Build My 80 Series Build Thread

[Wdeloach]

Hey all, I’m creating this to keep a record of my 1997 Toyota Land Cruiser CE and to document the upgrades I have done to it. My dad has had a few cruisers throughout the years so we thought we'd continue the collection. Here is the truck when we got it. Bone stock.

 

[Wdeloach]

 

[Wdeloach]

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[Wdeloach]

The truck had about 241k on it when we got it. After some back to basic fixes from @Trollhole we got it ready for the 2016 Over the Mountain Tour with the Upstate Cruisers

 

[Wdeloach]

After it’s maiden voyage, we had a running board casualty so we decided to take them off. And that’s pretty much how the truck was for a while. I added some auxbeam spots on my beat up front bumper and a roof basket from Cabela’s but knew I wanted something better and stronger so it was just temporary.

 

[Wdeloach]

The most important thing was just getting out there and testing those lockers... I added a new radio and a cb as one of my first mods to communicate on the trail

 

[Wdeloach]

I decided to black out the grill and chrome around the lights. Just gave me an idea of a future look...

 

[Wdeloach]

The second big trip I took in the cruiser was to north Georgia. Part of the first leg of the Over the Mountain Tour that I didn’t get to do with the UC. Abunch of us and our dads took off on an adventure to explore the trails of North ga. It was a great time to spend with fathers and sons. Great camping too
We had a nice 40 roll through. Cool to see

 

[Wdeloach]

@Montanaconner

 

[Wdeloach]

@nickcain007

 

[Wdeloach]

After this trip, my fender flare gaskets we’re getting really bad and starting to come up. So after some long thinking and some info from a local member I decided to remove them and go the bedliner route. With that out of the way my research begins. There are so many pro and diy options out there susch as line-x, rhino liner, monsterliner, raptor liner, etc. A lot of the diy kits are roll on and I really wanted the texture of spray without the ridiculous prices. So after a lot of research, I settled on Raptor Liner. It’s a diy spray bedliner that comes in a kit with 4 liters and a spray gun. All you have to do is fill shake and shoot. I know about half of people like the look of flared 80’s and hate the lined look and vise versa. I would say if your on the fence. Look into raptor liner. I couldn’t be happier. The texture is great and it’s though as nails.

 

[Wdeloach]

Deflared and about to start sanding. Point of no return

 

[Wdeloach]

After 1 and a half days of prep it was time to spray. For those wondering about the holes, I welded mine which is permanent but I don’t think necessary. I think aluminum tape would be just fine as this stuff hides any imperfections in the body. I wanted no chance of rust which was my reason for welding but I don’t think water is getting in there anyways so tape would be fine.

I decided to follow the blue/gray part of the 2 tone for my paint line. Here are many variations so this is personal preference.

This stuff has a very customizable texture based on air pressure. All the info on what you need can be found on their website. The kit was $100 for 4 liters which was plenty to to what I did and a spray gun. Great deal IMO. That’s the reason I chose raptor.

This is up close of the texture. I can’t remember what settings I used but play around with it to find your desired look.

 

[Wdeloach]

We do a lot of wheeling and camping at our buddies place in GA. Poser shots with the sunset and new liner

 

[Wdeloach]

At this point in the build I am still running stock suspension and 285-75-16 Yokohama Geolander AT-S which are great tires untill you touch any mud. I know this is ih8mud but you can’t help it in the south haha. So after a few incidents of let’s just say needing some extra help. Lift and tires were on the wish list. It wasn’t until I got in a situation where we tried a Toyota pickup, and a tuned Chevy duramax and I still couldn’t get out. We were going down a trail we had never done in vehicles before at our family friends place and came across a small creek crossing which seemed simple in my mind but the entry bank was pretty steep. I tried anyway and with the combination of power from the 80 (or lack of) and my departure angle getting caught on the bank I was in deep. 3x locked and all I wasn’t moving. I dug a hole with the front wheel trying to get out which made things worse. After a few hours of thinking and trying, we had to get a tractor to get me out. Totally embarrassing lift and tires are a must now.

 

[Wdeloach]

One of the last times the 80 will see this dirt without new legs and shoes

 

[izzyandsue]

Uuuuhhhh yeah that's stuck. A winch would have helped too. If you are Upstate, come on out to Uwharrie and do some of the off-road driving classes, can be one of the best mods you invest in.

 

[Wdeloach]

It’s finally lift and tire time. I knew I wanted to do this right and I trust arb so I with with the Old Man Emu 3” HD Suspension System. My dad has run BFG on a lot of his vehicles and was very happy with them so I went went with the KM2 Mud Terrains 315-75-16

Package is here!

wow that’s a big spring

 

[Wdeloach]

I had @Trollhole do the installation and am really happy with it. Thanks guys! I had a local dealership do the tires

Before:

After:

After running it a little bit, I’m beyond happy with my setup. No need to re gear for the 35’s IMO
Time for a new adventure...

 

[joe jenni]

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What's that little red button to the left of your mirror controls in your second picture? My buddy just bought a Tacoma and it has that same button but the wires have been cut.

Thanks

Joe