What have you done to your Tacoma today? 1st Gen Edition

I shoulda tried that. My bulb exploded in there on my way home with the water in there. Ha. These lights are pretty low quality though. First set had said leak(surprisingly the led's weren't affected being completely submerged, lol), as well as an adjuster broke. Second set did retro in. Have had those for a while now, but lenses and trim are garbage from being baked in az sun, as well as internal reflector on one side broke loose. The plastic brackets that hold the housing to the truck also are cheap and Have broke on me. Basically my grille is the only thing keeping them in as I installed them without cutting the grille tabs off.

Have new set but anxious to try another retro with them. Idk. I may go back to the two piece sets. Will give these one more shot. But gotta figure out how to better protect the lenses and trim from deteriorating. Maybe clear coat em.. As well as use a heat gun instead of oven to split them. Think that played a part in the internals breaking on me.

 

Use UV Resistant non-yellowing clear coat, and while it's all apart spray all the plastics with a healthy amount of bedliner, that should help keep everything sound

 

Today i did the same thing @andrew8404 did. Different product but i bet his hurts just as bad when you get it splattered in the eyeball. I brushed Chassis Saver on the last 1/3 of my chassis. There are some spots near the engine i could not reach. But i will hit those as i have access. I think i might hold off on the fluid film that i planned to buy. See how it looks in the spring. You cant paint over fluid film and i feel i have mot yet reached the point of diminishing returns with the paint.

This Chassis Saver crap will not come off. I have a splatter on my leg from 4 weeks ago. It soaks through clothes in seconds. The S8 solvent you use with it burns like SOB when you rub it on your face with a scotch-brite pad. I sure hope this was worth it.

 

What kind of battery are y'all running? I want to change mine out before old man winter sets in. I'd like to increase the CCA also.

 

basicly the slip joint in the intermediate shaft of the steering linkage between the wheel and the rack input develops some slop in the 2 hexagonal pieces after a while... the popular fix is to tack the outside at the point where they slide over each other.

heres a link to a really good writeup I found & followed that explains it better; edit; just seen @Lux got you the link first. thanks

 

Diehard (Odyssey) AGM battery. 720 CCA and 850warm amps. Good battery so far for the price

 

I'm running an optima yellow top, and a gm 150 amp alternator, never had any issues

 

I have had my optima yellow for 3 yrs... never let me down (knock on wood-lol) even after leaving the key in the on position for 2 days straight before I caught it.

 

Thanks. I think my steering is ok right now.

 

Ha ha I used goggles!! But I didn't get a few small speckle dots on my face and arms! It's a PITA to get off!

 

X2... just did this a couple months ago, one of the best mods. didn't have too much feedback off road either

I'll confirm this. the moment I switched it to 6 o clock, temps came down. I was 198 F around town, much higher on the highway Now, it stays at a constant 186 pretty much all the time, unless I'm crawlin'

@jjsul do you have an ultra gauge or scan gauge? If not, put it on the christmas wish list. Its so worth it homie

 

What color is the center console and how much?

 

Diehard Platinum ( rebadged Odyssey) Group 35. Amaze-balls battery, had it for 4 years and its never had an issue. The only problem is I just heard they don't make it anymore I might drop the coin for a dual Odyssey setup...but thats back a couple pages on the want list

 

That, or you've gotten used to how "loose" the slip joint has become! I thought mine was pretty good too, but I'm always tinkering and upgrading the rig, so decided to give it a go. Its like driving a truck with a new front end, super tight. Yes, you will have more feedback, but its fine for the benefits. highway difference was extraordinary, the famous off road coin jar rattle disappeared. The tacks will shear under the force of impact, thats why you stay away from beading it. So, you've got nothing to lose!

 

I've always wondered about the jiggle valve mod. I put mine in at 12 when I did the timing belt this spring, as the old one that came out was at 12. Engine runs somewhere around 200 degrees all the time. Never once been high enough to cause concern or move the worthless needle on the dash above halfway.

Is it possible there's a reason you would want the engine at 200 versus 185 or so? I'm thinking just because it's colder doesn't necessarily mean it's better.

Need someone much more knowledge then myself in the physics of internal combustion engines to explain where engine temperatures should be.

 

well, water starts to boil about 212°F. Now antifreeze and pressurizing the system brings that boiling point up. So that's one factor, to go easy on the cooling system.
Oil tends to fry at about 240°F. Oil and water temp do not always go hand in hand.
Engines have a peak operating temp where the metals are expanded (tolerences) just right and happy to move against each other. There is a range where this happens, it can vary between different engine types too. Below that range is inefficient operation, poor economy, possible oil consumption and internal wear. The same happens when the temp goes above that ideal range.
So running at 185° gives a little cushion for increased operating temps when under a load for extended periods of time.

 

Is this product wired such that one of those could become a turn signal? can you link to the product?

 

They've got a positive and a negative wire on each light, theoretically, the possibilities are endless. I just ran mine to an open spot in the interior fuse box so they come on when I turn the key.
I just searched eBay for 2004 Tacoma LED Headlights, take your pick. Most of them are between $100-$200, depends on what color and stuff that you want, too. Mine are the Spyder brand, black lenses with chrome trim.

 

Yeah, the upper operating temps I was seeing for normal driving were gettin under my skin for that reason. I just felt like I was putting more strain on the whole system that way, especially when under load.. temp would climb like 20 degrees with the cooling fan blastin. Our top ends hate heat, right!?

Also to note is that all the supercharger guys try to run cooler plugs and even thermostats, gotta be a good reason...

 

exactly.