2003 Lexus LX470 "Overlander" built

[Nikson]

Pretty basic build - full of love for overland adventures - just as most of us can relate to...

Feel free to ask questions as I post, please edit your replies to exclude large amounts of "other's context", thus it will be an easy thread for everyone to review and weigh in...

I've gone to Lexus LX470 from the Chrysler group mainly, started with various builds of XJs/TJs & the last of my favorite the LJ.

As family grew, along with my adventures & destinations, need for a larger & more comforting vehicle grew as well.

Thus I started searching, and our first choice fell on a Land Rover LR3 HSE (2005) w/HD package.
It was a great vehicle, had few trips on it, but it just never given me that comfort of being a reliable vehicle,
people talking - and the LR3 itself given some minor hiccups - I decided to let it go...

Was very disappointed in the loss of the value over the 9months we owned it... that was another down side to it as well...

Fortunately, timing was right and found a local private seller with exactly what I was looking for

2003 Lexus LX470
142k miles
1 owner (local Oregon) with complete service history from Lexus of Portland.
all great options even night vision

and very reasonably priced at $15k cash, I couldnt pass on...

How it is after the first modification - some proper A/T tires for an overlanding rig.

 

[Nikson]

Many might be curious to what size of the tire I went with & why (considering my previous Jeep Wrangler on 35s and their capability on snow)...

Well, true overlanding rig IMHO has no need for anything larger than just a +1size in tire that is All-Terrain, rather than a regular highway tire. M/T tires are not very useful when you are considering the fact that most of the driving is done on highway (pavement/tarmac), while only part of the trip is done "off-pavement"...

Thus this tire has been my personal choice before, and has never let me down.

Interior on the LX is one to be in love with for sure...

Lots of comfort & space, and all of us know - space is something we cant complain about in a 4x4 overlander.

3rd row seats have been removed (for sale if anyone interested) - made more room for gear...

Dash has a lot of useful stuff, along with room to put extra gadget on Ram-Mounts...

 

[Nikson]

LX470 & snorkel

Ah, snorkel...

Many of us want it, or wanted it for the longest time...

Being that I'm more into riding in groups on our adventures now, I've noticed that dust had become an issue, and a snorkel is a good way to escape that, or at least to try...

And gosh, we can all agree - it looks just plain COOL... !!!

p.s. having to drill a hole in a fender of the LX was not an easy thing... thats for sure... LOL

drilled / ready for bolts...

pulled in a late nighter - got it done... happy with the outcome...

 

[Nikson]

First family adventure...

First family adventure was out to the north Oregon coast...

Had great time, highly advice anyone who has not been up that way...

Lots of sand to be driven on, and great way to test your vehicle without much trouble...

Great sunsets over the Pacific...

Putting BioLite to a good use...

Ah, night vision... pretty useful tool under the right circumstances, although can be a destructive...

 

[PolarBearX]

Nice rig. Way too clean.

 

[Nikson]

Nice rig. Way too clean.

Its perfect for another built...

Once the first adventure pin-striping comes on it, its all over - no more worries about it!

 

[SmoothLC]

Nik - what kind of lights does it have in the grill/slots?

Nice rig - congrats.

 

[ChuckB]

Finally, somebody else with night vision!!

If you haven't already done so I recommend removing the running boards. My wife approved.

You have already done more mods than me. For some reason I decided to have 3 kids in 20 months...

I'll be watching your build. Congrats!

 

[Nikson]

Nik - what kind of lights does it have in the grill/slots?

Nice rig - congrats.

Are you talking about the front bumper - round ones? or?

 

[Nikson]

Finally, somebody else with night vision!!

If you haven't already done so I recommend removing the running boards. My wife approved.

You have already done more mods than me. For some reason I decided to have 3 kids in 20 months...

I'll be watching your build. Congrats!

Yes, I had to adjust the camera a bit, felt to me like it was adjusted a bit high, but its a nice option in the dark swerve roads with minimal lighting/traffic...

Running boards are long gone, was one of the first things on the list as well...

Thanks,

 

[Nikson]

Running Boards / Sliders

Many folks comment on the fact that stock running boards are pretty pointless when it comes to any offroad, anything more than pavements & just good looks...

Personal experience only adds more fuel to that fire... so the work began.

Removal was pretty simple process... remove few bolts here, and unplug some wires there for the night lights on the running boards...

factory running boards are for sale if anyone is interested to reuse them...

found the rear driver's side bolt to be the harder one to remove, it was a simpler job after taking off the body mount parts next to it...

so it came out something like that...

 

[Nikson]

Running Boards / Sliders 2

All the AHC hardware under the body... made it somewhat of a challenge to get them mounted the right way...

I didnt want to use any type of U-bolts/or better yet welding them onto the frame...

So my idea was to weld brackets onto the frame, which will have nut welded from inside...

pre-drill the frame / clean up / and weld-on...

first look on the slider's partial...

overall - I came out to be pretty happy...

after attaching the exterior tubes - I've thought that I should have gone out few more inches to the outside... but happy overall

painted and ready to install

...

 

[Nikson]

Tacoma RTT rack

while in the midth of all the other things - buddy asked to have his RTT rack done for his upcoming trip...

CVT tent will find a good home...

 

[PolarBearX]

...[/QUOTE]

Hey man, those look clean. We should get a beer so I can check those out. Been thinking about making me some but don't have a tube bender + welder.

 

[Nikson]

its all possible...

seek n you shall find... LOL