Pongo, my 2016 TRDOR, it's life stages, and travels

This is rad!

 

@dorton Did you have to use the ARB fairlead spacer kit with your SE hawse fairlead? Also, in case I missed it; how long did it take to install the ARB bumper? Thanks

 

A couple weeks back, my wife and little girl went out of town on a "ladies trip", so I found myself on Saturday morning with no plans for the day. I went on Instagram, and found
the folks at https://www.blueridgeoverlandgear.com/ were having a cruise in/overland swap meet/live bluegrass music. Called my brother, and we headed up to Bedford VA,
where we were surprised by a parking lot full of awesome rigs. I wish I had grabbed some more pics of the crowd, but was too busy talking. This is about half of what was there when we arrived.


I'm always looking for good storage setups, and Blue Ridge Overland Gear, has some nice storage solutions. I went with a couple MOLLE seat back panels, a head rest Velcro cover, and one of their
red first aid pouches.


I ran across a deal on a brand new MBRP cat back exhaust setup. I had been considering aftermarket exhaust, but just couldn't justify the price to try it. If I didn't like it
and wanted to remove it, it would of just been an expensive test. At the price I found this, if I didn't like it, I could take it off, and recoup my money.The sound is much louder,
but it's not bad. I'm actually enjoying the sound. I guess it's from my days playing with fast cars, bikes, and boats. The only thing I need to change on it is the routing.
It came with a large, nice looking polished stainless tip, that stays in the same position as factory. The issue is with my smaller factory exhaust, I had already smashed it
on a rock while wheeling in Windrock Tennessee. I'm planning on cutting the tailpipe back, and have it terminate up, farther underneath the truck to protect it from future damage.


Another mod, that was very beneficial for Pongo, and didn't cost a thing, was Toyota recently revised their TSB for shift concerns. The TSB number is the same, but they have
updated the calibrations. I had previously performed the TSB reflash when it launched in July 16', but honestly felt zero difference before and after. This one has completely
changed the drivability of the truck for me. It hold gears longer before shifting, and has improved the shifting at highway speeds vastly. If you have a 16' or 17' Tacoma and
you aren't love with the short shifting to higher gears, or the hunting gears on the highway, I'd recommend getting the reflash performed. Mine now feels like it should have
from the get go. Just and FYI the latest calibration was released on 11/15/16. If yours was manufactured after that, or has been reflashed since that point, it likely has been
already performed on your vehicle.

 

I would be very interested in pics and/or more details of how you have this storage platform set up. I currently have a tonneau which is pretty much locked when the tailgate is but seriously considering a Softopper with bed rack like yours. Security is my only concern.

Awesome truck and cool drone too.

 

Hey, I was wondering if you have had a chance to try out the solar cell yet? What kind of output you are getting from it etc..?

I am considering either this or a double battery system, but maybe this can provide enough supplemental charge that a double battery wouldn't be needed?

Thanks!!

 

It's the time I've been looking forward to: A change in Pongo's attitude

I removed the All Pro Pack Rack, the Softopper, and the RCI sliders. With those out of the way,
it was time to @CBI Offroad Fab rear bumper, rock sliders with dimpled top plates.





I enjoy the bumper as much(a little more) as you'd expect. It's added versatility, given me
additional mounting options, and tweaked the entire attitude of Pongo. I've got a mount coming so I can run a 4 gallon
Rotopax on the swing out.

The sliders are beautiful, and add not only protection, but are more useful in daily life. They stick out a little further,
and actually give good purchase to use them as a step getting into/out of the truck. They also are an improvement when
needing to tie items off on the roof rack.

The bed rack looks awesome, and has dropped the overall height which has multiple benefits, including less wind drag,
and lower center of gravity. I've had people ask about my goods getting wet. When we travel everything goes in totes,
even with the softopper, so, for us the softopper wasn't as beneficial as I had originally hoped.

We got some snow this past weekend, so it was a necessity to take pongo to play, and pose for some shots.



There are more changes coming in the next couple weeks.

 

Looks great I love that bumper as well. How hard is it to take the swing on and off? For example if you wanted to store it while not wheeling.

 

Did you relocate the rear camera?

 

Love the build! Really tight and clean, dig it.

 

Makes me wanna get out there!

 

Truck looks great in its native habitat.

 

nice build

 

In theory you could. The top cap that supports the top part of the spindle is held on by 2 allen head bolts, you could remove that, and then remove the swingout. This is going to
result in a few things. The first, is now you've got your spare tire you've to put somewhere, then the spindle it rides on is going to be exposed to the elements, and lastly
once you have it on, it looks so good I don't think you'll want to take it off. It's not a hassle, as the latch is easy, and works well and the lock that keeps it from over rotating
outward is very simple and works great too. I couldn't personally justify taking it off, as there really aren't any negatives for me with it on.

I ordered a relocation bracket for the camera this past weekend, and will update the thread once it's installed.

 

Beast!!!

 

Op, do the sliders stick out more because they are a different angle? I have been looking at sliders as my first mod but can't decide which brand and which angle to go with.

 

What a fine example of a build thread.

Thank you for sharing the evolution of this vehicle.

 

Dorton, was it a lot of trouble putting the arb bumper on the 017?I have an 017 TRD offroad and I've been wanting this bumper but I've been told that arb says it might not fit an 017 without a lot of modifing. I've got the installation instructions for mounting it on a 016 and I know the factory bumper and grill has to be cut and I'm fine with that, but is there anything else that has to be done? I would appreciate any help you could give me.

 

If you ran a vertical line at the outer edge of the sliders, the CBI would be farther away from the body of the truck. They look great, are more useable day-day, and will offer more protection than my previous sliders.

We've installed a dozen or so ARB Summit bars on 16' and 17' model Tacomas. There is no issue installing it on either year. The flares will also be cut along with the factory bumper cover.

There's been a few more changes to Pongo, but I'll want to post a better shot than a cell phone can provide. In the mean time here's a bad cropped cell phone teaser pic.

 

We've installed a dozen or so ARB Summit bars on 16' and 17' model Tacomas. There is no issue installing it on either year. The flares will also be cut along with the factory bumper
[/QUOTE]
Thanks for the answer dorton, I'm ordering myself an arb bumper today.

 

Thanks, dorton!