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

Feels bad. Rust belt truly is suffering.

 

Me after changing my ITRE and still have play only on the passenger side and it isnt from the rack, tierods or wheel bearing....
https://youtu.be/aYno8jeAxJo

 

I finally came around to checking the original tire size, I still have the original spare. Looks like the larger off-road tires I replaced were size "P265". Costco notes say "Original tires are P265, OEM calls for P225" so I have P225 tires on right now which is the OEM spec.

Really wish I got some bigger damn tires...

I should add the large tires I changed out had the 'off-road' tire pattern with the zig-zags, and the replaced set were a straight grid like you'd find on a sedan or common vehicle. Think the originals were like Yokahoma or something? New ones are Michelin

On an unrelated note, I was driving in the rain the other day and I was waiting at a metering light for the interstate on the on ramp. The light turned green and I tried to accelerate (like you normally would) and my tires skidded on the ground for a good couple seconds until the truck started moving forward. Scared the hell out of me, I thought I had a flat tire. It happened again when I was at a stoplight. There was also a lot of hydroplaning, the roads are hell after it rains after a dry spell in California.

 

As soon as one of my wheels slips I put the peddle to the floor to see how long it'll spin. Usually gets a good reaction from the person behind me too.

 

Honestly it was kind of fun, lol. I was startled because it's never happened to me before, I didn't really know what it was. I'm still getting used to the Taco, I drove a Mercedes sedan for awhile and nothing like that ever happened. Years before I owned the Tacoma I was in my buddy's PreRunner, it was an extra rainy day and the roads were really wet. We were going around a roundabout a little too fast and the whole truck spinned and skidden 180 degrees. Luckily no one was around.

 

So I was driving up this really steep hill in the rain (Carlos Bee Ave. near Cal State for my Bay Area peeps, which is something like 14% grade) and I thought I'd try out the 'L' and '2' gears. All I really know about them is that they lock the gears and offer engine braking or something and are good with hills so I tried it out. It was incredibly slow (in both gears) going up the hill, or on a generally flat surface in general. I didn't notice any difference in braking. It was much easier to go up the hill in 'D' rather than those gears.

When are you really supposed to use '2' and 'L'? I don't really see the point.

 

Pickup + wet roads + A/T tires is amusingly inefficient. Good for messing around though. Bonus points for uphill corners.

 

Whenever we have ice and this last year there was a bunch, all of my trips become drift challenges, extra points for linking the course and holding conversions.

 

I need to go to HD as well. Seems fairly straight forward though. On paper anyways. Lots of successful installs means it's gotta be easy right?!?

 

using those does exactly what you said. Locks the tranny to no go higher then the selected gear.

Engine braking in an auto tranny is not nearly as powerful as in a manual due to slipping of the torque convert. But it DOES help a bit. on a grade that steep going down you should notice that when applying the brakes the truck stops a bit faster. Idk how long your steep hill is, but in the mountain passes i drive that are MILES long of 8-10%+ grades, down shifting is a HUGE part of mountain pass driving. It saves your brakes big time. There is also correct braking technique for passes that long to keep from cooking your brakes. Which lots of people from the flat lands don't know and end up cooking the shit out of their brakes from riding them.

Another big help is when offroading, the tranny really likes to leave it in 2nd gear even in 4lo and crawling. I like to slap it in Lo(1st) when going up a very steep or rocky section. This ensures i keep the torquiest gear selected. Plus the auto shifts stupid hard in 4lo so its nice to know it won't lurch forward suddenly when coming over a large ledge.

 

Just bought this old girl '98 Off Road basically stock (183k miles), gave her an oil change and a little spring cleaning. Went with Castrol 5w30 synthetic and Toyota Oil Filter. While at the dealer for the filters I noticed they sell Toyota brand oil for about half the price of what I paid for the Castrol (on sale). Anyone ever use it?

 

Well for anyone that is following my alignment saga, I think the issue I'm having is with the lower balljoint, it has play and is allowing the bottom of the spindle to move just enough to make it look like a bad steering component. Just to test my theory I greased the living shit out of it and the movement became lesser and quieter.

 

That's the spirit! Most anything can be driven like a sports car...to a degree. I was deciding between a 1st gen Tacoma and an NA Miata when I was looking for a vehicle. I figured the Taco could things I wanted to do that the Miat couldn't, but I could still drive it like it's a sports car if I so desired haha. Glad to see I'm not the only one who treats my truck this way

Nice buy, m8! Congrats. First Tacoma?

Never used the Toyota oil before, but I have read that it's manufactured by Mobil so it's likely good stuff. Though there really aren't any bad oils, tbh.
If the Toyota oil is synthetic, go ahead and give it a try some time. With how long synthetics last, it hardly seems worth it to skimp out and get dyno oil. Depending on your driving habits, you could easily do two or even one change a year. The better performance of synthetics is well worth the money, and if the Toyota stuff performs and lasts, go ahead and save money.
I only buy my Mobil1 at work when it's on sale for $26.99/6qts. Money saved is money saved.

eeesh LBJ play. I'd much sooner replace it before I have to than learn from experience why waiting too long is not worth.

 

Haha, yeah she's pretty nimble on the ice. I've driven a few rear wheel sports cars with a lot of power (buddy has a 300ZX with a Holset HX35 turbo), but I think the NA and NB miatas might be some of the most fun because they were just meant for acting like a goon.

For sure, these are two year old parts store specials, that's why I could grease em. I'll be ordering both sides OEM tomorrow so I can replace them over spring break (next week). Hopefully in the meantime I can get an alignment finally so I can drive 250miles home on Thursday. Pretty sure this joint has had play for a month or so, I noticed after I greased it how quiet the ride got in the cab and I check them every other month or so.

 

Power is fun, no one denies that. Having enough guts to force a vehicle to do w/e you want to do is always a good time. But light, with predictable handling is also great. However you decide to have fun, I like them both.

LBJs are definitely one of those items I want OEM for. Many things do fine with budget parts, but critical parts, not so much. I'm also going to be checking mine for play more regularly, and checking the bolt torque as well. Takes so little time, and can help avoid a huge problem. Ya know, like most preventive maintenance.

 

Picked a toolbox up off CL for $100. Nothing special, but it opens, stays open, and has 2 locks (built-in + padlock), so it serves its purpose.

 

Thanks bro! Sorta, I have an old '92 pickup back east (I still consider it a Tacoma but you know how it is lol) but man that thing was so tough I knew I had to get myself another one! Was pretty interested in picking up a new one for a minute '16 or '17 but decided against it and went with something old, tough and proven with the hopes of mod'n er out a bit and working on it myself. And thanks for the feedback on the oil, I share your same philosophy with saving that dough! Buddy behind the counter told me he hears good things but its not like hed tell me otherwise right ahah

So yeah, I know they say you can run synth for a lot longer but is that mainly for the newer rigs? In the past I would change out at about 5000k (w/ conventional oil) and since this truck is new to me but still very much an old timer should I stick to a lower interval until im confident with the engine?

 

2 OEM LBJs ordered and 8 bolts just in case they didn't come with it

There goes my rear suspension overhaul fund until next paycheck, good thing that is in 3 days!

 

Good call on the 1st gen over a 3rd. I like the 3rds, but I am partial the the first Welcome to the right team!

No, any vehicle benefits from the performance and longevity of synthetic. It's inherent in the oil. It doesn't break down as quickly as dyno oil and retains its efficacy better across the entire temperature scale. There is no real downside to it, other than cost. But that could be offset by doing less oil changes overall.

 

I still gotta do my driver's side. Both BJs are new on the passenger side. I will be doing that before too long.

Yeah all the maintenance and such I have planned are pushing back my full suspension overhaul. Especially since I plan on going King and All-pro. Honestly, I am starting to doubt I will get to that this year.