Fully armored. Is it worth the trade-off in weight?
- Thread starter Mutant138
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LandCruiser
New member
My 80 series is fully armored and it's a ponderous fuel wasting pig. Yes, you will have to upgrade the springs. Your suspension will also wear twice as fast. Fuel economy is worthless. On road performance is nonexistent.
Have you considered making a Jeep into a buggy that is barely road legal?
Have you considered making a Jeep into a buggy that is barely road legal?
Inv4drZm
Senior Member
My truck has 37's, full steel armor, and regear to 4.88s. I've got no regrets with it's onroad performance, I can daily drive it. Driven it half way across the country, completed the Rubicon trail with no body damage, and drove it back to work the next morning.
If you want more offroad perfomance the weight trade-off is worth it.
If you want more offroad perfomance the weight trade-off is worth it.
sn_85
Senior Member
My rig is fully armored and heavy. Hefty aluminum front (although may change to a Lil B's full steel hybrid soon) and 4x4 Labs in the rear. RCI aluminum skids minus the fuel tank. Running 285 C's. I have a flat platform in the rear and keep a fridge back there pretty much all the time. No roof rack but run LFD crossbars and an awning. Dual batteries up front and haven't put my winch back in. Currently I think it drives fine. I avg about 15-16mpg combined. On a recent trip from AL to PA doing highway I was getting about 17 mpg. I'm not top heavy so handling feels good and braking is fine with new oem pads and rotors. TBH I think the mpgs are great given how much weight I have. I plan on going to 34's and re-gearing sometime in the future.
Yes I do think it's a slippery slope and once you go rear bumper, especially 4x4 Labs, there's really no point in weight savings. I think if I look back and think my optimal setup between off-roader and on road daily driver it would probably be when I had the C4 lo-pro bumper and 275's. I was getting 18-19 mpg at that time and still took it on some good trails. Adding a rear bumper with swing outs really adds a lot of weight and at least 2-3 more steps when wanting to open the rear hatch. A single half-swing bumper is probably the easiest to deal with. I guess it really boils down to how important you think carry a full size spare is on the back instead of underneath and how many jerry cans of gas/water you need. I'd probably recommend getting a full front bumper & winch first and then the rear bumper when you need it. I've had more issues with approach angle than departure angle but still rubbed the hitch and rear bumper cover a few times.
Yes I do think it's a slippery slope and once you go rear bumper, especially 4x4 Labs, there's really no point in weight savings. I think if I look back and think my optimal setup between off-roader and on road daily driver it would probably be when I had the C4 lo-pro bumper and 275's. I was getting 18-19 mpg at that time and still took it on some good trails. Adding a rear bumper with swing outs really adds a lot of weight and at least 2-3 more steps when wanting to open the rear hatch. A single half-swing bumper is probably the easiest to deal with. I guess it really boils down to how important you think carry a full size spare is on the back instead of underneath and how many jerry cans of gas/water you need. I'd probably recommend getting a full front bumper & winch first and then the rear bumper when you need it. I've had more issues with approach angle than departure angle but still rubbed the hitch and rear bumper cover a few times.
LandCruiser
New member
I'd argue that the approach angle is just a design flaw of the platform that was only really addressed well with the FJ Cruiser... sort of.
What you do / Where is the Weight / Correct Suspension = Compromise
My thoughts on the build:
What you do – roads, fire trails, light off roading obviously don’t require hundreds of pounds of armor.
But if you are tearing up the underside, you need armor.
The other option is don’t drive there or break stuff.
Where is the weight?
Roof racks & tents can cause issues.
But you can’t get weight much lower than armor.
I had only been thinking up & down.
I recently went to CAT scales and was surprised with my axle weights.
3000 lbs on front axle
2640 on rear axle
Arguably a rear bumper might actually help me with weight distribution, but I don't really need one.
Spare underneath, prefer day trips or 1-night, don't need to carry fuel.
Spare and hitch take the departure beating mostly.
I guess if I tear something off I'll start looking at rear bumpers.
Suspension:
I started with Tires - to get off road.
Then sliders and skid plates – to get further off road.
Then hybrid bumper, winch & recovery gear – for safety/recovery.
At this point I was heavy and dragging the belly – tearing up the skid plates and rear links.
Once I finally committed to a suspension I’m way higher and drag so much less.
But now I keep thinking about harder trails…
Optimist or Pessimist?
A loaded 4Runner is a compromise.
Not the best on the Road.
Not the best on the Rocks.
Not the best Towing, Hauling, Camping, …. but capable of doing it all.
If you want to do one thing on the list there is always a better option.
If you want to do it all… not really.
My thoughts on the build:
What you do – roads, fire trails, light off roading obviously don’t require hundreds of pounds of armor.
But if you are tearing up the underside, you need armor.
The other option is don’t drive there or break stuff.
Where is the weight?
Roof racks & tents can cause issues.
But you can’t get weight much lower than armor.
I had only been thinking up & down.
I recently went to CAT scales and was surprised with my axle weights.
3000 lbs on front axle
2640 on rear axle
Arguably a rear bumper might actually help me with weight distribution, but I don't really need one.
Spare underneath, prefer day trips or 1-night, don't need to carry fuel.
Spare and hitch take the departure beating mostly.
I guess if I tear something off I'll start looking at rear bumpers.
Suspension:
I started with Tires - to get off road.
Then sliders and skid plates – to get further off road.
Then hybrid bumper, winch & recovery gear – for safety/recovery.
At this point I was heavy and dragging the belly – tearing up the skid plates and rear links.
Once I finally committed to a suspension I’m way higher and drag so much less.
But now I keep thinking about harder trails…
Optimist or Pessimist?
A loaded 4Runner is a compromise.
Not the best on the Road.
Not the best on the Rocks.
Not the best Towing, Hauling, Camping, …. but capable of doing it all.
If you want to do one thing on the list there is always a better option.
If you want to do it all… not really.
rochmpr
Senior Member
Well I was thinking I would prob go 34 on my next set since I've cut everything out anyways....
Guess it good to go with a regear... Just another few grand why not...
You only live once. Build it to be as capable as you want and know it's capabilities and plan and pack accordingly. Also, know where all the gas stations are as well.
First, I made peace with what a Toyota is a while ago. It’s a highly reliable underpowered rig that’s reasonably capable.
On the 4R, It’s on 285s with stock skids and a full roof rack. Probably won’t get more but it won’t see any trails that would need heavier skids or bumpers because we have an FJ.
The FJ is what we drive when things get spicier and it makes sense for it to be armored. I’ve been more focused on where that weight sits (keep it off the roof) and how the vehicle manages that weight (the correct suspension). Doing that, it’s still a fun vehicle to drive. I get 16-17mpg with 315s but I drive like a granny. If you are going to push the 4R, armor it and do it with less worries about tearing something up.
On the 4R, It’s on 285s with stock skids and a full roof rack. Probably won’t get more but it won’t see any trails that would need heavier skids or bumpers because we have an FJ.
The FJ is what we drive when things get spicier and it makes sense for it to be armored. I’ve been more focused on where that weight sits (keep it off the roof) and how the vehicle manages that weight (the correct suspension). Doing that, it’s still a fun vehicle to drive. I get 16-17mpg with 315s but I drive like a granny. If you are going to push the 4R, armor it and do it with less worries about tearing something up.
Mutant138
Banned
I have never considered a jeep. I don't need that kind of drama in my life.
I think it really is as simple as that tbh. Just gotta pay to play.
Those rear bumpers are all so heavy. I'm prob going to try a few other fabrication shops and see if someone will entertain my hybrid bumper design. If not I'll just wait till I finish my carport to garage conversion, buy a welder and a tube bender, and do it myself.
I would say for me it's 50/50 between front and rear damage. Ripped the rear bumper cover off a few times. Bent in the tub in the rear. Replace and tail light bumper mount dangle. Up front i have a slightly bent fender. Front bumper cover is half held on with zip ties. Even the upper grill has been plastic welded and zipped back up. I don't know for the life of me how my front valance is still attached it's a Christmas miracle.
The 4runner as it is stock is a compromise between road and off. Would have been nice if they just had more substantial bumpers from the factory. These flimsy designs don't do shit other then direct airflow and look "pretty". I think at the end of the day I'm just a little too aggressive for the truck in stock form. Too many trails out here too ha.
YOLO. I'm finna yeet this wallet bro. Straight savage.
Jk lmfao some people don't beat their kids enough.
But yeah i'm pretty much going to have to make peace with it and get it over with.
Well said. Suppose the question is regear first and get it over with or armor up and live with it and see how i feel about regearing after.
Several people have said to put my pedal commander back in. I took it off a while before putting all the armor in.
4runnin4mylife
New member
I would say regear 1st honestly. This is something (if you are anything like me) you will go back and forth about forever even after you put the weight to your 4R. If you pull the trigger on the regear first while the money stash is a little bigger, you will be better off, because you know you will armor up no matter what (or at least that what I did). This philosophy always works for me when I have a few things I am looking at doing. I go ahead and splurge on the questionable mod, because I know in my mind I will make the other mods happen one way or the other. I say up the tire size to 34, go 4.88 and load it down!
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patkelly4370
New member
Go get barrell weights equaling the armor you want. Scatter them throughout the truck simulating the desired additions. Drive around and see how you like it.
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Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
I went exactly the opposite on the FJ. Went to 315s and armor first and plan to regear soon. It’s been a slow boil on the performance degradation but hopefully it will be a nice refresh once I regear. Either way works, I was okay being slow but having protection and then catching up performance when I had the funds. Might be different priorities for you.
4runnin4mylife
New member
Exactly, either way works for sure. You will love it once you regear and gain some "performance" back. I was just saying regear first, as I have seen more people go back and forth on regearing (like months or even years) and not so much with whether to add armor or not. And once they finally regear, it's like night and day. Also, I feel that if you do offroad even just a small amount, the regearing gives you a little more "control" and may help you avoid beating your plastic to pieces in the meantime!
Xtremluck
New member
I think you need to be honest with yourself and your specific use case. If you're not already denting up and ripping off your stock bumper covers I would say it would be a waste to carry on all that extra weight. If you frequent technical and rocky trails and you start banging things up full armor doesn't become an option anymore its a requirement. I would wait until you get to that point honestly.
I'm digging the Victory rear bumper.
4Runner Rear Bumper | Strike | 5th Gen (10+) - Victory 4x4
It's upgrade-able. Can start with just the bumper and then, later on, add swing outs.
I'm at the point that I need the next size or 2 up in tires.
Might as well BMC and add upper control arms.
4Runner Rear Bumper | Strike | 5th Gen (10+) - Victory 4x4
It's upgrade-able. Can start with just the bumper and then, later on, add swing outs.
I'm at the point that I need the next size or 2 up in tires.
Might as well BMC and add upper control arms.
Armor was not an option for me. I rode rather simple trials before I had it and then once I put on the budbuilt full skids it made things much more fun as I was not as worried about damaging stuff under the truck. Damage on sides and wheels is unavoidable when pushing the limits but it's what I purchased this truck to do and drive it home when done.
I actually re-geared well before the skids and around same time as ARB front bumper. While the ARB front is not light, I appreciate it's stout build and works very well. with my rear bumper as others have said I typically do not hit anything with just drag it since our 4R's have big butts.
As for gas mileage with with the supercharger I think in 14-15 but go as low as 11.
I actually re-geared well before the skids and around same time as ARB front bumper. While the ARB front is not light, I appreciate it's stout build and works very well. with my rear bumper as others have said I typically do not hit anything with just drag it since our 4R's have big butts.
As for gas mileage with with the supercharger I think in 14-15 but go as low as 11.
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