Equipt's Land Cruiser 100 Series

[Equipt]

Equipt's Toyota Land Cruiser 100 Series

Well, this is a long time coming. I am working on a few new things for the 100, and wanted to share them. I looked around and realized that I really hadn't put together a proper thread on the truck. Better late than never.

I won't bore everyone with the complete blow by blow up to now. A list of mods and a few photos along the way should suffice to get up to the current fun stuff. If you have any questions on the truck, or the mods that we have done to it, please feel free to ask. I am more than happy to fill in the blanks. That should be quicker than covering everything. Let's see how that goes.

The 100 came to us bone stock. A daily driver for my wife Heather. Even stock, it was getting used quite a bit.We started with a light lift, and some tires. A TJM bumper was added when the truck was hit there, damaging the rear bumper skin.



When we started Equipt, I needed a show truck. She said "I don't want to drive a tank. Let's get me a car". So we did, and in early '06 the tank building began.

Here are a few shots I took for a '08 4WDTO Mag article.




Yes, 100s can fly. Not my shot. Driving at the time. Thanks to whoever took this at the '08 Trophy.


Fast forward a few years and here is what it looks like now.


Mods to follow in next post.

Cheers,

 

[ChuckB]

Paul, I can't wait to see the rest of this thread. Very nice Hundy!!

 

[Equipt]

Here is a list of the truck modification details through last fall. Just a few things.

Suspension / Drivetrain
• 4.7L V8 EFI engine
• Rear and center differential locks
• 4.88 gears with ARB front air locker
• Front Runner auxiliary 45-gallon fuel tank, 72-gallon total capacity
• Old Man Emu 2.5-inch suspension lift with Old Man Emu Nitro shocks, longs on rear
• Old Man Emu 864 coil springs
• Old Man Emu heavy-duty front torsion bars
• Slee Off Road differential lowering kit
• BF Goodrich All Terrains, 295/75R16 on black powder coated factory rims

Electrical
• National Luna DIY dual battery system, w/ in cab remote controller
• Slee Off Road second battery tray with Diehard Platinum deep-cycle battery
• Dual Hella auxiliary fuse blocks, switched and unswitched
• Auxiliary Hella relay block

Interior
• All available factory options
• Remote start / alarm
• Alpine IVA-W200 6.5cm double-din LCD DVD/CD/Ipod/Nav/Sat receiver
• Cobra 75WXST Sound Tracker CB mounted in front center dash
• Icom HM-133 two-meter VHF radio with remote face, located in front center dash
• Ram Mount cockpit laptop mount, with Toshiba laptop and Bluetooth GPS receiver
• Magellan Crossover GPS for day to day and backup
• Spot Satellite location and emergency recovery system
• Custom, removable two-drawer, rear hatch storage system with fitment side panels
• Cobra 800W peak 120V power inverter
• Three auxiliary full-time 12V power outlets
• National Luna Weekender 50 Liter Split in Stainless Steel
• Platinum drop down fridge slide
• 10-pound Power Tank CO2 tank, with gauges and quick-release,
• Custom driver-side rear-door-entry dog platform, padded, of course.

Exterior
• ARB Sahara front bumper with IPF fog lights
• IPF 900S XD driving lights
• Warn M12000 winch with Viking Off Road Synthetic Line
• Custom 2 x 5 x 3/16-inch steel rock-sliders/steps
• TJM rear bumper with swing-out tire carrier
• Front Runner Wind Cheetah 2.2-meter roof rack
• Eezi-Awn Series 3 1600 roof/top tent, beige w/ beige fly
• Eezi-Awn Series 2000 2.5-meter awning
• Eezi-Awn 2.5-meter Rec Vee awning enclosure panels
• Shovel and axe
• ARB Safari Snorkel
• Warn rear receiver D-ring recovery shackle

I'll catch up in a little more detail what has gone on since last fall.

Cheers,

 

[Equipt]

I guess I should put this in here too. I have owned this chaser for a while now, and absolutely love it.



Trailer
• 2007 Adventure Trailers Chaser
• BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain 295/75R16s on Toyota UZJ100 factory alloys to match the Land Cruiser
• Full lid option
• Eezi-Awn Globe Trotter roof top tent, beige • Nose box
• Tailgate option
• 19-gallon water tank
• Two Adventure Trailers can holders with Scepter 20-liter red military fuel cans (MFCs)
• Electric brakes
• 12V electrical system, w/ (2) Lifeline Group 31 105 amp-hour AGM sealed battery
• National Luna Dual Battery Monitor, Flush Mount
• ARB 45-liter fridge/freezer with insulation cover
• Engel Transit Slide-Lok
• Two Adventure Trailers stainless steel stove shelves/cooking platform
• Lock & Roll hitch system
• Two-pound propane bottle on prototype mounting platform
• Burt – The Tiki Trailer God. "Keeps us righteous."

 

[Equipt]

Drawer Set

The drawer set that I used to have in my truck was one that I built out of the spare plywood in my garage and about $40 in carpet, handles and edging. It was a complete experiment. A temporary prototype for better designs to come. No drawer slides, no latches, etc. Just a couple boxes slid into a bigger box. Half a dozen years later is was still working fine.

Last fall I helped Ben Edmonson build a pretty nice set of drawers for his 40th Anniversary 80 Series. A double stack with a fridge box design. It turned out pretty darn good. You can see his build thread here.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...th-Anniv.-Locked-Mall-Rig-quot-What-next-quot

Well, within a month I had a pretty good case of drawer envy. It was time for a new set for myself. We were driving to Cabo, and a new set would be very handy.

So here is what I built for the 100. It is a side by side drawer set, made of 3/4" cabinet grade plywood, with Accuride 9301 drawer slides, and Southco drawer latches.



A custom fit trim set was built to level the plane across the back of the truck from side to side. The panels are tight enough to stay in place, friction fit. We store recovery gear driver side and fluids/air hose passenger. Heavy duty speaker carpet covers the entiree set, with matching paint on the interiors. The requisite bottle opener fitted as well.



On top of the drawer set is a fridge enclosure. It seems like overkill, until you are clearing your gear out from behind your fridge slide for the millionth time. This way the fridge slide area is always clear, and the ventilation for the fridge is secure. I put a Platinum drop down slide in the enclosure to extract and lower the fridge. Very handy if your wife is 5'4" tall. A marriage saver. We use a National Luna Weekender 50L Split Stainless Steel fridge. It has a 40L fridge and a 10L freezer. It is by far my favorite fridge in the National Luna line. Bomb proof.

 

[Equipt]

The fridge enclosure also provides some unique storage opportunities on the exterior. Three solid surfaces for mounting equipment, and a space between the driver side window and the enclosure is a good place items used all the time. I store 2 Front Runner Expander Chairs and a 20L Jerry Water Can with spout there. I notched the top left corner to clear the rear hatch as well.

 

[Equipt]

Driver Clam Shell

In the driver side rear door, we created storage clam shell / dog bed. Dezi, our black lab, is our company mascot and she travels with us where ever we go. She was going to Baja with us, so she needed a good spot to ride. The box is built with about 4-1/2" of storage in it, and topped with a custom made dog bed. The storage area is our marketing materials locker for Equipt. A 3-D cell Maglight and a Halon fire extinguisher are always close at hand. The clam shell is removable for the return of the second row seat when necessary.

 

[Equipt]

Passenger Clam Shell

The passenger side rear door opens to another clam shell enclosure. This one took a bit longer to put together. It is built a bit taller, at 12" inside. It encloses our on demand hot water shower system, air compressor, and electrical inverter. The water tank for the system dictated the height for the clam shell, and subsequently the rear drawer set.

The hot water system provides pressurized, temperature adjustable hot water for showers, and cooking. It draws from a 40L water tank also located in the clam shell. The tank is an early model Front Runner 40L Roof Rack tank. I connected it to a prefilter and then to a Sureflo Marine Grade Pressure Sensitive Water Pump. The pump draws the water through and into a 1.5 gallon electric water heater that can heat the water to 180 degrees. The hot water is then blended with cool water at a shower valve, and fed through a 12' line with a shower nozzle. We use a Eezi-Awn Series 2000 2.5 meter awning and Rec Vee panel set to create a very large shower room on the side of the truck. It works really well. Also on the front of the clam shell is a gravity flow water valve for tank water access without having to use the shower head.



Installed next to the shower system is an Estreme Outback ExtremeAire Magnum compressor. It is tied into a 80 amp breaker and can generate 150 psi continuous. The blue hose in the photo is a heat dissapation hose designed to remove the heat from the air coming through the line. With the clam shell lid open, it has enough space to operate correctly.



We also attached a 800 Watt Cobra power inverter to the face of the clam shell to address our charging needs. Both 120V and USB charging available. I had a larger inverter on my old drawer set, but I believe the 800W unit is plenty for the items we use it for. The power for the clam shell can be disconnected via a set of 200A Anderson style connectors in the passenger rear side storage. The clam shell is removable for replacement of the second row seats. The change out time is under a half hour.

 

[Equipt]

Netbook Mount

I have never been a fan of the small screens on the GPS units. I can't see a dang thing on there. I have chosen to use a Netbook instead with a blue tooth connect GPS unit on the windshield. I used to use a Ram Mount laptop mount in the passenger footwell. It worked well when we were using the larger laptop, but was tremendous overkill for a netbook. So we swapped it out for a Jeniko mount. Very solid unit, and completely adjustable. Very compact as well. And you can remove it from the mount if you need to.



You will notice in the dash panel right behind the netbook mount there are a couple 12V outlets installed. These are full time live outlets running from the auxiliary battery for the netbook and GPS units. They are OEM Toyota.

Cheers,

 

[RMP&O]

Your first picture is at a favorite spot of mine....

 

[Equipt]

ARB & Winch Switches

In the center dash by the transmission shifter I installed the switches for the ARB compressor for the front locker, and a really cool switch next to them. This is a Carling Switch that is a lockable momentary on/off/on. It is our remote winch control. We have a M12000 up front, and can now operate it from our dash. The red button on top is the lock for the switch, to keep us from accidentally operating the winch when we shouldn't be. The OEM cup is there as well.

 

[Equipt]

Your first picture is at a favorite spot of mine....

A favorite of mine as well.

Cheers,

 

[targa88]

Paul,
Great build.
Could you provide more details on the Platinum drop slide for the fridge?
Is it comparable to the Tembo Tusk?

 

[cruiseroutfit]

One of my all-time favorite 100's, its been a blast to watch it come together over the years

 

[Equipt]

Platinum Drop Down Slide Review

Thanks for the kind words Kurt, and all the help on the truck. More help needed soon.

Colin, I'd be happy to tell you about the Platinum slide. I saw this slide in the Slee display down at the Overland Expo in 2010. I thought it was an amazing concept and a great solution for my vehicle. I purchased one from Christo and installed it in my truck on my old drawer set. I really liked how simple the use of the slide was. It did the job pretty darn well. The Platinum slide lowers the fridge about 12", and has a 3-4" clearance from mounting location to where it starts to drop. That is so you can recess the mounting a ways to clear rear hatches and such.

It was only within a couple months that I started to have issues. The slide started to rattle some at first. There are a series of rubber round pads in the interior of the fridge tray used for bumpers. All of these have finally fallen off. There are a couple red nylon glide pads mounted to the bottom of tray mechanism to assist the tray's return to stowed position. One of the two has come off.

I wheel the 100 pretty hard, in relative terms. Contents of the vehicle are known to adjust while in transit. There are series of 4 bearings mounted to the floor of the slide that support the tray while stowing. I have crushed all 4 of the bearings and lost 3 of the 8 clips that retain the bearings in their purchase.

All of these things are easy fixes. The next one wasn't. At one of the shows we attended last year while the tray was lowered, someone turned the main handle on the front of the tray from the drop/stow position of horizontal to the stowed position of vertical. The handle is keyed, and the back of the key mechanism is cast metal. I was returning the tray back up to a stowed position and did not notice the handle had been turned down. The motion of the tray getting back up and in the vehicle requires some inertia. The steel paddle that is secured to the back of the key and holds the tray closed hit the slide base and literally popped the back of the key off. Key/handle/tray locking mechanism completely disabled.

I contacted Slee to get a replacement part, and I was contacted by the owner of Platinum about my issue. I must credit them for the great service I received. He sent me a new key mechanism and a new set of bearings to go underneath the tray. Very stand up guy, and a good operation. We try to do this ourselves, so I know what he was going through. They really stepped up. While I was waiting for the replacement parts I found a way to keep the tray closed and secure. That was all fine.

The next issue that arose is the slides that are used to move the drawer in and out. At the back of pretty well any slide is a small plastic or rubber bumper that catches the incoming slide and helps dampen the movement of the slide when in motion. On this particular set of slides these bumpers are held in place on a tab stamped out of the slide material that is about a 1/4" wide. As I mentioned above, this truck does get used. A lot of vertical jarring on ascents and descents. Just the nature of wheeling. The bumpers were not designed for this abuse, and consequently have broken beyond repair, and the tab that holds them has gone from its original 90 degree position back to around 45 degrees many times. I have bent it back numerous times in an effort to keep it working. The end result of all this is that the slides have no dampening left in the stowed position and the tray hooked to the slide has an extra inch of travel. Every start and stop in the truck results in a thud back and forth.

In my opinion, the Platinum slide is a very nice piece of engineering. It works well. And the folks at Platinum are top notch. But there are some things that should be addressed if you plan to use this in extreme conditions. If your goal is pavement travel, the slide will never give you a problem. If your plans are a bit more extreme, I would either accept the probability of issues or consider something a bit more robust.

I am swapping this slide out for the Tembo Tusk LoadSpotter Drop Down Slide. In all honesty, I should have started there. I've known Jerry L'Ecuyer for little while now and have looked at his designs and construction very carefully. He has addressed every issue I've had with my slide in spades. Robust is an understatement. I am currently constructing a new fridge enclosure for the truck to hold his slide, so stay tuned and I will discuss the Tembo Tusk in more detail.



Cheers,