The Perfect 1st Gen Tacoma ;)

Yeah ok maybe that was a clickbait title I know everyone has a different opinion on what the perfect truck would be (but at least we can all agree it would be a Tacoma?...

Good Evening TW! Hello from Glendale, AZ

I'm Rafe and I am new to these forums and i've never owned a Tacoma before (though I have wanted one for many years). I was never in a "good" place to build the truck that I wanted before this and I am not into rushing or half doing things so I've waited till I can build the truck I want. Very much so a build it right the first time around kinda person

Well at last my kids are grown (youngest of 4 is 16 this year) and I've gotten to a place that I feel comfortable starting a project such as this.

So with all that good stuff out of the way, let's discuss my perfect 1st gen Tacoma as I could really use some input on my plan (Teaser, it involves a 4x4 swap!) It's likely to be a bit lengthy as I am pretty methodical so please hang with me!

The purpose of my build:

• Hauling me and my gear to various destinations for;
• Camping, Hiking, Exploring, Photography, Wildlife watching & Fishing, light 4x4 action.
• Enough cab space for a couple grown kids / family / friends / dogs on a rare basis.
• Ultra reliable, As close to stock as possible (Original equipment for all conversion items) and something I know inside and out when it breaks (hopefully rarely)

The Final Product:

• Year = 01,02,03 or 04 (I prefer electronics vs cables)
• First Gen Tacoma DC (4-door)
• Engine = 3.4L V6
• Trans = Manual 5-speed
• Drivetrain = 4x4 w/ OE E-Locker
• Suspension = Stock prerunner 2" lift w/ BSTN 5100's in the front (hear good things and not sure what if anything I need or want for the rear.

Now the FUN part, the plan! (Skip to TLDR; version at the bottom if you're not a details person)

SO just to get this out of the way, yes I know that particular set of options isn't available from the factory (Well just the manual trans really...)

Here is where I could really use the great knowledge and expertise of all of you wonderful folks. I will provide what I have planned and I would really appreciate any insights, holes, pointing out of bad information you could provide.

I will start by purchasing a 02-04 Prerunner DC w/ factory E-locker and V6/Auto. These are somewhat plentiful in my area due to the fact that they are not 4x4. Finding a factory 4x4 DC w/ rear locker in the correct year range is pretty difficult. Especially one that is decently clean and cared for that doesn't cost 15-20k. (Part of goal is to spread build cost over time)

Hopefully from my purpose portion it is clear that 4 wheel drive isn't a HUGE need for me. I ultimately will have it as I WANT to go places that will require it. But I am fine with that being a year or two out from initial purchase as a prerunner w/ locker will take me 75% of the places I want to go.

So this will allow me to get the initial truck and start enjoying it and completing mods that will not be undone by future changes while at the same time collecting the parts for the conversion slowly (depending on price and availability)

I was thinking I would like to first swap the auto transmission for the desired manual (with supporting items ECU, Clutch MC & Pedal etc) as a intermediate to conversion to 4x4. This again serves the goal of spreading the cost over time and the manual trans is actually a higher priority than 4x4 lol.

Finally once having all the needed items to complete conversion to 4x4 take a long weekend from work (4-5 days) and complete the conversion at that time.

Current list of planned mods (besides the basics above): One of my least favorite things about owning an older vehicle as a daily driver is the conveniences of newer vehicles. So this will be a large priority for me. Keep that in mind with the mods below

• Tint all windows and strip at top of windshield
• Remove all interior and Lizard Skin entire inside of cab w/ both heat and sound damping materials. Replace all window rubbers to eliminate wind noise.
• Undercoating of bottom of truck front to back.
• Airbox deck lid conversion
• Color matched high quality camper shell
• Kenwood head unit w/ Apple Carplay, Back up Camera, Aux hookup. (double din unit)
• CB/Ham/10M Radio communications array (research on-going)
• Aux lighting & HQ Gel battery w/ High Cap and CC amps.
• Upgrade internals of Alternator (Brushes, Coil & Pulley)
• Upgrade vacuum hoses to silicon
• VERY mild front bumper guard (maybe with light duty hidden winch mount)
• Grey wire mod (once to that stage lol)

TLDR;

Rough Plan:

• Purchase 02-04 prerunner w/ elocker and v6/auto combo
• First swap to 5-Speed Manual Transmission w/ ECU and other items.
• Later (within 2 years) complete 4x4 conversion after collecting needed items.
• Use as few aftermarket items as possible (not talking about wear parts)
• Otherwise mostly stock vehicle as it will meet all my needs without any needed editions.

I have read countless threads and posts about all things related to these topics and 1st gens in general and believe that what I want to do is more than possible. I would like confirmation from more experienced folk than I that this is indeed the case.

I would also like a realistic audit of my skill set and available resources. I have a 2 car garage and an extensive set of basic tools. I do not have fabrication equipment, welder, torches and the like. I am very open to collecting realistic tools or renting them as needed. Skill wise I also lack mostly all skills for fabrication but am otherwise very handy and know my way around mechanical equipment (have rebuilt VW motors, done front end work, trans remove and reinstall, brakes, cooling, AC, 12v electrical stuff etc)

I believe in my research the only things that requires "fabrication" will be the clutch master cyl / pedal mounting and maybe a rear trans mount along with driveshaft changes? Still have lots of details to iron out but wanted to make sure I was standing on a solid foundation before going further down the rabbit hole. Depending on the tools and difficulty I may have to outsource this portion.

Thanks if you took the time to read even some of this and I look forward to hearing any information you fine folks can provide / share. I would love to connect with some Tacoma fans here locally once I get my truck. Feel free to hit me up. Much more to come as I get further along with the plans. Looking to purchase the prerunner within the next 8 weeks, depending on availability of the right vehicle of course.

Have a good night TW and thanks for reading. Look forward to getting to know you all a bit better.

~Rafe

 

Personally I would just get a 4wd DC to begin with. Where are you located?

If you’re still wanting to do the 4wd swap, @Uphillshunter has done it and can give you insight.

 

Thanks for the comment. I live in Glendale, a sub city of Phoenix.

I will be keeping my eyes open for a 4x4 DC of course, just not planning on finding one that meets my requirements that is not extremely overpriced. That would of course be a much easier change but I would still have a lot of the same costs making the vehicle proper. (all fluids changed w/ full synth, new ignition stuffs, O2 sensors, vacuum lines, cooling hoses, header hoses etc.

 

Have you tried SoCal? The fun part is building it up so it just needs a good foundation.

 

Welcome to TW. Sounds like you've done your research. Good luck with the initial purchase.

 

I just had a chance to read your post in detail. It is actually too much detailed that as you know life doesn’t go as planned. Once you find and get the one closest Tacoma you want then go from there. Your decision might change either by choice or not.

I been down a similar road and I didn’t think I would off done all the things I did to my truck. I actually wanted a Toyota pickup at first but I’m so glad it didn’t work out and I ended up with a DC Tacoma. The rest is history, money, and a lot of wrench time.

 

hello & welcome

 

First of all... Welcome to TW. And by the sound of it, you already know this is the most expensive "free" membership in the history of ever.

Everything you have lined out, is definately possible. It's time consuming, it can be nerve racking. But everything you are talking about has certainly been done before.

A few observations.

You realize the Double cab was available starting in 01 not 02 right? I see you list your target vehicle as an 02-04 Double Cab.

Why are you set on a manual trans? My personal opinion is that auto is better suited to wheeling. Not saying you don't have a good reason to want it. But that's too much the keep track of for me (unless I'm twin T-cased).

I'm not totally sure but I'm thinking the electronic throttle in the 03-04 auto will make a manual swap harder than it would be in an 01-02 with a throttle cable. (others could probably give better info on that than me).

When you are looking at listings on trucks, look for white instrument guages... that means TRD, which means it probably has an e-locker. The elocker is not that uncommon.

If you're going to be "hauling" gear or wheeling. You will definately want heavier leafs in the back.

 

Thanks for the reply,

I believe I chose 02 due to some minor changes / updates they made that I wanted to take advantage of. Part of why I wanted to make this post. You read so much data you have to start sorting and making sense of it all

Awesome information on the white gauges. I didn't realize that was part of the TRD package. I want a manual transmission mostly for personal reasons. I mean roll starting the truck with a manual shouldn't go without mentioning but that isn't much of a consideration for me. I don't prefer servicing automatic transmissions (Prefer clutch replacement to filters etc.) I might be weird there? Lots of other reasons of course but suffice to say I do have them

Better leafs in rear is probably a good thing overall. I might occasionally pull a really small boat or adventure type camper (also really small). Gear wise it shouldn't be anything heavy. Well other than a good size pile of well thought out spare parts and much have trail tools. Otherwise will just be camping gear, guns, fishing stuff... pretty general items none of which will be all that heavy.

Trying to consider how the E-TPS would impact the build and how it relates to the manual transmission.

 

Updates detween 01-02? Not sure I've ever heard of those. As far as I know, the 01 and 02 are essentially the exact same truck.

I get that there are reasons for manual trans. Sounds like you have those reasons. There are definately people on here that have that same reasoning, and have manual swapped a Double Cab.

Better leafs in the rear are almost a must... especially if you intend to run any kind of weight in the back, or tow. The stock leafs alone are absolute garbage.

 

After looking through these forums it seems the trucks mileage range I am likely to purchase will need quite a bit of frontend work as well so that I think plays well into this plan while swapping the parts anyway.

Considering sending oils samples from the prerunner I purchase in for analysis to get an idea of the internal condition of things. Anyone else ever do this? I used to own a transportation company and did this for my Semi truck to keep an eye out for major concerns.

Does anyone have a good resource for kinda learning from the ground up all about 1st Gen Tacoma's front suspension? I have replaced lots of items over the years on various vehicles i've owned but not from a holistic standpoint. Something with a good visual representation would be amazing.

Thanks to all for the welcoming comments and great thoughts and observations thus far.

 

Yeah will have to circle back on the year range. Honestly having another year as an option is good news to me.

Will be investigating those threads on DC auto to manual swap for sure. Read several of the 2x4 to 4x4 but they are different animals for sure.

Any suggestions or good place to start on some good leafs for the rear? I know I have read of some that a lot of folks like. I have no plans to heavily lift the vehicle beyond the factory height of the prerunner (same as 4x4 if I read correctly) and it will be used frequently on highway enroute to adventure destinations

 

Having another year in your range opens up more possible options for trucks. That why I wanted to make sure you knew that.

Most of the heavier leafs are going to lift your truck 1.5~2.5 inches in the back. I'd say the easiest, most common, replacement leaf pack is the Old Man Emu Dakar regular (or heavy) leaf pack.The lesser amount of lift of those 2 is the regular. If it ends up not being enough, you can add a Dakar add a leaf later.

 

On the suspension end of things. @Wheeler's Off-Road Inc is ALWAYS where I suggest. They can really help you figure out what you're looking for.

 

Yeah I was not remembering correctly. I was wanting to avoid the product range that had the 4 wire TPS that seems to be hard to find / set correctly. Not really that big of deal honestly but I like availability of parts. Rebuilt an International Scout and that was a nightmare!

 

Hoping to go look at some trucks this weekend. Progress will be slow at first cause I will probably blow my wad of cash on the initial purchase. Have to see what all shakes out. Very excited.

 

I would start with a double cab 4x4, then all you have to do is worry about swapping the auto out for a 5spd....why go through the trouble of converting a 2wd to 4x4 if not necessary? Unless you were planning on a solid axle swap instead, then it would make sense to start with a 2wd.

As far as 4x4 conversions go, 1st gen Prerunners are pretty easy cause it's all bolt on really...but you still have to source all the parts and that's not always easy to do. 4x4 Tacomas rarely end up in junkyards, and if 4x4s in your area are already hard to find then finding conversion parts for them will probably be just as hard if not harder

 

I have a few reasons for it.

1. Yes for one 4x4 double cab in my area is very rare and super expensive when they show up. These also usually still don't have the factory e-locker.
1.a - I can find some really awesome deals on the Prerunners because they are harder to move than the 4x4 trucks even though a lot of people that purchase these trucks here don't ever use them off-road (Mall Crawlers?)

2. Likely when purchasing a 4x4 with a lot of miles many of the wear out parts will need replaced anyway adding to the cost after purchase anywho.

3. Purchasing the Prerunner w/ e-locker will allow me to do 90% of what I am purchasing the truck for and allow me break up the cost over time and enjoy the truck in the meantime (Sometimes I occasionally need a second vehicle and my current is end of life)

4. The entire truck will be gone through over the next few years so will end up tearing those items apart either way but now can take my time and find the right parts (mild lift, stronger leafs etc) and be able to decide if I want to do manual locking hubs (leaning that way more and more)

Probably other but that's some for now

 

Sounds good to me, be sure to start a build thread on here to document the whole thing! (or use this thread)...be awesome to see it's progress and the build from the ground up

 

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