This is a foundational part and needed if I want to run the roof top tent that I bought for my outgoing Tacoma build.



I looked at both the Sherpa and the Prinsu racks. I didn’t consider many of the others, like Front Runner, as I needed a lower profile rack as clearance is a concern right now. My 4Runner is currently my DD and the parking garage to my job has a low clearance and with the current lift, it’s a tight fit. This also applies to my apartment garage.

I ended up going with Sherpa. Nothing against Prinsu and though the Sherpa was more expensive, I liked the design better and the rack appears to be more solid.

That said, installation was straight forward and I was able to do this solo.

When I purchased the Princeton Sherpa rack, I also bought the ExtremeLED dual color light-bar, and I carried over the Heretic ditch lights I had on my Tacoma build and am now using them as chase lights, though I probably need something to dim them.



I also installed some amazon special rock lights that are mounted on the rack for area lights.

This did require me transferring over the Auxpower 6 gang switch kit that I had on my Tacoma. Most people choose the 8 gang switch, which the aftermarket has created a lot of bracket designs to accommodate most of these options. Long term, I plan to get a SwitchPros setup, but when I purchased the 6 gang switch, I was on a tight budget. Going the 6 gang route meant I had to get creative with the bracket.

I found a bracket for another switch that dimensionally was close to the 6 gang switch box I bought. Here's a link if your interested.

TRIGGER Toyota Tacoma Underhood Controller Bracket | Trigger Wireless Accessory Controllers

This is the bracket that I started with:


I did needed to elongate one of the front switch holes and the rear holes were almost perfect to mount a BlueSea's bus bar. I think it turned out pretty good. I also like the fact that this uses standard relays, which are easy to replace if one goes out.





Mounting the interior switch was easy. The 4Runner center stack has plenty of open space to mount it.



Overall, I am very impressed with the build of the rack. I plan on using it to run either my roof top tent or other gear depending on what adventure I am going on.

The rack light setup is pretty bright too!

Now that I have the rack installed, I can mount the Free Spirit Recreation Aspen v1 roof top tent that I bought while I still had my Tacoma. At the time, I had pre-ordered an RSI SmartCap and had already been waiting about 6 months.



I was hoping to have all this before Moab, but it didn’t work out and after returning, I bought the 4Runner with plans to sell the Tacoma.

But I still had my tent and of course wanted to use it. Here’s some pics of it after I got it. Man, I miss my last garage and just seeing a Tacoma with a SmartCap, I miss my truck too.







Though this is a lighter tent compared to most roof top tents on the market, it still weights about 135lbs and not something one person can just pickup and put on the top of a lifted vehicle. Sure, I can ask friends to help, but I am a very independent person and work at being creative, if I can, so that I am not any more reliant on others then I need to be.

Also, my 4Runner wont fit in my garage with the tent installed and the I am not comfortable leaving my 4runner sitting out in the parking lot here any longer then needed. We have had lots of break-ins and vehicles stolen.

So I scoured the internet because I figured I wasn’t the only person with this problem and came up with a novel solution, though still not 100% fool proof.



Using both a dolly/tent holder and a ladder like frame equipped with a small winch, I am able to pull the RTT up into a position that I can then push and pull the tent to a good resting spot.





I originally had the winch mounted at the top, but the tent dolly was blocked by it. So I returned it and bought a more compact winch that is mounted at the base of the ladder.




And then used a winch pulley at the top.



To secure the ladder to the rack so it doesn’t shift or pull away from the car, I used some long hook bolts to secure it. Not sure how much a difference these make but I don’t trust pulling and pushing the tent dolly around without anything holding the ladder in place.




Then using blocks of 2x4’s, I support the tent while pulling the tent dolly out from under it and then remove the ladder.

I don’t have a picture doing this, but you can see in this pick that blocks positioned on the rack.




At this point, I just need to start removing the 2x4 blocks to start lowering the tent into the roof rack. If all goes well, I have been able to install/remove my RTT in a little over an hour.





I have used this setup a few times now and need to do a few tweaks to the setup, but overall I am very happy with how it all works. Not as nice as a pulley system, but I don’t have a garage tall enough to do this.

That said, if anyone is interested, I am happy to share the parts I used and can even take measurements of the parts.

In prep for an upcoming trip to South Dakota, I needed a way to keep my solar generator charged as it was keeping my fridge running while the 4Runner was turned off.

This was not as straight forward as I anticipated. I should have guessed that behind the rear console trim was a big air tube that feeds the rear vents. This is very similar to the 5th gen I had.



This mod will reduce the flow a little, but I don’t have rear passengers much, at least not currently. It’s hard to see in this pic, but you also need a thick backing plate for two reasons. 1. The usb and power outlets are too deep and will come in contact with the back of the console storage area. 2. The contour on the rear console trim is not flat.

I choose to use a scrap piece of wood, trimming it into shape and drilling the two, requisite holes for the power ports.



All in all, it came out well and does what I need it to do.

Now my Bluetti EB55 and SetPower RV45 dual zone fridge have power and are a great setup for me. I just need to build a better platform to secure them while off roading.

I love this solution. I recently mangled the hell out of my spare tire swingout so I can't use it. No third row seating in mine though so I'll have to see if I can figure out something like this.

Awesome build!

Thanks FoundedSine14.

It maybe possible to retrofit the bracket for the third row seating, but it's probably not worth the effort. That said, here's a few links I found on when I was looking for an mount. They show different ways to build out an interior carrier or mount to secure the full size spare in the interior. Perhaps you will find something that works for you.

Interior spare tire mounting | IH8MUD Forum

I really liked this one. Though it was made for a Land Cruiser, something similar could be made for a 4Runner. I'd probably start with a solid wood floor, especially if you were considering building out a drawer setup:

An interior tire carrier | IH8MUD Forum

Really, only your imagination and your pocket book are your only limits.

Thanks for the Cross Industries link. Looks like the perfect solution.

Glad I could help. Trying to share as much of my experience (good and bad) so it makes it easier for the next person.

That is a badass spare mount! I like it on the inside cabin versus outside...a well designed mount too! Hmmmm, what to do, what to do!

I know, right. I had considered making my own, but this mount doesn't require any fabbing or drilling holes. Only requirement is having the 3rd row seating option. If you have that, this is almost a no brainer. And it's super easy to revert back to stock.

I would recommend putting something, like a plastic bag, under the tire. If not, it will leave a black mark on your carpet.

Time for a break with friends. We had been planning this trip for awhile. This was a great opportunity to get away and check out the 4Runner and the roof top tent combo. Our small group wanted to go some place less traveled, were the scenery was great and dispersed camping areas were plenty.

We opted for the Badlands and Black Hills areas in South Dakota and we where not disappointed. I wasn’t expecting the last minute idea to take kayaks, that was a surprise. This trip was intended to be laid back and with no plans to do any crazy trails or visit any touristy areas. We just wanted to get away and relax.




Our trip was already starting off with challenges. I could not find my wheel lock which meant I couldn’t swap out a tire if I needed too. I will be taking a big risk, but I wasn’t going to cancel this trip last minute.

Because I spent so much time looking for the wheel lock, I felt rushed with organizing my gear. Fortunately, most of my camping and off road gear was in the same containers and bags that I used for the Moab trip with my Tacoma. You can’t see it here, but I also have my fridge and solar generator in place of the second row seat (removed) plus parts and tools on the passenger side. Regardless, with the setup and the RTT, I was still able to setup or break down camp is less than 30 minutes.



Our group opted to meet at a Village Inn across the river, in Council Bluffs, IA, to have a good breakfast. We were already attracting attention too.

I was pretty cool, traveling with a group of kitted out Toyota’s. I will admit that I missed my Tacoma, but really enjoyed the v8 in the 4Runner…. just not the gas milage. (I will talk more about that later, it was really bad).

The Black Hills, South Dakota isn’t to far from Omaha, NE, which would give us more time to relax and not be so rushed. We opted to take i29 north, passing through Sioux City, IA and then on to South Dakota. I wasn’t expecting the crazy wind. Add the RTT and kayak on top, I was surprised to still be on the ground.



We weren’t to far into the trip when I started having electrical issues that was effecting my hard wired GMRS radio that I recently installed. It would lose power to the radio and then it would turn back on. Rinse, repeat. Eventually, I just unplugged the radio and used my handhelds that I was glad that I had with me.

Our first major stop was at a cool spot in the Crooked Creek Township, near Wall, SD and on just north of the Badlands National Park. This dispersed camping spot was recommended to us by one of my friends, coworker. This dispersed sight sits on the outskirts of a sunflower farm too.






Magic hour was pretty cool with the sun setting off in the distance.






Even the moon rise was pretty cool. This was September, 2023 when the moon was supper bright.

It got pretty windy overnight. Seems to be a common theme up in South Dakota. Didn’t help that we setup camp at the crest of the hill. Ironically, after the wind died down, I had a coyote not more than 20 feet from my 4Runner yapping for an hour. lol.

First night in the RTT was an experience, but really, not a bad one. Waking up to a view like this made it worth it.

We saw a few vehicles driving down into the valley when we had setup camp and was interested to see what was down there. After having breakfast and packing everything up, we decided to venture down the trail.

It wasn’t crazy, but did have deep, washed out ruts. You could get to our camp spot with a Civic but traversing the trail beyond that point really isn’t recommend unless you have a 4WD. High clearance isn’t required.

Here you can see up close, the crooked creeks. The creak looked pretty low.






This was probably the most challenging part of the trail…..not really.



We found a cool spot towards the end of the trail. I don’t have pictures, but beyond where we parked was a large grouping of prairie dog’s. The whole trail experience was safari like. We weren’t interested in blazing new trails so we turned around and headed back out and off to our next destination.

For our next stop, we decided to head to Pactola Lake, so we could do a little Kayaking and fishing. Pactola is a pretty big lake. And staying consistent to the theme for this trip, it was very windy.



Most of our fishing occurred in a cove as the currents would keep forcing you back to the docks if you stayed in the open water.