Northern Virginia Roll Call

Wheels? I'm looking for stock trd off road wheels.. Well, just one.

 

me too

 

I got 4 but dont want to split them up, find 2 more people and split em!

 

if you or anyone are in NOVA anytime soon, I'd like to drive a retro'd headlight mod at night for a comparrison vs my stock.

 

I just did a very quick Photoshop to see what my truck would look like with my bumper, sliders, and blacked out fenders.

What do you guys think? I'm not sure of the fenders look on MGM.



Matt

 

Dont do the fenders black. Other than that

 

Agreed

 

Only reason i would ever do "black fenders" is if i was taking the flares off, cutting for clearance and painting a "flair" outline to help hide the holes

 

Yeah, I would leave the fenders as MGM. The black looks funny and makes it look like you have massive wheel wells.

 

Yeah, I was going to try Plasti-Derp first obviously, but I may not, the more I look at it. Can't wait for my Demello and Avid sliders...

Matt

 

I am in Burts queue to get my retros done. I found out the hard way that I suck at doing the BHLM and decided to have it done right. Burts work is quality stuff and I am a perfectionist when it comes to this stuff and I know I would never be able to get the paint and cutoff line up to my standards with my lack of skills in that area.
Last time I heard, I am 7th in line to get mine done, so I'm hoping to have them by next month depending on how fast he moves. Can't rush quality though.
I will tell you they are a HUGE improvement over stock. When I had them all put together and testing on the truck, I had one retro'd light in and one stock, and it was like a night and day difference.

 

I would agree with the others and say stick with the MGM. I didn't realize you purchased sliders too. Weld or bolt on? I am thinking I am eventually going to sell my Avid steps and get a set of sliders as well. I will probably wait and get a set of the 4xInnovations and at the same time (since they acquired ATO) get the rest of my ATO skids. I only have the IFS now.

Yep I'd like to do that too. But I don't think I would do a very good job at it. I really like the look of silver mica and super white trucks with black fenders, but I am horrible with paint and would end up making it look like shit. Maybe fill in the holes with bondo and then plasti-derp them?
I don't want to spend the money on bushwhackers that don't do anything but looks. Although they do look nice.

 

I was going to get bolt-on but then I read that Avid one's only bolt into the running board mounts, and not even the frame, so I got weld-on. One of my friend's buddies is going to weld them on for pretty cheap.

Yeah, I wasn't planning on getting any for a while, but I may go to Rausch Creek this spring with my brother and buddy so I figured I'd like to have sliders before that.

Matt

 

ANy of the V6's done a conversion Radiator/ Thermostat (Fan) from engine to electric? With me upgrading to a dual battery system and looking at a nice sized output alternator, I feel the electrical system could manage it. Any thoughts?

 

Ive looked at adding a "pusher" type electric fan in front of the radiator in conjunction with my standard fan but right now dont really have a need. My ac has never blown very cold from day 1 and i thought that could help.

 

I was more currious about removing that extra strain/ HP (parasitic loss) from the engine. Most luxury cars are electric, hondas too, other brands...

Bothers me that when I switch on the heat/ac I feel the engine engage the system. Have been used to the other type.

http://flex-a-lite-blog.com/2010/02/27/which-is-better-–-an-electric-or-belt-driven-fan/

 

Do the OR models have a transmission cooler? I thought they did, but I don't remember and it's too dark to go look.

 

Yes, Yes they do. IF you have the towing package. <- Think thats right. Towing package adds transmission cooler.

 

Correct, the towing package includes a transmission cooler. (Small black radiator in the bottom right-hand corner)

I'm sticking with my clutch/belt-driven fan. As mentioned in that quote, they're better for off-road applications when you are moving slowly but at high-RPMs.

I helped a buddy install an electric fan on his Dodge. He had to custom-fab a mount for it to fit and he had to buy special reservoirs for his coolant overflow. It took a lot of work and he has noticed little difference except for a slight increase in warm-up times.

Consider the fact that we have an aluminum block with the V6 that really doesn't take long to produce heat for the cab.