Go4Lo
Explorer
We are the proud owners of a well loved 2004 Double Cab SR5 4wd that will slowly be transformed into our next overland adventure rig. Some of you may follow us on Instagram but for those that don't our previous truck was a 2016 Inferno Orange (hence the name 
) set up for overland travel. After 9 months of ownership and 16K on it we decided for a number of reasons to sell the truck and move back into a 1st Gen Tundra double cab. Most said we were crazy to ditch the new taco for an "old" truck with 220K miles, basic creature comforts and a standard 4wd system...no CRAWL control here. However, as good as the Tacoma was the thought of ditching a car payment, having more horsepower, more cabin room for future family growth and a new project won out. Don't get me wrong I have nothing negative to say about the 3rd Gen Tacoma, it was fantastic and I'm thankful for the time and adventures we got to experience with it.
Fast foward a few weeks and we were swapping the keys to the Tacoma over for a check from the new owner who took her from NC back home to FL. Now that the Tacoma is officially gone we have shifted our focus to prepping the Tundra.
Day one :sombrero:
Snapped a few pics to show the size comparison between a 3rd Gen Tacoma and the 1st Gen Tundra DC. Crazy how "big" the Tacoma's are now.
First order of business was to remove the chrome step bars, plastic bed liner and make a backyard body shop repair to the front bumper. Eventual goal is to add plate style winch bumper but in the interim a few hours of sanding and several cans of Duplicolor perfect match Phantom Gray Pearl coat had her looking pretty darn spiffy :elkgrin:
On the Tacoma we had been running a bed rack set up with a large Tepui Gran Sabana RTT. The set up worked well on that truck but moving into a new build on a different platform has me itching to try a different set up. With the underlying theme of "keep it simple" on this truck the late night Craigslist searches began for a used camper shell. The old adage of "3rd times the charm" certainly held true in my quest for the right shell. Without going into too much detail I'll simply say that I found out the hard way the last 6-8" of the rear bed on a 04-06 Double Cab Tundra is quite different than that of an Access Cab Tundra. A shell designed for an Access Cab truck will "work" but if you suffer from OCD like me the fitment at rear of the truck will drive you nuts. The Craigslist searches did pay off finally with the sourcing of a correct shell from another Double Cab truck that we picked up this past weekend for 1/4 of the cost of a new shell. The only negative is this shell is white and my truck is gray....no biggie as it goes well with my green tailgate. I hope to have both painted to match the rest of the truck in the coming weeks.
This is how she is sitting as of today with her fancy new shell and green tailgate just patiently waiting on the UPS man to deliver new suspension, tires, wheels and bunch of other goodies.
) set up for overland travel. After 9 months of ownership and 16K on it we decided for a number of reasons to sell the truck and move back into a 1st Gen Tundra double cab. Most said we were crazy to ditch the new taco for an "old" truck with 220K miles, basic creature comforts and a standard 4wd system...no CRAWL control here. However, as good as the Tacoma was the thought of ditching a car payment, having more horsepower, more cabin room for future family growth and a new project won out. Don't get me wrong I have nothing negative to say about the 3rd Gen Tacoma, it was fantastic and I'm thankful for the time and adventures we got to experience with it. Fast foward a few weeks and we were swapping the keys to the Tacoma over for a check from the new owner who took her from NC back home to FL. Now that the Tacoma is officially gone we have shifted our focus to prepping the Tundra.
Day one :sombrero:
Snapped a few pics to show the size comparison between a 3rd Gen Tacoma and the 1st Gen Tundra DC. Crazy how "big" the Tacoma's are now.
First order of business was to remove the chrome step bars, plastic bed liner and make a backyard body shop repair to the front bumper. Eventual goal is to add plate style winch bumper but in the interim a few hours of sanding and several cans of Duplicolor perfect match Phantom Gray Pearl coat had her looking pretty darn spiffy :elkgrin:
On the Tacoma we had been running a bed rack set up with a large Tepui Gran Sabana RTT. The set up worked well on that truck but moving into a new build on a different platform has me itching to try a different set up. With the underlying theme of "keep it simple" on this truck the late night Craigslist searches began for a used camper shell. The old adage of "3rd times the charm" certainly held true in my quest for the right shell. Without going into too much detail I'll simply say that I found out the hard way the last 6-8" of the rear bed on a 04-06 Double Cab Tundra is quite different than that of an Access Cab Tundra. A shell designed for an Access Cab truck will "work" but if you suffer from OCD like me the fitment at rear of the truck will drive you nuts. The Craigslist searches did pay off finally with the sourcing of a correct shell from another Double Cab truck that we picked up this past weekend for 1/4 of the cost of a new shell. The only negative is this shell is white and my truck is gray....no biggie as it goes well with my green tailgate
. I hope to have both painted to match the rest of the truck in the coming weeks. This is how she is sitting as of today with her fancy new shell and green tailgate just patiently waiting on the UPS man to deliver new suspension, tires, wheels and bunch of other goodies.
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