Swede's Build Thread

1st of all here's a link to my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCY92MZkjTbTFvqpfcUb4NjA
So here's my distraction :

I bought this '98 SR5, V-6, 5-Speed, E-Locked 4Runner in 2003. It had 72,000 klm's on the odometer and was in pristine shape.



First thing I did was put in a 2'' body lift:



And add a set of 285 Revo's:



After that I did the usual mods like "the Deckplate Mod", "the D Gasket Mod", and a new stereo, etc.

I then installed a Revtek lift:



New Trail Gear Sliders and I also upgraded the Body Lift to 3":



Flipped my rear receiver hitch over to get more clearance:



By this time the Revo's were getting pretty worn and since I had cut a sidewall out on a rock out wheelin' I upgraded to a set of 3 ply sidewalled 35'' Baja Claws on 17x9 wheels:




From there I got rid of the stiff Revtek lift and went with the Tundra/ LC coil set-up:

(Old coil/Revtek spacer vs. LC coils)

Little bit of rake huh???


I also installed a Front Receiver/Shackle mount and made up a Portable Winch set-up for my 8500 lb Superwinch:




Later, as the kids were piling up I added a 3rd row seat (from a TJ) as well as an auxiliary battery and sub box into the cargo area. I also made provisions for the winch to slide into the base of the seat so that it is tucked away and secure when not needed:





Since we were planning on getting a travel trailer I swapped in a set of 4.88 yukon gears (no pics) and after that some Air-Lift bags to help with the tire size and towing issues:




It was at this time that I started having the irritating issue of the cursed "High Idle" issue and also where I discovered my cure for it! ( My High Idle... CURED!!! - YotaTech Forums ) :

 

So this winter I've added an 180amp HO alternator from DC Power and upgraded all the cables to 4AWG:




And rear LCR's from Toytec:





Last thing I did was add a set of four 130 watt spots lights to the front bumper and cleaned 'er up:




Of course there is a ton of other mods that have been done but if I listed them all I'd be here all day!

Next up is going to be the Tundra Brake upgrade and the rear cargo area redo. It never ends!!!

 

The wheels looked good to start but the chrome finish started to peel off within the 1st couple of years on the inside of the wheels and American Eagle wouldn't cover them under warranty! Never again will I buy anything from them again!!!

The rear seat came out this winter as the kids have now outgrown the seat. My oldest two will be driving soon so that takes care of the need for the extra seats. I'm in the early planning stages of adding a fridge and storage back there now.

 

Got the front end done on resealing the frame, just got the last 2/3rds to do!

So I started rust treating the frame by wire brushing, "Rust Converting" and then "EZ Lining" ...

 

Frames all done now so on to other things...

After a winter of trouble shooting a finicky charging system, I wanted to know immediately how good my charging system was working and the condition of both my main starting battery and my auxiliary battery.

I picked up a set of digital voltmeters off of eBay, much like the ones in the 1st pic except that I ordered the 3 wire version.



After much deliberation, I found a nice spot to put them...



The voltmeter here is telling me the alternator output voltage at each battery with the engine running.



This pic shows the voltage with the engine off but in the accessory position. This is the most useful part of this mod I think because I usually have the stereo playing for hours at a time and at the same time the 1500w inverter is usually charging the kids phones or ipods while were are at camp.



It's one of the easiest mods to do and I find it to be one of my favorite ones too!

 

Well after the last wheeling trip a few weeks ago I managed to cut a sidewall pretty bad. It's still holding air after a few plugs and a sidewall patch but I don't feel real comfortable pulling the trailer with the family on board with this tire so I put in an order for a new set.

Cut is on the lower left:



New TTC's:

 

3 months later and they finally arrived!

 

So I got bored today and test fitted the new TTC's. (They have a much larger sidebiter tread than the old style so I was a bit concerned about the UCA clearances.)

And after mounting the new TTC's, they are definitely closer than the old ones. Might be spending more money in the spring!

 

So lots of projects happening this winter. For starters, I'm finally doing the Tundra Brake upgrade and the parts are just rolling in:



Also waiting on a new rear brakes, CB antenna, diff breather, and Marlin 1200lb clutch. Should be a busy couple of weeks!

 

Front Brakes done...



Rear Brakes and Clutch yet to do.

 

Just in from breaking them in and here's my impressions.

1st, believe the hype! They make a noticeable difference in braking over stock. When I pulled off the original brakes (and by original I mean that the brakes have never been done before... gotta love a manual tranny) they were in great shape still! Pads were about 1/4 to 1/3 of material left and the calipers were all working normally too. I made 10 high speed stops from 100 km/h to about 10 - 20 km/h. The first 3 or 4 stops had me smiling from ear to ear as the 4Runner stopped almost instantly with the rest of the stops getting longer and longer due to fade but man what a difference! 2nd, as is often reported, application of the brakes is a little later than normal meaning that it takes a little more pedal travel to start to feel the brakes apply. I quickly got used to this and it's not a big deal at all.

Highly recommended!

 

So after 237,000 klm's I decided it was time to upgrade the OEM clutch to the Marlin Crawler HD 1200lbs clutch set.

Old one wasn't slipping but by the looks of it, it was only a matter of time though before it did though, lots of hot spots by the look of it ...



I also replaced the rear main seal while I had the tranny out ...



Initial impressions are good so far. Going to take it easy for the first 500 miles or so it can break in properly. Pedal feel is WAY lighter than what I was expecting though. So much so that I'm a bit concerned about it. Engagement is nice and smooth and everything seems to be working fine but I was expecting the pedal effort to be way harder. I fired off an email to Marlin to see if this is normal. I'll see what they say.

 

Well it's been over a week and still no response from Marlin but everything's working great. Really smooth engagement!

Also had the new TTC's balanced again as I must have thrown a weight somewhere. The tire shop threw in a couple bags of balance beads per tire as they had a heck of a time getting them trued up. What a difference! I must say that the new TTC's are a lot quieter than the old design was and look way beefier too.

Gonna work on the CB antenna mount next. Seen a few ideas out there but I'm not sure how I'm going to mount it yet.

 

Here's a couple of Vids from the last few months of local wheelin, enjoy! (and YES... I'm a Satch fan)

Winfield Creek - Microwave Trail:
https://youtu.be/0PDN8qBrRFU

Dorreen 2014:
https://youtu.be/HQpqvbBhqWs

Trapper Mtn 2014:
https://youtu.be/6f5-MPLtNU0

 

Just finished up installing a new set of 5100 Bilstein shocks and all I can say is wow what a difference over the Tokico Trekmaster R/T's that I had been riding on over the last decade or so. Definitely a much more plusher ride than before! The road to where I live is concrete with expansion joints every 15' or so and with the Trekmasters, the ride was quite jarring and I'd also be bouncing a lot in my seat over each joint. Now they are really hardly noticeable and the truck also seems more quieter as well! Definitely one of my favorite mods of late!

 

Finished up a long put-off project this evening...

I added some 1/4" aluminium checker plate to the top of my sliders. I did this for a few reasons, but the primary one is to permanently get rid of the running boards that I put on every winter to protect the rocker panels from getting sandblasted from all the road salt and gravel that we have to deal with up north here.





I'll get them installed next weekend when I swap out the studs and put on the Claws.

 

Plans are in the works for a new rear plate bumper this year, going to have to learn how to weld I guess. Stay tuned

 

Got these today to replace the noisy heims on the rear LCR's...

 

Not much to update lately. I've been away in school finishing up my Electrical Apprenticeship for most of the year and now that that's done, time to get caught up on some maintenance on the 4Runner.

What has been neglected lately is the typical leaky valve covers, so I took care of that today...



Covers off and looks pretty good after 250000 Km's...



I also had a good look at my TB to see how the washer fix is holding up and I'm happy to report that it's still working perfectly!

https://youtu.be/4p2NYf-eixI

The tie rod ends seem a little sloppy to me so I'll have to get on that and the rear exhaust flange came apart so I'll have to get that welded back up.

The big project this year will be front and rear plate bumpers as my OEM ones are rusting out pretty good. I bought a welder so we'll see how I make out with that...

 

Another little vid, Telkwa Pass 2016:
https://youtu.be/fWhW5C73JaU

 

So a little update...

I replaced my UCA's with a set of the SPC brand arms. Stout product with a lot of flexibility when it comes to alignment. After some research I decided to crank my LCA's as far forward as I could to help minimize and rubbing at the pinch well and it also, as an added bonus, reduced my rubbing at the frame (rearwards from the wheel) at full lock! Sweet! I got out the string, tape and level and did my alignment and I'm just waiting now to get an accurate one done at the shop.

 

I had every intention of building a new rear bumper this winter but other priorities got in the way. I ended up just ordering some jobber parts to replace the old rusting out bumper ($300 ish) and slapped it on. I got tired of seeing all that rust when the rest of the rig is so clean.

Old OEM bumper:



New jobber one installed:

 

nice!

 

Your rig looks awesome great job welcome to the iBEW. I am local six San Francisco keep up the good work