Containerized: Retromod Global Tacoma

Snarky

Hell Paso
IMG_8112.jpg

This might be the ugliest taco I've ever seen. I love it!

It looks like it was created by the Japanese in 1989 to invade Africa.

It's very retro looking. The monotone paint, the graphics, the beige cover...

A lot of work went into this thing. Hope it lasts a long time. Definitely one of a kind...
 

jham

Adventurer
When are you sending this over? I'm looking at taking my 4runner over now that our vehicle budget has decreased. $2650 is the lowest quote I have from Norfolk to Mombassa, sound about right?
 

jham

Adventurer
jham, that's a good deal. guessing that's ro-ro with a transit in jebel ali?

yeah, roro. I'd have to dig through my email inbox to see the details, I've requested so many quotes that they are all blending together.

Did you keep the contact information of your Ugandan clearing agent? And did you just use a carnet de passage to get through Kenya to UG?
 

Containerized

Adventurer
I got it from Dar es Salaam to Kampala on a Yellow Card, paid the taxes in Kampala (do not go as a mizungu, I have a guy... most of the clearing agents are Bugandan, I wouldn't send anyone from the north, either...). Took a little time and negotiating to get them to believe what I put as the vehicle's value (~$13k USD), but eventually she let me pay taxes on a value of ~$14.8k USD if my guy got out of there quickly before some Indian guy with a 2008 FJ found out, since he'd paid tax on ~$30k USD...

Send me a PM and I'll set you up with the right people. Don't get scammed by guys in Kenya who will claim you need to pay a deposit, your Yellow Card covers you.
 

Containerized

Adventurer
For those interested in the front grille, which seems to be (as expected) the truck's polarizing feature... I suggest looking at a production 2005-ish 4Runner and some of the show trucks in Japan prior to that. That's where the general shape came from... though it's interpreted into a sharper, 1970's-80's version rather than the softer/curvier production Toyota interpretation. Did not even think of a Lancer until someone here mentioned it.
 

InvisibleOne

OverANYlander
My that is impressive. No matter what anyone thinks about the appearance, the execution of your build couldn't have been better. That truck looks as factory as anything I've seen, and that my friend is the hardest look to accomplish. When you get people arguing about what year model it is you know you've done it right. Well done.
 

jham

Adventurer
Great video! I, of course, loved the Uganda part (well done on the Acholi! I'm stopping with Luganda/Lusoga).

How is the output of the forward lights? That's the one thing I MUST have on my vehicles (and dirtbike) in Uganda - lots of forward light throw. With the pedestrian traffic in the villages and the sugar cane truck's unwillingness to yield, I need to see what is ahead, and well.
 

Containerized

Adventurer
I ran the single-level XMITTERs on the FJC (12" bar center, 4" bars on either side for edge-of-road lighting). The two 8" double-row lights in the grille, plus 2"x2" LED packs as fogs, work very well on the new truck, even on totally unlit dirt roads up in the mountains.

Thanks re the Acholi, though living in Acholiland for more than a year has certainly helped. As has having many Acholi friends and a great tutor (3 days a week of intense language instruction when I first arrived for several months). And, of course, it helps that my girlfriend also speaks Acholi... helps keep both vocabulary and accent in check. I can probably get around Gulu and Oyam for a few weeks at a time without resorting to speaking English, but I usually speak English with coworkers and others to make sure we're "on the same page" if it's something important. Acholi interpretation can be a bit too metaphorical at times, if you know what I mean...

Now, though, I'm concentrating on Arabic again, as my next bit of work will likely demand a high degree of proficiency...
 
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tanglefoot

ExPoseur
Excellent video--really explains everything well, and should put the naysayers to rest.

We play that ending song, Wagon Wheel, at Bluegrass jams (around Boulder). I'd never heard the recorded version 'till now!
 

Containerized

Adventurer
Tangle - Not the recorded version, if there is one... actually captured as the audio of some b-roll I shot, but didn't use, at the Basalt farmer's market.
 

Blitzburgh99

New member
For those interested in the front grille, which seems to be (as expected) the truck's polarizing feature... I suggest looking at a production 2005-ish 4Runner and some of the show trucks in Japan prior to that. That's where the general shape came from... though it's interpreted into a sharper, 1970's-80's version rather than the softer/curvier production Toyota interpretation. Did not even think of a Lancer until someone here mentioned it.

The truck is great. There will always be those that criticize. And some forums (not this one, from what i have read so far) just seem to eat their own. Your modern day interpretation/integration of the older land cruisers into a modern Tacoma platform is to be commended. The bobbed bed tosses us back to the 80's Toyota pickups. The utility and thoughtfulness making every aspect functional is most impressive (winch location, bed utility, suspension, light switches, etc). And that is what I personally like the best..... Things weren't done for only appearance, but there was a purpose behind each modification. If it wasn't useful, it wasn't done. And that is what a truck is truly about...being a useful tool.

Be proud of your build and stay safe in your travels. Please keep posting pics when you put it into live action on the job!
 
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