Help me to not be a poser

So I am in my 50's and not a truck person per se, but I own a 2014 Tacoma Extended Cab that I use primarily for moving my BBQ gear around. My truck is NOT a 4x4 and I do not take it off road. I do however want to beef it up a bit so it doesn't look so standard but I fear I will do something stupid and look like a poser. Case in point: I would like to add a bumper guard and maybe some bigger tires. What mods can I get away with and not look like I'm pretending my truck is something it is not? Does this make sense?

 

You're 50 and worried about what people think of you? I threw that thought out the window awhile ago.

Are you planning on doing the work yourself?

I'd skip the bumper guard/brush guard as it only increases the amount of damage in a front end collision.
Bigger tires. How big? Want to lift the truck?

 

i have OME lift front and rear from ARB 885 in the front it will keep it at 2.5 to 2inchs and 3 leaf AAL from icon with my overload brings the back end about 2 inches even with that or bilstein set up you won look like a poser. everyone has their own taste on what they want. just be creative or follow some of the builds other people have here on TW. it will help out a lot.

 

Your truck is already capable of light off-road stock. But it looks MUCH better lifted with larger tires. Plus it will be more capable of handling any unexpected rutty gravel roads, debris strewn post disaster streets, or driver induced detours into ditches (ask me how I know). If you're not going anywhere sketchy, don't add heavy front/rear bumpers, winch, or skid plates. The extra weight will bring down your gas mileage. Rock sliders with kick-outs (like All-Pro's) on the other hand are useful even if you don't off-road to keep parking lot pricks from dinging your doors. (They also save your side-panels if you run into a ditch).

In your shoes I think I'd still look for a light aluminum bumper w. brush guard because you have those little hand-fed deer running around like rats. To that end also add some nice wide-angle (fog) amber/yellow lights (on your new bumper), that's just a good safety feature.

 

You can add slightly larger tires without adding a lift. You can go up to 265/75/R16 or 265/70R17. Putting on a slightly larger more aggressive looking tire will do wonders for the look of your truck. No need to add expensive bumpers and armor if you are not going to need it.

Check out my truck when it was still stock, with 265/70R17s added with some TRD wheels:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...ior-beadlock-style-wheels-on-a-tacoma.381030/

 

Well I don't give a crap if someone thinks I'm an A-Hole or even just a jerk but I do not want to be looked at as a poser. At least not on this forum. I was looking at the Avid Offroad bumper because it is not too big but offers some protection. I do drive through the hills and mountains so hitting a dear is a real concern.

 

Kinda understand the OP's post. I have a Pre-Runner access cab, very little snow here, and a 4wd ATV for off-road. Mod-wise, I am more interested in function than appearance. Hard tonneau cover, ScanGauge. Tire-wise stayed with OEM size LTX MS2 (a little more protection for rims from curbs) and no hit on mpg.

To each their own.

 

I was in the same boat as the OP, do want you want as it's your rig. I'm also 50 something with a base model Prerunner, I like the TRD look but didn't want to be a poser either. I did beef up the tires and wheels, added TRD hubs, tinted windows and stuff like that. Eventually Ill get a slight lift but for now it looks good to me, not a full Old Man truck like it was when I bought it. Short of 4x4 mud flaps or some such do want suits you.

"Dont count the days, make the days count"...Muhammad Ali

 

Stick with things that are functional and enhance performance for the way you use the truck. No one gives mine a second glance in spite of the mods I've done and that suits me fine.

 

Hell almost everyone on this forum is a "poser" to some degree - lifts for looks, exhaust systems for the "sound", decals, plasti-dip, .......
When I see some twenty or thirty something at Walmart loading their groceries into their lifted, big tired, Tacoma with sliders and bumpers and big lighting, I've never wondered if they were posing - LOL

 

Put you some BFGoodrich all-terrains on your stock rims, you'll be "just enough" if you ask me.

 

+1

 

Agreed. Throw some Michelin, Cooper, or BFG AT tires in a 265-75-16 and call it good. It'll give you a half inch of lift (maybe 3/4" If you're lucky) and it will beef up the "look" a bit. And stick a weather tech bug deflector on the front end. You might also look at some OEM running boards.

These things all just give the appearance of a little bulk without breaking the bank.

 

I have the Avid bar, and really like it, but it wouldn't do much hitting a deer at speed.

 

Hell, lift it and throw some bigger tires on it. Put a plate bumper on it if you want. It's your truck and you make it what you want. It doesn't matter what someone else thinks. As long as you're happy with it that's all that matters.

I saw a Prerunner yesterday with a 6" lift and 35's on it. It looked good and I could really care less that it wasn't a 4x4.

 

You really shouldn't worry about what other people think of you or your truck. If you want a beefier more aggressive look great, add some larger tires with a more aggressive tread, sliders or steps, etc., but do it for you not everyone else.

I have made a few "different" mods to my truck. Some like it, some don't. In the end it doesn't really matter what everyone else thinks, I do it because it's what I want to do.

 

I've hit a deer with a Bull bar/brush guard. It bent the brush guard, and left a hoof mark on the passenger door that buffed out. The brush guard just needed a couple of bolts. No real real damage to the truck.
Do what you want to do. What is functional for you may not be for someone else (And they'll tell you so, at least online).

 

Get a good all terrain tire in 265/75/16. Go Bilstein 5100's all around and have the front set at 1.75. Functional, visibly more "beefy" than stock, but not overboard at all. Plus you will have a better ride.

 

I gave up and embraced my inner poser long ago, no fks given.

 

My before and after shot of my Prerunner, I wanna ditch the chrome nerfs for black. Most of the stuff I've bought from other TW members. You don't have to spend a ton.