Watchthe8s 2023 Nautical Blue ORP Build Log

Hey all! This is my first time having a vehicle worthy of documenting its mods so bear with me as this is going to start pretty slow. I’ve also done a few things without taking pictures so the first few posts will be mostly descriptive and will improve as time goes on.

As a bit of background, this is my first 4Runner although my in laws have an awesome ‘99 that really started my love for this platform. I’m coming from a 2018 F150. There’s definitely a few things I miss and will inspire some of my mods.


What we’re coming from. 2018 Ford F150 XLT 3.5EB Stone Grey



The first picture of the new 4Runner on the trip back from the dealership. 2023 4Runner ORP Nautical Blue with KDSS


List of mods:

Wheels/Tires/Suspension
Toyo AT3 265/70/17

Interior
Sound deadening
Rockford Fosgate Speakers

Exterior
AVS Visors

 

Toyo AT3

As we all know the stock tires are pretty disappointing. Why they sell the Off Road trim with street tires I don’t know. The hardest part about upgrading was deciding what option to go with. I thought about going with a larger size in preparation for a lift but eventually decided to stick to the stock 265/70/17 size as the lift may not happen for a while and even so I don’t think the stock size looks too bad when lifted. I had BFG KO2s on my last truck but wanted to go with something much lighter. Weight is going to be a consideration with this build. So after much research I went with Toyo AT3s. I had one day of mild snow after buying these and they did just fine. MPGs seem to be about the same, although I only had the stock tires for 300 miles or so, so not much time to compare.

 

Looking forward to your updates!


Btw, welcome

Where is this ^^^

 

Sound deadening and speakers

This is about the time I realized I was really going to customize the 4Runner and I’m sad I didn’t take any pictures of this process but fortunately I did things pretty much exactly as TRD Jon on YouTube, so you guys have a reference of what happened here.

For the speakers, I am no audio snob, but the stock ones were pretty pitiful compared to the F150. So I replaced them with the ones linked in the YouTube series. Crutchfield rocks and added all the correct adapters needed to the order.

I added this sound deadening material: Amazon link. To each door and the rear hatch. I didn’t remove any of the weatherproofing plastic, and just added it through the speaker holes. I used about 3 - 3 1/2 sheets per door, just as much coverage as I could reach through the speaker holes, and around the speakers pretty much as shown in that YouTube series. The back hatch got about 1 1/2 - 2 sheets per hole. I also put a little bit on the metal bar that goes across the weatherproofing material on the inside of the hatch. This material works by stopping the vibrations of the bare metal so you don’t need a ton of coverage and every bit helps.

One thing I did slightly different than TRD Jon is when reinstalling the door panels, the weatherstripping section that needs to hook over the sheet metal by the window is very hard to install. As opposed to trying to maneuver that lip vertically, there are 3 metal clips for the window stripping section. Those can be removed (very carefully) from the door panel. Then put directly on the door sheet metal then the panel can be pushed on without having to fiddle with hooking those clips over.

This whole process was pretty time consuming. It took most of a day, including a trip to the parts store for a replacement trim push clip that I broke. But it’s very worth it. The doors sound much more solid and while I don’t have any decibel numbers I can tell a difference when driving.

 

Thank you! This is by Klamath Falls in Oregon.

 

1K Update

Last update without pictures I promise! This is a small one anyways. I was doing a lot of research on break in procedures, and there was a lot of discussion about the first oil change. I never bothered with something like this on my previous vehicles, but I’m planning on keeping the 4Runner for a very long time, so I figured it doesn’t hurt to do an early oil change. I did this at just over 1000 miles, and I’m maybe planning on doing another one at 2.5-3k. Probably overkill but whatever. I am glad I did this at 1k though. There were plenty of metal pieces in the oil and the filter. I did a 1 quart flush to be safe as well.

I did get lifetime oil changes with the purchase of the car but I live in the middle of nowhere and the nearest dealer is about an hour away. Not a big deal for most times as I’ll schedule a trip into town. But I wanted to do this one myself anyways so I can take a look at the oil and filter, and just generally get a feel for being under the 4Runner.

I also took this opportunity to install a Fumoto 133 valve (Amazon link). After watching the Car Care Nut on YouTube I decided not to install the metal filter housing I ordered as I would have had to move the stand pipe over. I also read about the metal housing potentially seizing and I’d rather have to replace the plastic housing than have an oil tech really ruin things. Same reasoning behind the Fumoto valve.

 

AVS Ventvisors

Small update this week. Gave ‘er a much needed wash and clean with the little helpers. After it was clean seemed like a good time to stick on the AVS low profile vent visors (Amazon link). I like how subtle they are. Going for that OEM plus look, these don’t stand out as much as some. They fit quite well and lined up easily. I like how the low pro version meets up at the seam between the doors. I will say the finish is a little rough around the edges. If I had more time I might have sanded them with some very fine grit but they’re still functional. Will try to remove the AVS logo though.