expedition style build up of my '90 Toyota pickup

[roamingaz]

I already have a build up thread going on another site but I think there are more folks in here that would like the kind of truck I am putting together.
I have had several different expedition build style vehicles in the past so when I decided I would take on a new project I already know what works and what not to waste money on.
I decided I wanted a truck this time around and found a 1 owner 1990 Toyota standard cab, the previous owner happens to own Toyota Specialist in Mesa, Az and he had a incredible stack of maintence receipts-all the way back to 1990!:Wow1: This truck has a rebuilt 22re with LC Engineering heads and complete exhaust, 4:88 gears with a ARB locker in the front. So with gears locker and a rebuilt engine I was sold.
I know the standard cab is small but I really couldn't find a affordable 4 door Tacomas so it will have to work. Also my "expeditons" are mostly trips around the state and weekend jaunts to the lake, I don't plan on useing this for rockcrawling and I generally travel alone so I don't need a really large truck.
OK on to the pics:smiley_drive:


Here is the truck when I first got it home.

First thing I did was removed all the parts I wouldn't be using and sold them on craiglist. I pulled the useless front bumper and cheesy push bar and replaced it with a warn bumper and a warn 8k lb. winch, I also put on a pair of Procomp HID 9" lights, and yes they are worth the money, very bright!

Next up was a camper shell, I found a nice utility shell on Craigslist for cheap, I will be adding a solar panel, fridge, and all kinds of stuff, I will post more on the camper as I work on it.

Today I installed a auxillary fuel tank, adds about 14 gallons of extra fuel.

The filler neck mounts in the inner fender well.

 

[motomech]

Well let me be the first to say WELCOME TO EXPO!

 

[CA-RJ]

Welcome to Expo. Can't wait to see what's going on next with your truck!

 

[canadianjk]

Looks like you are off to a good start, I have always had a thing for those trucks.

 

[greg mgm]

Nice truck!

Is the aux tank from Downey? How does it feed into the existing fuel lines?

Any pics of the fuel line routing would be much appreciated!

I'm considering an aux fuel tank for my 91 4Runner....(Not that it's legal in CA)

 

[Fulltimer]

I know where you can buy a Toyota pickup 4X4 that is running over 900HP! It has 2 transfer cases and the axles are out of an Army 2 1/2 ton truck.:smiley_drive:

Terry

 

[4Rescue]

WOW. What a great build and what a great starting point. Now you need some 33's to go with those gears, and I LOVE the aux tank.

Cheers

Dave

 

[WhereTheHellIsJames?]

Great looking truck- looking forward to reading more about it! Like others have asked, can you post some more info and pictures of that aux fuel tank?

 

[Skim]

Very interested to see whow you build up the camper shell

 

[TEJASYOTA]

WELCOME to ExPO!

Can't wait to see the camper finished.
Nice on the extra fuel tank.
I am sort of suprised you let the filler neck reside in the wheel well.
I would think the state inspectors may have an issue about it.

 

[roamingaz]

I finished up the aux. fuel tank today, my first impression with this tank is it is solid but I think a tranfer pump would make a a good product better, I think it is overpriced for the quality of work though, this tank cost me about $550 shipped. The filler neck actually fits very nice in the inner fender well and the fuel is gravity fed to the bottom of the stock tank, I will most likely wire in a transfer pump. This tank is the same as Downey sells but they referred me to the manufacture,Northwest Metal Products, when I called them the first question they asked is what state I lived in. These tanks are not legal in California it is even painted on the tank. I don't know if Arizona emission laws will give me any problem with it or not, I don't have to worry about emission testing for 2 years and it fails I will just remove it and reinstall afterwards.


Here are more pics of the tanks and install.


installed it sits up really high

Here is the stock tank fill plug, I cut a big hole in the bottom of the skid plate so if I have any repairs to do I will not have to drop the skid plate.

The tank bolts to the bed rails, there is just enough room to fit a bolt and flat wrench to bolt it all together.

The only issues I had with this install was the filler neck would not bolt to were the directions indicate, so I just used some flat stock and bolted it to where the mud flap bolts to.

The rear of the exhaust sits really close to the tank, I will take it off and have it rebent to clear the tank better.

I did some work on the camper, the side box looked pretty bad but a coat of paint and some carpet cleaned thngs up real nice.

I wanted all my electrical stuff in one area. I decided after several hours of changing my mind the back of the camper would be the best place for the entire electrical center. So far I have mounted 12 volt plugs, 1200 watt power inverter, and a waterproof box that will contain the solar controller, fridge thermometer and fuse block.

 

[corax]

I finished up the aux. fuel tank today, my first impression with this tank is it is solid but I think a tranfer pump would make a a good product better

Not trying to thread jack . . .

I got a NWMP aux tank for my 88 4runner a few months ago. I cleaned all the rust off and POR15'd the thing so its ready to go in except I'm not sure how I want to get the fuel into the main tank. It's supposed to be a gravity feed system with a hose running into a fitting where the main tank drain plug is on the bottom. Problem with this is I don't like the idea of having something hang even lower off the main tank, especially a brass fitting that could drain all my fuel if it gets hit hard enough.

So I thought putting a shut valve on it (elec or manual) and have the aux tank drain into the filler neck vent tube for the main tank, but the filler neck is too high and I don't want to put a hole in the side of the main tank because I'm afraid it'll leak.

My final option is an electric fuel pump, but fuel pumps can get damaged when they run dry from heat build up and I would have no way of knowing when to shut off the extra pump.

This is what I came up with. Though it may be a bit over engineered it should save the pump from running dry, and if the rest of the system wiring fails a jumper wire across the load side of the relay will still turn on the fuel pump

Red: fuel lines
Dk Blue: wiring
Parts: low pressure NOS fuel safety switch (adjustable 2-5psi), fuel pump, momentary & toggle switches, relay, slight fuel line restriction (small crimp in steel fuel line to main tank)

- the toggle switch turns on the system, but the relay won't turn on the fuel pump until there is ~3psi at the low pressure switch
- press the momentary switch to bypass the pressure switch and turn on the relay and fuel pump
- pressure builds behind the restriction and makes the pressure switch close, the momentary switch can be turned off now as the relay will stay on
- when the aux tank runs dry the pressure switch opens deactivating the relay and fuel pump

if I really want to get fancy, I was thinking I could run a wire from the + side of the fuel pump back up to the switch panel through an LED and on to ground as a fuel pump indicator light. I've seen the pressure switches on ebay for <$15, I think most people call them a Fuel Safety Switch (to turn off nitrous on a carb'd car if fuel pressure drops)

 

[roamingaz]

I like that idea, I might copy it. What kind of fuel pump would you use?

 

[corax]

I like that idea, I might copy it. What kind of fuel pump would you use?

I think I have a cheapie universal fuel pump lying around somewhere - if you look around you can probably find one for ~$30 and an ebay "fuel pressure switch" for ~$30 (just make sure the pump is matched to the fuel pressure switch, so it can close the circuit). You can also run a higher pressure (spec'd for EFI) fuel pump to transfer the gas quicker, just make sure it's designed for exterior mounting (most EFI pumps are submerged in the tank)

and the switch

My thought is to run the pressure line from the pump through a 90* fitting through one of the access covers on the top of the tank (on mine, probably the one for the fuel pump for easy access through the interior of the truck)

 

[02TahoeMD]

Nice build, I like the use of the utility cap. Will keep an eye on this one!