New project truck

I bought a 1997 Tacoma for $400. I have a few questions, both about the truck itself and mods i can do to it (for looks and/or performance). First of all, how do i know whether it is the SR5, TRD, or DLX version? It has the 3.4 Four cam v6 engine and 5 speed manual transmission. Now onto the mods... All i have done to it so far is 1 inch wheel adapters and after market rims with stock size 31x10.5/15. What mods could i do to help make my truck look better or perform better (power or fuel economy)? Ive heard about cold air intakes, throttle body spacers, after market throttle bodies, headers, exhausts. will any of this stuff really help that much more than stock or is that just marketing scams? Has anyone done this stuff and experienced gains or drops? Im also interested in new tires. My driving is half gravel roads and half highway, with the occasional off roads with some mud. This truck is mainly used in winter though so it sees mud and ice. Any good multi-purpose tires? i was looking at the hankook dynapro mt. with a lift i was thinking about 33's or 35's. how high would i need to go to accommodate either of these tires?

 

3 inch for 33s or 6 inch for 35s

 

nothing you do will increase mpg so get over that now.. 20mpg is pretty much as good as it gets.. is it a 4x4?

also holy crap u lucky dog 400 bucks??

 

Yes the truck is a 4x4. I spray painted the 4x4 decal on the box myself. Simply found one I liked on Google and printed it off. Used a razor blade to cut out the decal, taped it on and painted it. $400 is all I payed for it. The previous owner used it for mud bogs and had it in a tough truck competition (hence the cracked frame mentioned in previous post) I picked up the truck, did a little maintenance and its seemed good to me so far. The only complaint I have about it so far is with it being a 97 it doesn't have the locking difs that were offered in 98 I believe. If I ever need to change a timing belt or whatever may go I can do that myself. If the timing belt were to go on me I would probably just pull the motor and do a 3 angle valve job and do the rings while the motor is out to try and juice a little more power out of it. If that were to ever happen I would also consider different cams. Being raised by a mechanic I've been doing repairs to things for years whether it be my toys or vehicles. That's a whole different story though. http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/new-members/357142-new-project-truck.html

 

Its either the SR5 or TRD. But since it has the extended cabe, 3.4l and 4x4 i think thats the TRD. Nice pick up tho. i have the DLX 98, only complaint is i wish i had the extended cab for the extra room with 2 kids as they love trucks lol

 

nice find

 

What are the differences of the sr5 and TRD? Mine is pretty basic. Manual windows, locks, and mirrors. No cruise. No dif lockers. Just the plain posi where one wheel spins (usually the rear right) two fold down rear seats and a 60/40 front bench with 3 seatbelts

 

Someone can correct me but if a timing belt was to break there would be no damage to the engine as it is a non interference engine. Your just dead on the spot until a new belt is installed.

 

3.4L, Correct.

 

So unlike most other motors in any other vehicle this 3.4 won't jam or cause damage to the engine if the timing belt goes?

 

$400.00. ?????

That's a find!

 

Nice truck man! I would never get that lucky, great deal!

 

Correct!

 

you have neither the TRD (available 98+) nor the SR5 (mostly convenience packages with power options). Sounds like a base 4wd, which some actually wanted over having power options to keep it simple