TheNatural's 2012 Totally Expo Trail Limo Build

Well... The weather really sucked for a while which kept me from working on my mod list in the driveway, and then the weather got really nice and the driveway became a sloppy slushy mess I didn't want to lay in.

Today I found something in the parts pile that I could install standing up! CBI ditch light brackets installed. Only sat in the parts pile for 5 years, and somehow I didn't lose any hardware! Actual lights on the brackets might be for tomorrow.

 

Properly functioning ditch lights are complete!

Cleaning all the mud out to install the brackets was an unexpected delay the other day.


But in the end it all worked out and went pretty smoothly.

 

Put the new brake pads and rotors in today. EBC stage 3 kit. They look pretty.. can't wait to get them broken in and see how they perform. The old rotors were very stuck and took a few big whacks with a hammer to break the rust loose, but otherwise it was all smooth sailing.

Old vs new pads


Pretty rotors. Not really sure why they bother with the black paint as I'm fairly sure it'll be worn off soon.. but they look good with zero miles

 

Been sidetracked with other projects again lately. Some yard work, a couple things with the utility/atv/snowmobile trailer (flipped axle, installed superglides, rewired all lights), and my wife bought a beater atv that I've been getting trail worthy (2006 Honda 350 that has been neglected. Runs well, but no brakes whatsoever, Ball joints are all shot, lights have something funky with the wiring, and one of the hubs is shot. Some other cosmetic/convenience things to fix too that aren't as important. Waiting on the last couple parts in the mail and it'll be good to go).

But... I finally ordered an AGM battery for the truck that is in the mail. Also replaced headlight bulbs again, got a part to fix my VHF antenna mount, and started relocating the rearview camera.

For the camera, I only had enough wire length to reach the passenger side of the swing out. It's just zip tied in place while I decide if I'm going to make a bracket to put it there permanently or extend the wire harness and find somewhere more towards the center to mount it (middle of the spare perhaps?)

 

Those EBC pads and rotors didn't feel much different than the OEM ones they replaced... Until I towed my utility trailer loaded with a couple quads recently. About 2500lbs without trailer brakes used to be quite noticeable when bringing the truck to a stop. Now, not so much.

Felt like they took forever to break in and stop squealing ... But I checked my logs and it was only a few hundred km. All this staying home because of covid makes for not many miles on the taco.

 

Installed this stuff. Not pictured is the HKB adjustable voltage booster.


It was a much longer journey putting this together than I expected. Military battery terminals and extensions from Slee and battery cage from Rago Fab in the US, HKB voltage booster from Australia, battery terminal to post adapters from Amazon, and battery from Saskbattery in Canada.

I originally ordered a Northstar battery but the retailer said they were still on the website by mistake and asked if they could send me an Odyssey instead. I had to add the terminal to post adapters to make that work and it seems like an excessive amount of connections on connections, but at least the negative reached without having to use the extensions. With the voltage booster at the default setting (+.6V) I was at 14.5V cold and 14.1V warmed up.

 

That's a nice looking setup!

 

I began my least favorite maintenance item this week... dealing with rusty sliders/frame. I haven't done it in a long time, which makes it a crappier job. My previous tremclad on the sliders actually stuck very well and held on for a couple years, but it doesn't keep the moisture out and allows the slider to rust through the paint. It's also too soft to hold up to gravel from the front wheel. The original frame coating was still doing okay except at the welds, so I left the good parts and threw a top coat over it.

This time I'm prepping the slider and frame welds with a wire wheel (or sandpaper/wire brush where I can't reach with the wheel), cleaning everything with mineral spirits, and trying out a couple coats of POR15 with a quick top coat of rattle can tremclad. Drivers side slider and frame rail under the cab are done so far and look great, but I hope the POR15 lasts a while

Also noticed front right diff seal is leaking. Going to have to add that to the list.

 

Took a bit of a break between painting the driver and passenger side sliders due to some weather and general busyness. Went back out there today and got to working on it... until a wild FedEx guy appeared with some new rubber! 315/70r17 general grabber ATX. Will be going on some new rims too, but they are not here yet.



I also got a new diff seal in the mail, but haven't installed yet. And I replaced the set screw (1/4" bolt) that adjusts how tightly my swing gate latches last week. I tried to tighten it a bit but it was quite rusty and the head broke off.

Sick days during covid are weird. This time last year I would have worked through my couple flu symptoms, but they don't want me around with so much as the sniffles this year. It's weird staying home when I still have some energy, but I can't go anywhere to get supplies/food/etc.

 

let the cutting and beating begin!

 

I can't wait to hear how you like those tires in the snow.

 

Me too. It'll be the first time I haven't run dedicated winter tires in the winter. I'll report back in a month or two!

 

They are on my list either as my set new of tire of for my next truck! I enjoyed my Grabber AT2 in most situations winter being one of them, I can only imagine how much they improved them in the past few years.

 

I'm glad to hear you liked the AT2's. I had been planning on getting some Falken Wildpeak AT3W's for a long time, but I changed my mind at the last minute and snagged the ATX's. Reviews seemed to be all over the place so it was very hard to decide, in the end the nearly 10lb savings per corner gave the ATX's an edge.

My rims came in and I just got the tires mounted. Hopefully I'll get to do the extra smashing/cutting this weekend to make them fit. The rims have a different backspacing than my 2 older sets, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to clear the UCA and I may end up needing to order a small spacer.

 

Got the sliders finished and tires on the truck. I still need to do it's pre-winter paint maintenance and there are some other rusty accessories, but she's looking a lot better.

The new tires fit well enough for my commute but I'm going to need to do some work. At lock they hit the (already trimmed) cab mount and may rub the (already beaten back a bit) pinch weld/firewall when the suspension is compressed. Full lock the other way they gently rub the UCA. There is extremely little clearance to the spindle too, which will be a problem when I finally get around to welding the spindle gussets on. I'll need to order spacers to get the tires off the UCA and allow clearance for the gussets, then either trim the cab mount more or do a relocation.

A relocation sounds like a nice way to go, but I'm pretty sure the kits on the market are going to have a conflict with where my sliders are welded on. Anyone have some feedback on dealing with that? Or should I just chop the existing mount all the way back (which I think will be enough)?

 

Ordered more stuff... wheel spacers and Alpine Design cab mount relocation. Trying to order other stuff too, but shipping to Canada is hard sometimes.

 

Looks good with the new wheels!

 

I got a quick reply from Marlin Krawler... they won't ship any other way than UPS, so I guess their cam tab reinforcement is out. It's a shame because it looks like a good kit, but I'm refusing to pay $104 shipping plus the outrageous brokerage that UPS chargers on a $130 part. I'd rather just use the Total Chaos kit.

Thanks!

 

Did a small thing again today. Replaced the front right axle seal and while I was at it I noticed the inner CV boot was starting to crack a little on the surface of the rubber, so I replaced the CV axle. I had a brand new spare in the box so why not. Took me about 2.5 hours including finding tools and clean up, but I was in the driveway with hand tools and not in a hurry.

The wheel spacers arrived this week so they're going on tomorrow. I'd also like to get around to installing the new rad core support bushings as they are looking pretty rough. I'm sure I had enough daylight to do that today, but it was -5C in the afternoon sun and when it started to cool off I was ready to go inside.

And... Fix one leak and find another. This connection on the line from the power steering reservoir to the steering rack is leaking a lil bit.

 

Got the spacers in today. Honestly not a fan of the wide stance, wheels sticking out an inch is going to throw a lot of gravel at my doors. But it did gain me the needed clearance. Perhaps I'll add some sort of flare extensions in the future.

Also got the rad core support bushings changed out for some from energy suspension. The old ones were definitely toast and the job wasn't bad at all. I couldn't find a torque spec, so I went with 27ft-lbs which should be close. The cab mount bushings have bigger bolts and their torque spec was listed as 34ft-lbs.

Cleaned out a slightly corroded fog light wiring connection and beat on the firewall with the BFH a bit more while I had the wheels off and lots of room to work.

Didn't bother with any pics... Nothing terribly exciting to look at