Rock Rat's Imperial Jade Mica "Next Adventure" Build

Rock_Rat · May 10, 2016

Went shopping Today - Found Another Unicorn

So...this Black 01 pops up on CL in one of our local junk yards. Tally ho, I immediately lock onto the OEM Moon Roof wind Deflector/Visor! :banana:

If you look in my original pics you'll see I used to have one of these babies until the clips broke off and I lost it.

Again, patience has paid off. I also acquired a new arm rest for my very worn out drivers side and a new rear cup holder for my back seat after many years of abuse by the kids. $40 well spent.

What a great lunch break today!

If anyone is interested and willing to drive, the sport hood is in great shape. He's asking $300, but the problem with a hood is it has to be crated - $$$$$$$.

Rock_Rat · May 11, 2016

New gears and axles with new OEM boots installed. Wow! Break in period now for the next 500 miles. Running about 25 minute intervals with a good 30 minute cool down and keeping it under 70mph with varying speeds. I'll change out the oil in 500 miles as recommended.

The gears are amazing. It's been quite some time since I didn't need to turn my OD off and ECT on to go up hills, including gradual climbs on the highway or the on-ramp. I feel like I literally gained everything back, plus more, that I lost when I added the armor and the 285's with their additional weight. RPM's are higher but not at 3500 as suspected. Since I'm still in the break-in period I've only come close to 70. RPM's are lingering around 2500-2800 at ~68mph. No additional increase in noise other than the standard wind noise. Gears and SC are where your real gains are. (And turbo's)

Rock_Rat · May 11, 2016

Installed my "New to Me" Deflector

Must admit, the wind deflector/sun visor looks much better on my rig than on the one it came off of in the junk yard. This will stay on until I build a full length roof rack.

Rock_Rat · May 15, 2016

TRD Cat Back Installation

Finally had a little time today to install the TRD Catback exhaust system. For part number and cost, see my original link here

It looks much better on my 4Runner than in the box! Very basic removal/installation. Should only take about two hours.

Tools Needed

WD 40 or PB Blaster for the bolts attaching the muffler to the Catalytic converter.
Sawzawl.
Basic sockets, extension and ratchet or air tools .

Steps

Jack the right side of your vehicle
Loosen bolts securing muffler to Catalytic converter
Cut the tail pipe off
Work the muffler and tail pipe out of the rubber hangars

I'm liking the resonator and the stainless steel. Took it for a spin and it sounds great. Better than the original. The next step is the headers and the high flow cat. You can also see the new set of 4.88's in the back. Enjoy the pics...

EDIT: The first pic gives you an idea on the difference in the height. The 2nd and 3rd pics you can see where the original muffler was falling apart.

Audio Clips of the Original Exhaust and TRD exhaust can be found here

OEM Exhaust - Exterior Recording - https://youtu.be/i_zavM32YUk
TRD Cat Back Exhaust - Exterior Recording - https://youtu.be/pkUAENNBwT0

Rock_Rat · May 15, 2016

Here's where the sawzawl comes in handy. Using a diablo blade, cut your tail pipe off.

Rock_Rat · May 15, 2016

Axles with new OEM Boots

Here's a photo of the OEM axles I rebuilt using OEM boots instead of the aftermarket boots.

The fusion tape held up OK but the CV joint was dry. No lube anywhere. Needle bearings were OK along with the rest of the axle.

I'll rebuild my original axles using OEM boots so now I'll have a spare.

Rock_Rat · May 15, 2016

Inner CV joints

Here's a pretty up close picture of the needle bearings. I'll be cleaning these up really good before I put the boots on. They look good for having been driven round without any grease on them.

If you purchase an OEM boot kit it comes with everything you need. Be sure to use the correct grease for the inner and the outer CV joints.

Rock_Rat · May 15, 2016

Pressed Bearings and hubs out of front spindles

Had some time to get the hubs and the bearings out of the front spindles. Getting another step closer to finishing up the entire front end. I'll remove the dust shields and then weld on the Total Chaos gussetts. Have them powder coated and then press everything back together.

The bearings felt great BTW but figured I might as well replace them since I'm getting ready to weld. They should be good for another 300K miles.

Made some pretty good progress today chipping away at some major projects that need to be finished up.

fourfive · May 15, 2016

Rock_Rat said:
Here's a photo of the OEM axles I rebuilt using OEM boots instead of the aftermarket boots.

I'll rebuild my original axles using OEM boots so now I'll have a spare.

very nice

Chuckles89 · May 15, 2016

Oh my, that exhaust looks perfect!

Kyle Reese · May 15, 2016

Will the guy that is selling the hood sell the grille as well? If so could you find out how much he wants for it and if he would ship? Thanks!

Rock_Rat · May 15, 2016

Kyle Reese said:
Will the guy that is selling the hood sell the grille as well? If so could you find out how much he wants for it and if he would ship? Thanks!

Kyle I don't know what he wants for the grille. It's here in Portland at G&R Wrecking - a salvage yard. I can call him tomorrow if you want since he knows me or you can call him. If you want it, just let me know I can ship Fed Ex way cheaper than you or he can. Black Hood with Scoop and Grille

Kyle Reese · May 16, 2016

Rock_Rat said:
Kyle I don't know what he wants for the grille. It's here in Portland at G&R Wrecking - a salvage yard. I can call him tomorrow if you want since he knows me or you can call him. If you want it, just let me know I can ship Fed Ex way cheaper than you or he can. Black Hood with Scoop and Grille

Oh ok so yeah since you know him that will be better, if it's cheap then I'm down I'll take it since I'm driving without a grille haha

Rock_Rat · May 16, 2016

Lucas 85-140 Differential Fluid

I'm not the first one who has used this in their differentials so this isn't new I'm sure.

This weekend when I was installing my new exhaust I noticed a large amount of diff fluid on the left side of the front skid. I have less then 300 miles on these new gears!! I dropped the skid and for the life of me couldn't figure out where it could possibly be coming from. The front diff was dry.

Puzzled, I de-greased the entire engine and suspension, rinsed it all and drove it for a bit. Again, diff fluid dripping on the left side from somewhere. It took me a while to figure it out but I recall reading the following about the Lucas oil;

"This formula slows or stops all oil leaks and cushions gears to reduce lash in work gear sets. It is formulated with special "climbing additives."

Jackpot. I checked the breather tube and sure enough there was oil running down the side. Climbing Additives at work!! Mystery solved.

Rock_Rat · May 17, 2016

Audio Clips of TRD Catback Exhaust and 15 Year Old OEM Exhaust

Stationary sound recording of exhaust as follows:

15 Year Old OEM Exhaust

Newly installed TRD Cat Back Exhaust - Exterior Sound Recording

TRD catback exhaust - Interior Sound Recording

(EDIT - Here's the final clip. The next clip I'll do will be after I install the headers.)

OK, here's the final cut of the TRD Cat Back Exhaust with the 4.88's installed.

I tried to capture the following various highway/road driving conditions;

Slow but steady 30-45mph
Medium 50-60
Straight 70plus
Passing 75-80

The final segment of the video is my long drive home up the mountain. This is where the new gears really shine. With the 4.10's I had to turn the OD off and the ECT on. With any kind of load I had to drop it into 2nd. This is where my mpg's take a killing. My wife is looking to get off the mountain but I just can't give up my view.

For you PNW residents you'll recognize a lot of the scenery.

2001 4Runner TRD Cat Back With 33's and 4.88 Gears

Hey [MENTION=28808]psraff[/MENTION] here ya go. I'll get the rest uploaded here tonight or tomorrow. So far I'm loving the exhaust. I didn't know how bad mine was until after I replaced it.

psraff · May 17, 2016

Rock_Rat said:
Stationary sound recording of exhaust as follows:

15 year old OEM exhaust - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_zavM32YUk

Newly installed TRD catback exhaust - Exterior Sound Recording https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkUAENNBwT0

TRD catback exhaust - Interior Sound Recording https://youtu.be/kttqdkcRvfI

Stay tuned for the following clips;

OEM Interior - Stationary

TRD with 4.88's driving

Hey [MENTION=28808]psraff[/MENTION] here ya go. I'll get the rest uploaded here tonight or tomorrow. So far I'm loving the exhaust. I didn't know how bad mine was until after I replaced it.

Sounds good. Good clips. It's hard to find an exhaust that I really like. My OEM is still solid so I don't need one just yet, but some day!

Rock_Rat · May 23, 2016

Installed New Cup Holder and Grab Handle Today

Finally found a replacement cup holder for my rear seats last week. It's been broken for quite some time after years of abuse with the kids. Decided to have fun this weekend and do some easy stuff.

Also scored the extra grab handle for the drivers side that for some reason, Toyota decided wasn't needed. Yet there's a place for it. Go figure.

Rock_Rat · May 23, 2016

Sound Deadening on Doors Finally

Well, it's taken me a LOOOOONG time to finally get around to doing the doors, the front doors that is. I didn't plan on deadening the doors until I was ready to replace my speakers. That would allow me to just remove the interior panel once.

So it's time to install the new speakers (Alpine SPR-60C 6.5" Component System along with the Alpine Alpine PDXF6 since I'm not running a sub woofer) but first the deadening.

For a more in depth look at my sound deadening project go to this link.

Sound Deadening Project

Rock_Rat · May 23, 2016

New Cup Holder Lights

I picked up these OPTX Marine Cup Holder Lights at West Marine. Here's a link to the product - LED Cup Holder Lights

I wanted to replace my existing cup holder lights as the LED world has opened up a whole new window of options compared to when the original cup mod came out.

My Requirements

Only powered on when the lights are on.
Must have a connector so I can remove and re-install the center console as needed. (cannot be hard-wired)
Must be able to clean the cup holders.

Source of Power

Splice into the Shifter light
It only comes on when the lights are turned on.

Connector

Deutsch 2-pin connector (black instead of grey - not weather proof)

How to Clean

Secure disks on the center console
Overlay discs with rubber cup holder. Requires cutting a circle out of the rubber.

For now, here are the pics. I'll come back and provide a little more detail on the installation.

Overall I love the way the cam out!!

I had a great weekend installing these. I was getting tired of working with CV joints, lower control arms, axles, differentials etc. I needed a break to just catch up on the fun stuff.

Rock_Rat · May 23, 2016

How to Install OPTX LED Discs in Front Cup Holders

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Rock Rat's Imperial Jade Mica "Next Adventure" Build

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