New Ride

[uzj100]

Looks much better to me with no running boards and a little mud!

How is the fuel economy? Our 2003 with 102k miles gets 14 mpg in town and 20 mpg on highway according to the Lexus instant calculator.

 

[smm3]

I'm really liking these tires. I just completed a trip to Grand Junction, CO (2000 miles round trip) and they rode great. I actually got to test them out in some thick, slick mud. There was a flash flood where Kannah Creek washed 1-2 inches of mud over the road. Most cars couldn't get through it. I had no issues at all. The GX looks damn good with some mud on her.

It looks like a totally different truck with a little mud on her. Looks great. glad to hear you are enjoying the new kicks!

 

[80BajaBound]

Gas mileage seems ok. I'm not sure I can trust the onboard computer as I have a slightly larger than stock tires. Our trip to CO and back was 2054 miles to which we averaged 17.9 mpg.

 

[80BajaBound]

Operation Black out - black chrome emblems

There is a lot of chrome on this rig and I'm not really crazy about it. So I got some new emblems to start. I've had them on for a few months now - I think the look . Better than the chrome anyway. Here is a before and after as well as a front shot.

 

[80BajaBound]

Operation Black out - window tint

I finally found out why my little girl likes our Touareg over the GX. The VW has a window shade that protected her from the glaring SoCal sun. So I made an appointment with Scott at Sun Solutions here in Encinitas. He did the tint on my 80 and I'm extremely happy with it, so it made sense to call him again. My daughter went with me and after it was done she was so thankful. She is like me - extremely sensitive to light. She is now a happy girl in the GX.

 

[Nothing007]

Made in Japan

 

[Carl L]

That white one looks a little sparkly for my tastes.

Bajabound- glad you're still liking the new truck. Very sharp. Could you please share a little more detail on your BFGs? Such as wear, noise and handling on road? I'm looking for a new tire and considering the Terra grappler, BFG ATS and your tires. I've decided the Trail Grapplers may be a little noisy as I've been been able to get out onto the trails far less frequently than I would like due to time/work constraints.

 

[GXO]

I drove my in-laws non-US spec Prado (same body as this 460). Amazing car. His is turbo diesel and has the center console cooler, etc (all the non-US toys).

Are you going to build the 460 at all? There are tons of parts that will bolt right up!


UZJ100, get the wife's GX and start a build! I can't wait to get mine back on Friday.

 

[80BajaBound]

That white Prado is awesome! I showed the that pic and she thought it was "tough looking". I actually like the fender flares, they give it wider looking stance.

Carl L-
So far I'm liking these tires. They seem to be wearing well through 7000 miles. For an E rated tire - they ride very smooth, but that might be due to the Lexus tuned shocks smoothing it out. Both and I agreed the truck rode much better with the new tires. But when we bought the truck - the front tires had worn uneven and rode rough, so it's hard to compare used tires with new. I didn't notice any noise difference between the factory michelin's and the bfg's, it was a concern of mine as well.

Dan-
Turbo diesel with a drink cooler??!! Your 470 looks awesome! Let me know how you like those Duratracs. I want to put a set on my VW.

I'm building this up slow. My first goal is to upgrade the suspension, but that's down the road a bit. The get's to do some "house modding" as she called it.



I got some new wheels about a week ago. They are OEM GX wheels powder coated - "black chrome". I scored them used online - pretty cheap too. Operation Black Out is complete - yeah I'm f'n cheesy!

 

[2000UZJ]

those things look like total s***. I mean seriously, did they even think about offroad or any sort of ruggedness look from the factory???? What a ugly car...


Until you got ahold of one, transformed it into a beautiful vehicle, capable, agile, and quite awesome SUV( although nothing really changed bodywise). I never thought I would say this, but I really like the new GX (the one you own). With a few simple mods it looks not quite so....Lexus. I love what you have done to it, it really is a great looking ride. I think a set of low profile sliders and a nice set of skids (I'm not sure if the make them for your year yet), and that would be a fine expo/moderate wheeling rig right there. Again, well job dude. I will be following this more often.

 

[80BajaBound]

those things look like total s***. I mean seriously, did they even think about offroad or any sort of ruggedness look from the factory???? What a ugly car...


Until you got ahold of one, transformed it into a beautiful vehicle, capable, agile, and quite awesome SUV( although nothing really changed bodywise). I never thought I would say this, but I really like the new GX (the one you own). With a few simple mods it looks not quite so....Lexus. I love what you have done to it, it really is a great looking ride. I think a set of low profile sliders and a nice set of skids (I'm not sure if the make them for your year yet), and that would be a fine expo/moderate wheeling rig right there. Again, well job dude. I will be following this more often.

You got me there! I'm reading the first sentence and thinking who the hell is this guy?

It's amazing what a slightly bigger tire and 86'd running boards do for a vehicle. I'm pretty sure Metal Tech got their hands on a new 4runner. I'm waiting for their sliders to come out. With their fancy CNC machine - I'm sure skids are to follow... Mark... LT???

 

[fgwolf]

I'm really liking these tires. I just completed a trip to Grand Junction, CO (2000 miles round trip) and they rode great. I actually got to test them out in some thick, slick mud. There was a flash flood where Kannah Creek washed 1-2 inches of mud over the road. Most cars couldn't get through it. I had no issues at all. The GX looks damn good with some mud on her.

Your rig looks great. I love the way those tires look. I am considering that exact size for my 07 LC. My only concern is that that size comes only in LT. I know you already have commented on the ride, but can you again confirm that the ride is not too harsh? Also, what pressure are you running them at?

 

[80BajaBound]

Your rig looks great. I love the way those tires look. I am considering that exact size for my 07 LC. My only concern is that that size comes only in LT. I know you already have commented on the ride, but can you again confirm that the ride is not too harsh? Also, what pressure are you running them at?

Thanks .
The ride is fine by my standards. I run them at 45 psi, max is 80 psi.
LT = Light Truck. I wouldn't put anything else on there besides an LT tire. An E rated tire has a harder sidewall which can make for a stiffer ride. If you aren't towing with your hundy - I would put the 255/70/18's on. They aren't E rated and weight 10lbs less but both tires are 32.1" tall. Just a little food for thought..... happy tire hunting.

 

[fgwolf]

Not to beat a dead horse on your nice thread, but how about the 265/65/18s? I was thinking the 255s might look too narrow. Have you seen a 100 with the 255s? Your 275s look so nice and chunky.

 

[80BajaBound]

No worries fjwolf. I haven't seen 255's on a 100 series but they come standard on a base Tundra.
Here is a thread talking about 255/85/16's. https://forum.ih8mud.com/100-series-cruisers/271145-pics-255-85-r-16s-100s.html The 255/85/16 is 33.3" tall and 10" wide where the 255/70/18 is 32.1" tall and 10.3" wide.

 

[PRPM]

Hi,
To you know who are the manufacturer of this fender (white car LC15) or are they OE?

tnx in advance

 

[Moby]

There is a lot of chrome on this rig and I'm not really crazy about it. So I got some new emblems to start. I've had them on for a few months now - I think the look . Better than the chrome anyway. Here is a before and after as well as a front shot.

Where did you get the emblems? I also have a black 460 that needs less chrome. I'm planning on going the same route as you and doing powdercoated stock rims. I'd also like to delete the chrome on the door handles.

 

[Moby]

Looks much better to me with no running boards and a little mud!

How is the fuel economy? Our 2003 with 102k miles gets 14 mpg in town and 20 mpg on highway according to the Lexus instant calculator.

With stock tires I'm seeing as high as 21mpg all highway (same trip multiple times, right at 21mpg doing 65-70mph). 75mph gets more like 20pg. Mixed I see 17-18mpg. I don't do much pure city driving. This is hand calculated, but the instant calculator matches almost exactly.

 

[80BajaBound]

Where did you get the emblems? I also have a black 460 that needs less chrome. I'm planning on going the same route as you and doing powdercoated stock rims. I'd also like to delete the chrome on the door handles.

I ordered mine through Sewell's site (2012 GX460), but in hindsight, I would take my old ones to have them powder coated at a local shop. It would have been MUCH cheaper. If I were you. I'd do all the powder coating at once; wheels, emblems and anything else.
Please let me know how you handle the chrome on the door handles.

With stock tires I'm seeing as high as 21mpg all highway (same trip multiple times, right at 21mpg doing 65-70mph). 75mph gets more like 20pg. Mixed I see 17-18mpg. I don't do much pure city driving. This is hand calculated, but the instant calculator matches almost exactly.

Which tires did your GX come with? I had the michelins and they were crap.

Also, I've read somewhere you put some coil overs on?!?! Can we get some pictures and info on that? Did you take it to radflo? What did you do about KDDS? Did you leave it or delete it?

I have radflo's 2.5 resi on my 80... I'm kinda leaning towards Icon. Tell me why you went with Radflo...

 

[Moby]

I ordered mine through Sewell's site (2012 GX460), but in hindsight, I would take my old ones to have them powder coated at a local shop. It would have been MUCH cheaper. If I were you. I'd do all the powder coating at once; wheels, emblems and anything else.
Please let me know how you handle the chrome on the door handles.



Which tires did your GX come with? I had the michelins and they were crap.

Also, I've read somewhere you put some coil overs on?!?! Can we get some pictures and info on that? Did you take it to radflo? What did you do about KDDS? Did you leave it or delete it?

I have radflo's 2.5 resi on my 80... I'm kinda leaning towards Icon. Tell me why you went with Radflo...

Thanks for the tip on the emblems.

I don't know what tires came with it... But they are complete crap. I've been in snow 4-5 times now and they are downright scary. I ran Nitto Terra Grapplers on my '62 and was very happy with them. I'll be swapping out for those or maybe some Silent Armors very soon.

I ran Bilstein 7100 resi on my '62 and spent a lot of time learning how to set them up (I've got nitrogen, so I did all of the valving changes myself, experimenting and learning how to tuning a suspension myself). The problem was every time I wanted a new shim stack it took months to get it from Bilstein. Didn't matter who I ordered through it always took this long and multiple vendors told me this was normal. So Bilstein was out.

I've heard hit and miss with King on non race applications and reasonable things about Sway-a-way. But Sway-a-way had one kit that might work and King didn't look to have anything specific to the 150 platform.

Icon was intriguing. But I couldn't figure out why they were so expensive. They also don't seem to be as user/tuner friendly (I don't see anyone running ultra 4/koh or baja using them; probably there are some, but certainly not to the extent that you see King, Radflo, Bilstein and SAW).

Ultimately what it came down to was that I found Andries at Overland Warehouse. He has a ton of experience with the 120 and 150 platforms and works closely with Glen at Radflo. He asked a lot of questions and was more than happy to work up a custom set up (I wanted 0" now with the option to go to 2" on the coilovers with new rear springs). He recommended 2.5 non-resi units (better valving options for the heavier GX with the 2.5s) but said they could be upgraded to resi in the future if needed.

So far I only have the rear shocks on, but the rear suspension moves a lot better without any additional body roll. The skiing here has been taking up all my free time so I don't have the coilovers on yet. As soon as I do I'll report back.