Alex’s Golden Pearl OEM+ 3rd Gen Build

As a fellow golden pearl owner take my advice and remove the running boards. You don't need them and it improves the looks 100%
 
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As a fellow golden pearl owner take my advice and remove the running boards. You don't need them and it improves the looks 100%

I agree, I was holding off on removing them because I don't want to throw them away just in case I ever want to sell the truck in the future. I just bought a house and have a garage to store my junk my now so removing them is next on the list!
 
Big update!

I just purchased a 5 speed manual 1st gen Tacoma with a rear locker, multimode 4wd transfer case, and a 2nd gen SUPERCHARGER!

It's a little rusty and dirty but it'll clean up well. I got a smokin' deal on the whole truck so I'm planning on swapping the supercharger and supporting mods to my 3rd gen and keeping the Taco as a dedicated work truck!

I'll post some pictures of the Taco this weekend! Very excited about next steps in my build!
 
As promised here are some pics of the truck. Like I said its DIRTY, a little rusty, and definitely was neglected but I got it cheap enough that I really don't care about the issues at all :rockon:

Check it out! Since I have access to a shop I'll have them fix the small rust areas and dents as well as take off the pin striping. I'm also going to get a new front and rear bumpers since they're cheap enough, I found them for under $200 for both online!

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Big update!

I just purchased a 5 speed manual 1st gen Tacoma with a rear locker, multimode 4wd transfer case, and a 2nd gen SUPERCHARGER!

It's a little rusty and dirty but it'll clean up well. I got a smokin' deal on the whole truck so I'm planning on swapping the supercharger and supporting mods to my 3rd gen and keeping the Taco as a dedicated work truck!

I'll post some pictures of the Taco this weekend! Very excited about next steps in my build!
It isn't multi-mode, it is just push-button 4WD (like the '96-'98 4Runner Limited). Still, great find!!

-Charlie
 
A little cross post update from the supercharger thread. After a little more than 3 hours, I was able to get the supercharger itself off of the Tacoma, however I ran into an issue trying to get the 6mm hex bolt off of the dynamic tensioner.

Here are some pics of the set up I'm working with in my garage. Don't mind the dirty garage, I just bought this house and I still haven't had time to clean because I'm prioritizing the important stuff like supercharging my 20 year old truck!

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The 4runner!

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This is the Tacoma 3.4l after removing the supercharger. Whoever owned this truck treated it like CRAP! Both valve cover gaskets are shot, and it's throwing codes for a knock sensor and a O2 sensor, all of which I'l be replacing before installing the intake manifold from my 4runner.

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I defineitely have to repaint this...

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Take a look at this, whoever installed this tensioner must have used the wrong size hex bit :shrug:

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I noticed this plug and red cap on the intake tube. Is this evidence of meth injection at some point in the Tacoma's history?

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Also, I got lucky with the Tacoma, it had the OE Toyota supplied carb and belt routing stickers. I’ve swapped that part of the intake onto the 4Runner already!

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As promised here are some pics of the truck. Like I said its DIRTY, a little rusty, and definitely was neglected but I got it cheap enough that I really don't care about the issues at all :rockon:

Check it out! Since I have access to a shop I'll have them fix the small rust areas and dents as well as take off the pin striping. I'm also going to get a new front and rear bumpers since they're cheap enough, I found them for under $200 for both online!

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Does this Tacoma have a swapped frame? Because the 1st gen Tacoma frames are hard to save that show any rust, even with proper care and they rot from the inside. Both my uncles (live in Wisconsin) 1st gen Tacoma’s frames went bad after 7 years of owning them. One got his truck bought back from Toyota the other got a new frame.
 
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Does this Tacoma have a swapped frame? Because the 1st gen Tacoma frames are hard to save that show any rust, even with proper care and they rot from the inside. Both my uncles (live in Wisconsin) 1st gen Tacoma’s frames went bad after 7 years of owning them. One got his truck bought back from Toyota the other got a new frame.

Negative, not from Toyota at least. I looked up the service history and it shows multiple "wax treatments", but no frame replacement.
 
Negative, not from Toyota at least. I looked up the service history and it shows multiple "wax treatments", but no frame replacement.



I would take a really good look and a hammer pick to the frame, especially after the cab. I’ve been told that wax the dealers used can hold in the moisture causing more rust and could be covering it.

Here’s what happen to my uncles truck when it went on a lift. I’m not trying to scare you, just don’t want you to put time and money into a truck to find out the frame is
bad.
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That tensioner looks rough. Do you have any idea how many miles are on the supercharger? You might rebuild it while it’s off to save yourself some headache in the future.
 
I would take a really good look and a hammer pick to the frame, especially after the cab. I’ve been told that wax the dealers used can hold in the moisture causing more rust and could be covering it.

Here’s what happen to my uncles truck when it went on a lift. I’m not trying to scare you, just don’t want you to put time and money into a truck to find out the frame is
bad.
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That's insane! Can't say I have ever seen a frame split right in half like that :laugh:
 
I would take a really good look and a hammer pick to the frame, especially after the cab. I’ve been told that wax the dealers used can hold in the moisture causing more rust and could be covering it.

Here’s what happen to my uncles truck when it went on a lift. I’m not trying to scare you, just don’t want you to put time and money into a truck to find out the frame is
bad.
51b2752e0810aa1da635e79f92873bff.jpg

Yeah I've seen posts like that all the time. Theres no denying the frame is rusty on this Tacoma, but for $1,600 I can't complain!

That tensioner looks rough. Do you have any idea how many miles are on the supercharger? You might rebuild it while it’s off to save yourself some headache in the future.

No idea, but the truck only has 195k on it. I looked up service history and the supercharger has been on the truck since at least 90k. The bearings do not make any noise, and the coupler doesn't have any play in it either. I'm just going to repaint and install it the way it is, and if it acts up I'll opt for the rebuild.

Lookup the VIN if its eligible for frame replacement due to recall you can still take the truck in

I wish but being a 2002 I believe this model year Tacoma is out of luck on a frame swap.
 
Yeah I've seen posts like that all the time. Theres no denying the frame is rusty on this Tacoma, but for $1,600 I can't complain!



No idea, but the truck only has 195k on it. I looked up service history and the supercharger has been on the truck since at least 90k. The bearings do not make any noise, and the coupler doesn't have any play in it either. I'm just going to repaint and install it the way it is, and if it acts up I'll opt for the rebuild.



I wish but being a 2002 I believe this model year Tacoma is out of luck on a frame swap.

You might consider checking/changing the oil on it as a precaution. It's easy to do, and super easy if it's already off the car.
 
I ended up replacing the valve cover gaskets and spark plugs seals tonight and was VERY surprised after seeing how clean this Tacoma’s motor is. No staining at all! For how dirty this truck was, someone must have been rigorously changing the oil...

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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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Little update on the supercharger install. I ended up buying the mystery 10mm bolt from URD because mine was unsalvageable after getting it out and I also painted the supercharger!

Here’s a little before and after for ya!

Before:

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After:

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I changed the oil on the supercharger while it was out of the car and boy was that oil dirty. Check this out!

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I got stuck on another stripped bolt, this time it’s one that holds the front skid plate on the car. Waiting for a buddy to come this week to help me out with it!

The culprit!

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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Big update!

After many hiccups, I finally got the supercharger installed and working properly! I installed IK22 plugs, and NGK wires for now. I have a OE Toyota 170 degree thermostat in the box that I still need to install, but temps have been low for now with the 180 degree thermostat. Hearing the supercharger whine under throttle is so satisfying, especially at 250,000 miles!

Next mods up are for sure the TBU and tranny cooler.

Here she is in all her glory, I also got rid of the running boards. I'm liking the look of this a lot! This color is so unique, I absolutely love it!

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I of course had to install the OE supercharged and TRD emblems now that I'm boosted! After much debate I chose to place them where the factory emblem goes on the 2002 sport editions. I think this looks very OE+. Thoughts?

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I guess this week is filled with updates!

Now that I tackled the supercharger I felt empowered so I decided to give installing the Field Monitor Unit that I had laying around for the past year!

I picked up this FMU off of eBay from someone in Russia after looking for one for a while that was in tan and that was from a newer 4runner that had the single sunroof button rather than two. This is especially important as it makes wiring it A LOT easier.

I used this forum post as a guide for the install - Ripcord's 2002 Sport Ed. Version 2.0

These are getting harder and harder to come by and I believe that this mod pushes my truck further into the OE+ category. Very happy with the results!

Fitment and color; its an exact match to our US spec tan!

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Here it is lit up in the garage, this is so much cooler than the sunroof compartment! Sad that our US spec trucks never had this as an option!

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