crawler#976
Expedition Leader
hmmmm,
That looks familiar!
That looks familiar!
Starting Over... Taco Style!
- Thread starter viatierra
- Start date
viatierra
Explorer
Tengo Taco!
The Tacoma Era has begun...
:jump:
This move has been in the planning stages for nearly 2 years. Although my hardcore trail days are over, this truck is not to be my daily transportation. It is to be purpose-built for exploiting the generous amount of time off I enjoy as a teacher and facilitating our various outdoor adventures. By the time Samantha is 10 years old, she will have experienced the remote corners of every National Park in the western U.S. (including Denali)… explored the most southern portions of Mexico. I seriously consider this goal to be like a second job!
Here's what we've got from the dealership: 2007 Tacoma, double cab, TRD offroad package with a 6 speed manual transmission. Pretty standard stuff, except for the stick. That transmission kept us waiting over 5 weeks.
Now for the good stuff. Four critical mods are being taken care of at the beginning:
1. Demello Stage 1 suspension. I knew that I needed some kind of upgraded suspension, but the options and price tags left me scratching my head. Scott and Chris have been impressed with the Old Man Emu package on the ARB Tacoma. However, when Crawler let me take his Tacoma with the Stage 1 kit for a spin; I knew I had to have it. A simple matter of lust.
2. Cooper Discoverer ST 255 85 R16 tires. People seem happy with this combo so far. The size and brand will be a new experience for me. Since tires are consumable, I can do something else next time if I don’t like how they perform for me. Besides, I gotta save a little cash SOMEWHERE!
3. Stubbs Welding SKO sliders. Managing a 130 inch wheelbase is going to be slightly intimidating. I don’t even want to think about the surface area of sheet metal on each rocker panel. I consider the sliders a simple insurance policy.
4. Maggiolina Extreme tent. The virtues of a roof top tent have been covered on this forum before. I’ve been doing the 3-season dome tent and sleeping bag routine for years. Camping as a single Dad is the biggest reason to move this direction. It is going to streamline the workload and increase the fun factor for Samantha & myself. I choose the Extreme for the incorporated rack on top of the tent. I’m turned on by the idea of putting bikes or whatever on top without eating into the utility of having a truck bed. Being able to deploy the tent without having to unload the gear on top sounds pretty sweet too. We’ll see if it actually works!
The first issue I need to sort out is the design and fabrication of a rack to mount the Extreme just above the roofline. It is going to be beyond my expertise and resources to pull that one off. Any suggestions???
I’m sure more mods will come down the road, but this should be plenty to get things started! I’ve got some summer plans, so I need to knock this initial list off pretty quickly. I have a nice little pile of goodies waiting. Never fear my little friends, you’re wait is over.
The Tacoma Era has begun...
:jump:
This move has been in the planning stages for nearly 2 years. Although my hardcore trail days are over, this truck is not to be my daily transportation. It is to be purpose-built for exploiting the generous amount of time off I enjoy as a teacher and facilitating our various outdoor adventures. By the time Samantha is 10 years old, she will have experienced the remote corners of every National Park in the western U.S. (including Denali)… explored the most southern portions of Mexico. I seriously consider this goal to be like a second job!
Here's what we've got from the dealership: 2007 Tacoma, double cab, TRD offroad package with a 6 speed manual transmission. Pretty standard stuff, except for the stick. That transmission kept us waiting over 5 weeks.
Now for the good stuff. Four critical mods are being taken care of at the beginning:
1. Demello Stage 1 suspension. I knew that I needed some kind of upgraded suspension, but the options and price tags left me scratching my head. Scott and Chris have been impressed with the Old Man Emu package on the ARB Tacoma. However, when Crawler let me take his Tacoma with the Stage 1 kit for a spin; I knew I had to have it. A simple matter of lust.
2. Cooper Discoverer ST 255 85 R16 tires. People seem happy with this combo so far. The size and brand will be a new experience for me. Since tires are consumable, I can do something else next time if I don’t like how they perform for me. Besides, I gotta save a little cash SOMEWHERE!
3. Stubbs Welding SKO sliders. Managing a 130 inch wheelbase is going to be slightly intimidating. I don’t even want to think about the surface area of sheet metal on each rocker panel. I consider the sliders a simple insurance policy.
4. Maggiolina Extreme tent. The virtues of a roof top tent have been covered on this forum before. I’ve been doing the 3-season dome tent and sleeping bag routine for years. Camping as a single Dad is the biggest reason to move this direction. It is going to streamline the workload and increase the fun factor for Samantha & myself. I choose the Extreme for the incorporated rack on top of the tent. I’m turned on by the idea of putting bikes or whatever on top without eating into the utility of having a truck bed. Being able to deploy the tent without having to unload the gear on top sounds pretty sweet too. We’ll see if it actually works!
The first issue I need to sort out is the design and fabrication of a rack to mount the Extreme just above the roofline. It is going to be beyond my expertise and resources to pull that one off. Any suggestions???
I’m sure more mods will come down the road, but this should be plenty to get things started! I’ve got some summer plans, so I need to knock this initial list off pretty quickly. I have a nice little pile of goodies waiting. Never fear my little friends, you’re wait is over.
Attachments
Last edited:
flyingwil
Supporting Sponsor - Sierra Expeditions
Greg-
Great looking truck... It was also great meeting you on Friday! :shakin:
For the tent rack design, I would suggest a mounting option that places the top of the tent at the the same height as the roofline for aerodynamics. My tent rack is slightly higher to allow the Engel and TwoZone with the Engel Slide to fit in the bed of the truck... I may be going back to the drawing board here with FlyingBaby on her way! Well a good suggestion is to got to tirerack.com and get a profile picture (similar to below), and draw out designs you like, then take them to a fabricator and get prices... the best price I found for mine was at Hunter Off-Road in Tempe.
You will probably be very pleased with the 255 Coopers... You'll have to keep us posted with your outcome and thoughts.
Great looking truck... It was also great meeting you on Friday! :shakin:
For the tent rack design, I would suggest a mounting option that places the top of the tent at the the same height as the roofline for aerodynamics. My tent rack is slightly higher to allow the Engel and TwoZone with the Engel Slide to fit in the bed of the truck... I may be going back to the drawing board here with FlyingBaby on her way! Well a good suggestion is to got to tirerack.com and get a profile picture (similar to below), and draw out designs you like, then take them to a fabricator and get prices... the best price I found for mine was at Hunter Off-Road in Tempe.
You will probably be very pleased with the 255 Coopers... You'll have to keep us posted with your outcome and thoughts.
viatierra
Explorer
Rack Design
Just returned from Table Mesa Road with the inaugural coat of dust. It's been a long time. :smiley_drive:
I went to tirerack.com and couldn't figure out where to get the pictures. The one Wil posted works great because the background is clear. I quickly threw this scale sketch together to see what it looks like. If the hoop design is level with the roof line, I can bolt on something like the Thule 50" load bars. That will provide the width Maggiolina requires and the 1" roof clearance Pasquale recommended.
Just returned from Table Mesa Road with the inaugural coat of dust. It's been a long time. :smiley_drive:
I went to tirerack.com and couldn't figure out where to get the pictures. The one Wil posted works great because the background is clear. I quickly threw this scale sketch together to see what it looks like. If the hoop design is level with the roof line, I can bolt on something like the Thule 50" load bars. That will provide the width Maggiolina requires and the 1" roof clearance Pasquale recommended.
Attachments
jeffryscott
2006 Rally Course Champion: Expedition Trophy
Excellent news. Let us know when you are ready to go and maybe Chloe and Samantha can hook up again. She had so much fun with Samantha and is itching to get out again - so am I. Of course, it would be fun to see you too.:wings:
Glad you are back in the saddle ...
Glad you are back in the saddle ...
flyingwil
Supporting Sponsor - Sierra Expeditions
RE: Rack Design
Is 1" going to be enough? I was going to build a over hang over the front of my cab, but got worried about the flex. I decided that if I do go over the roof to leave about 1.5" for flex since the Tacos don't exactly have the strongest frames.
This rack was designed to rest on the roof, and since it's a Mexico truck it's not a big deal for the owner.
Click to enlarge
viatierra said:
Is 1" going to be enough? I was going to build a over hang over the front of my cab, but got worried about the flex. I decided that if I do go over the roof to leave about 1.5" for flex since the Tacos don't exactly have the strongest frames.
This rack was designed to rest on the roof, and since it's a Mexico truck it's not a big deal for the owner.
Click to enlarge
Desertdude
Expedition Leader
1" clearance above the roof has been fine for the past two years on all the trips and terrain.
My thoughts were to keep it as close to the cab roof for clean aerodynamics (less wind drag)
I am still happy with this decision
My thoughts were to keep it as close to the cab roof for clean aerodynamics (less wind drag)
I am still happy with this decision
ChuckB
Expedition Leader
viatierra said:
Very nice!
I'm going to keep a close eye on this thread. I've decided that I'm going to splurge on a manual Taco as my next vehicle. For some reason the toyota web site would not let me build one... glad to know you CAN actually get a 6sp DC!!
I'm very interested in seeing how your progress with the mods. :beer:
Nuclear Redneck
Adventurer
Congrats on getting the truck you wanted! I will follow the build with great interest.
Manuals of any flavor are in short supply. I was all ready to buy a Nissan Frontier Duoble Cab 4x2 with a manual and couldn't find one anywhere within 100 miles of San Diego. Found a 4x4 manual, test drove it, and then went home to think about it. It was sold the next day. Looked around at Toyotas and drove a white Access Cab with the V-6 and 6-speed manual and the Off-Road package. It was one of two 6-speed equiped 4x4s in the San Diego area. So I bought it.
And now I drool over all of the cool things on this board. I blame google for fetching the fateful page which linked to Mark's 2005 Nissan Frontier build up and was ultimately the gateway page to this forum. I'm very happy with my 6-speed, although I have to remind myself that there is that sixth gear. I abolutely adore the e-locker and I intend to fully explore the limits of the stock configuration. I have to stay stock, cause there ain't any more money for mods in the near future. Besides, they don't make a snorkel for my model anyway.
Cheers,
Tate
Manuals of any flavor are in short supply. I was all ready to buy a Nissan Frontier Duoble Cab 4x2 with a manual and couldn't find one anywhere within 100 miles of San Diego. Found a 4x4 manual, test drove it, and then went home to think about it. It was sold the next day. Looked around at Toyotas and drove a white Access Cab with the V-6 and 6-speed manual and the Off-Road package. It was one of two 6-speed equiped 4x4s in the San Diego area. So I bought it.
And now I drool over all of the cool things on this board. I blame google for fetching the fateful page which linked to Mark's 2005 Nissan Frontier build up and was ultimately the gateway page to this forum. I'm very happy with my 6-speed, although I have to remind myself that there is that sixth gear. I abolutely adore the e-locker and I intend to fully explore the limits of the stock configuration. I have to stay stock, cause there ain't any more money for mods in the near future. Besides, they don't make a snorkel for my model anyway.
Cheers,
Tate
Scott Brady
Founder
Awesome Greg, can't wait to watch the progress. :wings:
crawler#976
Expedition Leader
Greg,
Wow! That is gonna be one cool truck!
Powder coat is great stuff, but sliders take an absolute beating from thrown rocks. I real fond of the hammered finish rattle can paint. Yes it does chip, but it takes all of about 10 seconds to recoat and blending isn't a problem at all.
Wow! That is gonna be one cool truck!
Powder coat is great stuff, but sliders take an absolute beating from thrown rocks. I real fond of the hammered finish rattle can paint. Yes it does chip, but it takes all of about 10 seconds to recoat and blending isn't a problem at all.