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

After swapping out rear shocks, leafs, ubolts, and greaseable shackles, what’s the procedure for torquing what when? My current plan is below:

Upper/lower shock bolts - torque in air
Rear shackles/front eye - hand tight in air, grease them, drop truck, torque with truck weight
U bolts - torque in air

I know I’m getting in my head on this more than I should, but would appreciate some advice.

 

UPDATE:

After putting everything back together and driving it for a couple days, 100 miles or so, It sits like this...


As you can see it has settled a good bit in that amount of time.
Unfortunately the Left side sits about an inch higher than the right and I’m not sure why...

285-75-16’s If anyone was wondering.



The Right (lower) side is right where I want it to be. JUST the right height!
Now if I can figure out how to get the left side down I’ll be a happy camper.

I torqued my bolts to spec today because it was suggested on another thread that I tighten the leaf and shackle bolts to about half torque, then drive for a while before torquing them completely so They can settle.

What can I do to level the Right and left side of the truck???

 

You sure it's parked on completely level ground while measuring? Just going off the pics because it looks like it's somewhere off road. In my experience, event the slightest difference in surface level side to side can make a big difference in how the truck sits, especially after it's lifted.

Our driveway is like that and always makes my truck look like it's a good inch higher on one side than the other.

 

Original battery? Wow.

Mine turns 22 in November.

All suspension should be torqued while truck in sitting on the ground under its own weight. Lug nuts too.

Make sure to re-torque the u-bolts again after a few hundred miles, they'll stretch and loosen.

 

Heck no. On its 3rd battery, been thru welding, alt swaps, cable/wiring upgrades etc.

 

Is that right?
That’s an uneven driveway.
I figured that would make a little difference but not much. Huh..
I’ll go to a flat pad later and double check that.
Thanks

 

Yeah it used to worry me too until I started taking measurements in the paved parking lot at work and things were much closer to even side to side. I don't ever expect it to be perfect considering the weight side to side is not equal, but it's definitely not as uneven as it is when parked in our old uneven driveway.

 

I thought the bed stiffer was flipped from how you have it. Like right and left. Do you think it matters?

 

I had "finicky" backup lights a few years ago. The switch was intermittent when mounted on the transmission but tested good on the bench without fail. The thought crossed my mind that the switch just was not getting pushed enough due to some wear in the tranny or the switch itself.
I screwed the switch back in without the crush washer thinking this would add a bit more throw to the switch action. It worked perfect until finally giving up the ghost just a few weeks ago. A new switch and all is well.

 

These well really fit a 04 tacoma

 

Anyone got the Amazon link to the replacement hvac knobs that work for our trucks

 

Gotcha. I was confused by "never been disconnected from 12v power."

Was like damn, I need to get one of those batteries. hahahahaha

 

If anyone has an inconsistent vibration almost like a tire out of balance but it isn't constant give your steering rack bushing a check. I was able to get about an 1/8" turn. It seems to have solved my intermittent shaking steering wheel.

 

Do you mean the bushing that mounts the steering rack, or the big hex one that you have paint marked?

 

The big hex. If it's a nut it has a roller instead of a bushing.

 

Drove her after 3 months... Love this thing

 

That's the rack guide, I tightened mine just a smidge once and it really stiffened up my steering... Like in a bad way lol. Tires wouldn't return to center after turning. Had to loosen it again. It's crazy sensitive

 

It gets sensitive quick. Mine might be just a skosh tight but I figure it'll wear in or I just won't notice it after a week of driving it. This is the 2nd time I've had to adjust it in 3 years or so. After the first year of the new OEM rack the locking ring was loose. I should probably put an inline filter in one of the lines if I wearing it that quickly.

 

All back together and shakedown went great. Appreciate you helping pull my head out my booty hole

 

OEM is a little too much like a '53 Buick grill to me.