The Tale of The Taquito

Terri, the Tiny Taco is a neat little truck. Awesome build thread!

I also have a 2013 Regular cab, 4x4, auto truck. I did the cruise control mod as well, no pre-wire for me either, but it’s not too tough and it’s worth it! My daughter is the primary driver and she has the truck at college. Eventually I will get the truck back and then I’ll do some stuff.

 

Clean Truck! It looks good with those 3rd Gen TRD OR wheels!

 

I need to score an intermittent wiper switch before winter. That 2 speed crap is ridiculous!

 

I did add an intermittent wiper switch/stalk. It was plug and play, easy peazy. I’m pretty sure I used eBay, and got the OEM version off a wreck.

 

I need to quit being lazy. I've also been working too darn much.

 

Yea it still works on the 2.7

 

Hell yeah, Thanks!

 

Hey man nice truck! In my opinion, the body lift Is a bad idea. And 3-4”, a VERY bad idea. I don’t even know if they make them that big for our trucks. Anyways, I’ve heard body lifts can cause extra stress where the cab/bed mount to the frame and your cab or bed could actually separate from the frame in a crash...I would assume it has to do with the fact you’re essentially putting your cab and bed on stilts. Like how it’s easier to push over a 6’ tall post Than a 3’ tall post. Anyways, your bumpers would be low too and I wouldn’t trust relocation brackets for them to be safe in a wreck. You’d also have to think about wiring, etc. If your truck is manual, maybe your gear shifter or shift linkage would need modification because it’d be sunken down so much. And in my state at least, body lifts of a certain height are illegal, and body lifts of any kind are illegal if your truck came from the factory with ABS. I hope I was able to steer you away from a body lift, and I don’t want to sound mean at all. But honestly researching will help you a TON.

 

Got mine from Amazon I think

 

I just ordered it. Also ordered a new blower motor resistor and connector and a new latch for the armrest.

 

Cool truck/cool thread.

 

Thank You! I like the look of yours, with the shell. I'm starting to want to get one.

 

I guess it's been long enough since the last update. Sometimes it's hard to find the time to get on here. I work 12 hour shifts, 7 on and 7 off, with a 1 hour commute each way. Things have been crazy at work and I have been working way too much OT. I also ended up getting a puppy and that has taken up a bunch of my time.

On with the update. Now that The Taquito is lifted a little and has some decent AT's, it was time to start thinking about how I was going to camp with her. I would just sleep in the back of my old Tundra, but this bed is a little shorter. Being 6'5" and in my mid 40's with bad knees, a ground tent was out of the question. A few friends of mine have roof top tents and I have always thought they were kinda cool, so I decided that was the route I wanted to take. Then came the decision on how I was going to mount it. I did not want a big ass bed rack. I also wanted to keep the top of the tent pretty much even with the top of my cab. I did some research and ended up getting the Smittybilt RTT and a couple of 4" rise bed bars, from 4Xinnovations. After some prep and paint, install was a breeze.

 

Sometimes life gets crazy and you lose track of time. It has been almost two years since I have updated this. There has been a few changes. I knew going into this that the 4 banger was gutless. I also could tell that a big part of the problem was the gearing with the automatic transmission. Cruising down the highway and only turning around 2k RPM @ 65 MPH was good for gas mileage, but a small breeze would be enough to make it downshift into third gear. I spend most of my time either in the desert or the mountains. Not too much time on the flat lands. I decided that I would regear to 5.29's. Since the truck had over 170k on it at this point, I decided to have the diffs rebuilt while they were at it. If that wasn't enough money out of my pocket, I went ahead and added front and rear ARB lockers and an ARB air compressor. Now that it had a bit more power, I figured that I could now get away with 33 inch tires. I didn't want to add much more weight to the setup and end up just as gutless as it was before the regear, so I sourced a set of 3rd Gen TRD OR wheels and went with some Yokohama Geolander G003 MT's in 255/85R16. Based off a bit of TacomaWorld research, this wheel and tire setup weighted about the same as the steel wheels and the Kumho's in 265/75R16. I think it turned out pretty good and the truck feels great!

 

As time went on and my Pup got bigger, I knew that the RTT was no longer right for me. I just could not keep picking him up and putting him in the tent. It was more of a size thing than a weight thing. I was also getting tired of playing the cooler game on long trips and wasn't about to spend all that money on a 12 refrigerator, just to have it get all dusty in the back of my truck. It was time to rethink the setup. I decided to get a shell and a hard shell RTT. I figured a hard shell RTT would be more aerodynamic than the brick shaped Smittybilt. I did a bunch of research and decided that I was just going to order a new shell so I could spec it out with the options that I wanted and to make sure that it can handle the weight of a RTT on top. I went with a SnugTop Cabhi and optioned it with the Sportsman Package that gives the roof a load rating of about 500 pounds. I also got the roof tracks, Rhino Rack cross bars, sliding front window, carpeted headliner, pet screens on the windows, 4 USB ports and a 12v outlet that are always hot. As I've said before, this truck will never be a beauty queen, so I had them paint it white. Color matched would have looked better, but my pup might get too hot if I decide to sleep in (that never happens). White would also work better while I was driving. My gear wouldn't get as hot and the fridge wouldn't have to work as hard.

For the hard shell RTT I went with the OVS Bushveld. Once I put the tent on the truck it felt very unstable and had body roll for days. These little Reg Cabs just don't have the size and weight of the V6 AC & DC. It takes a lot less to make them feel top heavy. This was around late spring, early summer 2021. Supply shortages were in full effect. I parked the truck and canceled all trip plans until I could get the rear suspension back up to par. I contacted Deaver and had them build me a set of their Stage II leaf springs. While I was at it, I ordered some Bilstien 5160's. Those parts took a bit over 2 months to get in. By August of 2021, it was all installed and I was able to take my annual summer trip up to Coyote Flats.

 

This is a great looking rig! Ultra functional and purpose built.

 

Kinda scary, the similarities.
Before

After

 

So, um, that last setup lasted for 1 trip. I hated it!!! Not only was the RTT uncomfortable, it was a pain to pack back up. Don't get me wrong, it was a fine product and I had no quality issues with it, but after three nights in it, it just wasn't for me. The aerodynamics of it also sucked. Even with the 5.29 gears the truck was struggling way too much when the wind kicked up. This wasn't a problem with the tent, it was just the wrong product for my setup. Since I only spent a few nights in it and it had only been on my truck for a couple of weeks, the fine folks at OVS let me return it. I thought I'd return their kindness by giving them some more of my hard earned money and picked up their 270 awning. An awning was on my list of things that I wanted, so I figured it would be a good time. I drove down to their warehouse and it was a pleasant transaction. Here's a poser shot of the awning in my driveway.


For the new sleeping setup I went with the Topper EZ Lift Nomad package. It just basically Velcro's inside the back of the shell and straps to the tailgate. I am way too tall to sleep in the back of the truck with the tailgate up. For a mattress I just went with a tri fold setup. My first trip out with this setup was a 7 day trip through Utah. Besides now having to sleep next to a dog that sheds way too much and is a bed hog, it's pretty comfy.

 

Remember how I said I had to get some Deaver leaf springs to handle the weight of the hard shell RTT that only lasted for one trip? Well, without that RTT on the truck, the rear became very stiff. Yeah, I know, I've thrown a lot of time and money at this truck just to go and switch things up again. I have come to the conclusion that this truck is just going to be a money pit and a constantly evolving project. I'm fine with that. I didn't want to ditch the Deavers or the 5160's, because other than being stiff without enough weight on them, I really like them. They just work great. They support the back of the truck well and I swear combined with the 5160's, they have more travel than my last rear suspension setup. They also keep the body roll in check, even when I had that heavy RTT on top. I figured now would be a good time to check something else off the list of things I'd like to do to the truck. It was rear bumper time! I went with a 4Xinnovations bumper. I optioned it out with the tire swing, hi lift jack mount, jerry can holder, and fold down table. Once that arrived I took it all apart and sent it out for powder coating. While I was waiting for the bumper, I decided that since I am going to have a tire carrier, I should get a matching wheel for it. Then I thought about it a bit more and decided that I will get two matching wheels for it, so I could run two spares and not have to worry about carrying a separate set of lug nuts for the factory spare. It would also allow me to do a 6 tire rotation and help the tires last longer. I'm really pleased with the way it all turned out. The truck is also back to riding nice and smooth. My pup appreciates the smoother ride and he has been enjoying covering me and all the bedding with his non stop shedding.

 

That pretty much gets us caught up with all the changes I've made in the last two years. I left a few things out, like changed the rear brake lights because my friends said that the old ones were too dim. I've also added a Joying Android headunit and a B Tech radio, because the range sucked on the handheld radios. More changes are in the works. I've spent about 20-25 nights in the truck with the current sleeping setup. It has been very comfortable and never too hot on a desert night or too cold when the temps drop below freezing, but I am tired of it. It's rare if I spend a night in the same place for more than one night. Having to unload and load everything is getting very old. It also leaves my gear exposed in bad weather. The awning does a good enough job of keeping stuff dry, but if the weather gets bad, I put the fridge and the Jackery in the truck. Also, being so tall, it sucks to get in and out of this setup. I have to bend my body in ways that just aren't right to zip and unzip then tent opening. It's getting old. I do this for fun, and this setup takes a lot of fun out of it. That being said, I'll be taking it on my annual 7 day Utah trip in October, then I'll be selling the shell, crossbars, and Nomad tent. New setup is in motion, but I have to play the waiting game. Until then...