Water Proofing

Hey everyone! I have a 2008 Tacoma TRD 4X4. Its my only vehicle, so I drive it everywhere including when I go hunting in the everglades. Well, there is this one spot that I must drive through which is about a 50 yard up to my headlight puddle. Now I haven't had any trouble (sounds) from going through it, but I also haven't seen to many discussions online about going through water this deep. I do however have a little starter trouble now all of a sudden which spawned this post. Every now and then she clicks for a couple times instead of turning over.

So I thought I'd ask the experts on what to maintenance/clean/inspect after each hunt so I did not develop huge issues over time.

Now I plan on putting a snorkel on her since my air intake (in the wheel well) does go underwater for a bit. And I do a complete cleaning and spraying down the undercarriage every time as well.

Now, I'm not to mechanically inclined, but I can youtube just about anything..lol. Are there any mods that I would benefit from in order to water proof the truck so going underwater doesn't kill her over time? Anything I should maintenance everytime I get out of the water?

 

extend the breathers

keep the alternator dry or get a back up

keep the starter dry or get a back up

get yourself some "Gates" brand sealed pulleys

spare serpentine belt

if your fan comes on while under water the blades can explode and take out the shroud. aftermarket electric fans are preferable for deep water crossings so they can be turned off

keep your radiator clean or it will overheat when packed with grime

your door seales suck and will leak if you go real deep for long...so either tape them up and get in dukes of hazard style or waterproof all your interior connections with dieletric grease

put dialectric grease on your engine harnesses

put marine dry bags on your ECU

your axle seals can suck water in them so change your fluids more often then recommended for that matter change ALL your fluids more then recommended

the following parts do not like water/mud/sand and will wear quicker: tie rods, ball joints, CV's, wheel bearings, bushings, brakes, etc etc.

There are plenty of threads on how to prep your truck for water so I suggest doing some research. also start to maintain your truck yourself if you plan on playing in the water more often so you can fix any issues that arise in the middle of nowhere

 

Thanks for all the information! Not quite sure what exactly everything is but I will find out and start getting to know how to do these things. I have been reading here for a while now and slowly learning how to maintain her by myself. Besides this site, are there any other good resources to learn this stuff?

 

Best place for tech info IMO is here Just don't post any questions in there or you will get eaten alive. Become a member and check it out for a few months. Those guys jump all over n00bs.

There is also a great wealth of info here, but it is rather hard to search for IMO. Start here http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/15686-diff-breather-mod-dummies-pics.html

also check out this list here http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/7174-2nd-gen-tips-mods-more.html

 

Headlight high? Reroute your front /rear differential, tcase ane transmission breathers asap. You might want to change the fluids in those first 3 now if you already went through a lot of water. Pick up some spare accesory pulleys like the gates one for sure. They will probably go. Dielectric greasing all your inside connections is a great idea. I did that ovr the summer. Pain in the ass but worth it. Your starter sounds like it's on its last limb, get a newn
one for when it goes. I tried to find out about adding longer breather extensions to the staerer motor breather(s) but the idea got mixed opinions.