What Have You Done To Your 3rd Gen Today?

Ugh. Seriously? We have a new member sharing about their truck (theirs, not yours). That's great. Let's welcome them and not shut them down.

So, @ParksGoddess , welcome to TW. Most here are friendly.

 

i like 99% of what they have done so far
sorry .......greg

 

Finally spiced up the taco!
Kings 2.5
Icon UCA
Rxt Leaf springs
Voodoo bed rack
Pittman RTT
Work Wheels

I’ll be eating instant noodle for all of 2025

 

What is GAAH, and internet police crap?

I not girl.

 

REAR SEAT DELETE

had some leftover 3/4” mdf from a project and decided to do a rear delete.

also added the carhartt universal pet carrier modified for the rear delete…remove the buckles that attach to the rear seats and added heavy duty Velcro to attack to rear panel.

may first had it on a piano hinge but decided to just attach a little block to the bottom of the platforms to prevent it from moving allowing for easy removal as needed.

The base is just 2 2x4s attached to west the seats would originally mount to. It’s solid.

was hoping to mount the eco flow alternator to the rear driver storage panel but I’ll figure that out another weekend.

 

I stand corrected. I'm sure there is a sweet spot or limits on how much you can adjust this. The oil pressure at lower RPMs may not be enough to actually shift the cam timing. It would be interesting to see the curves and what is possible under different loads, and if there is a feedback loop that is used for activating the solenoid more or less to hit a target. I have yet to see a tuner explain their methods and everything they adjust and why.

Either way, switching to 4.88 or 5.29 gears will do so much more than a tune. No tune can overcome the poor stock ratios.

 

I agree!

 

That guy on the left…. You’re done

 

Did you just wire the switch to the door opener or do something else?

 

Those wheels...

 

I wired the switch to a standard garage remote opener. Bought the Toyota style switch off Amazon ($10). It was prettty simple to identify which two connections to solder the wires to.

This thread helped out a bunch.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/diy-garage-door-opener-non-homelink-10.485793/page-2



Tapped into a dash 12v and ground for the switch llight (not necessary for it to work). Then stashed the remote behind the panel. Easy, cheap, and stock looking garage door opener.

 

That grille badge has been laying around unused for over a year. I got it on a whim with the intent of putting it on my stock OR grille, but I didn't like the way it fit. So, I did the only sensible thing and ordered a Trail Edition / Pro grille to have place to put it.

Really happy that badge isn't taking up space on the table now.

 

Yes the oil and oil pressure have a lot to do with any VVT system working correctly..

The main reason for switching to lower gears (numerically higher) on any 4x4 is due to the taller tires being installed..
Racers sometimes will change the tire height to see how the car will react etc and can then leave it or adjust the rear gear ratio for what they are after... Taller tire effectively making it a higher gear ratio, shorter tire = lower gearing effectively... And you can split gear ratios by changing the gear ratio, 4.11's not enough but 4.33's to much and nothing in between, tire size change will get you in that sweet spot, or close anyway...

A taller tire is basically the same outcome as installing a higher gear (numerically lower), like going from a 245/75R16 to a 265/75R16 is like changing the rear gear from a stock 3.91:1 (rounded) to a higher 3.76:1 called the effective gear ratio, so re gearing to a 4.06:1 gear would be required to put the truck back to how it used to feel, except now you need more power to move that added rotating mass, so the truck still doesn't feel right, now you re gear to the 4.88:1 which is overkill to get back to the stock feeling and now WOW it suddenly feels like it has more getup and go, but it's the same thing as taking an old hot rod and going from a 2.76:1 rear gear with a hot engine and installing a 3.23:1 gear, now the engine has more power, no it is just better used...

So re gearing is just making better use of what you already have.. Yes our Taco's have some gear hunting issues, but the gear ratios is not that much off... But lower gears do make about any gas engine feel much better...The lower the gear the more torque multiplication you get, that is why you start off in 1st and not 3rd gear....

Now for your viewing pleasure, I give you...
Remember that camshaft degrees are based on 720 degrees of rotation, not 360, crank turns twice to the cam turning once, and the cams are turning 1/2 the rpms on the tach...

 

Generally up badging is frowned upon. It serves no purpose other than to make a statement trying to convince others that you have a higher trim truck than you actually do. I’m not a fan as your profile states that you have a TRD off road yet you have put not only Pro headlights (excusable, they look nice and are often a better deal), but also pro decals on your bedside. Beautiful truck and I like all of the mods you have done besides pro badges, but it’s not my money so why would I care. Sorry about the snarky reply, I was just messing with you. Hope you enjoy your taco!

 

Thanks, I still need some smart guy to explain how they use those ranges and why, lol.

I get the gear ratio thing, but the AT gear ratio in stock form is just not good on the Tacoma. In 5th gear, it's running at 2000 RPM at 70 mph. Any slight incline or headwind and it will drop into 4th. You've got to be going 90 mph for 6th gear to even make sense. Most of us don't live in places where the speed limit is 85 mph and use our trucks that way. This is not something a tune can fix.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToQVoyWWluQ

 

No worries. The OEM TRD Pro headlights are cheaper, than some aftermarket headlights. No more issues that some aftermarket headlights has.

 

Although I comprehend (for the most part lol) how it all works, and know what advancing and retarding the cam timing as well as the lift and duration and ramp, I am by no means the smart guy to trying to explain it all, by the time I got done bouncing around I would have you and I both confused...

True, I have hit 85mph in S4 a few times before going to S5 or D, 5th should be closer to 0.75 then the 0.687 and 6th 0.65ish then the 0.58... I would lock 6th out unless doing 60mph and lock 5th out if not doing 45 mph, if I was smart enough to be a tuner...

 

Yeah wish they would fit my 17 Limited