TW GUIDED BUILD. THANKS GUYS. ITS A LONG ONE

So I thought about starting my own Build Page, but I figured I wouldn’t be doing too much more to the truck after this surgery. Maybe I'll add to this one as I go. Ok on to the goods….

I went with the 5100/Eibach adjustables up front. The rear got 5100s and the OME Dakars. I chose this setup based on what I gathered from everyone here at TW. I was going to go with AAL but my stock leaf springs were looking pretty sad and my old man had already snapped one of his. On to the wheels/tires, I chose to go with the Moto Metal 951s 16X8 4.5 backspacing, 0 offset. I fear these rims may be a little played out, but I’ve had my eyes on these babies for a while so I said fuck it I’m going to go with what I like, to each his own. Tires, I would of loved to have gone with Goodyear Wrangler MT/Rs, but in the interest of saving money I chose Kelly Safari TSRs. I went with 285/75R16. I’m very pleased with these tires. Minimal road noise. And very little rubbing! Pictures do not do this tire justice. Good-looking tire and I hear they perform very well also. Haven’t had a chance to put them through their paces, but once I do I’ll be sure to update.

Side note: While waiting for the parts to come in, I stumbled on to the “Cheap Tacoma Mods” thread sooooo to pass the time….I decided to do a couple of mods: “free alarm mod,” “kill switch mod,” and the “cigarette lighter mod”


The install…Oh boy did I have a few moments. Took me about 8 hours! Keep in mind this was my first time taking apart a Tacoma. I owned a civic before the truck and I got pretty good at working on them. That came in really handy when it came time to take apart my stock spring/struts and putting together the new adjustable coil overs. And yes I did use the rented spring compressor tool from Kragen. Wouldn’t of been so bad but I had a shotty air compressor that would leak once it got to 50 PSI. The rear end was a completely new experience for me. Good thing I had the old man handy who’s taken his Tacoma’s rear end apart a few times.

So 8 hours and 2 broken tools later the lift kit is done. The next morning I wake up and my ENTIRE body is sore. I can honestly say that truck seriously kicked my ass. But after I get it back from the shop with an alignment and the new wheels I realized all that work was worth it. I think everyone can agree with me when I say that there is something awesome about standing back and admiring your truck knowing you put the time and effort into making it the way it is.

Thanks again to everyone here at TW for all their combined knowledge and advice.




Before



After












Needs a good buffing here.

 

Finally going to get around to replacing the O2 sensor. CEL came on.

 

that is looking nice

 

Thanks much

 

Nice truck man!!

 

Thanks partner! I just gotta get this damn CEL issue resolved. Hopefully it bumps my fuel mileage up a little. I'm at 17mpg right now. 18.5-19 before the lift and wheels.

 

Goodbye CEL . So I ordered the 02 sensor from Amazon, turned out the wire was about 4 inches too short . A trip to Autozone and 115 bucks later and the new sensor is in! BTW its a bitch getting to the connector for the o2 sensor that sits on top of the tranny. Tried getting it from under the truck, but that didnt work so I took apart the center console and got it from inside the truck through the shifter. Done and done. Also, F*ck this bipolar weather.

 

Day off tomorrow, ditching the chrome on the grill. Any suggestions or tips? Also, today is my Friday That is all.

 

I had todo this to my truck it's suck a bitch but it's always nice when you have an extra hand

 

Ah this is very true. Luckily I was able to snag an extra set of hands!

 

Damn that thing is clean! Looks like you got a good amount of lift with the dakars. It'll probably settle a bit but let us know how they ride Nice build!

 

Thanks man. The Dakars ride great . Slightly firmer than stock and I really do mean SLIGHTLY. The wifey didn't even notice the difference in ride quality if that helps at all.

 

Here she is waiting for her newly painted face. Will post tomorrow, ran out of daylight eff...

 

finished that grille yet?

 

Sorry I took so damn long to post the pics but work's been keeping me busy! Ok so here we go...


Sanded grill. I used 400 grit sand paper.


Kind of gives you an idea of how the prep ended up. Didnt take much sanding.


First coat of primer. Light coats!


Fully primed and ready for paint!


Alot easier than the grill


Here's the finished product. Probably the most difficult thing I've ever painted.



Corners

Two days of drying later and they made their way on the truck...




So there it is. I used Duplicolor black primer, 4 coats, Duplicolor Toyota black, 4 coats and Duplicolor clear coat also 4 coats. Not a perfect match to the truck's black sand pearl but close enough for me. I may go back and polish all up some to make it smooth. Oh btw I also clear coated the new headlamps. I did buy them from ebay so I also used silicone to seal them up nice.

 

Looks awesome! I think im motivated now to paint my grille black. Does the Duplicolor have the sparkly in it like the factory black?

 

Yes it does however, if you want a close match I'm pretty sure its going to take a lot more coats of clear coat to get it nice and glossy. I only did 4 coats and its close but not exact.

 

very nice looks great man. now black out the chrome bumpers!

 

Thanks man. Ive been thinking long and hard about blacking out the chrome bumper and I think since the wheels have polished accents on it, I may just keep the chrome on the bumpers to match the rims. I'm still not set on that decision yet though.

 

Have you thought about just sanding down the chrome bumpers for like a stainless steel look? Ive been contemplating doing that too... Just a thought.