[MStudt]

Some changes will be taking place tomorrow.

[MStudt]

My work started last night with draining the oil, and transmission fluid. Getting the front end up on stands, and stopping there for the night. Today I filled the transmission fluid, and finished the oil change. Next up was removing my old Bilsteins, LBJ's, inner TRE's, outer TRE's, and rear sway bar links.

After getting everything installed I went ahead and applied grease to my front UCA's, rear LCA's, and my drive shafts. I was starting to get a little bushing sqeak from the lack of maintenance on them. I still have a little work to do on my roof rack, and rear swing out before heading out.

[JBurt]

I somehow was still subscribed to your thread but wasn't getting notifications! This is some awesome work mike! You'll love those Kings. I'm glad your still in a 3rd gen. Keep up the good work!

[MStudt]

Originally Posted by JBurt

I somehow was still subscribed to your thread but wasn't getting notifications! This is some awesome work mike! You'll love those Kings. I'm glad your still in a 3rd gen. Keep up the good work!

I need to adjust the Kings to lower the front down about an inch, and then I'll be ready to take her for a drive. We've decided to keep the 4runner rather than selling it. I have some more things that I need to address, and some additional repairs that need to take place. But, I think the 4runner will be around for quite some time.

Mike

[MStudt]

After fixing the front end we decided to go lake hopping for the week last week. Everything was good until we reach the last 2 miles of our first forest road. I ended up denting the gas tank skid, and losing my tail pipe (strapped to roof). So now the 4runner is back in the garage again. The trip was super dusty, buggy, and was glad to be home away from the dust.

Here are a few pictures.

[MStudt]

Started on a new project last night, and hoping to have it finished tonight or tomorrow night.

I replaced the charcoal canister a while back, and have had some issues after filling tank ever since. I started getting a strong smell of gas while filling, and that usually means the purge valve/gasket are shot. Well, over the weekend it was so bad that the gas pump would kick off, and we couldn't get gas. Denting the skid didn't help, but was motivation enough to get it fixed.

I'm going to be replacing the filler next, purge valve, valve gasket, gas cap, and adding a rear diff breather.

[MStudt]

Things took a turn last night while trying to remove everything, and I'm not surprised. I found the extent of our issues from the last trip we took. With the tail pipe breaking that cause the heat from the exhaust to dump on the underside of the 4runner, and melt the evap hose running from the purge valve to the charcoal canister. We also managed to partly break a fixed line on the gas tank itself, and I broke a very brittle filler neck while removing it. I'm going to pick up a used tank tomorrow along with the new hose, and that should take care of my issues.

Now, onto the next issue, and a much bigger one. This 4runner has had bad rust since we purchased it out of Michigan several years ago. I've fixed frame rust, replaced rusted out parts, and have more rust repair to do. After removing everything for this repair I've decided to not fix anymore rust since the extent of the rust doesn't justify the time/cost of the repairs. We'll soon be in the market for a new 3rd Gen, and retiring this one.

[MStudt]

The new tank, purge valve, gasket, filler neck, evap hose, and gas cap are installed. I was able to drain the gas from the old tank, and get into the new tank without any issues. I still need to fix the exhaust, but the 4runner did fire right up.

[JBurt]

Hey that's a good feeling! Congrats. Any plans for a gas tank skid?

[MStudt]

Originally Posted by JBurt

Hey that's a good feeling! Congrats. Any plans for a gas tank skid?

I thought about getting a Lil' Skip's skid, but decided against it. I've only had one time where I wish I would have had one, and I feel that money would be better spent on my new project.

Mike

[JBurt]

I can totally understand that. I've seen people weld reinforcements to the OE skid. Just a though. Way cheaper than buying one.

[MStudt]

I've been wanting to add sliders to my 4runner for quite some time now, but couldn't justify spending the money on it. Last week at work we happen to have some extra 1-3/4" x .120 DOM laying around, and it was the perfect amount to tackle the project. They're a total of 68" in length with a kick out and 2 individual bent tubes. I just need to cut the doglegs, weld everything together, and get them powder coated. The only reason for the powder coat is it only costs me $10 through my job. Otherwise, I would just bedline them and call it good.

[SLO_Rob]

It’s weight, to be sure, but you’ll be thankful you have them should anything kick up into your rocker. Btw, your mount on my 2000 still works and looks great!

[MStudt]

Originally Posted by SLO_Rob

It’s weight, to be sure, but you’ll be thankful you have them should anything kick up into your rocker. Btw, your mount on my 2000 still works and looks great!

She's mostly a pavement princess, but they will make life easier for loading/unloading things from the roof rack. We really only get the 4runner off-road a few times a year when summer comes.

Glad to hear the mount is still working out for you.

Mike

[MStudt]

Sliders are all welded up. I just need to cut some doglegs, frame plates, and weld the doglegs to the sliders before powder coating next week. Still trying to dial in the new welder, but the welds look pretty good.