I'm an aspiring overlander (just got back from Belize and though the rental Suzuki was a pathetic excuse for 4x4, got me hooked on the idea of overlanding, and I think the wife -- like Richard, came across/been a fan of Long Way Round/Down idea of travel since I was living as an American student abroad in Europe more than a few years back now and picked up the book for reading on trains -- but never got around to getting a bike and now the wife says no....), and in the process of building my own truck for such capability (and also exploring an 80s series landcruiser for the wife, more of a family hauler though). I really like expedition portal, but for the trucks, there's loads of good info over at yotatech.
I sent Richard this as an email but posting here as well, should others find this braindump helpful -- yotatech (and a couple other similar interest blogs that seem to get circularly referenced) has far more writeups/info on modding up Toyota Pickups and 4Runners than anything I can put on here. Only caveat is that a lot of the more heavily modded vehicles are purpose built rockcrawlers and not well suited to an overland type of vehicle...
Here's what I sent to Richard -- difference is I'm a 3vze (V6 150hp, 180 ftlbs torque) and a 93 vs his 22re (4 cyl 112hp, 147 ftlbs torque). I didn't go into all the possible engine mods/upgrages for the 22re (as I'm not an expert) but LC Engineering should cover most of the engine internals available that you might want to consider (can buy from them or elsewhere): http://www.lceperformance.com/ There's an 22RE AFM swap that increases air flow on the intake side that might be worth doing as well.
This thread also is good about a couple guys building up/doing the mongolian rally in a 22re last year: http://www.yotatech.com/f100/england-mongolia-my-1993-toyota-pickup-summer-2012-a-250312/ , https://www.facebook.com/pages/Quarter-Life-Crisis-Mongol-Rally-2012/282749081746820
Having seen his suspension and trail armor purchases, I didn't add anything in those areas below (though I think weld on differential armor might be a good idea, but not essential.) And front control arm bushings should probably be added to the to do as well.
Lastly, get yourself a Toyota FSM. This a great '93 manual that should cover >90% of your '89s needs: http://personal.utulsa.edu/~nathan-buchanan/93fsm/
Here's the email I sent via Richard's website (updated a couple places for clarity, more complete info):
Saw your promo on the overland fb page. Looking at your story, bravo for making the leap.
If you haven't, i'd suggest taking a look at Yotatech and do some searches on all the various mods people have done. Most of below is all on yotatech in greater detail. And is a braindump, so you might have already thought through some/most of this. I've done about 1/2 of these upgrades to my rig thus far, partially documented on Yotatech -- I'm RSR over there.
A couple things to note that come immediately to mind as upgrades to your Yota, when you had the bed off I hope you took the time to inspect your hard fuel lines and replace your fuel hose under there. I'd also recommending biting the bullet and drop the tank, clean out the sludge, and replace the pump and prefilter. Toyota is Denso, and you can buy aftermarket Densos for reasonable. I think I priced the hard lines, pump, and fuel filter and to the full system was pretty reasonable at like ~$200. And replacement tanks were actually pretty reasonable too at ~$200. A lot of folks have reinforced the tank guard too with some rebar or angle iron bar welded on. Unfortunately, of trucks your (and my age), this is right about time that the fuel system starts crapping out (from lines rusting through to hoses deteriorating to pumps failing), and it's much easier to repair in the garage than on the road. Might also be worth looking at adding a fuel/water separator somewhere inline as well. Here's a post discussing the fuel tank on the 3vze (http://www.yotatech.com/f116/fuel-leak-269424/). You'll want to double check dimensions, but the 3vze tank is 17-18 gallons vs the 14-15 on the 22re. I think the dimensions are similar and should both install on your truck. And here's a spare 13.5 gallon tank that mounts where your spare goes -- remove the rear tire brackets -- and once installed you can reinstall your spare in that location -- I think it only drops your spare a couple inches lower and most haven't complained about any problems with this setup (same as the old downey off road extra tank, they manufactured these for downey): http://www.nwmp.com/index.php?optio...eel-drive-1991-1995&catid=11:toyota&Itemid=23
The next major area would be the cooling system. If it hasn't been replaced to date, flush the engine and replace the radiator. I'd go ahead and replace all of your coolant and coolant bypass hoses (don't forget your heater hoses too). Use the Toyota Red coolant. Also, don't forget to replace your thermostat.
A brake upgrade would also be in order and much appreciated on some of those dicey Central and South American roads. Upgrade to the larger V6 brake cylinder if you haven't already, and then upgrade your rotors and calipers as well -- makes a huge difference from what folks say over at YT (mine's the V6 setup already). Rotorpros has front and rear replacements really reasonable fwiw ($140 for front rotor and pad, and $100 for new drum and shoes, both by pair). Add some stainless steel brake lines while your at it. You'll need the calipers and some other parts too, see YT for more detail.
Upgrading your fluids and lubricants to synthetic (diffs, power steering, transfer, tranny, clutch, brake, etc) -- I like Amsoil, and it truly does make a world of difference. I use Castrol Ti full syn for engine oil however. For filter, use the biggest Toyota filter you can fit -- the YZZD3 will probably fit your truck.
Get an idler arm brace (http://blazeland.us/idler-arm-kit) and consider upgrading your idler arm to the duralast one w/ aftermarket brass bushings. Upgrade your CV boots to rockford (http://www.rockfordcv.com/) b/c replacing on the trail is a super pain and these are the stoutest CV boots I've seen. Consider a steering frame brace w/ your larger tire size: http://www.offroadsolutions.com/products/steering-frame-brace-kit-ifs/
And make sure you inspect your tie rod ends and ball joints -- for the TRE's I like Deeza (come w/ zerks and largest ball joint I've seen) and you can't beat OEM Yota ball joints. Blazeland's Tie Rod Sleeves are the stoutest I've seen -- so much stronger than the thin factory sleeves: http://blazeland.us/a-la-carte/
There are aftermakert lower control arm braces available too (IFS has one on the front but not back) that are worth at least considering depending on how near max load you anticipate pushing your truck over questionable terrain (Sdori also sells the metal idler arm bushings): http://www.sdori.com/SDORI_Products.html
For Pitman Arm, the Raybestos Professional is the OEM Sankei 555 for much cheaper than ordering the Sankei branded. It has a removable greasable zerk. I went with a 555 idler arm, but most recommend the duralast so you can add the metal bushings and it's slightly thicker, but I hope that the brace alone will keep it stout enough w/o the bushings.
For weatherproofing your truck, tackle extending the breathers on diffs, and tranny, and transfer. Upgrading your weatherstripping makes a tremendous difference on cabin noise. Cruisercrap's QuiteCrap is the best soundproofing material for the $, but really not needed unless you want a super quiet cabin if you tackle the weatherstripping.
Also, definitely disassemble your manual hubs and replace the 2 gaskets and one seal (3 total) and consider waterproof grease instead of general purpose if you plan to be doing any water crossings. You won't want to disassemble them all the time -- the cone washers are a pain.
For safety, when you have the xtra cab panels off to do the xtra cab window weatherstripping and consider adding audio/air filtration foam over the openings in that wall while your there (a big source of cabin noise is the vents between the cab and bed which route through this wall space), it's a good time to tighten the tension on your seatbelts and wash your seatbelts too -- the sink works best for washing IMO. Like your mattress doubling in weight after 10 years, your seatbelt prob adds more weight than that with dirt, oil, and grease... And the spring just loosens up and needs retightened. This is one of those convenience/time saving/quality of life mods that I am still stoked I took the time to do b/c I'd be obsessing about it otherwise. I documented most of this over at YT I believe.
Think about recovery (and assuming no new expensive,fancy bumpers, etc) -- adding a 2nd pick and pull OEM tow hook w/ retainer clip to the drivers side is a great idea. You can attach D rings to them or pull from them alone if needed. If you don't have an a frame mounted trailer hitch, consider adding one just for the purposes of adding a receiver hitch D ring mount -- and when you don't need this for recovery, you can add a super bumper to protect your rig from folks rear-ending, and it makes a handy step up into the bed. http://www.4wheelparts.com/Winches-...ch-D-Ring-Mount.aspx?t_c=18&t_s=190&t_pt=8404
http://www.superbumper.com/
For power, you'll probably want to upgrade your alternator -- LC Engineering has some high output offerings, and upgrade your big 3 wiring and the power wire from battery to engine fuse box. All of this has been discussed by me on YT in the past week, just search my stats and then posts under the user profile. Quick link: http://www.yotatech.com/members/117506.html It also wouldn't hurt to give all your engine ground connections a good cleaning w/ fine sand paper or steel wool.
At a minimum a good cat back mandrel bent exhaust will give you much more power and better mpg. Replace your O2 exhaust sensor too -- again, Denso so use Denso aftermarket plug and play for 1/2 the cost of Dealer. New headers would probably add some beneficial power, but are pricey -- less so than for my V6, but still pricey.
With your tires being so large, you might want to consider regearing your diffs for greater low speed power. Your truck's gear ratios can be determined by following directions/decoding your VIN label here: http://www.brian894x4.com/Gearratiosanddiffs.html And this is a decent gearing calculator: http://www.grimmjeeper.com/gears.html I'm guessing that you have 4.10 gears on your truck, and you really probably need 4.88s w/ the 22re and 4.56s at a minimum. Full new drop in diffs for front and rear -- have to do both or you'll kill your transfer case -- will run you ~$1k. Gears themselves if you rebuild will be a couple hundred. Here's the calculations on your tire size change: http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/tirecalc.php?tires=225-75r15-265-75r16 Essentially, you increased your diameter by 3.5". Most folks recommend getting your tires and gearing in sync before spending $ on any other engine performance mods -- gearing will make the biggest difference in driveability.
And beyond your standard engine maintenance (definitely have your valves adjusted), double check and consider replacing any other soft (or used to be soft lines), especially your vacuum hoses... All that's 20+ years old and at end of life. Also, be sure to check your engine, transfer case, and tranny/clutch mounts. The last thing you want to do is have one of those fail in the middle of nowhere.
Lighting: I have the Hella Vision Plus H4 housings installed and they are great with the ******** Cepek wire stone guards installed. These are great and a must if you're not adding fog lights -- though I would recommend those too regardless. A spare H4 bulb or two is much more compact than a whole light housing, and you don't have remove your full front grill to replace the H4s... Auxillary rear reverse lights should also be considered as the factory ones are weak, but if you take your housing apart sand what is surely flaking/detiorated paint in housing and divider, use plastic adhesion promoter, then primer, and then a bright chrome metallic spray paint on your current housings, it makes a big difference in brighteness (changing out rear lenses helps a lot too).
For interior rear seating area, this bulb in bright white makes a world of difference in my 93 Xtra cab, I can actually see at night -- http://www.superbrightleds.com/moreinfo/festoon/de3175-led-bulb-4-smd-led-festoon/238/
I left my front map lights' bulbs as is b/c the leds are too bright IMO and you can rotate that led as needed -- just needed to pull the clips down slightly and adjust tension for the led to work -- it's a little too tall for factory bulb placement otherwise.
For security, an alarm, a club or better mechanical lock the autolock pro http://www.autobarn.net/autolockpro.html or both, hidden kill switch, cat guard of some sort, lug nut locks, and spare tire cable lock should all be considered (if you sell your factory cat, it should pay most of the way for a new magnaflow hi flow ceramic, or 1/2 of a new magnaflow hi flow metal cat -- Yota's cats are restrictive). There are also some security window tint films that are much more break resistant too that you'll want to consider. In the tropics, you'll be very happy/need to have tinted your windows anyways and the security film shouldn't be too much more expensive than stock on your side windows. Also, Toyota makes and sells tinted xtra cab window panes, but it'll probably be cheaper to add aftermarket tint film. Mine are the tinted ones so I haven't explored.
The only other items I can think of would be to consider adding an oil cooler and possibly adding a switched electric fan to the front of your condensor -- look on yotatech for mercedes omb617 swaps where they add dual e fans there -- to keep engine as cool as possible in traffic or while crawling if you start to overheat. It's a nice backup. And if planning to do rivercrossing you'll want to put a clutch in your factory fan -- the E fans don't cool nearly as efficiently, but I suppose you can add two or three efans in place of factory belt driven.
Hopefully you found some of this of use. Yotatech rocks, and so does overland. Just in different ways. Bon voyage.
I sent Richard this as an email but posting here as well, should others find this braindump helpful -- yotatech (and a couple other similar interest blogs that seem to get circularly referenced) has far more writeups/info on modding up Toyota Pickups and 4Runners than anything I can put on here. Only caveat is that a lot of the more heavily modded vehicles are purpose built rockcrawlers and not well suited to an overland type of vehicle...
Here's what I sent to Richard -- difference is I'm a 3vze (V6 150hp, 180 ftlbs torque) and a 93 vs his 22re (4 cyl 112hp, 147 ftlbs torque). I didn't go into all the possible engine mods/upgrages for the 22re (as I'm not an expert) but LC Engineering should cover most of the engine internals available that you might want to consider (can buy from them or elsewhere): http://www.lceperformance.com/ There's an 22RE AFM swap that increases air flow on the intake side that might be worth doing as well.
This thread also is good about a couple guys building up/doing the mongolian rally in a 22re last year: http://www.yotatech.com/f100/england-mongolia-my-1993-toyota-pickup-summer-2012-a-250312/ , https://www.facebook.com/pages/Quarter-Life-Crisis-Mongol-Rally-2012/282749081746820
Having seen his suspension and trail armor purchases, I didn't add anything in those areas below (though I think weld on differential armor might be a good idea, but not essential.) And front control arm bushings should probably be added to the to do as well.
Lastly, get yourself a Toyota FSM. This a great '93 manual that should cover >90% of your '89s needs: http://personal.utulsa.edu/~nathan-buchanan/93fsm/
Here's the email I sent via Richard's website (updated a couple places for clarity, more complete info):
Saw your promo on the overland fb page. Looking at your story, bravo for making the leap.
If you haven't, i'd suggest taking a look at Yotatech and do some searches on all the various mods people have done. Most of below is all on yotatech in greater detail. And is a braindump, so you might have already thought through some/most of this. I've done about 1/2 of these upgrades to my rig thus far, partially documented on Yotatech -- I'm RSR over there.
A couple things to note that come immediately to mind as upgrades to your Yota, when you had the bed off I hope you took the time to inspect your hard fuel lines and replace your fuel hose under there. I'd also recommending biting the bullet and drop the tank, clean out the sludge, and replace the pump and prefilter. Toyota is Denso, and you can buy aftermarket Densos for reasonable. I think I priced the hard lines, pump, and fuel filter and to the full system was pretty reasonable at like ~$200. And replacement tanks were actually pretty reasonable too at ~$200. A lot of folks have reinforced the tank guard too with some rebar or angle iron bar welded on. Unfortunately, of trucks your (and my age), this is right about time that the fuel system starts crapping out (from lines rusting through to hoses deteriorating to pumps failing), and it's much easier to repair in the garage than on the road. Might also be worth looking at adding a fuel/water separator somewhere inline as well. Here's a post discussing the fuel tank on the 3vze (http://www.yotatech.com/f116/fuel-leak-269424/). You'll want to double check dimensions, but the 3vze tank is 17-18 gallons vs the 14-15 on the 22re. I think the dimensions are similar and should both install on your truck. And here's a spare 13.5 gallon tank that mounts where your spare goes -- remove the rear tire brackets -- and once installed you can reinstall your spare in that location -- I think it only drops your spare a couple inches lower and most haven't complained about any problems with this setup (same as the old downey off road extra tank, they manufactured these for downey): http://www.nwmp.com/index.php?optio...eel-drive-1991-1995&catid=11:toyota&Itemid=23
The next major area would be the cooling system. If it hasn't been replaced to date, flush the engine and replace the radiator. I'd go ahead and replace all of your coolant and coolant bypass hoses (don't forget your heater hoses too). Use the Toyota Red coolant. Also, don't forget to replace your thermostat.
A brake upgrade would also be in order and much appreciated on some of those dicey Central and South American roads. Upgrade to the larger V6 brake cylinder if you haven't already, and then upgrade your rotors and calipers as well -- makes a huge difference from what folks say over at YT (mine's the V6 setup already). Rotorpros has front and rear replacements really reasonable fwiw ($140 for front rotor and pad, and $100 for new drum and shoes, both by pair). Add some stainless steel brake lines while your at it. You'll need the calipers and some other parts too, see YT for more detail.
Upgrading your fluids and lubricants to synthetic (diffs, power steering, transfer, tranny, clutch, brake, etc) -- I like Amsoil, and it truly does make a world of difference. I use Castrol Ti full syn for engine oil however. For filter, use the biggest Toyota filter you can fit -- the YZZD3 will probably fit your truck.
Get an idler arm brace (http://blazeland.us/idler-arm-kit) and consider upgrading your idler arm to the duralast one w/ aftermarket brass bushings. Upgrade your CV boots to rockford (http://www.rockfordcv.com/) b/c replacing on the trail is a super pain and these are the stoutest CV boots I've seen. Consider a steering frame brace w/ your larger tire size: http://www.offroadsolutions.com/products/steering-frame-brace-kit-ifs/
And make sure you inspect your tie rod ends and ball joints -- for the TRE's I like Deeza (come w/ zerks and largest ball joint I've seen) and you can't beat OEM Yota ball joints. Blazeland's Tie Rod Sleeves are the stoutest I've seen -- so much stronger than the thin factory sleeves: http://blazeland.us/a-la-carte/
There are aftermakert lower control arm braces available too (IFS has one on the front but not back) that are worth at least considering depending on how near max load you anticipate pushing your truck over questionable terrain (Sdori also sells the metal idler arm bushings): http://www.sdori.com/SDORI_Products.html
For Pitman Arm, the Raybestos Professional is the OEM Sankei 555 for much cheaper than ordering the Sankei branded. It has a removable greasable zerk. I went with a 555 idler arm, but most recommend the duralast so you can add the metal bushings and it's slightly thicker, but I hope that the brace alone will keep it stout enough w/o the bushings.
For weatherproofing your truck, tackle extending the breathers on diffs, and tranny, and transfer. Upgrading your weatherstripping makes a tremendous difference on cabin noise. Cruisercrap's QuiteCrap is the best soundproofing material for the $, but really not needed unless you want a super quiet cabin if you tackle the weatherstripping.
Also, definitely disassemble your manual hubs and replace the 2 gaskets and one seal (3 total) and consider waterproof grease instead of general purpose if you plan to be doing any water crossings. You won't want to disassemble them all the time -- the cone washers are a pain.
For safety, when you have the xtra cab panels off to do the xtra cab window weatherstripping and consider adding audio/air filtration foam over the openings in that wall while your there (a big source of cabin noise is the vents between the cab and bed which route through this wall space), it's a good time to tighten the tension on your seatbelts and wash your seatbelts too -- the sink works best for washing IMO. Like your mattress doubling in weight after 10 years, your seatbelt prob adds more weight than that with dirt, oil, and grease... And the spring just loosens up and needs retightened. This is one of those convenience/time saving/quality of life mods that I am still stoked I took the time to do b/c I'd be obsessing about it otherwise. I documented most of this over at YT I believe.
Think about recovery (and assuming no new expensive,fancy bumpers, etc) -- adding a 2nd pick and pull OEM tow hook w/ retainer clip to the drivers side is a great idea. You can attach D rings to them or pull from them alone if needed. If you don't have an a frame mounted trailer hitch, consider adding one just for the purposes of adding a receiver hitch D ring mount -- and when you don't need this for recovery, you can add a super bumper to protect your rig from folks rear-ending, and it makes a handy step up into the bed. http://www.4wheelparts.com/Winches-...ch-D-Ring-Mount.aspx?t_c=18&t_s=190&t_pt=8404
http://www.superbumper.com/
For power, you'll probably want to upgrade your alternator -- LC Engineering has some high output offerings, and upgrade your big 3 wiring and the power wire from battery to engine fuse box. All of this has been discussed by me on YT in the past week, just search my stats and then posts under the user profile. Quick link: http://www.yotatech.com/members/117506.html It also wouldn't hurt to give all your engine ground connections a good cleaning w/ fine sand paper or steel wool.
At a minimum a good cat back mandrel bent exhaust will give you much more power and better mpg. Replace your O2 exhaust sensor too -- again, Denso so use Denso aftermarket plug and play for 1/2 the cost of Dealer. New headers would probably add some beneficial power, but are pricey -- less so than for my V6, but still pricey.
With your tires being so large, you might want to consider regearing your diffs for greater low speed power. Your truck's gear ratios can be determined by following directions/decoding your VIN label here: http://www.brian894x4.com/Gearratiosanddiffs.html And this is a decent gearing calculator: http://www.grimmjeeper.com/gears.html I'm guessing that you have 4.10 gears on your truck, and you really probably need 4.88s w/ the 22re and 4.56s at a minimum. Full new drop in diffs for front and rear -- have to do both or you'll kill your transfer case -- will run you ~$1k. Gears themselves if you rebuild will be a couple hundred. Here's the calculations on your tire size change: http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/tirecalc.php?tires=225-75r15-265-75r16 Essentially, you increased your diameter by 3.5". Most folks recommend getting your tires and gearing in sync before spending $ on any other engine performance mods -- gearing will make the biggest difference in driveability.
And beyond your standard engine maintenance (definitely have your valves adjusted), double check and consider replacing any other soft (or used to be soft lines), especially your vacuum hoses... All that's 20+ years old and at end of life. Also, be sure to check your engine, transfer case, and tranny/clutch mounts. The last thing you want to do is have one of those fail in the middle of nowhere.
Lighting: I have the Hella Vision Plus H4 housings installed and they are great with the ******** Cepek wire stone guards installed. These are great and a must if you're not adding fog lights -- though I would recommend those too regardless. A spare H4 bulb or two is much more compact than a whole light housing, and you don't have remove your full front grill to replace the H4s... Auxillary rear reverse lights should also be considered as the factory ones are weak, but if you take your housing apart sand what is surely flaking/detiorated paint in housing and divider, use plastic adhesion promoter, then primer, and then a bright chrome metallic spray paint on your current housings, it makes a big difference in brighteness (changing out rear lenses helps a lot too).
For interior rear seating area, this bulb in bright white makes a world of difference in my 93 Xtra cab, I can actually see at night -- http://www.superbrightleds.com/moreinfo/festoon/de3175-led-bulb-4-smd-led-festoon/238/
I left my front map lights' bulbs as is b/c the leds are too bright IMO and you can rotate that led as needed -- just needed to pull the clips down slightly and adjust tension for the led to work -- it's a little too tall for factory bulb placement otherwise.
For security, an alarm, a club or better mechanical lock the autolock pro http://www.autobarn.net/autolockpro.html or both, hidden kill switch, cat guard of some sort, lug nut locks, and spare tire cable lock should all be considered (if you sell your factory cat, it should pay most of the way for a new magnaflow hi flow ceramic, or 1/2 of a new magnaflow hi flow metal cat -- Yota's cats are restrictive). There are also some security window tint films that are much more break resistant too that you'll want to consider. In the tropics, you'll be very happy/need to have tinted your windows anyways and the security film shouldn't be too much more expensive than stock on your side windows. Also, Toyota makes and sells tinted xtra cab window panes, but it'll probably be cheaper to add aftermarket tint film. Mine are the tinted ones so I haven't explored.
The only other items I can think of would be to consider adding an oil cooler and possibly adding a switched electric fan to the front of your condensor -- look on yotatech for mercedes omb617 swaps where they add dual e fans there -- to keep engine as cool as possible in traffic or while crawling if you start to overheat. It's a nice backup. And if planning to do rivercrossing you'll want to put a clutch in your factory fan -- the E fans don't cool nearly as efficiently, but I suppose you can add two or three efans in place of factory belt driven.
Hopefully you found some of this of use. Yotatech rocks, and so does overland. Just in different ways. Bon voyage.
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).... Oh and Fridges rule!!!
