CYi5's '99 4Runner Buildup
- Thread starter CYi5
- Start date
CYi5
Explorer
I'm surprised (and thankful) we finished the trip without even noticing such and important item failed!
red87
Adventurer
Haha, for sure
NCtrail4R
Adventurer
Great photos of Death Valley - really interesting terrain and unlike anything we have in the southeast! Good stuff.
Saw that you had Maxxis Bighorns on your pickup and are now running the Hankook MTs. Can you give a comparison between the two? Looking at both tires and would love to hear since you've had experience with both. Any trouble in the wet/snow/ice with the Hankooks not having sipes?
Saw that you had Maxxis Bighorns on your pickup and are now running the Hankook MTs. Can you give a comparison between the two? Looking at both tires and would love to hear since you've had experience with both. Any trouble in the wet/snow/ice with the Hankooks not having sipes?
mosupernak
Adventurer
I noticed that you have the same roof rack that I just got from Rage, this thing is SUPER loud vibrating at any speed over 40mph. It's going to brake something if I don't take it off. Did you have the same problem?
CYi5
Explorer
I'm not sure, i've never run it by itself. It's always been tucked nicely behind the yakima wind fairing when I used it so I never even noticed it was up there.
I wouldn't be surprised by what you're describing though, they aren't the strongest crossbars, lol.
CYi5
Explorer
Sorry about the late reply. I never took the bighorns in the snow, but did manage to get the Hankooks out the other weekend. On powder snow they did fine, but they couldn't handle the hard packed stuff. There was one particularly slippery hill that they couldn't make it up without airing down (this is following one truck with BFG AT's, and the other with stock BFG rugged trails.) Once I aired down they slowly but surely got to the top.
I put chains on shortly thereafter as the struggling began to take much of the fun out of the run.
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mosupernak
Adventurer
That's exactly what I thought. Just shelled out the $275 earlier this week for the Yakima gear. At least I can mount my Hellas up there too.
NCtrail4R
Adventurer
For overall performance combo of road, highway, noise and offroad ability - are you happier with the Bighorns or with the Hankook MTs?
I'm looking for an mild MT/aggressive AT that will still handle well onroad since I also use my truck for some work travel. Leaning towards the Bighorns in 255/85, but just not sure about the noise, ride and handling at highway speeds. There are more options in 285s like the Hankooks, Duratracs, etc, but like the 255/85 concept.
Which of the tires is quieter at highway speeds. Not really concerned about low speed noise around town.
Thanks!
I'm looking for an mild MT/aggressive AT that will still handle well onroad since I also use my truck for some work travel. Leaning towards the Bighorns in 255/85, but just not sure about the noise, ride and handling at highway speeds. There are more options in 285s like the Hankooks, Duratracs, etc, but like the 255/85 concept.
Which of the tires is quieter at highway speeds. Not really concerned about low speed noise around town.
Thanks!
AlexJet
Explorer
Not trying to hi-jack the thread, but just a few notes a side.
I'm not sure if you can accept different size then 285/85, but from my experience, ProComp Xtreme MT, Toyo Open Country MT and Mickey Thomson MTZ are very quiet and handle great for MT style tires, they also have good stability performance and can be recommended for Daily Driving.
I'm not sure if you can accept different size then 285/85, but from my experience, ProComp Xtreme MT, Toyo Open Country MT and Mickey Thomson MTZ are very quiet and handle great for MT style tires, they also have good stability performance and can be recommended for Daily Driving.
CYi5
Explorer
It's been a long time since i've run the 255/85 bighorns (got them when they just came out $524!). I can't make a truthful comparison because of that, I just know both hum pretty well at highway speeds. If I were to choose between the two today, I think I liked the big horns better.
CYi5
Explorer
Winch
Long time no post! Rent has been taking a hit out of my play money as of late, but i've finally gotten around to a project that's been on my list for years. Winch on!
It all starts with the preparation for the ARB. I was always under the impression the endcap mod was somewhat unnecessary and simply a precaution. The 4Runner has longer frame rails than 01-04 tacomas and therefore uses a vertical bolt through the frame supplied by ARB. There is no nut on the end of the 4Runner frame. I figure if I'm going to add a winch, better do it right and go through the necessary precautions. This entails cutting off the thin plate at the end of the frame and welding on a thicker piece of steel with a corresponding nut on the backside.
When previously pulling on the upper hoops there was a fair amount of wiggle from the bumper. I just assumed this was normal and due to the large wing brackets supplied with the bumper. Turns out the vertical hole in the frame is actually larger than the bolt...meaning most of that wiggle was due to only being secured by the tow point bolts. Several small stress fractures developed at corner points in the brackets. Not a huge deal, I rewelded them up. After the endcap mod the difference is TREMENDOUS! The thing is rock solid, all 4Runner ARB users should do this ASAP.
As far as winch selection, I went back and forth between the Warn M8000, VR8000, and the Summit 9000 (Tmax EW-9000). Most of the debate revolved around place of origin, but for the amount of use it will be receiving and value I'm looking for the Summit won out. The quality seems fine from initial impressions, we'll see with more use if my instincts were correct.
Weight was a concern for me as well, I already smash into enough deep whoops as it is. A few more odd jobs permitted the purchase of synthetic rope before the winch install. I ended up going with 75' of Dominion Offroad's 3/8" synthetic line paired with a safety thimble. 50' of synthetic extension will be purchased from them at a later date. A sweet little safety thimble isolator was also added from Viking Offroad.
The install was fairly straightforward, only needing to run to the hardware store once to get longer bolts for the lower winch mount/roller fairlead mount.
All finished up:
Final weights:
ARB Tacoma bullbar + Hella 4000s: 98 lbs
Summit 9000 Winch w/Steel: 63 lbs
Summit 9000 Winch w/Rope: 49 lbs
Dominion Offroad 75' 3/8" Rope + Saftey thimble: 4.4 lbs
94' 21/64" Steel Cable: 18.4 lbs
Steel Roller Fairlead: 10 lbs
The license plate bracket is the only thing left on the list. The bracket supplied by ARB for the Tacoma bumper doesn't fit US plates (CA at least...), so I will weld some extensions on to the upper mount.
Looking forward to giving her a whirl on the trail!
Long time no post! Rent has been taking a hit out of my play money as of late, but i've finally gotten around to a project that's been on my list for years. Winch on!
It all starts with the preparation for the ARB. I was always under the impression the endcap mod was somewhat unnecessary and simply a precaution. The 4Runner has longer frame rails than 01-04 tacomas and therefore uses a vertical bolt through the frame supplied by ARB. There is no nut on the end of the 4Runner frame. I figure if I'm going to add a winch, better do it right and go through the necessary precautions. This entails cutting off the thin plate at the end of the frame and welding on a thicker piece of steel with a corresponding nut on the backside.
When previously pulling on the upper hoops there was a fair amount of wiggle from the bumper. I just assumed this was normal and due to the large wing brackets supplied with the bumper. Turns out the vertical hole in the frame is actually larger than the bolt...meaning most of that wiggle was due to only being secured by the tow point bolts. Several small stress fractures developed at corner points in the brackets. Not a huge deal, I rewelded them up. After the endcap mod the difference is TREMENDOUS! The thing is rock solid, all 4Runner ARB users should do this ASAP.
As far as winch selection, I went back and forth between the Warn M8000, VR8000, and the Summit 9000 (Tmax EW-9000). Most of the debate revolved around place of origin, but for the amount of use it will be receiving and value I'm looking for the Summit won out. The quality seems fine from initial impressions, we'll see with more use if my instincts were correct.
Weight was a concern for me as well, I already smash into enough deep whoops as it is. A few more odd jobs permitted the purchase of synthetic rope before the winch install. I ended up going with 75' of Dominion Offroad's 3/8" synthetic line paired with a safety thimble. 50' of synthetic extension will be purchased from them at a later date. A sweet little safety thimble isolator was also added from Viking Offroad.
The install was fairly straightforward, only needing to run to the hardware store once to get longer bolts for the lower winch mount/roller fairlead mount.
All finished up:
Final weights:
ARB Tacoma bullbar + Hella 4000s: 98 lbs
Summit 9000 Winch w/Steel: 63 lbs
Summit 9000 Winch w/Rope: 49 lbs
Dominion Offroad 75' 3/8" Rope + Saftey thimble: 4.4 lbs
94' 21/64" Steel Cable: 18.4 lbs
Steel Roller Fairlead: 10 lbs
The license plate bracket is the only thing left on the list. The bracket supplied by ARB for the Tacoma bumper doesn't fit US plates (CA at least...), so I will weld some extensions on to the upper mount.
Looking forward to giving her a whirl on the trail!
CYi5
Explorer
My factory tailpipe was cut after the axle due to rear bumper installation issues which eliminated the rear support mount. As a result, the tailpipe eventually separated from the muffler at the back 
. I thought I was going to be forced to switch to a louder muffler, but came across some factory tacoma piping at a buddy's house. Factory turn down . No noticeable noise change, some excess fumes do enter through the cracked rear window upon startup.
. I thought I was going to be forced to switch to a louder muffler, but came across some factory tacoma piping at a buddy's house. Factory turn down . No noticeable noise change, some excess fumes do enter through the cracked rear window upon startup.
