Yeah. No.

I said pretty much. There are always a very small percentage that treated their vehicles like angels. I'm friends with several. But it's still a safe statement about teenagers and how they treat their vehicles. I took great care of my first vehicle but I also beat on it mercilessly. Drag racing, rock crawling, mud bogging, burn outs, etc.

http://youtu.be/Ftk6lqA-jhk

You'd be surprised how far you can get a '78 buick regal into the woods with a bit of practice! Driving a 4runner feels like cheating!

pfft..

Calm it down gentlemen, I myself am a mere 18 years old. I totaled my first runner in the snow/ice and I consider myself much wiser from it. My current rig is basically me cleaning up the mess that an electrical engineer left for me all over. I still love the car but my point is anyone can ruin a vehicle, age is not a determining factor in the equation.

I understand that this young man has made some foolish decisions and I can see the reason in correcting him. But lets do this in a productive supportive way and help him out. The kid needs some direction, maybe a priority check sure.

I'm not liking what I'm seeing so far (other than some the list, but we all dream) but mistakes can the best teacher...

Working on getting rid of all the rust underneath and putting some undercoat on for the salt and snow of the winter. So far I've got one frame rail brushed down and coated with rustoleum rust reformer then I plan on using some of the por 15. gonna take a long time but I have to hurry...

Winter is coming.

Hey thanks for sticking up for me but I need all the advice I can get! Neither of my parents are car people so I'm on my own. I will be taking off the paint on the lights ASAP it's just too hard to see. Also I noticed to go to Purdue! I will be touring there later in the fall!

My birthday is coming up soon! Big 17 I've been talking to my parents and it sounds like I'll be getting a suspension upgrade from them. I've also been saving up some money for a few other things, plus money I will hopefully be getting from other family. What should I focus my money towards first?

Considering you have done all the right maintenance stuff your probably looking for the fun part. Being a kid you can never go wrong with altitude, but don't skimp on the right parts, lift it right and you will be happy for a long time. Next would be tires, now with your new lift tires seem like the next move, but remember bigger tires mean slower truck, so be realistic in what you want, common tire size once lifted are 285/75/16. I must say they look nice with a 3" lift but they will also mean more stress on the motor, so you might want 265/75/16 which are just under 32" or you can go for some skinnier at 255/70/16-or 255/75/16 I never remember that middle number.

As a kid I always drove like a bat out of hell, and knowing what I know now I would do one important thing to my truck and that making sure she can stop. So look into the tundra brake upgrade or (TBU). Basically it is what it says, you can install the front brakes from a tundra onto our 4runners and it's got mean stopping power, by far one of the best things you can do for safety reasons.

Next for me would be protection, bumpers front/back and sliders.
Sliders are what go in place of your removed runningboards. They protect you from any body damage that can push your underside into your door jam and make it impossible to open your doors, so yeah they are very important and should not be skimped on.

TBU is about 500-600
Lift a good one, is about 800-1300 Toytech, Sanora steel, OME
Sliders prefer they be (DOM) about 200-500 depending on builder,
4xinnovations, Stubbs, are just a few of the many out there.

Your very smart for taking care of your rust issue, these trucks will stay running for you a very long time as long as you be nice to them and take care of them. Now that doesn't mean you can't have fun and beat them up because many of us do beat them up, it's just you need to do the right things before you do the dumb things. Lift it, protect it, stop it, and you will have many years of abusing it as long as you maintain it. And remember, rust never sleeps so always crawl under it and make sure you know what's happening under your rig.

Good luck, have fun!!!
Be careful, it's not a race car, drive within the runners limits.

got the eibach springs with bilstein 5100s out front and toytec superflexx coils with the extended travel 5100s in back. Will post pictures as soon as i can.

Looking at getting a 1st gen roll bar next.
need to change LBJ's first and get new steering rack bushings though.

both my cv boots puked (only leaking not torn,and clamps are tight) after only 400 miles...how long can i drive with them leaking before they MUST be replaced. Its going to be another 2 weeks until I can afford to replace them. otherwise im loving the lift, ride is great, have to take the corners much slower though

Do you ever go to Dresser, WI they have monthly trail rides at Trollhaugen during the summer? It's pretty fun I go on Memorial Weekend and then I hit one up later in the summer.

I see no before/after lift pics.



This is a travesty.

I disagree on the mud comments, I mud where i hunt, never seen mud/water inside and i go to the tops of the tires. I just take it to the $5 full auto car wash and let them worry about it, haha!

Some folks confuse mudding or offroading with lack of maintenance - furthest from the truth.

Now, your cvs can get ruined in less than a mile of salty/sandy driving, so just avoid that but I would get it done asap!

Luck and Enjoy!

Another WI member! I live in Watertown, WI east of Madison.

To your friends who give you a hard time about driving a Toyota, just compare the average lifespan and repair/service costs of their trucks to the 3rd gen 4runner. Thats all that needs to be said about that.

Ive found there really is a strong mentality of "American made" only in WI. On two or three occasions now Ive been driving down the road, going the speed limit, minding my own business, to suddenly find a hick in a Ford or GM truck fly past me with the middle finger raised for no reason other than that Im driving a Toyota. There is no such thing as a truly american made vehicle any more. Not even close. Every American auto corp uses a plethora of outsourced parts. Several models are manufactured in other countries to save money. Ford, GM, Dodge will pretend its a American pride thing, and people (especially in the mid-west) still buy that mentality. But in the end its all about profit and american autos corps are as greedy as they come and theyll do anything they can to increase profit, including taking jobs from Americans by outsourcing.

Ignore the comments about your age. You seem to have a good head on your shoulders and care enough about maintaining your 4runner. Im 30, and I say have fun being a teenager with a 4runner. But, definitely get rid of the tint on the taillights. Thats dangerous and its only a matter of time before you get ticketed