PennSilverTaco's "Perfect 5-Lug Regular Cab" Build, Aspergers, and General BS MegaThread!

Gotta love D-town... I'm not up there as often as I used to be.

 

Try driving an ambulance or fire truck through that damn town. Use to jump on 19's trucks with my best friend when I was up there for fire prevention or their santa thing... holy hell.

Ambulance, just as bad. I hated covering their squad from my own. DOOOOOM

 

Most are

 

I hate female drivers.

 

Yea. I said it.

 

Well,

 

Dude it is so true, I was fortunate to have been taught how to drive by cops, I've been involved as the driver, in two accidents. My first, the guy cut me off and slammed on his breaks, and had no working break lights, in the rain, and took off running into the chinese food place, he didn't speak english. My second accident, I watched this lady look left, and never look right, just pulled right out infront of me. I pulled the E break, (91 honda accord) and drifted the car and only managed to hit the front driver panel and her front passenger panel, instead of a straight up T-bone which would've rolled her.

Women don't fucking pay attention, most drivers look maybe 100 yards infront of them, I'm looking as from my front bumper to as far as I can see ahead of me, and side to side. Constantly. Be it in an emergency vehicle or my personal.

The lady who T-boned my ambulance, she never heard the siren, sure, my partner was doing excess of 55 mph (male) out running the siren, runing a red light because our opticon never tripped (due to speed). But she didn't notice that no one else in the intersection moved, regardless of having a green. She t-boned my door... 2 Cracked ribs, dislocated shoulder, and bone bruises to my hip, femur and knee.... Was it my partners fault, 100%. But what if she had taken a moment to look, realize no one else had moved, stopped talking to her passenger, then maybe... just maybe.... I would still be working on an ambulance.

95% of my calls for accidents have been initiated because of a female. First fire call I went on with my current department, was a fatal. Started out a tractor trailer was making a turn onto the bypass, lady fell asleep at the wheel, and hit his drivers side fuel tank, he stopped... dude coming down the bypass didn't see them (poorly lite intersection) and lodged his truck under the trailer legs. Talked to me the entire time we cut his car apart... the second myself and my now chief handed him off to the guys operating on the passenger side, he died. A matter of moving him across the center console.. dead. All because some chick decided to keep driving and fell asleep at the wheel.

I hate..

HATE.
Female drivers.

 

I live in Southeast Pennsylvania, where we actually have 4 seasons. Winters range from mild to brutally cold, and summers range from pleasant to unbearably hot, with many variances. For example, on Christmas in 2015, it was so warm and humid outside that I had the central A/C on in my house!

Anyway, on brutally cold mornings, I would love to start my truck from the warmth and comfort of my house. This would especially come in handy when my truck has frost on it or it has snowed the night before.

As of right now, when it is super cold (even by Pennsylvania standards), I just start the truck with my spare key, cranked up the defogger, and lock it, then go in and eat a bowl of cereal. When I come out, the truck is warmed up. Once I get moving, my truck doesn't take long to warm up, but if it is particularly cold, it still takes a lot longer.

By comparison, I don't think I need a remote starter to get the A/C going because my A/C works great and seems to take not more than a few seconds to get cold.

My parents always tell me they've never had remote start on a vehicle and I probably don't either, but I would really love to have it.

What do you guys think?

 

My truck is a non-rerunner 2WD and as such I don't go off-roading. However, I have been thinking about buying a grille guard for my truck for a number of reasons. About 3 years ago, I hit a deer with my truck. Luckily, I was going so slow that my truck was undamaged and the deer was unhurt. Needless to say, my area (Southeast Pennsylvania) is full of deer this time of the year, and deer-related vehicle accidents are inevitable. Hitting a deer is considered an act of God by my insurance company, so my rates would be unaffected if I hit a deer and made a claim. My deductible is a thousand dollars. I believe getting grille guard would greatly decrease the chances of damage to my truck in the even of a deer strike.

Also, say somebody cuts me off or turns left in front of me, and I can't stop in time. Again, it won't be my fault, but dealing with insurance companies is always a nightmare. As I found out the hard way, this can be the case even when the evidence is OVERWHELMINGLY in your favor:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...k-drivers-mercedes-justice-was-served.435058/

Basically, I have confidence in my ability to drive defensively, but I don't want my truck to end up in the body shop every time somebody doesn't drive defensively and hits me or CAUSES me to hit them. I regularly use my truck for work and cosmetic damage is inevitable, so I've given up on trying to keep my truck in perfect showroom condition. I could care less what happens to the other driver's vehicle if they are at fault.

Would installing a grille guard have the opposite effect and possibly lead to more severe damage than would have occurred if I didn't have the grille guard.

Could the weight of the grille guard cause the frame to get bent? I was talked out of having a heavier-duty rear bumper installed on the grounds that a heavier non-OEM bumper could actually cause the frame to bend and the truck to be totaled in the event of a severe impact?

Does anybody have any recommendations as far as brands, materials, etc?

Thanks!

 

They're pretty much thin wall exhaust tubing. So not much extra protection against hard stuff, and have a tendency to increase damage in low speed collisions.

That aside, if you want one for aesthetic reasons then go for it. Just don't assume it's a benefit when you hit something.

 

If the budget allows, I say go for it. Not only is it convenient on cold mornings, but some models can notify you if your truck gets hit while parked. If you go with a Viper remote start (for example), you have the option of an "advanced" security system. The technician would install an actual alarm considering Toyota isn't known for theft protection in the first place. Based on the benefits listed, I say it's a great idea.

 

haha i think most people just install it for looks.

 

My last tacoma had remote start. Best. Thing. Ever.
Do I have it now? No, because I cant imagine what it would cost...
sire was sweet though!

 

I obviously already know where I'd install fog lights if I opted to put them in, in the little blank slots in the bumper.

However, what I am wondering is if they're worth it?

Also, how hard is it to run the wire to the cab? I have a base model regular cab so there are several blank spots on the dash for "upfitter switches."

 

if you appreciate your peripherals lit up, they are definitely worth it- like when you are out camping or on rural roads- visibility is improved.
If your in the city, doesn't really make a difference.

 

so hard on the motor to sit there and idle to warm up..... start it, scrape ice off the windshield, then get in a drive. The load will warm it up FAR quicker.

 

Right now, the only things truly protecting my truck are defensive driving, front and rear dashcams, and really good insurance.

I gave up on trying to keep my truck in mint condition. It doesn't matter if it's a Toyota, a Nissan, a Ford, or a Chevy. It's a pickup truck, and I use it for it's intended purpose. Needless to say, there are numerous dents and scratches. The most noticeable dent is on the back of the cab on the right side and occurred when we were moving, caused by an office chair that my dad didn't properly secure. I was quoted $250 to fix it, so I'm going to bother. I regularly come into contact with bushes and trees, etc. This causes light scratches that I don't particularly care about.

The big problems come in the form of actual road accidents. I had THREE of them between in 2015, TWO of which WERE NOT my fault. I got rear-ended in March 2015, I rear-ended somebody in August 2015, and I got hit in the left rear fender by a drunk driver in October 2015. I've gotten two parking tickets in my life, and I have a flawless driving record and have never been pulled over. I've just been in a few fender benders over the years, most of which were not my fault. I've never been in a serious accident.

I have accepted the fact that no matter how much I improve my driving habits, there will always be idiots on the road. My goal is to modify my truck somehow with bumper guards or something, so that if my truck is involved in accident, it won't be damaged. I commute to work on a stretch of road where at least one rear-end collision occurs per day. One day, I drove past a 3-vehicle accident, in which a Kia Sorrento rear-ended a 2013-2014 Tacoma 2WD extra cab and pushed it into the Honda Pilot in front of it. The Kia had moderate front end damage but was driveable, and the Pilot have extremely minor damage to the rear bumper. The Tacoma, which was the unfortunate middle of the sandwich, got the worst damage. Both bed panels, the tailgate, the rear bumper, and probably the entire bed, would have to be replaced for starters. The hood, grille, front bumper, both headlights, and possibly the right front fender would have to be replaced as well. The airbags did not deploy and the truck was driveable, but there was probably $5,000-$10,000 in damage to this poor Tacoma. I don't want my Tacoma to end up like that one.

I was talked out of installing a heavy-duty aftermarket rear bumper on the grounds that such a bumper might result in severe frame damage in the even of a rear-end collision.

I was also told that a grille guard for the front would probably be absolutely useless in reducing damage. Is there anything I can do do beef up my truck, or just continue the way I am now, with good insurance, front AND rear dashcams, defensive driving, and prayer?

 

I live in the suburbs. I find myself driving on dark side roads quite often. Also, foggy mornings are quite common in my area.

 

Last winter I really wanted to put in a remote start because I hated the fact that my truck didn't warm up to operating temperature before I reached my ultimate destination for school every morning. After doing research, it is the general consensus that it is unnecessary to idle a vehicle to warm it up before driving, and that best practice is to drive off after idling the engine for about 20 seconds. The idea is that the engine needs to reach operating temperature as quickly as possible for best operating conditions, which will be achieved through driving.

I only say these things to ensure you are making an educated decision, not to invalidate the value you may have of having a warm cabin every morning before driving to work. I live in SC where the winters are comparatively very mild, and we never see snow. Just wanted you to know what I found while I was considering the same thing.

 

sounds like you would benefit from installing fogs