nmrunners build v2.0

Well I finally decided to start a build thread over here since my original one was on TW. My wife and I purchased this 2001 4runner for her back in 2013 because my 99 Tacoma wouldn't be big enough to take our growing family out on wheeling trips. Shortly after we immediately ordered a lift (toytec), tires (bfg km2s), and rock sliders (4xinnovations). Well its been a few years since we did the inital upgrades and we've decided it was time for a refresh! So v2.0 of our build will highlight all of the changes we are making along the way.

How it currently sits:





The day we purchased it:


Build Specs:
2001 4runner SR5 with Sport Package

Under the Hood:
-Stock 3.4 V6
-Auto trans
-B&M 70268 trans cooler

Suspension:
Front:
-ADS 2.5 Ext travel coilovers
-650lb springs
-MCM fab UCA's
-1" diff drop
-swaybar removed
-Durobump bumpstops

Rear:
-OME 861 springs
-ADS FJC piggyback shocks
-DuroBump bump stops
-Front Tacoma swaybar endlinks on rear swaybar

Wheels and Tires:
-16x8 SCS Stealth 6 rims
-285 75 R16 Cooper Discoverer ST MAXX

Armor:
-4xinnovations rock sliders
-Addicted Offroad front plate bumper
-4xinnovations rear plate bumper w/tire swingout

Misc:
- Extended rear diff breather
- Tundra Brake Mod
- Knock off ARB snorkle
- Smittybilt XRC 9.5 Gen3 synthetic line winch

 

Shortly after installing the lift and tires we took the 4runner out for a test run to see how it would do.


Needless to say it performed flawlessly! We continued to run with that setup for a few years before We did the next mod which was installing a set of all pro uniball UCAs.



Shortly after that we decided it was time to upgrade tires. The KM2s we started off with had just become increasingly noisy as they wore and just made for a crappy ride. We ended up changing to a set of Cooper ST maxx's and while we were at it we had them mounted to a set of SCS Stealth 6's.



Since we were adding a slightly heavier wheel and tire combo we also decided to do the tundra brake mod. This was super easy to do since there are tons of write ups out there on it.


Along the way we had some additional maintenance issues pop up like leaking rear outer axle seals, a leaking rear main oil seal (dealership replaced), cracked radiator. And leaking valve covers. Luckily these were all fairly simple to fix.

By December of 2018 we had blown our 3rd rear outer axle seal. So I decided it was time to replace the wheel bearings and diff breather while I had everything pulled apart.


Luckily I got it all put back together just in time to enjoy the snow and haven't had an issue since.

 

This brings us to the point where we decided it's time to start refreshing a few things. So we put together a wish list and placed a few orders.
-ADS front ext travel coilovers
-ADS rear piggyback shocks
-OME 891 springs for the rear
-Durobump bumpstops front and rear
-Addicted Offroad front plate bumper
-4xinnovations rear plate bumper w/tire swingout
-Knockoff ARB snorkle
And a few other small parts..

As we've started receiving parts I've been busy removing and installing. The first thing we received was the snorkle.

Before installing it I decided to do the taco whip mod and remove the crappy power antenna that didnt work anymore.

Out with the old


In with the new


Then came the fun of cutting a giant hole in the fender and mounting the snorkle.


Now that Im done with that the next thing will be installing suspension components in the next week or so.

 

Good read! Your very mechanically inclined....

 

Thanks! I try to do most of my own work if I can. Usually the only problem I run into is not having large specialty tools.

 

Sweet ride. Why are you switching to the 891 rear springs

 

Thanks! The reason I'm switching to the 891s is to help with the added weight of the new rear bumper and tire carrier.

We're also planning on carrying quite a bit of gear for camping.

 

Forgot to post an update last week, but I recieved my order from ADS and I am excited to get these on!

I should have everything installed in a week or so.

 

I had a little bit of free time today so I pulled the factory rear bumper off and test fit the new 4xinnovations plate bumper.

Everything lined up perfect with no issues! I'm extremely happy with the quality of this bumper and can't wait to have it painted and installed.

 

Over the weekend I was able to get the bumper painted and installed. Now I just need to get the tire carrier painted and mounted.

I really can't say enough about the quality of this bumper. Adam and the guys at 4xinnovations do great work!

 

Over the last couple of weeks I started to notice signs that my rear axle seal was leaking again....made it almost a year. I did some more digging on the forums before tearing into it again. I discovered that the inner most retainer on the axle shaft was only making slight contact with the oil seal. You can see the retainer through the ABS sensor port.


The oil seal sits approximately 7/16" to the right of that retainer. You can kind of tell how deep it is with the axle opened up.


So this time I had the retainer set back on the axle shaft to ensure it makes full contact to the seal. After I got everything buttoned back up I started pulling off the old rear suspension.


The ToyTec upper shock mounts were a real PITA to get off. Once I got everything out I cleaned up the frame and added a new coat of paint. Once it was dry I installed the new parts (durobumps, ADS rear shocks, Wheelers Offroad ext brake lines, and OME 891s).


I can definitely tell a difference in ride over the old OME 890s. The rear feels way stiffer when turning and going over bumps. We'll see how they break in over the next few weeks.

 

Tried installing the front suspension the previous weekend but there had been a mix up with my order and ADS sent me the top mounts for a Tacoma which slightly changes how the reservoir hose sits in the coil bucket. This caused the UCA to bind on the hose fitting.

After getting in touch with Tyler at ADS he sent me the correct top plates. I have to say their customer service is awesome! He made sure I had the right parts 3 days after I contacted him which was super cool considering it wasn't ADS's fault with the order mix up. This past weekend I tried installing the front again only to realize that even with the correct top plates the shocks wont work with the All-Pro UCAs.


The way the UCAs are designed doesn't leave enough room for the hose fitting to clear. Im going to contact Tyler again to see if ADS has had any issues like this before. If not I may just have to bite the bullet and order a different set of UCAs.

 

Since I couldn't install the new front suspension yet I decided to start prepping the tire carrier for install. I started off by fabbing up a mount for a hi-lift.

 

Got the swingout painted and installed.

 

This may be a stupid suggestion and I have no experience with remote reservoirs but can you rotate the fitting so it clears the UCA?

 

I actually thought about doing that. I need to call ADS and see if that fitting can be turned without losing any fluid from the shock. The only other issue I can think of by doing that would be mounting the reservoir. The mounts they come with have them in front of the shock tower. If I rotate the fitting I may have to figure out a new mounting solution too.

 

I'd be curious what they say. Good luck man.

 

Took a little break from working on the 4runner to enjoy driving it.

So far I've found that the OME 891s aren't going to work out as well as I had hoped. With all our gear loaded in the back plus the rear bumper and swingout weight I'm getting too much sag. Just driving down the highway I'm already hitting the bump stops on some of the larger bumps in the road so I know as soon as I hit the dirt it'll be even worse. I did a little more research and pulled the trigger on some OME 861s. Hoping I can get those installed to enjoy a few trails in the next few weeks.

 

Enjoying the NM desert.

10 mins after this picture was taken the fuel pump decided it was done . Luckily my dad was able to tow us back with his Tacoma and I was able to get a new Toyota fuel pump installed in about a day. I wanted to stick with a factory pump since this one lasted 18 years and 220,000 miles.

 

Took the 4runner over to a friends shop to have him weld on the panhard bar correction brackets. While we had it on the lift we installed the OME 861's too.


I have to say I was a little nervous at first because of how much taller the 861's were in comparison to the 891's. After getting it back on the ground it has a little rake but nothing too bad. It rides extremely well paired with the ADS shocks and made a world of difference! No more hitting the bump stops and still plenty of articulation.

 

Went out this last weekend and found a small ledge to stretch out the new rear springs on. They flex really well and ride way better through rough desert terrain than the 891s did.


I also did a little interior work. Installed a set of wet okole seat covers to freshen things up a bit. I love the fit and the little bit of extra padding they provide is great too! Going to make longer trips more bearable.

 

Finally started preparing the AOR front bumper for paint last night. There was a bit of a mixup with my order so I didnt receive it until the end of October (4 months after ordering). Scotty was awesome to deal with though and made it right. It was a bit of a bummer though because I really wanted it installed before our trip to the southwest In November. Overall the quality of the bumper is great and I love how they look on the 3rd gens.

 

Let me know how the install goes. My order is a 8 weeks now, hopefully no mix up with mine.

 

Its going well so far, I mocked it all up before I started to paint just to make sure everything lined up. I had to drill out a few of the mounting holes to get it to line up just right with the passenger fender.

 

Nice, look forward to seeing it done.

 

While I have the bumper in the garage for paint I figured this would be a good time to clean up the frame and paint anything that may be exposed.

In between coats of paint I started working on relocating my front turn signals since I ordered the bumper without them. I browsed a few different threads and decided I would move them to my marker lights. For this I picked up a couple of GM replacement sockets for a 194 bulb and drilled a hole approximately 1" above the marker light. After that I made a couple of notches to twist lock the new sockets into and wired them up to the front turn signal wires. Here are the before and after photos of the marker lights.

I decided to run with an amber LED bulb for the new blinker just to be sure it was bright enough over the marker light.

The last thing I did was replace the flasher relay on the back of the fuse panel under the dash with an EP35 relay. This was to correct the hyper flash issue since there isn't as much resistance with the new bulbs.

 

I finally had time after work tonight to get the bumper installed. Install after paint went very smooth, I am really glad I mocked it up first. I'll try to get better pictures during the day tomorrow. Now I just need to install the winch!

 

Looks great.

 

Very professional build....

 

Thanks guys, I appreciate it!