Builds "Rednexus" - 2007 GX470 Build and Fabrication Thread (9 Viewers)

[Rednexus]

How is this gonna hold up in the heat? It does get hot in MO. I'm keen to get an aftermarket shift knob and will need to come up with a boot solution.

We'll see . There is quite a bit of spray adhesive in the OEM interior. I think the super glue will be OK since the plastic ring sandwiches it up against the shift bezel. I definitely would have preferred to staple it, but could not find 1/8" staples anywhere.

 

[Rednexus]

The boots were a PITA to fit into the console top. The vinyl is a bit thicker than stock so there was less clearance around the ring and opening than stock, especially for the TC surround which was kind of rough due to being 3D printed. Prefty happy with how everything looks though. All plastic was re-painted too.

 

[Fiddy5000]

The boots were a PITA to fit into the console top. The vinyl is a bit thicker than stock so there was less clearance around the ring and opening than stock, especially for the TC surround which was kind of rough due to being 3D printed. Prefty happy with how everything looks though. All plastic was re-painted too.
View attachment 3530727

looks great!

 

[stupidchicken03]

Does look awesome. Curious to see how big of a PITA it's going to be getting back into the car - mainly with the e-brake boot since it doesnt have a zipper for easier install/removal.

 

[Rednexus]

Does look awesome. Curious to see how big of a PITA it's going to be getting back into the car - mainly with the e-brake boot since it doesnt have a zipper for easier install/removal.

It'll probably be a two-person job to line everything back up while guiding the e-brake handle in, but we'll see. Mrs. Rednexus was awesome in sewing the e-brake boot around the metal form, so she'll probably help with that too. I'm surprised how much she's helped on this job in general - maybe she just wants a nice place to spend time when we're dragging the camper cross-country with the GX.

In hindsight I might have had a upholstery shop just make some of these out of thinner material and with a zipper. Or modify the OEM nylon rings by notching them to account for the thicker stuff. I have definitely learned a lot during this project - which is outside of my normal nuts and bolts mechanical wheelhouse.

 

[stupidchicken03]

It'll probably be a two-person job to line everything back up while guiding the e-brake handle in, but we'll see. Mrs. Rednexus was awesome in sewing the e-brake boot around the metal form, so she'll probably help with that too. I'm surprised how much she's helped on this job in general - maybe she just wants a nice place to spend time when we're dragging the camper cross-country with the GX.

In hindsight I might have had a upholstery shop just make some of these out of thinner material and with a zipper. Or modify the OEM nylon rings by notching them to account for the thicker stuff. I have definitely learned a lot during this project - which is outside of my normal nuts and bolts mechanical wheelhouse.

I know you've seen all the wrapped items ive done so far.. normally dont do anywhere near this much - especially on the interior. Ive never really messed with seats/covers/shift boots other than recarpeting my first car (1969 vw bug about 20 years ago lol). With you, its normally nuts/bolts all over. My daily has been on on going project for the last 6+ years, and was one of the first lifted 2nd gen Crosstreks.

 

[MrTorgue]

The boots were a PITA to fit into the console top. The vinyl is a bit thicker than stock so there was less clearance around the ring and opening than stock, especially for the TC surround which was kind of rough due to being 3D printed. Prefty happy with how everything looks though. All plastic was re-painted too.
View attachment 3530727

Looks really good!

 

[Rednexus]

And.....DONE.....with an asterisk .

^The whole shebang!

^From the PS side. I installed a Panavise phone holder with an AMPS mount. We had one of these in our old Outback and honestly they are great for older vehicles. 5-10 minute install. The new shift boots fought me and Mrs. Rednexus more to install, but we did get them in. Next time I'd suggest notching the nylon ring so it can accomodate the thicker vinyl - then they'd work fine.

^We didn't use quite enough of the double-sided tape on the wheel cover - I'll get a hypodermic needle and inject some fabric glue thru the perorations when it's warm out. Still feels great. Also I fixed the SpeedoHealer - I actually had room to crimp everything for real when I pulled the steering wheel off. It calibrated perfectly ap +3.4%. The VSC/ATRAC off and ENABLE LOCKERS switches are on the panel on the left.

^Midland GRMS mount. It plugs into a round CAT6e connector in the custom center console which runs back to the GMRS in the glovebox. I want to be able to use the GRMS with the rig totally off, so the "GRMS" button in the Prado locker switch blank can be pushed at any time to activate the GRMS circuit. The future "Camp Lights" circuit is also enabled with this relay - those will be scene lights on a future roof rack and probably some rock lights too.

Astute observers will notice I relocated the CDL switch to the 2nd Start location. I mis-counted the number of switches in the custom dash panel and though I had one more than I did. So I got rid of the 2nd start (which I've never once used) and put the CDL in it's spot. Frankly it's easier to see/use there anyway.

^The main event. I did scratch some of the freshly-painted pieces in a few spots upon re-assembly. Honestly it was a b!tch to get everything in place with the custom panels - just a lot of wires in a very small area, so we really had to wrestle with it. The replacement center stack vents were $50 Amazon cheapies that actually seem just fine and fit perfect. I originally got them in woodgrain but the color was pretty far off. So I got them in silver and sprayed them to match the rest of the console.

The twin USB plugs are data/Android Auto/Car Play on the left (plugged into the PX6) and QC charge ports on the right (hot when the ignition is on).

Overall this was a heck of a job that just snowballed and snowballed, mostly due to my personality and tendency to over-engineer everything (as I am actually an engineer ). It was harder/more frustrating than the mechanical wrenching stuff I normally do. I don't think many other folks have done this type of interior refresh/re-imagining so I hope anyone else who attempts it learns from my successes and mistakes .

But....for the record, it did feel/look amazing the second I hopped in the finished interior! Thanks to everyone for the posts/encouragement/support on this thread!

 

[Rednexus]

As far as the asterisk. I need to mount the GRMS antenna (will go on the ditch light brackets for now....need to make a mount instead of paying $25 for a simple one), touch-up the scratched paint when it's warm enough to do so, add a bit of glue to the wheel cover, and revise the high-beam trigger for the ditch lights and LED light bar (only the former of which I actually have now). The high beams on these are kind of weird and have a negative/positive trigger that switches depending on if the low beams are on or not. Right now the aux lights are triggered when either the high or low beams are on, but I think I can add another relay to get them triggered only when the high beams are on.

Lastly, I still have some budget leftover, so I'll throw on a set of Ellis Precision shift knobs too to match the rest of the interior. The Pewters are still OOS for at least a few more weeks.

 

[Rednexus]

The DISABLE ATRAC/VSC is very effective and totally kills every electronic nanny on the rig. I think wiring one with a 5-pin relay though the master cylinder/brake fluid sensor wiring harness is definitely the way to go and easy to correct if you ever wanted to get rid of the switch. It does require turning the engine off and back on after use to reset the skid/brake ECU and restore nanny function.

Also if you do a creek crossing at <10F, you may hear some rattling that sounds an awful lot like a broken suspension component shortly thereafter....

 

[aztoytec]

I’ll pass on the ice cubes in the skid plate for now!! I noticed your lower shock eyelet bushing looks collapsed or worn badly(?). Hopefully it’s just the angle of the picture.

 

[Rednexus]

Good eye and I had not noticed that! Just braved artic temps again to look at it - the bushing appears kind of squished out but not collapsed. Wondering if I over-tightened the lower bolt when I put the shocks in a year ago or so. Don't recall if I used a torque wrench or just hit it with the M18 impact. I may pull it next time I'm under the rig to make sure there isn't a deeper problem.

 

[CarGuyCarl]

Interior looks awesome. You're inspiring me to order a dash for mine and some seat covers to help bring her back to life!

Surprised you haven't grounded out the tire pressure light!

Pulling the trigger here soon on all of the rear control arms from Moog. Will do Moog uppers in the front, but since I have KDSS I may try some Mevotechs for a 460 and see how it goes.

 

[Rednexus]

Interior looks awesome. You're inspiring me to order a dash for mine and some seat covers to help bring her back to life!

Surprised you haven't grounded out the tire pressure light!

Pulling the trigger here soon on all of the rear control arms from Moog. Will do Moog uppers in the front, but since I have KDSS I may try some Mevotechs for a 460 and see how it goes.

Awesome on the arms and thanks for the feedback! Let us know how the 460 LCA conversion goes as others will likely be interested in that as well.

The TPMS light it probably on do to my spare. You think I'd just lower it and inflate it being that I have onboard air but apparently I've been too preoccupied with this other stuff and the crappy weather .

 

[Rednexus]

Spent the day running around the Eleven Point River country with my 6 year-old. Winter can be quite beautiful in the Ozarks.

 

[CarGuyCarl]

Looks like a beautiful time. Did you ever post any accelerations vids of your intake/header/exhaust set up? Would love to hear that thing!

 

[Rednexus]

Looks like a beautiful time. Did you ever post any accelerations vids of your intake/header/exhaust set up? Would love to hear that thing!

Thanks! I'll do a full-throttle pull sometime and post a vid. Missed the opportunity on Friday when I was having fun on snowy roads .

 

[Rednexus]

Checked my spark plug torque today after seeing a post about UZ's blowing out plugs over on the 100-series forum. Sure enough, every one of them was loose (like <10 ft/lbs). I torqued them back down to 15 ft/lbs. The whole process took <30 minutes. All of of my coil packs were OEM Denso and in great shape. I think these plugs were put in ~40-45K ago, so they do loosen with time. If you haven't checked them ever - I'd really suggest checking them every 30K or so.

In other news, my build thread will be slowing down a lot (but not stopping) as Mrs. Rednexus and I have started on a much bigger project that will tie up most of our time and money for the rest of the year. My GX will be getting a lot of use hauling tools, materials, and other things around.

 

[Rednexus]

Well, my 6 month Power Stop brake saga has reached a dead end. In summary, they kept telling me the production date for new brake hoses had been pushed. I checked Summit Racing on 2/29 and they brake lines are back in stock. I reached out to Power Stop again and their response was me to "contact Rock Auto". They went ahead and produced the lines and never bothered sending one to me. I emailed them a total of 9 times between the brake failure on 9/11 and 2/29. I made a post about it in the buyer-beware forum:

Power Stop Brakes Warranty Claims - Buyer Beware

In late 2021 I purchased a Power Stop stainless steel brake line kit for my 2007 GX470 through Rock Auto and installed it. On 9/11/2023, I experienced a failure of the rear driver's brake hose where I lost a significant amount of brake fluid. Luckily I did not have a complete brake system...

forum.ih8mud.com

Power Stop has a D- rating from the BBB. I went ahead and filed a complaint. They also have 2.8 stars on Google with many reviews just like mine. They are the worst vendor/manufacturer I've dealt with on my rig. I'd strongly suggest that forum members avoid buying their products as they make no effort to stand behind them and the quality is lacking on their safety-critical parts. I'll likely replace all of my PowerStop hoses with something else.

 

[aztoytec]

Too many companies are not standing behind there products anymore. Can’t trust anyone…