Tylers 2015 Trail Team Tacoma build thread

Hey all. Figured I would get started on making a build thread for my 2015 Tacoma Trd sport with the trail team package.

I bought this truck last November and have been keeping it pretty stock to break it in. I am at 45 000 km already with driving too and from work over the year so I figure I am pretty much done with the warranty and want to start getting ready for a long trip and overlanding.

Things I have done so far (pictures will come as I get them)

1. Duratracs from day one.
- even though they are stock 265/65r17 I have had these tires from km 0 and love the fact that I dont have to think before driving off road. For that matter I haven't aired down much at all unless it gets really icy out. I have converted a lot of people over the last year with what I Can do with this truck in stock form.
2. Trail team package
-honestly I couldn't pass up the TRD exhaust and the roof racks. I knew I would be replacing the running boards with sliders later but I still haven't done it so it looks better with the running boards then nothing in my opinion.
3. 3"F/2"R Spacer lift kit
- I did this as a temp lift while I decided on body armor and upgrades. It brought be off the ground and honestly isn't that bad at the moment. I do plan on putting in some upgraded shocks but figure I might as well get a wicked kit when I do it for the difference in money. If it wont make it ride better and perform I dont want it.
4. AFE stage 2 cold air intake
-I had this on my 2008 tundra 5.7 (miss it but dont miss the gas bills) and it showed its ability and class with the trd exhaust pipe. Many people think I have done a motor swap and I just smile when I hit the throttle. I did see a noticeable gain in MPG with the intake and even though I am debating on using a volant ram air scoop or getting a snorkel I dont think I will see much more of a gain.
5. Eaton Detroit true trac rear diff
- Most recent upgrade and still wearing it in. I now finally have a true limited slip again from the electronic LSD that toyota put in. I had debated on putting a locker in but figured this was more driveable at the moment. I do want to find an upgrade for the front end as well. The stock diff met its demise when it left me stuck on a hill in 4wd with no way to engage the lsd system. I think this is a flaw from Toyota from day one and it is only with the Tacoma. I also think its unfair that Canada doesn't have options of the traction control systems and rear lockers on anything but the ACLB offroad version. Again I could have used it lol. Here is a picture of when I got stuck.

Just to make sure this is clear... this is a skid trail in December near Lavington BC (lack of snow but around 0'C) and its about a 60-70% grade to where I am standing. I made it all the way to the edge and touched the bottom of the truck to the road and it lost traction and stopped. When I backed up down the hill it slid over and got flexed out on a stump that stopped the tire from dropping over an edge. Took moving me all of 3 feet to get free and then I used my awesome truck to just climb over the edge (tow vehicle still there but not hooked up)

Hope you enjoy what I do to this truck over the next year and maybe just maybe Toyota will be on board with seeing how awesome this truck could have been in full beast mode.

 

As a second post to this thread I am going to indicate future plans and upgrades to the unit.

1. electric fan upgrade
-Duel 12 inch electric fans with a PAC-2750 Dakota digital controller.
I would have had this installed already but my local parts stores dropped the ball in aftermarket accessories and didn't have a 0-300f temp sender available. For that matter I had to search for my own relay parts in the universal section after being told they couldn't help me. I plan on using a capacitor inbetween the fans and the battery but will be using the capacitor to power some other minor modifications around the truck. This should save my battery and allow me to do a short start up and long discharge to charge Cell phones and other items like mapping or pumps. I hate not having remote power without starting the truck up or turning the accessory switch on. More on this later.

2. Custom Roof rack system
-This upgrade will not happen till at least spring but I Do plan on making in time for fishing on the lakes etc. It will hold a folding tent above my quad that will be in the back of the truck. I haven't figured out the final design yet but its going to be functional as well as light and strong.

3. Aluminum Bumpers, Skid plates and sliders
-Lets be honest, its body armor without needing to be super heavy. I dont need the full protection of steel since I barely ever touch the bottom of my truck that hard. The weight factor is huge for me. I want to keep it down as much as possible as this is a driver for me and gas mileage is VERY important.

4. 275/60r20 Duratracs w/ 20inch lightweight wheels
-weight vs size and fit, this seems to be the best of all worlds and I know I am really close to running 4.10 gearing so I will probably just switch it at this point

5. Front locking diff (possible diff upgrade to supra rear end and new axles)
-Haven't nailed this one down but I will need to run 4.10 gears front and rear with the new tires so I figure doing the diff upgrade should happen around the same time. I know I need to do more research but basically I need something tough enough to handle some power but still be fairly stock in setup.

6. 4.6 1UR-FE V8 upgrade w/6 speed auto and 4runner transfer case w/locking center differential
-I have heard it all in the last couple months from "your crazy" to "thats gonna get worse gas mileage then the 6 so why would you bother"
Lets be honest here. If I was running stock setup then maybe, just MAYBE the 4.0 v6 would get better mileage then the 4.6 v8 due to weight, power and being tuned to run the truck as is.
The 4.6 should see better mileage with an appropriate sized truck with it. the 6 speed a760f transmission is just about identical to the a750f transmission in the sense that they put another clutch pack in to add one more gear. Which in turn will lower the rpms of the motor and using better torque should help on all fronts.
The 4runner transfer case is just about identical to the Tacoma one minus the locking center differential. As far as I can see it doesn't require anything but a switch (like a locker) and will allow for use of AWD mode when conditions validate it. My 2003 4runner had this mode and I could just leave it in 4wd with only a 1/2-1mpg hit on my gas mileage and no harm to the 4wd system. Sounds like a winner in my books.
When I do this swap I will be using JBA headers and a custom exhaust setup to maximize horsepower and torque on the stock setup.
http://www.jbaheaders.com/detail_shortyV.asp?id=2014SJS

7. Suspension upgrades

-I am leaving this till last as I wont know what springs I will need until the body armor and motor are installed. I figure having weighed weights before and after as well as fender heights will all help. Before and after weight is going to be added as soon as I find a scale to do this at.


All of these upgrades will be done to make the truck capable of driving around the world. I set a basic goal of doing this trip in May of 2018 (just over 2 years away) so most of these upgrades should be here sooner then later.

Enjoy

 

Sub'd - looking forward to pics!

 

So I was realizing that i have done a couple things to my truck already and haven't posted the pictures. but I figured I would add a couple pictures since they are easy things to do.

First is the under hood picture of the AFE stage 2



Here she is in stock form with 3inch front 2 inch rear lift and Duratracs freshly washed



and here is the slotted and drilled power stop brake package that I ordered off Rock Auto. Love the new feel of the brakes. I had to upgrade because I just about killed myself hauling about 2000 lbs off a mountain.



Now off to put new rims and tires on my truck.

 

really 20in rims and you plan on off roading....

and dont even bother with an efan upgrade... way more trouble than they are worth.... there is a reason you see any proper truck with a mechanical viscous clutch driven fan... worst case the clutch goes bad and the fan runs all the time..... efan... worst case you are stuck without a fan, which is bad.

Good luck with the motor swap... that aint gonna be an easy task.

 

Honestly if i was doing hardcore offroading in which i needed that much sidewall to help out then I would have a second set of tires for doing just that. Probably a set of trd 17 inch with 10 ply 33's to match the trim aND lift i have. In my case the sidewall height didn't change from stock and that works for me.
In the case of the electric fan. Reliability is covered due to having 2 fans. Not just one. If one fails then i have another and i check my truck all the time.
I am looking forward to the motor swap and i know it will be a challenge but nothing worthwhile is easy.

Well going to enjoy my night and get to fixing fender rub from the new rims and tires.. already pulled the flares off and trimed that back. Now to figure the other rub points out.

 

So I got my winterfront installed today. Had it late last year but really didn't care much. Also trimmed the wheel wells a little and plan on folding the seam over and cutting the body mounts. I am wondering what else I will have to cut or move to make these tires fit. once I make them fit I am installing a new splash guard to make it all look pretty again.

Here are some pictures.

 

Updating some things that I have done to my build over the winter break.

I installed new rims and tires as I said I was going to with the 275/60r20 duratracs and XD128 rims from KMC wheels. At 46lbs for the duratracs and 27lbs for the rims This is by far the lightest 33" setup I could buy with a fairly decent sidewall to still be able to go offroad. I also have options of going to a 305/55r20 for an extra half inch of height and 12 inch width instead of the 10.8 width I have now.

I also removed the factory step bars which was a huge upgrade in looks and clearance. I hated how they hit the back of my leg.


I picked up a Roof top tent from North shore offroad where Tyler gave me a great deal on the last Blue Camo tent. I haven't set it up yet but I have it and I cant wait to use it this spring. I had to make a bed rack system that worked with my roll up soft top Tonneau cover. Version one was built for speed and to see if it would work. V 2.0 is in the making and just waiting for things to fall into place. These rack systems will be pretty sweet and will be available before June for sure.


TBC

 

Continued
I got husky mats in the mail, love them and so SO much better then the stock sets that I was running. I had a picture installed but I cant seem to find it.

I shaved the body mount to prevent any more rubbing from the 33's. The old man decided to get in there with a grinder to clean up the cut a little. Pretty funny.

Before

During

After

The most controversial upgrade I have done to date. I posted earlier that I installed a box for a future upgrade. Here is the rest of the duel electric fan upgrade. Tested so far with over 50km per tank further range.
Here are the pictures. Before picture with the stock clutch fan.

Sealed Controller box made of a plano tackle box and L brackets. Used gromit on the bottom of the box to feed wires through. Not 100% waterproof but I have been through some major wet area's and nothing stays inside.

Put a couple washers inbetween the nuts and the water pump pulley.

Then installed the fans using the push through zip ties. Each fan is rated at 1650 CFM and in testing it cools the radiator a 10 degree change in under 30 seconds with only one fan running.

I am using an inline temp sending unit (0-300f) from Dakota Digital to match the controller that I bought. I used a flexalite 1 1/2" housing (smallest I could find to try and match 1 3/8" hose) and using a little petroleum jelly I was able to slide the hose over without much issue. I had to ground the sensor housing by tapping a small screw through the brass fitting on the opposite side of the sensor housing.

And finally wired up the fans to a 60 amp resettable circuit breaker and two separate relays to individually control the fans via controller.


And yes I copy and pasted from my 2nd gen post since it was so long.

 

Can't wait to see a v8 in a taco. Sub

 

Best part is Toyota already did it for me so I am just doing it again myself. They had it at sema with the 4.7L from the 1st gen tundra. Here.. I think this shows it. My electric fans was one of the steps towards this.


Right now I need to figure out the stock clutch fan on and off temps in the upper rad hose. I want this electric fan setup to run as close to stock as possible.

 

Sub'D

 

Good luck with the efan upgrade. Good thing you live in a cool area.... i see at least half your radiator not covered by a fan unlike the stock setup that had a much bigger fan and full cover shroud.

 

Update: we had some 50f + weather up here for a couple days and the electric fans are beyond awesome. 20 seconds to drop the temp from. 210-200f. That was just the first fan and you barely hear it.

I will need to find some wrecker specific information if anyone can help me out.

Also still looking for upper rad hose temps for actual coolant. Just want to keep the temperature as close to stock as possible.

So far I got close to 10% more mileage per tank. This would be from both warmer weather and constant temps in the radiator.

 

Nice work! Sub'd.
Cheers

 

Well here is another post for the books. I am looking for some advice from people as my thoughts for suspension have been wandering.
Due to current job markets my company expedited my job to the termination side. I am not unhappy with this as I have been putting major miles on my truck and long days driving just so I can go to an OK job. I have a couple companies in mind right now and cant wait to see which job I get next. Love being a trucker as I really do have tonnes of options for work.

My questions regarding suspension is ... I have been seeing FOX and KING nitrogen charged air shocks. With future upgrades and motor options I thought this might be better then having to change out to different springs in the future depending on how things go. The price from 4wheel parts makes it very tempting and downsouth motorsports shows a couple different options as well.. here is a link to the items I am talking about
http://downsouthmotorsports.com/i-6748604-fox-2-0-factory-series-coil-over-air-shock-nitrogen.html

Has anyone tried this? I was thinking running these in the front and a set of non coil units in the back for now.
There is also ORI shocks (I normally see them on major flexing rigs but they run air with a coil up top... not exactly sure how they work as of yet as I haven't seen them in person. The fox units seem to be a better suited application and I am gonna be calling Fox to see what I can do for adjust-ability on the fly/form and fit.

Funny thing about the job loss is I get a payout and summerized pay and if I start another job right away I got a large lump sum of money to top off my tax return. This might expedite the motor swap process. My biggest challenge with the motor swap is still the mounts. I am not sure how I am gonna mock these up yet and/or if I am gonna be able to use stock units (preferred as I want to travel with this truck and some places dont allow modifications)

Hope to hear back. Gonna link this post in what I did today as I have researched the bloody hell out of this and cant find anyone running these air shocks ....ever..... like "how does fox produce them and stay afloat" type never

 

Figured I would toss out an update to what I have done so far since I am so horrible at updating on the forums. So here it goes.
First... I call my truck Cerberus (three headed hell hound)
It is a 2015 Toyota Tacoma Double Cab Long Box Trail Team Edition TRD Sport in Super White
Currently on 315/70r17 Cooper St Maxx Tires on Procomp Vertigo 40 series rims and a custom 2.5" Lift. The truck sits 19" to the frame at the current moment while loaded.
P9131472 by Tyler Baker, on Flickr

Olympus em1.2 12-40mm f2.8 Random vacation shots by Tyler Baker, on Flickr

Armor
Pelfreybilt Aluminum Plate bumper w/Center hoop
Pelfreybilt Steel High Clearance Rear bumper (full wrap)
Pelfreybilt Aluminum Front Skid
MobtownOffroad bolt on sliders w/kickout http://mobtownoffroad.com/product/2005-2015-tacoma-no-drill-bolt-on-rock-sliders/
Exterior Accessories
Smittybilt 10k x2o synthetic winch w/wireless remote
- upgraded to Gemstone offroad Diamond series synthetic line https://www.gemstoneoffroad.com/products/diamond-series-winch-line
Baja Designs Squadron Pro Fog lights https://www.bajadesigns.com/products/Squadron-Pro.asp
Baja Designs S8 Led 20" Driving Combo Light bar https://www.bajadesigns.com/products/S8-LED-Light-Bars-Product-Page.asp
Baja Designs S2 Pro Flush Mount https://www.bajadesigns.com/products/S2-Pro-Pair-LED-Work-Scene-Flush-Mount-Backup-Kit.asp
Low Pro QT Tonneau Cover
Tacomabeast upgraded projector headlights (desciption is wrong for link) https://tacomabeast.com/collections/headlights-tail-lights/products/3rd-gen-projector-headlights
Underhood Upgrades
AFE stage 2 Dry Filter Air Box https://afepower.com/afe-power-51-81162-magnum-force-stage-2-si-pro-dry-s-cold-air-intake-system

CSF Racing Aluminum Duel Core radiator https://www.urdusa.com/hd-high-performance-radiator-fj-cruiser-4runner-tacoma-4-0l-v6/
Electric Single Fan Set-up
- 620-101 Dorman 2 Speed Fan https://www.summitracing.com/parts/rnb-620-101
- Dakota Digital pac-2750 Adjustable Electronic Controller http://www.dakotadigital.com/index....t_id=852/category_id=646/mode=prod/prd852.htm
- Dakota Digital inline temp sender https://www.summitracing.com/int/parts/dak-140022/overview/
- Custom Aluminum Shroud (work in progress)
27F Interstate Battery
Interior Upgrades
Pedal Commander PC38 - https://www.pedalcommander.com/product/pedal-commander-p4-pc38/?motor=4.0L+V6&v=3e8d115eb4b3
Hopkins Insight Brake controller https://www.etrailer.com/Brake-Controller/Hopkins/HM47297.html
ARB CKMA12 Single Compressor Air line Connections at both doors.
Drivetrain Upgrades
2015 4runner Disc brake rotors from powerstop HD slotted and drilled JBR1395XPR JBR1396XPR
2008 4runner rear disc brake calipers
Stoptech ST-40 Front Calipers
Extended Stoptech Stainless Braided brake lines front and rear
Diamond Rear axle housing https://frontrangeoffroadfab.com/9-5-fj-cruiser-4runner-diamond-axle/
9.5 Landcruiser Diff
ARB RD153 for the rear
ARB RD121 for the front
Suspension Upgrades
FRONT
King Extended Travel King Struts with adjusters https://downsouthmotorsports.com/i-...-extended-travel-front-kit-25001-119-ext.html
Light Racing Upper Control Arms SPC Alignment Cam Bolts Total Chaos Cam Tab Gussets Energy Suspension - 8.3128G Lower control arm bushing kit https://www.summitracing.com/int/parts/ens-8-3128g/overview/
Timbren Active Offroad Front Bumpstop http://timbren.com/blog/products-page/abstof/
REAR
Icon RXT leaf pack Total Chaos Rear Hoop kit https://www.chaosfab.com/accessories/2005-2015-Tacoma-Rear-Shock-Hoop-Kit-86460
King 2.5 Performance Race Series Tripple Bypass Shocks
Timbren Active Offroad Rear Bumpstop http://timbren.com/blog/products-page/abstrfk/

This is an active list for me and will be updated as I go.

 

I've been trying to find anyone who has the Icon RXT leaf pack paired with King rear shocks. How do you like that combination so far? I'm thinking of doing almost exactly what you did to the rears, including the shock relocation hoop, so I'd be very interested to hear your impressions!

 

I am replacing the setup with deavers and adjustable kings with archive garage hammer hangers.
My opinion regarding the rxt would depend on what you are looking for. When i was loaded with gear and rtt i loved the rxt for smooth operation and good height. I did find them on the stiff side considering weight being held.
A side note is the loaded weight shown is the suggested weight for smooth operation. The unloaded weight rides like absolute crap lol.

 

Installed my new projector headlights from Tacomabeast and picked up my Custom Deaver set as well as the hammer hangers. Looking forward to the months ahead cleaning up the exterior of the truck and making it custom like it should be.
link shows for 3rd gen but its really for the 2.5 gen tacoma.
https://tacomabeast.com/collections/headlights-tail-lights/products/3rd-gen-projector-headlights