Prinsu Access Cab Install

Subjective. But you can greatly minimize/eliminate it by moving the fairing as close to the cab as possible and adding the weatherstripping.

 

So I'm looking at picking one of these racks up for my 08 access cab but I'm a little nervous about the install.

I've read mixed things online but can anyone confirm what year they started putting side curtain airbags in the way? Not having an explosive in the way would make me feel a lot better about the install!

 

With the clam shell rear doors the AC is the easiest to get the headliner out. With that done it’s simple to remove the bolts that hold the side curtains in place. You don’t need to remove or unplug the curtains, just shift them aside for drilling. The curtains aren’t in the way over the front doors but are right there under the ditch channels above the clam shells and the assemblies are rigid enough that you have to remove the bolts across the top and one going down the rear pillars. Whether you go with nutserts or through bolts with nuts/washers is up to you but imho a rack deserves the added strength of full nuts/washers.

 

Thanks, I'm definitely better about the whole idea of the install. Also going to seriously consider using bolts with nuts instead of the nutserts. I do wonder what would hold up better to weather, I'm in upstate NY and we get a lot of rain and snow.

Will update when I go through with it if I find side curtain airbags in my '08

 

Nutserts have a flange on both sides of the roof layers so anything mounted to them sits that much further up. Some nutserts are made with sealant already applied so they seal to the hole when installed. In either case a dab of sealant(preferably not silicon) on the bolt will take care of the threaded hole. I applied it inside and out after applying cold galvanizing to the drilled holes. Nutserts allow for removal without pulling the headliner but since I used ditch tracks that’s not a concern, any rack I use is removable without touching the track bolts.

 

I like the sound of the ditch tracks for the install. Sounds like removal is way more convenient.

Do you have a link to buy the tracks and a writeup? I haven't seen anybody post about this method for a AC yet.

 

My build thread has a write up including pics with the headliner out and after install. Since there isn’t a set of RTS tracks sold for the AC you just get the set for your model year double cab and cut them down. Having the headliner out let’s you see where the holes might end up before actually drilling them. Rather than cutting all the excess from one end I lined one of the middle holes up with the reinforcement rib in the roof(lines up about with where the doors meet)and used that as my starting point. New holes at the ends to replace the ones lost when shortening the tracks where located to maximize the number of roof layers captured(you’ll see what I mean by this but the roof and channels add up to 4 or more layers of sheet metal). The front ends where cut to line up with the leading edge of the roof ribbing (about where they end up on a DC) and the rears get cut about an inch in front of the U-shaped tabs that secure the moulding. If you’re curious you can pull the moulding starting at the windshield(just pry it out and peal it back) it’s a reversible process so your not committed until you actually cut it. I watched videos on dc cab installs and headliner removal.

 

A few threads:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/ditch-mounted-tracks-on-double-cabs.418816/
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/rhino-rack-has-arrived-at-rack-attack-ditch-mount.418798/
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...-and-some-other-goodies.610520/#post-23585839
I’m sure it’s possible to install without dropping the headliner if you use a drill stop but just as some say “no way am I drilling holes in my roof” there was no way I was drilling holes without moving the curtains aside once I saw how close they are to the roof. It also allowed me to apply sealant to them inside and out. FWIW I’ve already drilled several other holes in the floor and rear cab wall for grommeted wires and air lines so I’m well over that mental block. These trucks have holes and grommets(unsealed at that) all over the firewall, floor, and rear cab wall so a few more is no big deal. If you’re concerned about ever having to replace damaged tracks that would argue for either all rivnuts or all bolts/washers/nuts instead of a combination including rivets for the middle holes.
One other thing, the rts tracks are deeper than surface mounted tracks so you can buy or make thicker track nuts that have more threading. The drop in and twist to lock steel ones supplied with my Thule set all bent at the threaded hole so all have been replaced with thicker aluminum ones that slide but don’t twist out.

 

I recently got a used Prinsu Accessrac and am in need of some help. I am going to mount it this coming weekend, but living in the PNW my biggest concern is sealing it.

I bought some permatex rtv silicone as it is what I’ve seen prinsu recommend (or just rtv in general). What’s the best way to seal the rivnuts/plusnuts? Is the rtv the best? Or is there another product I should use? And how do I go about sealing it?

 

Finished my install yesterday. Now I just have to hook up my lightbar and additional ultra wide camping flood lights. Each side gave me issues on two drill points hitting additional metal which was really the only issue. That and now my truck inside smells like cutting oil haha. Gonna have to air it out for a while. Looks awesome now that it's done but yeah that was a bit of a pain with the need to be so meticulous.

I ended up just cutting chunks rather than drilling the rubber molding. I then added a small bead of silicone to the bottom to help them stay in place as they are no longer one cohesive unit.

 

Anybody know the torque specs for the bolts mounting to the roof? I just don’t want it to fly off.....

 

Well I snapped one of the bolts trying to torque it down. Any ideas on what to do now?

 

For reference I had the wrench set at 30lbs.

 

As you already learned the bolts don’t need to be super tight. The two issues (for anyone reading this and hasn’t attempted install yet) That could arose are snapping a bolt or stripping the threads out of the rivnut. The rob it’s themselves aren’t graded so they can strip out- Remember how easy they were to crimp down when you installed them.

for a repair you’re left with drilling out the remnants of the snapped bolt and replacing/resetting the rivnut in the roof. Or you could ditch that mounting bolt altogether and just packing the hole with silicone. There won’t be a loss of functionality for the rack but the lack of symmetry might bug the hell out of me.

 

I’d grind the lip off the rivnut, push it through and install a new one. No risk of hitting the air curtain if all the work is on the outside.

 

@GHOST SHIP happen to know the thread pitch of the bolts going into the cab? Just for future notes (in case I take my rack off to sell, Id put a set screw in there and silicone it)

 

M6. Probably 1.5 pitch.

 

Thanks

 

anyone have their roof moldings? or know the part number for a 2nd gen? might be selling mine soon

 

Here is the for sale thread

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/fs-prinsu-access-rack-05-2nd-3rd-gens.704282/