The Official TW 4Runner owners thread

Those are some good snow shots

 

Thanks just got them this week

Here's some from Christmas

 

Awesome lights lol

 

Anyone need some brand new 5th gen cloth mats? PM me if you want them.

 

Here are a few pix of my best friends 4runner I took this week.

IMG_6627sm by Captures by Colin, on Flickr

IMG_6643 by Captures by Colin, on Flickr

IMG_6577 by Captures by Colin, on Flickr

 

Hiya, Folks,

Sometime with in the next year, I'm planning on adding a 3rd Gen 4runner to my stable. I'm looking for one that had the 3.4L with an automatic transmission and the factory E-locking rear diff, hopefully with less than 200k on the odo.

I'm not clear on what trim level the locking rear diff came in. Could y'all help me out there? I'm also looking for some guidance on any common problem areas I should look out for (rusty frames, failure prone parts, that sort of thing). I'd appreciate any input.

Edit: Disregard. T4R has an absolutely amazing buyer's guide that pretty much answered all my questions.

 

Great photos! Trucks look awesome.

 

IMG_6765.jpg by chaser88, on Flickr

Here's my 4runner I just got a couple of weeks ago! Check out my build

 

The rear E locker is around 1998 and 1999 models only I believe.

ill tell you one thing, good luck finding that elocker. There's one for sale in washington and another in oregon if your interested. Theyre unicorns in the 3rd gen world. especially if you go manual.

the issues with the 3rd gens are the factory defective lower ball joints. there was a recall so make sure it was completed or get them done yourself if you are not sure.

also, look up the strawberry milkshake issue. there is great fix for it, PM me for any questions.

 

tell me about your roof rack please

 

I joined the 4runner world two weeks ago

 

Nice buy, that thing looks clean!

 

Hey, thanks for the info. T4R also mentioned the strawberry milkshake issue, and it is a risk for me since I'll be looking for an automatic. Replacing the radiator is among the first things I plan to do with it in addition to a new timing belt (most likely) and a new OME suspension (I'll probably replace the upper and lower ball joints with the suspension). I did see a Limited a little less than 200 miles from me that said it had an Elocker, but after reading T4R's buyer's guide, I realized that I didn't want a Limited because I want a normal t-case (luckily, I still have several months before I am ready to start looking seriously).

 

Just to clarify on the other guys post, e-lockers were available in years 96-00. They are more prominent in the Limiteds though, so keep that in mind. I have a 2000 Limited, which has the multi-mode t case (awd) and e-locker. I can understand wanting a standard J shift mechanical tcase, but the multi-mode is just as good. The multi-mode is only available in 99-00, so a 96-98 has a electronic tcase, but no AWD capabilities. If you want an E-Locker don't even look at 01-02's as none of them had them.

 

Yup, T4R's 3rd Gen buyer's guide broke it down pretty good. Had a chart and everything. I'm thinking I want a '98, just to match the Taco, but I'll consider a '99 or '00 if it has the features I want or the price is right. Only reason I like the limited is for the leather seats, but if limiteds are the only ones I can find with elockers, then I'm going to have to consider carefully which compromise I want to make.

Haha, I'm already considering what it's going to take to convert it to manual hubs and delete the ADD system.

 

I love the sequoia wheels. I'm a huge fan of them on 3rd gens. Clean looking runner!

 

Did 12hrs of work on my 98 today in preparation for Rock Therapy at the end of the month. Swapped out my entire rear axle for one with 4.30 gears and e-locker. Made some beefy links(all 5), did new rear brake drums and shoes, and then installed some new wheels/tires onto it.
Pretty good headway toward competing it for the trip. Mainly have armor and wiring up a ton of stuff left to do.

 

SR5's had leather as well and you could probably find a set of leather seats pretty easily. It's going to be tough to find a sr5 with leather and a locker but can be done. Keep in mind it is pretty easy to swap in leather and a locker down the road, so don't pass up a good one because it doesn't have either.

I converted my 2000 to manual hubs and it was simple. I just used the spindles from a manual hub taco and swapped them in. I hate abs so I just relocated my sensors up into the engine bay.

No pics? Haha What kind of rear armor are you making?

 

Here ya go.


Going to have plate bumpers front and back. Relatively basic on the rear for now, and then sell it and build a more custom 1-off for myself after Moab

 

The upper links old vs New. Lol.

9/16" thick rod before, 1.25" tube after

And the stock lowers were remade with 1 3/4 DOM Tube. Probably overkill for stock geometry but oh well. Relentless!