Greetings,
I've been lurking for a little over a month and decided to make a little introduction as well as a thank you. For someone new to the scene, there is an unlimited amount of value and information within the forum, so many thanks to all of you that contribute to that.
A few months ago, I got the idea in my head that I needed a "project" vehicle, and have always enjoyed the 90's-2000's era vehicles. So, I set a budget and set forth on countless hours of research...I knew one thing for sure, I wanted a Toyota 4.7 V8 and 4wd (we currently reside in TX, but travel to Northern Indiana every holiday season, and will be moving back up there in the next year or so, so 4wd is a must) After coming to that conclusion, I spent many more hours scanning through FB, Autotrader, Cargurus, etc. looking for just that. I put together a detailed checklist of the common things to look for with the specific vehicles (inspired by TCCN) that I was going to look at, I drove as far as 4 hours away to go look at a v8 4runner, test drove a local GX and a couple Sequoias. Finally, a listing that had been on FB for a few weeks that I didn't pay too much attention to because it was well out of my budget, had dropped his priced significantly...I reached out and it happened to be just 5mins away from my shop. Although the body and interior we're far from perfect, the seller was very open about what it needed, and also provided service records dating back to the previous 2 owners. I ended up taking her home and started ordering parts. I had a pretty good idea of what was most critical, but decided to have a Land Cruiser guy come take a look to see if I was missing anything. I ended up finding Chris at ToyotaTechnical to come conduct an inspection, he provided me with a pretty detailed list and I ended up ordering some more parts because of it.
One thing I did not consider when getting a LX/LC is the cost of parts, also how adamant everyone is about going OEM...I built Honda's in my younger years, and the scenes are total opposite.
My plan for this thing is to be my daily and an easier solution for us to haul our 4 dogs around. I don't anticipate doing any overland or offroad type enhancements, other than a rear tire carrier. I currently drive a 2018 Tacoma TRD O/R that I purchased new (it now has 110k), my wife has a 07 Honda Fit. Once the LX is fully operational, my wife will probably be using the Tacoma for weekly grocery store trips as she works from home, and keep the Fit as a reserve vehicle. I haven't driven the LX too much just yet, but from the short trips I have taken with it, the driving experience is vastly different from that of a 3rd gen Tacoma.
98 LX470 - 238k
Here's the list of everything I've done in the last 3-4 weeks:
-OEM Reman Rack and Pinion
-OEM PS Lines and Reservoir
-Oil cooler gaskets
-OEM Tie Rod Ends
-OEM Front diff bushings/arms
-555 UCA's
-555 LCA's
-Reboot/Packed Passenger CV
-Nitto Terra Grapplers 285/75/16 (I was going to go HT's on this thing, but I just recently got the same tires on my Tacoma and really like them)
-Brass Heater Tees + Coolant Hoses (Waiting on parts)
-Replace ALL Vac + PCV + Fuel Vapor hoses (Waiting on parts)
-AHC Flush
-Previous owner had just done brakes, radiator, timing belt, water pump, AC and all fluids. Although the radiator is not OEM (I will probably change this in the near future).
-CruiserDM Cup Holders
-CruiserDM Rear AC Redirect
-CruiserDM Window Switch plate
-EBAY Master Switch
-New tailgate cables
-FM Transmitter
TODO's
-Monstaliner?
-AHC Globes
-Saddle Blanket seat covers
-There are a few exterior body bits and pieces I need to acquire
I've been lurking for a little over a month and decided to make a little introduction as well as a thank you. For someone new to the scene, there is an unlimited amount of value and information within the forum, so many thanks to all of you that contribute to that.
A few months ago, I got the idea in my head that I needed a "project" vehicle, and have always enjoyed the 90's-2000's era vehicles. So, I set a budget and set forth on countless hours of research...I knew one thing for sure, I wanted a Toyota 4.7 V8 and 4wd (we currently reside in TX, but travel to Northern Indiana every holiday season, and will be moving back up there in the next year or so, so 4wd is a must) After coming to that conclusion, I spent many more hours scanning through FB, Autotrader, Cargurus, etc. looking for just that. I put together a detailed checklist of the common things to look for with the specific vehicles (inspired by TCCN) that I was going to look at, I drove as far as 4 hours away to go look at a v8 4runner, test drove a local GX and a couple Sequoias. Finally, a listing that had been on FB for a few weeks that I didn't pay too much attention to because it was well out of my budget, had dropped his priced significantly...I reached out and it happened to be just 5mins away from my shop. Although the body and interior we're far from perfect, the seller was very open about what it needed, and also provided service records dating back to the previous 2 owners. I ended up taking her home and started ordering parts. I had a pretty good idea of what was most critical, but decided to have a Land Cruiser guy come take a look to see if I was missing anything. I ended up finding Chris at ToyotaTechnical to come conduct an inspection, he provided me with a pretty detailed list and I ended up ordering some more parts because of it.
One thing I did not consider when getting a LX/LC is the cost of parts, also how adamant everyone is about going OEM...I built Honda's in my younger years, and the scenes are total opposite.
My plan for this thing is to be my daily and an easier solution for us to haul our 4 dogs around. I don't anticipate doing any overland or offroad type enhancements, other than a rear tire carrier. I currently drive a 2018 Tacoma TRD O/R that I purchased new (it now has 110k), my wife has a 07 Honda Fit. Once the LX is fully operational, my wife will probably be using the Tacoma for weekly grocery store trips as she works from home, and keep the Fit as a reserve vehicle. I haven't driven the LX too much just yet, but from the short trips I have taken with it, the driving experience is vastly different from that of a 3rd gen Tacoma.
98 LX470 - 238k
Here's the list of everything I've done in the last 3-4 weeks:
-OEM Reman Rack and Pinion
-OEM PS Lines and Reservoir
-Oil cooler gaskets
-OEM Tie Rod Ends
-OEM Front diff bushings/arms
-555 UCA's
-555 LCA's
-Reboot/Packed Passenger CV
-Nitto Terra Grapplers 285/75/16 (I was going to go HT's on this thing, but I just recently got the same tires on my Tacoma and really like them)
-Brass Heater Tees + Coolant Hoses (Waiting on parts)
-Replace ALL Vac + PCV + Fuel Vapor hoses (Waiting on parts)
-AHC Flush
-Previous owner had just done brakes, radiator, timing belt, water pump, AC and all fluids. Although the radiator is not OEM (I will probably change this in the near future).
-CruiserDM Cup Holders
-CruiserDM Rear AC Redirect
-CruiserDM Window Switch plate
-EBAY Master Switch
-New tailgate cables
-FM Transmitter
TODO's
-Monstaliner?
-AHC Globes
-Saddle Blanket seat covers
-There are a few exterior body bits and pieces I need to acquire
