Love to off-road the unusual

Hey there y’all, this is my first Tacoma I’ve ever owned and I love it. It’s a 2000/01, which means the engine is a 2000 model and a lot of the body is 2001. Ask me how I know, haha! Anyways, I’m a family man and all about built not bought (mostly cuz I’m broke because Teenagers) and modding stuff myself.

I’m not new to off-roading, I’ve done enough riding/spotting for friends and was a downhill mountain biker/trail builder that I know how to spot and coach good lines. I’ve also driven my Subaru Impreza Outback and later Forester on many trails folks have been surprised to see me on. Anyways, I’m excited to add a locker and some lite mods while the kids are still home and maybe a full SAS, twin stick, 4x4 conversion later after they’re gone.

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Welcome aboard David

 

Welcome!

 

Never heard of a targa, are you thinking TORSEN?

If so that's a worm gear LSD not a locker, more better than an open diff, but more for road racing not off-roading.

Now the best cheap locker?

Probably OEM, they could be had on both the Tacoma and 3rd gen 4Runner 96-00.

If you can find a junk yard one then you're in business. I went this route got a 4:30 from an auto (get the front diff for the gears too if you're not matching) 4Runner (97) at a U-Pull-n-Pay hub to hub for $300 I think rebuilt it end to end for a couple bucks bullet proofed the actuator and bolted it into my '00 Runner did the blue wire (or grey wire?) Mod so I could lock up in 2WD and it was phenomenal.

Now, if you get one off a 4runner they are coil sprung so you either need to mod up your existing housing slightly to drop in the e-locker 3rd memder or cut all the coil buckets off and add spring perches to the 4Runner housing but the drums and WMS to WMS should be identical.

The OEM E-Locker could be had in 4:10 4:30 and 4:56 flavor, 4:56 is rare as a jackalope 4:30 is most common by far which with a manual trans pairs great with 32" tires.

 

Welcome to TW

 

Welcome to TW
Only Targa I’ve herd of was on a Porsche.

 

Oh wow, ok! We have an LKQ pick your part and I work at a shop called Truck N Trailer USA, I get cost with Meyer, P&E distributors, and Keystone. So I’ll definitely check out LKQ first and then can cut and reweld perches ie whstever fab work needs done! Thanks!

 

Have y’all heard of a Spartan Locker? That was the one my buddy bought and I have the 2wd Taco so I won’t be putting one in the front at all.

 

Not until I did a search.
Looks like a few guys have run them.
Premature engagement can be an issue if you “gas it” to hard according this
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/spartan-locker.280281/

 

Yeah that's a great place too, if you can have them pull the wiring for it too, I believe Marlin Crawler or Inch worm off road sells a harness you can use but it's nice to have the full OEM set-up too.

There's also a locker button on the dash and a locker control module that's in the driver's kick panel.

Again you can buy the aftermarket harness and do a simple switch and relay to get it to work without all that also but most trucks come at least partially wired for the locker.

My Runner had the wires from the locker computer to the gas tank pass through area just used the harness from there back to the locker and plugged the brain and switch into the existing plugs and I was in business.

 

Welcome to TW!