2023 Lunar Rock Trail

New to the forums and Toyota. I've been heavy into the Subaru/JDM car scene for decades. Time to slow down a bit I guess.

Long story short, my 14' STI blew its head gasket. I tried to sell the car, for dirt cheap, to a buddy so he could flip it. I moved to an HOA and cannot do the big mechanic work I used to. He suggested I pay him to fix it since he's got the space.
We got the car back on the road and some stoner, in a 3/4 ton work truck, decided to try and push me off the highway at 80mph. Joe Dirt smashed the driver's door hinges into the firewall. The STI was totalled and I was out $8k. (Whoever buys that wreck is gonna score a badass motor and a new set of tires.)
I had a Trail already on order but, had hoped to drive the STI, for a while after dumping $8k into it. This did not pan out and the Trail was not due to arrive for a month or two. No Bueno...
My luck finally changed when my dealer called and said they had a cancellation on a Trail that had every option I wanted and more. And, they would honor my price just to move the truck. I was stoked and immediately went up and picked up my new truck.
It does have some funky options I did not want but, $0 for any accessory is the correct price. So far, I am very happy with the truck. I just miss boost and those Magnusson S/C's are pretty pricey. And seriously? DRUM BRAKES on a 2023? Sheesh. Wish I had that $8k right about now. Daddy needs a brake kit.
So, time to learn a new brand and a new vehicle. Good times.



EDIT! GOING TO MAKE THIS MY PROJECT THREAD. I HAD THEM FOR MY SUBARUS AND IT WAS FUN TO WATCH THE EVOLUTION. Aaaaaaand go.

 

Love the color, Welcome!

 

Thank you. Its a great color IMHO.

 

Welcome to ‘Team Lunar Rock’. So glad I couldn’t find an Army Green and ‘settled’ for LR. Still like the AG, but so glad I got what I got.

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Sick color! Welcome to TW!

 

Thank you for the kind welcome(s).

 

When I got the truck, I had over a decade of Subaru/Evo/JDM/Race/Show Car builds under my belt. With that kind of brand loyalty, you end up with LOTS of extra parts and pieces. Sometimes you end up going down a rabbit hole on a certain part or modification, order the wrong size, etc. And gear heads are hoarders. Its a thing. That being said, I have quite a bit of titanium laying around. I put a bunch in my Hellcat and still have boxes of loose hardware. That being said, the truck got some weight reduction. I went through the engine bay, all over the suspension and undercarriage, the bed, etc. I wanted to start with mods that cost $0 so the garage cleanout began.

 

Welcome!

 

Thank you mattgecko. San Jose. My home town during my skateboarding golden years. I, just recently, had a little Taco Time Machine day down there. Went and hit some old spots. I hate how its changed but, time goes on I guess.

 

Welcome! In for cool new sh..., stuff done in a build!

 

Had to order strut top nuts to match the rear. Ran out of the right size.

 

Found a sheet of expanded metal material I had stashed. I was goung to make fin protection for my TMIC, Radiator, and Oil Cooler on my 06' STI Project Car. Never happened as she was parted out for something more reliable. Those were sad days...
I'll use it for the same thing on the Tacoma. Seems easy enough and I like the hexagonal shape of the openings. I think they will go good with the shapes designed into the truck. Currently "in paint".

 

Stuck in an online meeting? Photo dump your build thread! I wanted to do this as soon as I bought the truck. Rather than be another "vintage Toyota racing livery grill badge" guy, I went my own way. Added this and dbaged all the stuff on the tailgate. Got a little Subaru vibe going...but subtle...

 

The Master Cylinder needed gold Ti. Its always such a neglected part of the vehicle. It needed to shine because its important. TRD or Greddy sock? The Brembo is Subaru leftovers and, as a rule, we do not rep parts we don't have in my driveway. Though, I could throw Brembo pads on and then I'm not a ricer.

 

Rear shock Ti. Very lonely. Suspension upgrades are on the menu. My friend Mike's car for attention and conversation.

 

Along with Titanium, I also have a bunch of other raw materials around. Repurposed my old roof rack, from my 14' STI, and replace all the hardware with Ti and the wind screen thingy with CF. Also added a custom CF cross brace to repalce the steel one. Less weight is good weight.

 

This was a fun little project that I am kinda' proud of the outcome. Custom CF CB antenna mount. Don't look at that bed rail liner bent up! I have, since resolved this with some Dremel work and cable routing. Ugh...it makes my brain hurt.

 

All this talk about Subarus. These are just for conversation. My 06' STI, My 01' ACR, My 07' Super Bee, Elvis' Black Knight (WWW.STANCENATION.COM he lived in town and wanted -10 camber. We did work!) I'll get my 14' STI and Hellcat up in here too. And so many of my buddies had me do work on their cars. So many old photos...

 

AFE Exhaust and KARTBOY exhaust hanger experiment! While installing my exhaust, I noticed similarities between the Subaru and Toyota hangers. That being said, the Toyota hangers were soft and floppy rubber compared to what I was used to. I reached out to my friend, Tom, at KARTBOY. He manufactures Subaru upgrade parts. My primary focus was on his exhaust hangers. I thought they might work on the truck and had hime sined me some R&D materials. Long story short. They work and they work well. They tighten the exhaust to the chassis, the entire system; reducing movement throught the engine and driveline, they reduce DRONE, they look cool and come in black as well, and they are urethane instead of soft rubber so the longevity is like forvever. (WWW.KARTBOY.COM if your intersted. I HAVE 0 BENEFIT FROM POSTING THIS. But reach out to Tom if you want grambo's Taco Package...he'll hook you up.)
Another little tid bit is I was able to grind off the second hanger hook for the furthest rear hanger and shed some more weight. The third image is one of the 15mm hanger on my 06 STI...dang that CF diffuser was fun to make...oh and Tom sends goodies when he sends parts. Expect goodies if you upgrade your hangers. :]