SJWHITAKER's Very Slow Build Thread

Current:



Interior-
Husky Liners
BirdDawg Industries Mirror Riser With Ram Mount
BLU Logic
S.O.E Visor Cover - MultiCam
15% Tint
LED Dome Light

Exterior-
De-Badged
Sport Grille
Depo Headlights
Mud Flaps Removed
Fender Liners Trimmed

Suspension-
Icon 2.5 Coilovers
Icon AAL
Icon 2.0 Remote Reservoir Rear Shocks

Tires/Wheels-
16" SCS Ray10's in Gunmetal
285/75/16 Falken Wildpeak AT3W

Random Additions:
AEM Drop In Filter (Dry)
Full Med Kit In Pelican Case

Future-
Pelfreybilt Hybrid Front Bumper
Pelfreybilt Standard Rear Bumper
Skids
Sliders
Icon UCA's
Lighting
A.R.E CX With Windoors
Clazzio Seat Covers
Blue Sea Aux Fuse Panel
Blue Sea USB Charging Ports
Switch Panel
20" Single Row LED Light Bar
LED Pods
Bed Lights
Under Hood Lighting
On Board Air or Powertank
XRC8 With Synthetic Line
Exhaust

My love for the Tacoma started back in 2012. I wanted a 1st gen single cab so bad I couldn't stand it but was not in a position to have a 2nd vehicle and did not necessarily want one as a DD. So, I went with the best of both worlds and bought a barely used 2008 single cab base model, 5 speed, 4X4 and not much else. The truck was bone stock and in EXCELLENT condition. That did not last long at all... I found a member on here in North Carolina with an SR5 that wanted to trade his super white trim to black, it worked out perfect and I made the trip out to NC and we swapped parts in his driveway. After that I found a scooped hood that had a small dent in it that was being sold SUPER cheap by the body shop that had it. Little did I know the damn insert would be as much as the paint job. After that I added some 5100's, Icon AAL, ProComp wheels and 285 Dune Grapplers. I LOVED that little truck, with the exception of the bench seat. Here is the finished product:

Time went on and I loved my little truck but something caught my eye, something new to me and exciting. Perched on the hill of my local dealer was this mythical solid black FJ. I had to take a look. AAAAAANNNNDDDD I bought it that day. I test drove it about a mile down the road and just went ahead and turned around and went back to the dealer. All said and done I got a great buy on it and they "gave" me more for my Tacoma than I had paid for it. Its all a numbers game. Quick and dirty build thread on the FJ in case anyone cares. I negotiated to keep my wheels and tires (still had the stock wheels) so I had those to throw on. I purchased a Toytec Ultimate kit for it and once I had it installed I threw them on there and was in love. I traded my Anthracite wheels to a buddy that is a very skilled metal worker and FJ freak for a front and rear bumper. after that it was all just cosmetic stuff. I done a lot of great wheeling in that FJ and really did love owning it. I would own another in a heart beat. Here is a picture of it in all its glory:

Shit got weird. I have owned a few diesel trucks in my life and was helping my Dad out getting our family farm back up and running. The change in lifestyle reverted me back to my roots and driving his Dodge made me miss power. So, I bought the EXACT truck I wanted when I was in high school. A white Sport 2500 CTD 2003-2005 model. It was just one of those things. I searched literally all over America and found it down in Alabama. I drove down and bought it. Mistake. I forgot what a pain in the ass it is to own a diesel, once the farm was running again I wasnt helping as much and the quality of the truck, though in mint condition was shit. It drove me crazy so after a year of ownership I listed it for sale and actually got full asking price. That has never happened to me before and probably never will. The market was hot and there were several people interested and after a test drive the guy assured me he would pay full asking if I could give him 2 or 3 days to get his money in order. Sold.:

I knew I wanted a Tacoma but this time I wanted the best of both worlds. The gadgets and offroad goodies of the FJ but with a bed. I wanted black and I insisted on a 6MT. After alot of searching I found my truck down in Chattanooga TN. I talked back and forth with the seller and we worked out a very very fair price and I bought it. Here she is the day I got home:

Pre SCS Wheels

 

The Tacoma: 2010 TRD OR DCSB 6MT 4x4. The truck was listed with not much information at all, all I knew from the ad was that it was a TRD Taco with a camper. I could tell from the pictures that it had the beadlock wheels and possibly a sport grille and rear bumper. Upon talking to the seller I found out that his son had went on a plasti dip rampage on his own Tacoma and convinced Dad that it would look good on his Tacoma. Which in the pictures it did. Upon getting home the first thing I did was peel it off, it looked awful and there was literally dirt under the plasti dip. Oh well, no harm no foul. The truck was in excellent condition and I was very happy to know I didnt drive all the way to Chattanooga in vain. I liked the idea of having a camper but the style of this camper is/was not what I had in mind. I am constantly searching Craigslist for a cab profile camper so I can add get another. In the meantime I went ahead and sold the camper. I got a fair price for it and sold it to a member. Here she is after plasti dip removal and a good washing:

Other than add miles I went a pretty long time without doing anything. I got a smoking deal on a full set of Husky Liners, thats it. I then ordered a set of black headlights off Amazon and found a Sport grille on Facebook marketplace. The grille was cheap, but when I met the guy it was in fact NOT BSP, it was Indigo Ink. It was cheap so I went ahead and bought it and threw it on the truck. I cant notice a difference in it and the bumper cover but there is a difference in the paint colors between it and the hood. I'm pretty sure I am the only one that would ever notice it and to me its not worth the hassle of selling this one and ordering one. I am going to Satoshi the chrome grill this summer when it warms up and paint the chrome surround BSP. If it turns out good I will sell this grille.


I am currently at my savings goal for a full OME kit so I will be ordering that in March or April. I am going with 887 coils, soft ride shocks. Once that is in and installed I will make my final pick on tires. I am torn between General Grabber X3's, KM2's and Mastercraft Courser MXT's. I am pretty sure I will end up with KM2's. After that it is back to saving for a Pelfybilt Hybrid front and their basic rear bumper. (Unless I need UCA's) I will update this thread as things progress! Thanks for reading!

 

Decisions have been made and progress is on the horizon! Ended up jumping on the Icon group buy and hopefully will be ordering my 2.5 coilovers soon! I'm going with a 3 leaf AAL in the rear and 2.0 non reservoir shocks. Still on the fence about upper control arms. Plans as of now are to install the Icons and set the front at around 2.5" to level the truck with the rear, with a little rake and then seeing how the CV angles look. If the truck wanders badly I will go ahead and order either JBA, LR or Camburg ball joint uppers. I toyed with the idea of an AT tire due to the amount of highway driving I may be doing on road trips and when the Discount Tire Direct $100 off ebay sale came up I couldn't pass up the smoking deal I got on a set of 285/75/16 Falken Wildpeak AT3W's. $541 shipped! This offset the added cost of upgrading to Icon from OME some so that helps. I just wish I could of gotten them in a lighter load rating.

 

Had a excellent weekend! Ahead of schedule, all my Icon parts arrived this week. I purchased front 2.5 non-resivoir coilovers through the Icon group buy and picked up rear 2.0 resivoir rear shocks and Icon AAL from Offroad Warehouse.
I started the install at 3 pm and everything went very smoothly. The front went in QUICK. Way quicker than I thought it would have. I completely removed my sway bar, I took mine off of my FJ when I lifted it and really liked the way it rode/drove. With the higher spring rate and stiffer valving it doesn't have much body roll at all. After I removed the tie rods the old shocks easily came out and with a little muscle and a pry bar on the upper control arm the new coilovers went in very easily. I would of had the front done in less than an hour and a half but the rear top hat bolt on the first coilover gave me fits. Lesson learned. I put it in first on the other side and everything went in smoothly. The rear wasn't much of a hassle at all, given I just had the TSB done everything was new and not rust present so it went quickly. I installed the new shocks and picked a place to mount the rear resivoir, marked and took my punch to mark where to drill... and my drill burst into flames... I sent the wife to Walmart to get a cheapo corded drill and called it a night at about 6:30 or 7. The next morning I went out and drilled the holes for the resi mounts and got them bolted on.

Driving Impression:
Not gonna lie, about the time I dropped all this money on my new Icon goods the leaking rear resivoir thread came up and I was second guessing myself. I read and read and read on Icon and some people mentioned a stiff ride and that was about it. Some had issues with rear resivoirs leaking but it appears the notch solves this and I checked the connections just to be safe. With that being said I am THRILLED with the way my truck rides and feels on the road. Before my truck felt pretty "boaty" this may be due to the worn/old suspension components (112k miles). Now, the truck feels planted and seems to absorb way more road imperfections and undulations. It rides awesome and I'm sure it will only get better. I haven't gotten an alignment or mounted my tires yet (waiting on the suspension to settle some) but it doesn't feel that "off" at all. I lifted my 2008 with 5100s and even after an alignment it was squirrely to say the least. I don't think UCA's will be a MUST but I'm sure they will help alot. I'm eager to see the alignment numbers. My CV angles look really good and it appears I will have enough room to clear the 33s. Overall I am very pleased with my purchase and I can't wait to see how it performs offroad.

 

Here are my pre and post lift measurements:


These were taken center of the center cap to the bottom edge of the fender flare. I am going to lower the passenger side 3/4" to maintain some rake and minimize CV angles. The lowest I can get away with once the 33s are on is what I'm going to stick with. IF I have to go up to 2.5" or so I will but I'd like to stay around 2" or 2-1/4". I may put 50 or so more miles on it before I adjust them just to be sure.

 

De-Badged! (What a PAIN IN THE ASS!!!)

BirdDawg mirror riser with RAM mount came in today. I cant wait to get this thing installed, I find myself leaning down to look under the mirror all to often.

Got a SMOKING deal on this BLU Logic setup. IT IS AWESOME. It has some quirks to it but it is awesome to be able to talk on the phone and shift gears without breaking my neck. My wife's vehicle has Bluetooth and I fell in love. Its odd that the headunit does not control the volume, you must adjust it on the device. I find myself trying to turn my music down/up with the knob and nothing happens... But it serves it purpose, was simple to install and most importantly was CHEAP.

 

Looking good. I installed a BLU bluetooth setup in my wife's old volvo. It worked well for a while, but after she upgraded phones we could never get it working right. Hope you have better luck with your setup.

 

So far everything is working great with my Note 5. Its very basic and I don't foresee any issues with it. For what I paid for it ($28) if it stopped working in a month I wouldn't care!

 

Finally got some soap and water on the truck today, just in time for more salt it appears. Purchased some Ray 10's a while back and couldn't love them more! I was torn between the matte black and gunmetal and finally pulled the trigger on gunmetal. On the short list this winter is a HAM radio and some new leaf springs of some sort. Was going with AllPro but not sure after the most recent fiasco. The Icon AAL has been ok but I find it a little harsh and would rather have something with more load capacity. My small trailer and zero turn squats the truck far more than it should and I have plans to get a camper and RTT or at a minimum bed rack and RTT.