PennSilverTaco's "Perfect 5-Lug Regular Cab" Build, Aspergers, and General BS MegaThread!

And this one time at Band Camp .............................................

 

Throwing away a sealed cold beer? Sounds like alcohol abuse to me.

 

That can be Art. But not Garfunkel.

 

Dented hood and no pussy to taste or smash for it

 

P.S. Very excited to do my 4Runner rear disk conversion. Hehe.

 

Can you say that word on tacomaworld? ........... Dented

 

I just spit coffee on the table damn it!

 

Slightly off-topic, but can anyone explain to me why disc brakes are better than drum? I mean I know they are, but when you look at the friction material on a drum brake vs a disc brake, the friction material on a drum brake has a MUCH greater surface area, which I would imagine leads to shorter stopping distance and ability to cool more effectively...but clearly I am wrong.

Anyone care to explain?

 

Discs are lighter and are not as susceptible to brake fade under heavy braking. They also handle getting dunked in mud a lot better. That being said I think by the time the rear brakes on a Tacoma started to fade your fronts would be long past that point. For the record I've never experienced brake fade in my Tacoma.

I will say every 4x4 I've ever had with rear discs has had parking brake issues.

 

It's worth noting that for the first three years I owned my truck, I thought it had a conventional open rear (ALL 2009 and newer models have an Auto LSD). Anyway, I recently found the original window sticker for my truck, and it clearly says that it has a limited-slip rear diff, but it does not say the gear ratio. For some reason, I think my truck has like a 3.31 or a 3.55 ratio, but I am not sure. Even though I drive a Tacoma and love Tacomas as a whole, I've been a Chevy truck fan since I was like 4. GM trucks have a sticker in the glovebox with a bunch of option codes, including rear axle ratios. For example the GM RPO code for a 3.31 rear axle is G94, and the code for a 3.55 is G96. G80 is the code for a locking/limited-slip/positraction rear axle.

I know nothing about Ford and Dodge production codes, but I do know that with import trucks options liked locking differentials are bundled with option packages, and that the axle ratio can only be decided by what engine you get.

Also, my mileage is only about 15 MPG. There are four factors that contribute to this; I replaced the factory 15-inch steel wheels on my truck with 16-inch Platinum Apex wheels and larger tires, I carry heavy loads in the bed regularly (but I have yet to tow a trailer or even install a hitch), I have a bit of a lead foot on the highway, and I use my A/C regularly during the summer. I floored my gas pedal one time when I was driving on the Jersey Turnpike, and the Turnpike was totally empty. My truck topped out at 97-98 miles an hour, 100-102 if going down a slight hill.

Is it possible that my truck has a 3.73 or a 4.10 ratio? A lot of times, trucks with smaller engines will get numerically higher final drive ratios to compensate for having less power.

So basically, I am wondering if there is an easy way to tell what gear ratio my truck has...?

 

http://bfy.tw/7UBo

the shortest easiest search came out that either it's 3.58 (base) or 4.1 (pre runner)

 

My truck's window sticker gave MPG estimates of 19 City and 25 Highway, and my Taco has either a 20 or 21 gallon gas tank. When cruising on the highway at 55-70 miles an hour, I've gotten close to 30 MPG, and in town I have gotten in the range of 18 to 21 MPG. However, I don't think I've gotten mileage that high since like 2013 or 2014. My rough estimate as of August 2016 is that I get about 15 MPG and go about 300-320 miles on a single tank of gas. I've never run out of gas, and the lowest I've ever gotten is a little under half a tank. Depending on gas prices and how low the tank is when I fill up, I've paid anywhere from $15 to more than $50 to fill up my truck with 87 octane gas.

There are four important factors to consider here:

In October 2013, I replaced the factory 15-inch steel wheels with 16-inch Platinum Apex wheels and bigger tires. I'm 99% sure this dropped my MPG somewhat.

I use my A/C regularly when it's hot out. I live in the suburbs of Philadelphia, and the whole Mid-Atlantic/Northeast has been going through a brutal, never-ending string of heat waves (I think we're having our 6th or 7th one now). Using the A/C always has an effect on performance and MPG.

Since December 2014, I've been hauling all sorts of interesting stuff in the bed of my truck, mostly for work. This ranges from the chopped-up remnants of my friend's old deck to about $5,000 worth of liquor for the bar where I work. Hauling stuff, often heavy stuff, on a hot day with the A/C blasting decreases mileage even more.

I admit I am a bit of a leadfoot. The fastest I've had my truck is 98 mph on the turnpike, with the A/C on, on a hot day. I've had my driver's license for 5 years and have never gotten a ticket or even been pulled over, but I do typically go 5-10 MPH over speed limit.

 

Stock 23/24 average and 28 all time high.

Modified I'm pretty much at 18.5/19 average and my high is usually barely scraping 20.

DCSB Prerunner 2.7 auto.

 

Tire and wheel weight is a huge issue with the 2.7 and auto.

 

I just always thought the factory steel wheels looked too small...

 

I like the look of 17 inch wheels but the extra 5-6 lbs per wheel over the same wheel in 16 inch made me puss out.

All I could imagine was getting 17s and 285s and dropping down to 15 MPG and being miserable.

 

I think the biggest factor is that we've had like one or two "cool" days in the last month, and I've been running the A/C virtually nonstop.

 

Could be.

My driving conditions have remained constant since my truck was new, and I use the same gas station, same AC use, same trips. The drive where I got my high of 28 MPG I do regularly and I've never gotten anywhere above 20 since.

All that has really changed is a small lift; a small tire size increase, and changing from the highway tread OEM tires to an all terrain style tire. Still P rated like the OEM tires were, and I kept tire weight a concern when shopping.

It really doesn't like RPM over 2500, or a heavier tire/wheel combo.

I noted no different in fuel economy going from a 1.5" lift to a 2.5" lift.