Hello guy and gals!

I am currently a junior in HS in Dallas, TX and am looking at going to college in Golden, CO @ Colorodo School of Mines (This is my dream school and it will be a stretch. I just took my first ACT today wish me luck) I would be moving there in the fall of 2020 but wanted to see about a couple things first regarding my 4Runner

I currently am sitting at 71,000 miles on a 2004 4x4 Sport edition. It has lived in Texas almost its whole life I bought it in May of 2018. But to keep it in its rust free state what would I need to do if I moved to CO? I definitely want to avoid having any issues with my clean frame.

I am also going to be lifting the truck and putting bigger tires on it over this summer. I was going to go with a 285/70r17 Toyo Open Country r/t. Does anyone know if these are good in the snow and if not have any other tire recommendation.

Again all of this is contingent on me getting in but lord willing I will be there in a year and a half.

Thanks
Sam

With tests, always keep practicing. Good luck!

As for the 4R, may be just go initially with no mods and regular size tires?

Colorado is tricky. There is a ton that can be driven stock. So it's not like you need anything to enjoy hundreds of trails. This includes many of the most famous ones for scenery. But then you get trails that require really big tires etc. And so there is a big jump from the former to the latter. Mid-range mods are not needed for the former and not enough for the latter. So maybe just go and see what you want to do, how your finances are doing, etc, before committing to mods you may regret.

If you have a V6, you will want stock size lightweight tires for performance reasons in the mountains. So maybe steer clear of the oversize, D/E load tires.

There is another thread on the topic of which AT tires are good in snow that is going right now.

Basically, for P or LT-C:
Wildpeak AT3W, General ATX, and Goodyear Ultraterrain are all recent designs with robust shoulder protectors and the snow rating.

If you are to go LT-D/E, it is hard to argue against KO2 as those are the only AT tires that come with a 3-ply sidewall and they have the snow rating too. I am not 100% sure about E-load Toyo AT II, but I think it is 2ply. Everything else is 2 ply sidewalls.

And whatever you do, don't do it at the expense of safety, do it right or don't bother.

Good luck! Ace that test and make sure to stay at the top of your class once in college...in due time you will be able to do whatever mods you want. The average salaries out of CSM look good except for Chemistry.

Yep I went out to Ouray with a group in July. I currently have stock size Toyo Open Country at/2s. Yep I do have the V6 but it would be able to handle a bigger size tire.

I plan to major in Mechanical Engineering!

You wont need to do anything with your 4Runner. Will do just fine with current equipment. Toyo Open Country AT2's will be ok in the snow.

To keep the frame looking good, you might use fluid film or WD-40 each Fall. If you do drive it in the snow, sand, salt and mag chloride during winter, be sure to hose off the underside when you wash it on those nice days (or try to avoid driving when we have a lot of snow/crap on the roads). Golden/Boulder probably get about 90 inches of snow per year (Denver is like 60) but with the exception of Dec/Jan it doesnt stick around too long.

I wouldnt go with a lift or oversize tires as you will find that pulling grades in the CO Rockies you will need every bit of power that you have with stock tires/gearing.

Good luck on getting into CSM. My middle kid went there for mechanical engineering and while he was very good at math, science and physics he didnt have the mental discipline to stick with it. Bailed in spring of sophomore year and transferred to CU Boulder and then got a Psychology degree....WTF, right.

Look at some of the more specialized engineering degrees if you want bigger money. As I recall the ME degree had the lowest avg pay (still high but lowest of the engineering disciplines). 4-5 years ago the Petroleum engineering majors were coming out of school with an average pay of $103k---average. If you can get in and you are a dedicated student you can make it. My kid was so "smart" in high school he hardly had to study. Not the case at CSM. One other consideration is that it is 75% men and 25% women.

We tried to encourage our son to apply at CU Boulder where campus wide it is something like 57% women/43% men (not in Engring of course), as it will offer a more balanced social life and you might meet someone you actually want to marry. Trust me -- the opportunities for meeting women declines dramatically once you hit the working world. As long as you arent an introverted nerd, many women are looking for high potential men which is what I would consider an engineer to be and there will be 1.5 women for every man on campus at CU rather than 3 dudes for every chick at CSM...many of which think they are going to go there own way in life with an engineering degree from CSM.

Ok gotcha makes sense good to know about the grades with stock gearing.
I have the work ethic and grades to get in now it is just the test scores. I am dyslexic and have had to struggle though school and always have had to study. But I also go to a school that caters to kids with learning differences and that had dramatically improved my work ethic and willingness to try. I am also going to apply to CU Colorado springs and that will likely be my "safety school." I will update this thread if I do end up going and getting in.

Let me tell you... As a Minnesotan where they pour salt on roads and cars from CO are considered basically rust free. Don't worry.

I know plenty of people that have traveled to CO or nearby to purchase 200k+ mile cars and trucks that look damn good - like factory frame paint completely intact, with light surface rust on the welds - zero actual rust. Working on them is a dream compared to the sawzall oxy-acetylene torch festival that is required every time I turn an outside bolt on a MN car. The used-car dealers here in MN tout CO cars as special and rust free.

They use a salt brine which is different from actual road salt that my state and a handful of others use, it's not nearly as bad as people in the south think. Driving on the highways in MN there are literally clouds of salt that tires kick up this time of the year.. I can almost feel my vehicle rusting lol.

If I were you then I wouldn't even worry to be honest. If you think you will spend the next 150k miles in CO then sure - maybe grease some nuts and bolts, and look into oil on the frame maybe..

Edit: Concerning tires.. If you have the cash and spend most of your time on public roads then get a separate set of winter tires. No question.. If not then just make sure you have some good tires and use 4x4... Look into CO tire laws.

what he said, entirely.

CO cars have nothing on the great lakes and North East regions.

Good luck with the School of Mines, I took classes out there a couple of years ago and fell in love with the place. Golden is awesome. Go Orediggers!

To echo other sentiment here...

If you can swing it, get dedicated snow tires. As a Texan, you'll be routinely avoided and given a very wide berth in the winter, and the same goes for any other transplant from a state that isn't known for it's winter driving conditions. I don't really think it's a fair stereotype per se since idiots come from all states, but it's not unusual to see either. Just work on being the outlier and bone up on winter driving techniques.

If you can't get dedicated snows to swap out then I'd just stick with your stock size or maybe a small bump without needing a lift. Google reviews on snow performance of AT tires with the snowflake rating, but I'll say right now I've heard bad things about KO2s in the snow, but I've had great success with Duratracs that were on my 3rd gen and now another set on my 4th gen.

If you're dead set on a lift, there are plenty of people here who run lifted 3rd Gens with 32's or 33's, and those have less power than a 4th V6. Sure, they lumber (and I mean luuuumber) up mountain highway passes, but it's not the end of the world, especially if you know to take it out of O/D. Plus, you'll still pass old Jeeps! Personally, I wouldn't do it again after having the pleasure of owning a V8 on 33's.

Good luck!

Greetings and welcome to CO (I moved to Denver from Austin).

Your Toyo's should be fine for most of the stuff here. It honestly doesn't snow as much as people assume, and when it does it clears itself within a few days anyways. Obviously, as you venture up and west, that changes but a general set of A/T tires of any brand should be fine for 99% of the work (I run Falken A/3Ws and they've been perfectly fine...I just have them aired down a bit right now with a ton of ice in my neighborhood).

As for the rust, just give a bath every now and then during the winter (they use mag chloride here which is corrosive, but slow to do damage) and you'll be good. Otherwise, it's very dry out here so rust isn't really any issue.

Ok gotcha. Now that I see it form y'alls point of view it changes my perspective as well. I am from Texas where if you see even a bit of rust it is a red flag.

I will defiantly be giving other people lots of room. As my parents always say "I am not worried about you but all the other drivers on the road". I think after a year or two of living there I may figure it out. But who knows I have never even driven on slush here in TX.

Ok I will have to contact some friends up there and see if they would let me store and extra set of wheels and tires if I do end up moving. But theatrically if I was not able to find a place to store them would getting some good chains be enough?

I am definitely lifting it but would it be wise to get bigger gears so that I am not going as slow up the mountain passes?

Thanks!

Haha, that's good advice. There are people that grew up here that end up in ditches too, so you never know.

If you even have to think about finding a place to store tires and stuff just get a decent set of A/T tires (with the snowflake symbol) like Duratracs. You won't need chains, unless you plan on off-roading in the snow, in which case you'll need chains, a winch, and friends to dig you out. Ask me how I know.

If you have the space and know how to re-gear for 33's or something bigger, then by all means. I'll just say that while 3rd Gen on 32's wasn't the fastest up the highway passes, it certainly wasn't a slouch and I managed just fine for 8 or so years with it. I'm guessing a 4th Gen V6 with 33's or something would still be better than a 3rd Gen on 32's, so you'll probably be fine. You could always just lift and get the tires first and then see if you can live with it. Just remember to take it out of overdrive going uphill.

If you cannot swing it cash wise then sure get some AT tires with the snowflake rating on it.

Having to think about a place to put spare tires should absolutely not stop you from getting snow tires if your wallet permits and you find place to store them. They are tires specifically designed for the winter, and will outperform any AT or 3PMSF rating tire you throw at it. Hands down. Think safety.