Little Bit of Everything 3rd Gen 4runner - MojaveMadMan Edition

[MojaveMadMan]

First of all thanks for checkin out my build. I have been a lurker on here for a while, finally time to share. As is customary I will give a little background about myself, plans for the build, and then you know what follows. I also have a build thread on Toyota-4runner.org, but that site is geared more towards 4runner tech and not expo type stuff, so I thought I would share here too.

I have been in a Toyota since I was 16. Long story short I have had six Toyota trucks or SUV's over the last 15 years. Drove a 95 civic around for the last 2 years (80 mile a day commute), and now we are here!!! I got me a 97 4runner, 4wd limited!!! I am very excited about this one. I was looking at LC's, Tundras and 4runner's, and decided this will meet my needs the best. I wanted something I wouldn't feel bad about building and using, and it needed to fit my growing family in it. Besides my wife we have a 2 year old boy who is crazy and loves the outdoors already so I knew this was the right fit of comfort and performance at a very nice price!!!

I am in the US Air Force, been in for 7 years now. Before that I was a welder and fabricator, working 10 years professionally in San Diego building high performance/luxury sand cars and off road race cars all the way from class 5 VW's to Class 1 unlimited cars, Trophy Trucks, and short course trucks. I have worked for some big and small shops, and my favorite build was definitely this sand car below. Not only was the thing a beast, but the owner is a top notch guy, drove the piss out of it and never hesitated to let us take it for a hot lap around the desert! Sand Rail canal jump - YouTube

Ok so onto the build. I am building my 4runner to be what I would consider being a jack of all trades, but an expo focus in the end. It isn't a rock lobster, but I want it to be able to handle the rocks. It isn't a pre-runner, but I want it to be able to handle some speed. It isn't an expo rig, but I want to be able to go the distance. It isn't a dooms day machine, but I want to be able to mow down some zombies (haha). I want this thing to have a bit of everything. Ultimately I want this thing to be suited for long multi day camping trips that encompass everything from fire roads, to some rock sections. I want it to be able to do a good job handling moderate terrain of all kinds, but not a pro at anything if that makes sense. Coming from the baja racing back ground I like to drive fast when I can, but I don't expect to hit the whoop sections at 80 mph in this thing. I also want to consider this a good get out of dodge vehicle, able to handle multiple scenarios if needed. Yes I do believe in being prepared, not like the guys on TV though, haha. But most important, is safety. I want to have my wife and son in this rig alongside with me and not have to worry about their safety when in this thing.

So here is what I got
-1997 Toyota 4runner
-Limited Edition with Tan Interior
-4wd, Auto w/ factory E-Locker
-150K on the clock when I picked it up

So here is the obligatory stock picture:


And the current picture.


Here are the current and future build specs:

Maintenance:
- Knock Sensors – Autozone
- Knock Sensor Harness – Toyota
- Bottom intake Gaskets – Toyota
- Rear Brake Shoes – NAPA
- Rear Break Drum Turning – NAPA
- Rear Inner Axle Seals – NAPA
- Rear Outer Axle Seals – NAPA
- Rear Wheel Bearings – NAPA
- Rear Wheel Bearing Pressing – NAPA
- PCV Valve – Toyota
- Fuel Filter – Toyota
- L/R Lower Ball Joints – Toyota
- Plugs and wires – Amazon
- Transfer case fluid replaced – Mobile One
- Diff Fluid Replaced Front and Rear – Lucas


Engine:
- Stock
- Might add a super charger, this will be one of the last mods

Transmission/Transfer Case:
- Stock Transmission
- Want to upgraded the valve body if I do a super charger
- B&M Transmission Cooler 70268 – Amazon
- Mobil One 75W-90 Gear Oil Swap in Transfer Case – Amazon

Front and Rear Differentials:
- Lucas 85W-140 Gear Oil Front and Rear – NAPA
- Stock Front Diff
- Want to add an ARB Air Locker
- Stock Rear Diff
- Will be doing the Blue Wire Mod any day now
- Diff Breather Extension Mod – Various
- Will re-gear to match new tire size

Front Suspension:
- Stock
- Want Sonoran Steel 1.2 Kit
- Tundra 13WL brake upgrade - Toyota and NAPA parts

Rear Suspension:
- Stock
- Want Sonoran Steel 1.2 Kit
- Want custom made upper and lower links with hiems and OEM bushings
- Want custom track bar with heims on both sides, and custom mounts on the frame

Interior
- Scan Gauge II – Amazon
- 99+ Radio Bezel – Nissanh @T4R
- Want 99+ Center Console
- Want to make my own seat covers
- Want Weather Tech Floor Liners

Electrical:
- Big 3 Mod – Various
- Custom 3D Printed Switch Panel (file from Bandit Runner @T4R, not installed)
- Want Blue See Fuse Block for accessory wiring
- Want Die Hard deep cell battery
- Cadillac Alternator Upgrade - NAPA


Tires and Wheels:
- 285/75R16 Goodyear Duratracs - Discount Tire
- SRS F5 Matte Bronze Wheels - 16" x 8" w/ 3.5" back spacing

Recovery/Armor:
- No recovery gear yet, but I am collecting gear and putting together a plan
- Custom front plate/tube hybrid bumper (this is the build thread)
- Currently building rock sliders. I had some parts plasma cut, I just need to get the tubing and build these things already.

Storage:
- None yet, but I have plans for a low profile drawer system

 

[MojaveMadMan]

So here is the start of the build! This was in Valencia, CA. I was stationed in CA before NM. I picked this thing up in the ghetto down in Los Angeles for $4000. It had a CEL, and the guy had mentioned he had some charging problems he fixed with a new battery and alternator, and he had recently done some alignment work and put new struts on (Monroe…). So I picked it up and first thing on the agenda was the CEL. In CA you cannot title a vehicle until you smog it, and of course you can’t pass smog with a CEL.
So I got the code read and it was a knock sensor. I did some digging on here and found out most of the time it is the wiring harness, not the sensor itself. So I went to Toyota, got a new harness for $40 I think, along with new L/R intake manifold gaskets, $50 each, a PCV valve while I was at it, an air filter, and coolant. Here are some pictures of the FIRST tear down.





Old harness, it was definitely crusty!



And the new one.



While I was in there I also checked the timing belt to see if it had been replaced. It looked like it had, because it was not a factory Toyota belt anymore. So it was good to know that was done. I checked the condition of the belt and timing and everything was right on. Getting that wire in there is a pain in the butt. You have to remove the timing belt in order to remove one of the guide pulleys in order to route the wire… But hey, I got it done, curb side no less.

So I got it all back together and all was well. For about 10 miles… then the CEL came back on, for you guessed it, the knock sensor. A lot of people were saying that 9 out of 10 times it’s the wire, and mine was bad, but it wasn’t the whole problem. The real bummer is I even tested the sensor per FSM guidance, and it bench tested good. So I did a little more digging, found out that Autozone sells real factory replacements (same manufacturer), so I got a new knock sensor for I believe $80, tore it back down (accept the timing belt this time thank god), and put in the new sensor. This thankfully fixed the CEL, I got it smoged and titled and all was good!

After that I drove it around very little. I was driving 160 miles a day for work in my beater civic (we moved in with some family a few months before our move to NM), and we were getting ready for our move. Then the day finally came. Here is a fun picture of the 4runner all loaded up and ready for the move!!!



Also snapped this picture at some point in CA, I thought it was cool…

 

[MojaveMadMan]

So the next thing was the drive from CA to NM. All went well with zero issues. Started daily driving this pig and it was doing good. I was eager to get moving on this thing, I had it for about 5 months at this point and hadn’t been able to do much to it. I spent a lot of time trying to decide how I wanted to approach the build on this thing. Do I buy some of the fun stuff and fix problems as they come, or put in some ground work so I can have less drama down the line. I decided after much internal debate that I need to get this thing leveled out, so maintenance first. Doesn’t make for an exciting build thread at first, but I want this thing to be super reliable.

First thing was the plugs and wires. No pics, but it’s not like you need any, knocked those out in 20 min. I had already done an oil change in CA with Mobile 1 synthetic so I felt good about some of the basic maintenance stuff it this point. Next on the list was to address some of the issues. The driver side axle seal was leaking, I don’t have a picture, but the back side of the brakes was covered in oil and it looked like it had been that way a while, a lot of old dirt and gunk. So I knew it was time for at least inner seals. Thanks toBigFishAllDay @T4R for the great write up, I was able to pull everything apart very easy and check it all out. Once I got it apart I noticed the wheel bearings were border line so I decided to go ahead and do those as well. It was all straight forward, and BFAD’s write up was super detailed, nothing more to note other than a tire iron for changing dirt bike tires works well for popping out inner seals as well!
A few shots:





Went ahead and did the brakes while I was at it. Also shot the brake drums with some semi-gloss black. Perfect color, it looks like new stock, but not over done (I don’t like flashy brakes).




I chose to use Lucas 85W-140 standard gear oil. I did a lot of reading on this subject, comparing standard gear oil vs. synthetic. It really seems like you can go either way, I ended up choosing the conventional oil because it is what one of the bigger companies uses in all their diff’s and I figure they know better than I do. Plus I wanted to go standard and a little heavy because I don’t want more leaky oil seals. The thinner synthetic seems to sneak out a lot easier and I wanted a nice tight seal.

 

[MojaveMadMan]

Next on the list was the Big 3 wire mod, also done using BFAD’s write up. I noticed that there was some corrosion on some of the main wires and I decided that I should go ahead and do the Big 3 now so that I can avoid some future problems, and so I would be prepared for future mods. Again I didn’t take many pictures because BFAD has a great write up. Here are a few finished shots.







I also put my Scan Gauge II on before I did the Big 3. I don’t have a before shot, it was pulling about 13.5 volts at idle. Now with the addition of the Big 3 it sits at 14.3 volts at idle.

 

[MojaveMadMan]

At this point I had stacked up quite a few items that needed to get installed. Here is the list of what I had collected.

- Front Diff Fluid Change – Lucas 85W-140
- Transfer Case Fluid Change – Mobile One 75W-90 full synthetic
- B&M Transmission Cooler - Removing the stock cooler for now (until I get a new radiator)
- L/R Lower Ball Joints – Toyota Parts Barn
- Rear Diff Breather Extension – Going to run into the fuel door
- Blue Wire Mod – This will happen one day soon, it’s simple and I just haven’t got to it yet

Also I did a couple small things, new fuel filter from Toyota. I also removed the running boards, which is always a fun transformation to see.



Here are my parts that are patiently waiting for use…





I also drew up some slider plate pieces to have plasma cut.

 

[MojaveMadMan]

So after waiting to find some time (wife and kid sure do keep you busy), I was able to start with the new LBJ's. Had a pair sitting on the bench so it was time to put them on! Nothing spectacular here, it is all very straight forward work. Got everything together, and put high strength lock tight on the four spindle bolts. Picture for fun, it's a crappy one, sorry...



Next was the diff breather mod. Again this one was very straight forward. Ran the line up into the gas cap area and zip tied it to the hose. No pictures of this one as there are plenty out there.
Last was a bigger project for me, as I am not a wiring guy. I did the 99+ radio bezel conversion. I know for many this is just a "for looks mod" which it is, but it also serves another purpose for me. I have a 3D printed switch housing (designed by Bandit Runner @T4R) that I am installing. It is designed for the 99+ bezel, so I needed to make the conversion to run this custom housing.

I used this guide below to do all the wiring conversions. Great guide and allowed a wiring dunce like me to get through the job. I wired up the ETC button, window switch, and hazard lights. I did not do the rear defrost, but I do plan on it. He hadn't figured it out in his guide, and I didn't have time to experiment with it yet. I also didn't wire in the two new accessory plugs that the 99+ bezel holds. I will wire these in when I run the wiring for all my switches. I want them ran independently to a fuse block and connected to the battery so I can run all three plugs at once without popping a fuse (as some have issues with when splicing into the single stock outlet. All in all it wasn't too bad of a mod, and I am happy so far. Just need to finish the mentioned things above and it will be perfect. Here are a couple pictures. One of the re-pinning, and one of my solder/heat shrink job. I was proud of myself since this is something I don't normally mess with.

Write-up by alexb @ T4R: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/114346-how-99-center-dash-conversion-wiring.html



Here are the wires before I wrapped them all up with electrical tape.



Finished product for now.

 

[MojaveMadMan]

Small fun news, got my plasma cutting today. Ready to build me some sliders in the near future. Here are the brackets I had made!

 

[MojaveMadMan]

One of every ones favorite updates, new tires! Got some 285/75R16's from Discount Tire. Original price was $220 a tire but I got them to price match 4Wheelparts.com at $190 a tire. Couldn't beat that! Went for Falkens, ended up with Goodyears for only $60 more bucks.

Here they are, no lift on factory wheels.



As you can guess, at stock height there are some rubbing issues. It rolls down the road straight with no issues, but as soon as you turn in or out of an inclined driveway like I have, you get some sweet rubbing. I don't plan on lifting this thing more than 1" when I get my suspension re-worked, so I needed to do some cutting. Plus, I want this thing to clear at full bump with no rubbing so trimming is a must either way. So out came the knife, the angle grinder and the welder.

Took the shocks off and stuffed the tire, a lot of contact once you start to turn the wheel left or right.



First thing was to trim away some of the plastic on the inner fender and limited flares. That was all I needed in the front, I have about 1/2" clearance up there now.







The rear side of the fender well was a different story. I cut and tried, about 3 times until I got it where I wanted. It is still very close, but only at full bump and full turn does it get close. As soon as it straightens out just a little bit, I get good spacing. This took a lot of slow and careful cutting. There are a lot of wires in this area so I had to really plan each cut. Once I got all the metal and plastic cut out though, it was a great fit, and here are a few shots!





All finished up. I used some 1/8" plate I had in my garage. Some 16 gauge would have been great, but there is nothing wrong with a little extra meat. Slow welding, the body is very thin, and the coatings they use like to catch on fire very easily... scary stuff when your car is on fire a little bit, haha. It was all under control!



Here is a shot of some of the stuff I cut away. A lot of the metal was in small sections at a time, so that's not pictured.



Also not pictured is the alternator upgrade I did. Gotta love the Scan Gauge!!! I was able to see that the cheap Autozone alternator the PO put in was starting to go bad. I had just done the Big 3 a few weeks ago and was getting strong voltage. Then about 3 weeks later, after about every other start, my voltage would drop to around 11 or so. I drove it like that for about a week then decided to just go ahead and get a new one and not mess around. Because I plan on running a lot of electrical extras on this thing, I only wanted to do this once. So I looked and found some good write-ups on the Cadillac alternator upgrade and went for it. I got a new (not remand) alternator from Napa, got the wiring harness adapter, and in it went. Fairly straight forward. Was able to bolt it right in and use the same belt. Cut a spacer from some extra tubing I had laying around and even painted the spacer black for good measure. I will add a picture later, but it's nothing exciting, haha.

 

[MojaveMadMan]

After all of that I drove it around for about a month, then decided I didn’t want to pay attention while driving and got in a very minor collision with a van. My front bumper which was already a little tweaked got pushed in a little on the driver’s side, but that was about it. Nothing like a good excuse to rip it off and start building a new bumper! I have always wanted to do a hybrid of sort’s front bumper that is a combo of a plate rock bumper and a tube pre-runner bumper. So this is what I came up with, a little of both worlds. My bumper build thread is here, I am just going to post some “highlight” photos so you can get the idea. Ultimately I wanted something that was still rather light weight, but also offered protection. These things are already a little slow, and I didn’t want to burdon this thing with a huge heavy bumper. So I went with an 1/8” plate bumper design that may tweak or bend in the case of a big collision, but ultimately will protect my 4runner on the trail from the medium size stuff and will always keep the vital parts protected.

This bumper is still not complete, it has some remaining parts like a skid plate and a belly pan I want to incorporate. I just haven’t found the time to finish it yet, I will soon! Also noted, I painted my wheels to match the trim and bumper. Honestly not a huge fan of the color, but at this point everything matches which is better than it was. My wheels were all faded and the clear coat was peeling. At least it’s all the same color now…

Enjoy the pictures:

 

[java]

Bumper looks great!

 

[MojaveMadMan]

Bumper looks great!

Thanks!

 

[AxleIke]

Build looks great!

Can you post up details of the switch you had printed? I am very interested in that. I have a 99 MT truck and have an extra spot that I'd love to get a switch for (where you have the ECT switch). If he's got a way to print out switches, I'd gladly pay for that.

Cheers!

 

[MojaveMadMan]

Build looks great!

Can you post up details of the switch you had printed? I am very interested in that. I have a 99 MT truck and have an extra spot that I'd love to get a switch for (where you have the ECT switch). If he's got a way to print out switches, I'd gladly pay for that.

Cheers!

Thank you for the compliments. I think there is a little confusion, it's not a switch, but a place to put switches. Pic below. Thanks again for reading and the good words!

 

[AxleIke]

Oh!

Wow, yeah, totally different than what I thought. Dang. Well, again, great build!

 

[MojaveMadMan]

Finally got this thing out in the dirt! It's been a little difficult finding people to go with in a new place, but I finally got it figured out. Had a fun little run outside of ABQ. I am very impressed with this rig. There was only one obsticle I couldn't climb and I am sure it was drivers error as I am not a rock guy. Everything else I climbed right up with zero issues. My rear tires are rubbing the limited mud flaps pritty good, and I had a couple small rubs in the front I need to track down so I can get them taken care of. Again, very happy with the 4runner. I was happy I went with one and this just re-affirmed it for me.

Few quick cheesy pics I snapped with my phone.