GA Tacoma Owners BS Thread

It's already cold in Haines. About 10 min after I snapped this, I heard a pop and then watched a crack make its way from the left side to the right side of my windshield. And then the smaller crack that has been there since Montana took a sharp turn down. I blame you all for this with that windshield replacement talk a few pages back
I'm gonna have to drive 5 hours to Whitehorse, Canada to get this replaced.... Oh the joys of being in a middle of nowhere town in Alaska.... And I'll never give that up!

In other news, I'm no longer playing librarian 13 hours a week. The owner at the Port Chilkoot Distillery got ahold of my resume and hired me for their Operations Manager position that didn't even exist! Big responsibility since they are finishing a bigger production facility soon. Very excited, I've always wanted to do my line of work but on a very small scale like with a startup. Booze all day boys!

 

Brrr, but you knew it was going to be cold.
A huge congrats on the new job! Fantastic.

Bummer about the cracked windshield.

 

Boom!

 

So, reached out to the PO of my truck and was able to confirm my current suspension setup. Upfront are OME shocks with 887's and the rear is OME shocks with . I am definitely surprised to discover that the fronts are 887's rather than the 885's i originally assumed. It would explain my current plush ride (which I don't mind at all, aside from the 265/70-16 tire bottoming out rubbing on the top of the fender from time to time). With this new info, I'm wondering if i should still get 886's or if i should get a .25-.5" spacer to sit on top of the strut assembly to get my lost height back, or both.

The rear plan still remains the same with the Dakar medium leaf pack.

 

I think with this new info, a spacer is going to be the cheapest option to gain height. The 886's cost more and you will probably not notice any real change in height compared to your 887's. Both will probably give you a little harsher ride depending on the size of the spacer you use. A small one will probably not make much difference.

 

Throwing this out over here, too. Have you considered upgrading your bump stops to help with the bottoming out? You won't bottom out any less, but when you do it'll be much more comfortable than the hard rubber hockey pucks our trucks come with.

 

Not to play the skeptic, but is the PO SURE that they are 887 or did that just sound familiar? If that is the case, I second the nomination for the top spacer.

I'm betting that the previous owner is confused. 887s without any weight up front would be a little too tall for the UCAs to handle (I would think). I'm still betting that you have 885s based on my limited knowledge of your truck.

 

I havent quite thought about it as it doesnt happen quite often enough for it to really be annoying to me. My ultimate goal is to get my lost lift back + some so I wont have as much issue fitting 285's in the future.

I hear ya, he said he found the original invoice where he ordered them so i dont have much reason not to believe him. But i have the same exact thoughts as you... Im wondering if they have just settled over the miles? I have SPC UCA's so i don't think clearance would be an issue.

 

Living the dream. I hope to make it out to Alaska sometime in the near future (2-3 years).

 

I just realized our trucks are on the GA Tacomas pic @Gilmorec61 @BYJOSHCOOK @JonesMGMOR

 

I've been noticed feel a little jealous
But props for the one who took that pic! Think it was you Brad?

 

Not that one, guessing either Josh or Chris

 

Sweetness. I think that is better than the Flamingo!

 

I don’t know the flamingo is hard to beat

 

Yusssssss papi

 

Just venting
I love my Tacoma and wanted one for years. But I swear I paid 40+ for a damn truck that has all of the potential problems that can come with the second gen. I have the incurable throwout bearing chirp and now I have busted my ring gear for the second time. Learning today that there are a small group of owners who apparently have had issues with their diffs on the 8” rear with elockers. The first time I busted my rear I was out on the trails and choked it up to bad luck. Got the regear and a year later I’m down again. For the love of God I only went off-roading once in a year and it was prentice cooper and it was about two months ago. So my differential goes out on pavement. Damn truck is a bottomless moneypit.
Vent over

 

Is the truck the one in your signature picture? If so it looks like it’s sitting on at least 35s. That rear end is not made to handle that. You should switch to straight axles. Just putting in my two cents. That maybe all their worth that

 

I feel you, mine is a lot older though. Got the new trans in the 1st gen and started knocking to do’s off my list, most recent was coolant flush. The next day, my rad is busted at the top.

like come on. Same with other stuff on it, can’t seem to win

 

285's. the first regear i went to 4.56 to help handle the extra weight. researching switching the back axle to an axle from an sr5 or a sport, slapping 4.56 and a harrop elocker in it. thinking that the slightly larger differential will provider beefier gears. but thats more money that I currently do not have, I just know I can't afford to keep building the rear end. I'll reach out to to ECGS tomorrow and chat with them and their warranty.

 

I’m really sorry to hear that. A 285 is a big tire. Unless you do a fully built Axle or swapped to full size running gear. I would probably go ahead and put a straight axle under the front. If I was going to do that. I would stick with a little more modest tire size. You got a remember it is a Tacoma.