Hey guys, been lurking for a while and decided to finally do a build thread. I'm 17 and a senior in high school so money is tight but I'm doing odds and ends now and then to upgrade my 4runner slowly.

Edit: I haven't formatted this properly yet so you might need to scroll to see progress (sorry)

So I got it in June 2020 for 3700$.
It had 264k miles and a bald set of tires.


It came with another set of tires and an air filter.

Bone stock as far as I can tell.

I replaced all the fluids and did the rear brakes. The radiator has been done before so I don't need to worry too much.

The first real "Mod" I did was install a wii in the back (i'm kidding i took this out)

I really started getting into it after another friend of mine bought a 97 and we've worked together on them. We first really got started after doing an hour and a half drive for parts: my center console and steering wheel, and his grill and interior pieces

The second day we really worked together we redid my rear lights making them LEDs.

shortly after, i blacked out the grill, planning to tint the headlights in the hear future. (and make a satoshi when i find an xtra grill hmu)

I took off the running boards after because i don't use them.

I did the 99+ center console mod, which was my real "first" one, and installed a radio the guy i got my steering wheel from threw in for 10 bucks.


By far one of the harder parts of doing this mod is relocating the switches, but after some trial, I got it.


Then shortly after replaced all the LEDs in the dash with white leds:


I took the green cover off the key light too to make it more amber, then replaced my ratty 98 leather steering wheel with a pristine one from a 96. I also put on the plastic that goes behind the wheel and had to replace the clockspring to make the cruise control work.

Shortly after, I got some OEM floormats because the cheap AutoZone ones I had weren't cutting it.

As well as the floormats, I got myself a keyfob to unlock the car when I'm away. It only unlocks, no locking, but it works as far as I can tell, the alarm and everything.

Then, I decided to make it a turd. no i'm not kidding.

After I did this, I started on my hardest endeavor yet: fixing the rear hatch rust. I don't have a before picture because i'm dumb but trust me it was bad. I was quoted a price way too high so figured i'd do it myself.



During the process of the rear hatch fix, I painted the license plate bezel and replaced the lights above the license plate because they were stuck above the bezel. Also got a license plate cover to match.


However, I broke a clip off of the keyhole, so it was down to Pick N Pull for me.
I got one finally after breaking two, and also got a black upper center console plastic thing, a WORKING CLOCK (wut), a spoiler that I think I won't use and some interior pieces to 100% finish off my interior.

The clip I broke:

Bodywork tuckered me out. So, I did the next logical thing and went and bought two 2nd gen seats thinking they were 3rd!
This dilema led me to reupholstering the old 3rd gen seats with the foam and cloth from the 2nd gens, and yes it is hard as it sounds.



Finished passenger seat:


On my last escapade to the pick n pull, I didn't get what I wanted but found something much better. A 1991 Mercedes 190e. Like many, I'm not fond of the stock "meep meep" horn but don't want to buy an expensive one.

Old german cars do just the trick. A bit of patience and one trip to the hardware store later, and I've got a loud "intimidating" horn.



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