Small Budget, Southeast USA, Camping/Trail Ride 1994 FJ80 Build

[1911garand]

My Chinese budget-friendly roof rack is on the way (with a can of rust inhibitor ) as well as new speakers and a new aftermarket stereo. Also found a great deal on a CB with an antenna included so I'm excited to try that out on my first trail ride in February

I am also looking for a budget friendly roof rack - details please!!!

 

[Jgrauman]

Thanks for the info and advice, everyone! This will be a really slow project as money for this vehicle will not be top priority for my family so a lot of the things on this list are just for future reference so I don’t forget things I’ve seen and liked.

I’m planning on going out on a trail ride with a group in Chattanooga, TN in February. What should I do as far as preventative maintenance or any “minimize-damage” precautions before heading out?

Where you going in Chattanooga? A few of us are going to AOP in February. In April will be joining aetna Mtn Park as well.

 

[DSRTRDR]

Depends on what it wants / needs. If it needs sliders, it will tell you by beating up the rocker panels. Pretty sure you want it to speak up earlier.

agreed, sliders should be the first mod - sooner than later

 

[MrMikeyG]

Nice start sir. I am very jealous of the cloth interior. I too have a slow build going on a '94. My wife and I don't have any kids though, so technically I could go a bit nuts with mine and not get in too much trouble.
As others have said though, put some miles on and see which things really need attention.
I saw you had wheel powder coating on your list. I feel like the Seattle area is an odd zone of everything being expensive; I got one quote of 130 per wheel!, and another quote of 340 for all four. I'm holding off on the reveal as I made a snap decision based upon my overall goal for the look of the truck, and I think the wheels are going to look a bit crazy until I can get some more of the truck painted/monsta lined to match.
My personal opinion is that the best budget roof rack option out there is still 8 Yakima 1A towers with whatever width crossbars you like. They're getting a bit harder to find out here though, and I haven't been checking ebay lately. I've carried some stupid weight on Yakima racks.

 

[deadman1689]

Where you going in Chattanooga? A few of us are going to AOP in February. In April will be joining aetna Mtn Park as well.

Not sure on the ride spot yet. It’s usually decided day-of. I’ll be going out with a group called Chattanooga Off-Road. They’re on Facebook and usually ride the first Saturday of each month

 

[deadman1689]

Finally installed the roof basket last night. I had this on my Amazon wish list and it randomly showed up on my door step yesterday. Random act of kindness I suppose.

I got the Arksen 64” basket w/extension. To be $100 it seems really sturdy. All the bolts lined up easily and the brackets fit tightly. I will definitely be spraying the exposed screws with rust inhibitor bc Im sure it won’t take long for those to rust.

 

[deadman1689]

Next up is to replace my radio. I wanted it to look somewhat period-specific but with modern functionality so I went with the Pyle PLRDD19UB. Only $49 for a Double Din Bluetooth radio. Hard to beat that!

Dash removal in my 94 was fairly easy but ran into some difficulties around the cigarette plug and above the steering wheel since the dash trim is all one piece on this model.

PO apparently cut the Toyota wiring harness so I’m running into issues here. Anyone ever had to troubleshoot an issue like this? Is it as simple as just rewiring that Toyota harness?

 

[tromz]

metal tech sliders. iPor skid some kind of rear protection for your quarter panels and lights. I love my arb idk how these folks that hate em wheel but I use mine as a pivot point in tight trees. A good set of mt tires are invaluable. N make sure you have a same size spare. I lifted 2.5 it helped but I’d spend and go 4 inches if I did it over. Lockers if you don’t have them.
It’s kinda you wheel your truck or you don’t. Armor it up first Ask anyone though I wheeled the piss outta mine stock w some all terrains.

 

[Cruzerman]

You should be aware that the factory roof rack is not at all strong so using that to hold down anything to the roof is sketchy.

 

[deadman1689]

You should be aware that the factory roof rack is not at all strong so using that to hold down anything to the roof is sketchy.

Well I don't plan on trying to put a tent up there or anything. Mostly just some lightweight camping gear (less than 50lbs total). Think that will be an issue?

 

[t k]

I've had friends lose their tents, sleeping bags etc when their roof rack failed to hold it down and its a quick way to ruin a trip. I would agree that spending more money now would definitely save you a lot of heart ache and added cost of buying additional camping gear when this eventually fails.

 

[deadman1689]

Yeah that would be a tough way to start a trip! I plan on getting gutter mount crossbars eventually. Can't shell out $1,000 for a sweet roof rack so some new crossbars will probably have to do.

I've had friends lose their tents, sleeping bags etc when their roof rack failed to hold it down and its a quick way to ruin a trip. I would agree that spending more money now would definitely save you a lot of heart ache and added cost of buying additional camping gear when this eventually fails.

 

[deadman1689]

So I spent this afternoon beginning to replace the rubber moulding around my fender flares. They are all dry rotted and gross. Wasn’t too difficult, just time consuming to find all the bolts and fasteners. Had to take the rear interior panels off to get to the rear fender flares. That let me clean out all the spider webs and measure the busted 3rd row speakers back there though.

Huge difference aesthetically! Before and after pictures below.

 

[MickeyB]

So I spent this afternoon beginning to replace the rubber moulding around my fender flares. They are all dry rotted and gross. Wasn’t too difficult, just time consuming to find all the bolts and fasteners. Had to take the rear interior panels off to get to the rear fender flares. That let me clean out all the spider webs and measure the busted 3rd row speakers back there though.

Huge difference aesthetically! Before and after pictures below.

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View attachment 1889547

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We’re are you are located at. I have 1994 Landcruiser and live around the New Orleans area.

 

[deadman1689]

We’re are you are located at. I have 1994 Landcruiser and live around the New Orleans area.

I'm in Macon, GA. I don't know much but any help I can be since we both have 94's, let me know.

 

[slow95z]

Still wondering why you dont come hang out with us cool kids in dublin 1 weekend . 3 built 80s and a mildly lifted 100 in our core group. All the free wrench time you could stand if you buy the beer.

 

[deadman1689]

Not much progress on my FJ80 lately. Adding another kid to the mix, job-relocation, and buying/selling a house isn't for the faint of heart.

Over the weekend, I had to do something to fix my super spongy brakes. Last Fall I got all the brakes replaced but knew there was a slow leak in the Load Sensing Proportioning Valve. A few weeks ago, it got much worse and my brakes were barely responding. Since Toyota wanted $450 for the part, I decided to find another route. I came across @jcardona1 thread on swapping the LSPV for a Manual Proportioning Valve from Summit. A buddy and me did the swap over the weekend. So far, so good. I'll most likely need to pressure bleed the brakes next week because I didn't have a way to over the weekend.

 

[deadman1689]

I was finally able to install my aftermarket radio and my CB. Waiting for my antenna to come as well as some 3D prints to serve as spacers for my new door speakers. I'm really happy with how the radio turned out, as I really wanted something that looked as close to original as possible.

 

[deadman1689]

It was impossible to find speakers that didn’t suck that would fit my FJ80 stock. So I bought the Rockford Fosgate speakers I wanted and had a friend 3D print me some thick spacers to provide the support and clearance I needed for these guys. Really happy with they way they turned out and they sound great. Any questions let me know.

 

[MrMikeyG]

That speaker install is pretty clean. I've seen way thicker spacers on this forum. I used 1/2 plywood under the door cards for mine.