher? I run the same size and with that mod the spare pulls up nicely and is out of the way. Enjoy the Sierras, we just spent a week out there hitting a bunch of cool spots. Some of the higher trails were still snow covered and impassable at parts.

Yes, that is the size if tires I have. I did not know about the mod to raise up the spare tire carrier. I will have to research that. We just finished signal Peak, it was a lot of fun! I went with my family, and my dad who was driving his xterra. Both vehicles did great!

 

[awesomeissquid]

Yes, that is the size if tires I have. I did not know about the mod to raise up the spare tire carrier. I will have to research that. We just finished signal Peak, it was a lot of fun! I went with my family, and my dad who was driving his xterra. Both vehicles did great!

Nice trip! Last time I went past that trail was closed for some maintenance or something. Glad to hear it is back open.

Check out this post on the mod: Spare Tire Modifications - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/spare-tire-modifications.76405/

 

[OffRoadRN]

Yesterday I went up to Signal Peak in the Sierra Nevada's, in California. We started at the trail off of Carlyle Road, near the Indian Springs campground. I had my wife and daughters in the 100, and my dad and brother were in my dad's 2008 Xterra Offroad. He is fully built; full dobinsons suspension Exit Off-Road, hefty fab skids, winch mount, shrockworks sliders and rear bumper. This was everyone's first time on a trail. The first obstacle there was a combination of poor spotting, and poor driving, and the 100 got high centered, denting my belly skid pretty and gas tank (with stock skid) pretty good. I think I may have bent driver rear upper control arm too.

Should I remove the belly skid and try to bend/hammer it out since its touching the transfer case now?

All things considered, it was a really good day, the trail was a place to go for fist timers. It challenged us, and was a lot of fun. Once we got to the peak, we were rewarded with epic views of Fordyce Lake. I can't wait for our next adventure!!

 

[OffRoadRN]

After I got back from my trip to Signal Peak, I realized my belly skid plat was about 1/4" or less from my transfer case. I know the skids are there to take a beating, but I was worried that a future hit could damage the transfer case a little too easily. I decided to pull it and think of a way to bend it back into place. Luckily my brother drives a truck with a 10k lb. crane on it, so he came over and made short work of bending the skid plate back to shape!

 

[nukegoat]

That's embarrassing how easily that skid bent

 

[OffRoadRN]

That's embarrassing how easily that skid bent

I was wondering about that. They say on the website that the slee skids are now made with a new material, from their website…

“ 3/16″ (7ga) High Strength Low Alloy (HSLA) has nearly twice the strength and impact resistance of general purpose mild steel (A1011 and A36). 30-36ksi Yield strength vs 50ksi yield strength minimum.”

Anyone familiar with HSLA? The skid did have almost the entire weight of the truck on it. Should it have performed better?

 

[nukegoat]

I would be disappointed.