Brian894x4
Explorer
Very nice. Very impressive. Looks Awesome! But a couple things I'm confused on....
...Why would a mine vehicle absolutely have to have a solid front axle? Seems like the factory IFS would have worked just fine for that particular duty. Except that under extreme load and conditions, the solid axle is nice, because you can use beefier components, especially when it comes to the steering.
...and what did they do to address (I believe) the relatively weaker rear frame? My understanding is that these North American Tacos were never designed to carry 1+ ton loads like the overseas counterparts. Yet, mine rigs, usually carry much more than ever overseas Tacos. I've read that the custom rear tray/beds that some use are over 1000lbs empty. There are stories of the new Tundra frame, which is the same design, collasping under load.
But I definately applaud the effort. I'd love to hear more details on the build. I mean the amount of work to fit that engine to the transmission, do an SAS on one of these, etc, is just mind boggling. And they appear to have done a very good job.
However, perhaps the answer to the demise of the ability to import a 70 is to import a real Hilux, which I believe are made with airbags for at least some markets. You'd still have IFS, but at least you'd also have a real 1 ton frame and diesel engine.
...Why would a mine vehicle absolutely have to have a solid front axle? Seems like the factory IFS would have worked just fine for that particular duty. Except that under extreme load and conditions, the solid axle is nice, because you can use beefier components, especially when it comes to the steering.
...and what did they do to address (I believe) the relatively weaker rear frame? My understanding is that these North American Tacos were never designed to carry 1+ ton loads like the overseas counterparts. Yet, mine rigs, usually carry much more than ever overseas Tacos. I've read that the custom rear tray/beds that some use are over 1000lbs empty. There are stories of the new Tundra frame, which is the same design, collasping under load.
But I definately applaud the effort. I'd love to hear more details on the build. I mean the amount of work to fit that engine to the transmission, do an SAS on one of these, etc, is just mind boggling. And they appear to have done a very good job.
However, perhaps the answer to the demise of the ability to import a 70 is to import a real Hilux, which I believe are made with airbags for at least some markets. You'd still have IFS, but at least you'd also have a real 1 ton frame and diesel engine.
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