Been going back and forth on an expo vehicle for quite some time now. When I first got the bug to do some extended exploration, I had a 2010 4Runner Trail. Well, I traded that in on a 2006 100 Series Land Cruiser and was building a trailer to tow with that. Just as I was starting to work on the 100-series and get it built up, the 'Nemo' Tacoma showed up on this message board and it was located 45 minutes from me. It was just about everything I could imagine doing to the LC...and more. And it pretty much negated the need for a trailer.
So, I have had this 'Nemo' Tacoma for about 5 months now and have done several long trips in it: Moab, Southern Colorado, Taos, Eastern Oklahoma, Texas Hill Country and more. Along the way I have been updating/upgrading/etc systems on the truck and getting it ready for some longer travel...
...well, as I get closer to that time, and having been able to spend some good extended periods with the truck, I think what I really want is going to be something like a pop-up truck camper or a sportsmobile, etc. I travel solo most of the time and I want to be able to just pull up somewhere and not have to set up a kitchen, etc and have a place to easily get out of the elements. This truck is built up way beyond my needs for off road (I generally want to get to the end of the forest road and take my bike or lace up my boots - rock crawling and more extreme off road just isnt my thing). So, I have been thinking about putting a pop-up camper on the truck but I really think it would be taking the truck a step backwards. The amount of build-out in the bed would make it cumbersome and silly to drop a camper in there.
So, given all that, I am going to open the truck up for a potential sale. I dont need to sell it and am in no rush. I know I am going to catch hell for putting this up for sale so soon, but I jumped on the opportunity to buy the truck and have really liked it. If anything it's taught me what I do and dont want when on the trail! I am just in the process of selling my businesses, which is going to keep me tied up for a few months in Texas mainly. That said, I thought I would see what sort of interest there is out there for the truck. I am offering the truck for what I consider a fair price given what it has sold for in the past and the work I have put into it, which is detailed below. I have noted some considerations on certain mods. I am very open about the condition of all products on this truck. It's not a beauty queen but it's pretty impressive.
-The truck is a 2008 Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport, Double Cab, Long Bed, automatic trans in bright red with grey cloth interior.
-It's got 106K +/- miles,
-AT Overland did most of the prep for this Tacoma. It's absolutely first rate. You can see a detailed summary of their work in the 6 part video series on their website:http://www.adventuretrailers.com/truckvideo.html
Because I will probably get asked: Generally I get about 15MPG around town and 17-8MPG Highway. Usually run at 70-75 on highways and revs are sitting around 2500RPM at that speed.
Here's the list of modifications:
- Red 2008 Tacoma Double Cab 4x4 4.0L 5 speed auto, long bed
- AFE stainless exhaust
- ARE Z Series cap - cap is in fine condition but the track rails on the roof could use some consideration. I have mounted my RTT up there fine but it should be better anchored IMHO. This would take some nuts/bolts/washers and sealant. Finally, the incandescent lights in the bed need attention. They get power, but I was just going to replace them with LED strips anyway. Simple to do as all the wiring is there.
- Defender one-piece steel roof rack mounted on cap - I usually leave this off the truck for clearance around town. I also have a RTT I have put up there several times.
- 48” Hi-Lift Extreme mounted to Defender roof rack
- 2X LED flood back up lights mounted to Aluminess bumper. There is a crummy connection somewhere on these. Sometimes they dont run at full brightness. I am sure it's a simple connection issue somewhere and I will likely be taking care of this when I next go to my electrical guy anyway.
- 2X PIAA 510 HID fog lights - these are wired to the stock controls and thus only work when headlights are on low setting. Right now the right light doesnt work - confirmed it's not a bulb issue, so it's wiring. The left light works fine so I am guessing it's a faulty connection. Simple fix.
- 6X LED Rock Lights mounted under truck
- 2X KC HID lights on brush guard
ScanGauge2 and Blendmount
- K&N cold air intake. I took this off the truck to mount the OEM intake to accommodate a Safari Snorkel.
- 5X Walker-Evans Street Lock wheels, satin black. Not the greatest powder coating on these. Some flaking but overall fine.
- All-Pro steel front winch bumper
- Warn 9.5XP winch
- Viking 5/16” synthetic winchline with thimble
- All-Pro sliders welded on - the powder coating on these was not that great when I got it. I sanded and sprayed them with a truck bed-liner paint. Easy to touch up.
- All-Pro front skid plate
- All-Pro Rock Stopper differential armor
- Custom extended axle shafts
- Custom Deaver spring pack in rear
- Custom length 2” Fox Racing shocks in rear with remote reservoirs
- Timbren bump stops in rear
- All-Pro long travel kit in front
- Fox Racing 2.5” coilovers with remote reservoirs in front
- Custom rear passenger seat platform for cargo or dog
- Custom AT drawer system for bed with VersaTie
- ExtremeAir Magnum air compressor mounted in bed compartment
- 4 gallon air tank under truck with manifold on rear bumper and under front hood
- ARB rear air-locker
- 5.29 gearing with front case upgrade
- National Luna dual battery system
- Tilt guage on dash
- Aluminess aluminum rear bumper with tire and Jerry can swing arms. The jerry can swing arm box has a few cracks in the aluminum welds. Works fine as is, but something fairly easy to fix, etc.
- 3X 5gal Scepter fuel cans
- 4X BFG A/T 315/70R17 tires with roughly 10-12k miles on them. Full size brand new spare. Have the receipt from Discount Tire Co which shows them to be purchased with repair warranty (not totally sure on the details of the 'warranty' but it's there).
- Fiamma F35 Pro awning mounted on roof rack. Im not a fan of these but it's in good working order.
- 2X fire extinguisher (1 in cab, 1 in bed)
- Yaesu FT7900R Ham radio and Diamond NR770HA whip antenna
- RVS rear view camera with night vision
- Engel 35L 12v fridge mounted on Platinum drop slide in bed
- Console Vault (center console) - love this for peace of mind keeping valuables locked up.
- Factory 110V AC inverter in bed
- Factory trailer hitch. I had to purchase and wire in a new 7pin connector as the last one had gotten knocked off.
- Added connection for trailer brake controller up front.
- 7X auxiliary 12V outlets throughout truck - in the cab and in the bed.
- Smittybilt GEAR seat covers - I dont like these but they are included.
- Kenwood DNX 7190 HD Stereo with Navigation - really nice and works well with my iPhone. Bluetooth, XM radio, the works.
- Passport Radar detector hard wired. Usually keep this in the center console until I need it for road trips.
- Bushwacker fender flares because the stock ones suck at staying on.
- Safari Snorkel mounted up but not yet connected to the OEM intake. I took off the K+N intake, found a barely used OEM intake and installed that. I have the piping, etc needed to connect the snorkel but I havent had the time in the past few weeks. Pretty simple job for a muffler shop
Here is what I have done since buying the truck:
- All new fluids throughout: Mobile1 engine oil. Royal Purple in front and rear diff and transfer case. Dropped the transmission pan, cleaned the filter, and refilled (did not do a 'flush' as I have seen/heard way too many bad things with people doing that after 100K), coolant drain and flush. Again, have not done a 'flush' - I simply prefer to drain the radiator and refill at a regular interval. New brake fluid (Mobile1)
- Rear diff breather mod. Simple well-documented mod to protect the rear diff from taking in water through the breather (not needed on the front diff).
- Added the safari snorkel (see above).
- Installed new battery up front and re-used a battery I already had in the back. Diehard Platinum up front and what I think i remember is a group 31 size Cabelas AGM marine battery - random battery but I use them from trolling motors and have good luck. Just did a trip where I parked for 3 days with the fridge running the whole time and had no issues (ambient temperature was about 60 degrees during the days so take from that what you will).
- Recently purchased a 'refresh' kit from All-Pro to go through and freshen up the front suspension. Cost was about $500 and includes all new bushings, new top and bottom uni balls, new heim joints for steering rack and new hardware (bolts/etc). Also has new boots for steering rack (they are actually shock boots but that's what All-Pro uses as this truck has the beefed up steering rods). I will include this in the sale. Nothing too complicated to do - take uppper and lower arms off. I would do this when replacing/renewing steering rack (see below).
- Pressed in new bearings up front as they were shot.
- Front brake job: new Hawk ceramic brake pads. Turned the rotors. Bleed the brakes until all the fluid was clear.
- Tried my best to sand and repaint the sliders. Got them pretty good - but there are likely always going to be slight flaking/etc on them if they get nicked. I just used a spray can bed-liner stuff.
- Had the tires balanced. Will need alignment and would likely rebalance once the steering rack/suspension work is done.
I have tried to list everything related to the modifications in the list above. Beyond that, here are other considerations:
- Steering rack needs to be replaced or renewed with seals/etc. It functions right now but is definitely on the way out. I have the boots and
- When I was refilling the front diff I found the drain plug to be a little stripped (which is not hard to do on the tacoma). Already having the truck up on blocks I sucked out the old fluid and refilled with new Royal Purple. I then got a new drain plug and crush washer at the dealership, but have not done the swap. Was going to worry about it later. Not a super difficult job - would probably just dremmel a notch out to get a flat head in there and then unscrew.
Hmmmm, other than that, just ask. I have tried to be as up front as possible about pretty much anything I can remember about the condition of this car. That said, it is 5+ years old with 100K+ miles and lots of aftermarket work, so this definitely might not be for just any buyer (but if you are reading this far you know that). I am happy to answer questions over email and then talk on the phone for more serious enquiries. I will be traveling from January 11th until the 19th, but will have email and phone access most of the time.
Finally, should the right buyer surface I might be willing to deliver the vehicle provided they bought me a plan ticket home (and lived somewhere with good fishing/hiking/etc).
Philip.Sterling@gmail.com
PRICE: $31,500 - this includes the $500 in suspension parts and other miscellaneous parts (take offs and extras) detailed above and could perhaps be rolled up into delivery. Perhaps interested in trades for a full size 4x4 truck: diesel, double cab, 3/4 ton, etc...
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