'07 Tacoma Budget Buildup

[KingCrabberCurry]

Economic Stimulus

Just ordered a 48" Hi-Lift 485 with the Off-Road Kit and the Lift Mate Attachment.

Thought about buying the much cheaper ($40 vs. $75) knock-off from Harbor Freight, would have saved me valuable funds, but I decided to BUY AMERICAN!


Support those companies that support our passions!




3 weeks until Shoe Creek!!! unk03:

 

[heeltoe989]

Just wanted to say welcome

Nice truck! :beer:

 

[KingCrabberCurry]

Shoe Creek Expedition!

Just got back from the Taco's first official trip and all I can say is WOW. Even with limited upgrades, the Taco was able to outperform many Jeeps we saw with major $ upgrades. Front suspension had plenty of range, even with stock shocks and sway bar connected. Rear leafs were sagging a bit on the way up when loaded down with gear, but with the truck unloaded and roof rack off, it was very flexy.

The 255/85R16 BFG MTs were grippy on the rocks, unstoppable in the mud and still able to behave on twisty gravel mountain roads. The stock shocks worked well, I don't think I'm going to plan on swapping them out anytime soon.

The only thing I can think of adding to the truck would be a CB for communication on the trail. We had Motorola 500 Talkabouts, but the battery life is essentially non-existent, we ran the radios down over about 4 hours of use, leaving us without communication for the final day of the trip. Some rear springs might be nice, the stock springs with AAL did fine on the trails, but I would have been a little hesitant to go over the same terrain fully loaded. I'll have to research this option a little more.

The other vehicle in our party was a stock 2006 H3 with the offroad package. Surprisingly capable for a totally stock truck, there were a few situations where I was glad I had the power and torque of a V6 and the extra clearance provided by my lift and tires, as the H3 did it's share of wheel spinning and skidplate scraping on some of the more difficult trails. However, the H3 won the award for hairiest moment of the trip, teetering back and forth while descending a steep, deeply-rutted hill.


Some pics (my camera only, more to come later):

The stock H3 flexing on a tricky descent:

Heading home:

MORE PICS/VIDEO TO COME!!

 

[dirtballer]

wow that truck looks great i'm planning to do something similar - i drive long highway miles and regularly on logging roads with dense northeast brush so i added an ARB bumper and now have to install coil overs or springs to level the ride and get better suspension hoping to do the rear suspension at the same time but trying to keep my mods affordable and as close to stock as possible - not sure what to do as i'm a bit of a newbie but did get the money for the mods by fixing some old chevy block engines but don't know much about building my daily use truck into a humble expedition vehicle. . . .am i on the right track?

 

[maxama10]

Sounds like you're on the right track.

Most people who get the bumpers get OME 886 coils to maintain a decent amount of lift.

If you don't want much lift you might try OME 885 coils.


There are also the more expensive coilover options. Icons, saws etc...

 

[dirtballer]

So the OME 885 or 886's will work huh? - i was considering the 882's but are they too stiff? too much lift in front?

My concern with the CO's is how they stand up and perform in the harsh northeast winter? Heard icon does a treatment called IVD to protect the CO's against rust and corrosion - any opinions?

if i went with the icon CO's in front could i still move around with my stock rear suspension and just use the CO's to compensate for the sag from the weight of the ARB bumper until i do the rear?

i opened up a can of worms - good thing i like to eat worms LOL

s

 

[maxama10]

Sorry I assumed that you had an 05+ Tacoma, is this right? They don't have 882's for the 05+ tacomas only 884-886


Well, from what I hear the Icons hold up well to that, but the SAWS apparently don't, I've heard mixed reports of rusting.

Yeah, you could adjust them to compensate for the bumper.

 

[Rexsname]

Dirtballer,

Yes you can do the coil-overs on the front first and wait a while to to the rear suspension. When I installed my ARB bumper I stepped on a scale to see how much the bumper weighed. It was 85lbs. (This was without the mounting bracketry) I didn't notice much droop at all. Niether did I notice a 'heavy' feeling in the steering. As it turned out, I did the front and rear suspension at about the same time but that doesn't mean it is a must. As long as you are aware of the additional weight on the front end and slow down a bit you should be fine.

By the way....I would be suprised if there was more than two/tenths difference in your gas mileage with the heavier bumper.

REX

 

[dirtballer]

I have a 2004 double cab 4 x4 trd v6.

Sounds like i can rebuild the suspension a piece at a time and install the icon CO's upfront and i'm good to go

what did you do for your suspension?

What tire do you recommend that can move around in the wheel well at full flex and with the steering cranked to full chok other than the stock size of 265 70 16's? Can i fit 265 65 17 tires?, would be tight but with a frontal CO lift maybe they would work - any thoughts?

Wasn't too good at math but no more than two tenths?

OH NO! two tenths loss of MPG is 20% which in my case i was getting 17 MPG which would make my MPG 13.5 which would mean i'm losing 53 miles on every full tank which basically means every time i gas up at the pump at 4 bucks a gallon the ARB bumper costs me 12 bucks?

If i fill up twice a week that's 100 dollars a month or 1200 hundred this time next year.

S

 

[KingCrabberCurry]

Dirtballer,

I think Rex meant two-tenths of a MPG, as in 0.2 mpg, loss with the heavier bumper....a 20% decrease in fuel economy would be pretty ridiculous.

More pics:

Looking south from the falls

The Expedition Contingent

Cooling Off

H3 got high-centered on a rear shock mount

Building up the trail beneath the lifted wheel

 

[bobmuley]

I've been assessing my recovery needs and have decided to pursue a Black Rat Recovery Winch as the next addition to my rig.

I've read Scott's writeup of his testing (found at: http://www.expeditionswest.com/equipment/general_equipment/black_rat_winch.htm)

I noticed he tested the 1750 lb. winch, but do you think this is suitable for the recovery of a double cab tacoma loaded with gear? There is a 3500 lb. version available, but it is much more expensive and keeping in the spirit of the budget buildup I'd like to know if the extra money is justified. Would using a snatch block with the 1750 lb. winch give me enough oomph to move the taco, or should I spring for the big 'un?

Anyone with firsthand experience with either of these products?

Thanks for the help

If you have a hi lift and some chain already, why would you need another hand-held pulling item?

 

[Rexsname]

2/10s of a mpg NOT 20% worse mpg overall. To say it another way, if you currently ar getting 18.1 mpg I dont think the addition of the ARB bumper alone would bring your mpg down to less than 17.9. I just didn't notice the difference. Now, when you factor in lift, bigger tires, armor, camping gear and other things YEP your mileage may vary!


REX

 

[KingCrabberCurry]

If you have a hi lift and some chain already, why would you need another hand-held pulling item?

I was considering the Black Rat before I bought the Hi-Lift. In my quest for high-quality, low-dollar upgrades, I couldn't justify spending almost $400 on a hand winch when I could spend $150 for a Hi-Lift with all the necessary accoutrements to use it as a winch. Sure it takes longer, but that's worth the savings.

As an aside, I've also done a couple other minor mods to the Taco, nothing that warranted any pictures, but I'd just like to document them here.

- Trimmed the exhaust after the hanger

- Unbolted the 7 pin wiring harness from the rear receiver and zip-tied it up under the truck where it won't get smashed. I'm going to do the relocation mod soon, I've just got to find some time (and snug my sack up enough to use a hole saw on my bumper)

- Did the "fog light mod", as you can see in some of the above pictures. Allows you to have your fog lights on independently of the headlights.

- Organized tie downs and tool kit into bags that fit in the driver's side bed compartment and under the rear seat on the driver's side, respectively.

- Removed the splitting axe from my bed and replaced it with the Hi-Lift, mounted with the same quick fist clamps. Also moved the fire extinguisher closer to the tailgate on the driver's side and relocated the shovel to the front rail of the bed.




After the less-than-great performance of my Talkabouts on this trip, my next mod is going to be a CB, which brings me to the inevitable question(s):

What kind of CB setup are you using? Where do you have your antenna mounted? What kind of antenna do you have? What do I need to know to get into this kind of thing?

I'm leaning towards the Cobra 75 WX ST, but I'm open to suggestions. Something compact, cheap and non-Smokey and the Bandit inspired would be preferable.

 

[maxama10]

I bought my CB at walmart spliced it into a 12V outlet adapter and stashed it in the console. You can still hear it with the lid shut. For the antenna I bought a lil wilson magnet mount, I just stashed it under the seat in the rear and it works awsome.

 

[tacollie]

I fill your fuel woes, but it is worth it even with gas going up like it is. I was wondering if your wheels rubbed the frame at full lock? I dig the practicality of your truck.