Brian757's "Stormtrooper" Build Thread

[Brian757]

Total cost?

Not entirely sure, but maybe ~$30-40, thats with all high-powered LEDs for the dash, and then shipping. I think shipping alone is around $5-7.

 

[JoeT4R]

Not entirely sure, but maybe ~$30-40, thats with all high-powered LEDs for the dash, and then shipping. I think shipping alone is around $5-7.

I'm not too worried about shipping & all. I just hate the green OEM lighting. I think it's quite ugly.

 

[JoeT4R]

So I finally got my interior on! It was sort of a PITA, but it ended up looking awesome!

Here are some photos:



My subwoofer had to be removed:

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Here is the leather all set in:


http://s280.photobucket.com/user/briann757/media/DSC00943_zpsd4823bc8.jpg.html

Where did you also get the leather seats from?

 

[Brian757]

I craigslisted them. They came off of a totaled '01.

 

[JoeT4R]

I craigslisted them. They came off of a totaled '01.

Lucky!! I've been searching everywhere for them, including Craigslist. Yours look barely used.

 

[Brian757]

I was bored as hell yesterday, and decided to take out my subwoofers.
I don't use them anymore, I have a kid on the way, and I need the space.

BUT...

Who says I can't throw in a spare set of subs and an extra 1000 watt amp, just to hear 2000 watts bang? Exactly.

I HAVE to forewarn you, this setup looked jerry-rigged as hell. But it was only for a couple hours, and then it was torn down.
I unplugged the 4 channel, and used it's POWER, GROUND, & REMOTE to power the other mono amplifier. And then got 2 RCA splitters and ran them to the spare mono amp, and then ran the Kickers parallel and Alpines in series. So not entirely 2000, but in the ballpark.

Pics or it didn't happen:

I haven't taken a picture of my trunk currently, but imagine an empty trunk.

On a side note, I found this when I looked underneath my truck today:

Now, most people would look at that and think, "Damn man that sucks." But to me, it's perfect. I've been hunting down a coolant leak for the past 4 months, with pressure tests coming back fully pressurized.

The culprit ended up being a hole in my radiator. I'm ordering a KOYO online but buying a local trans cooler to prevent pink milkshake.
I'm also driving the trusty T100 until this gets repaired.

 

[Brian757]

Got off @ 2PM today and had some free time, so I did my replacement radiator and trans-cooler install. Went with a Spectra Radiator and Hayden Trans-Cooler. The Spectra has a limited-lifetime warranty, so it covers any manufacturer defects.

Here are some photos of install:

 

[Brian757]

I wrapped the opening for the trans-cooler lines with the old radiator hose:

 

[TheArkMaster]

Watts going on in your trunk? :lol:

 

[Lastplace]

Hold on there Brian, Toyotas require Toyota red or pink antifreeze. According to the parts guy (and may be BS) Toyota seals are softer and require special antifreeze. Is Peak an ethylene-glycol coolant?

 

[Brian757]

Hold on there Brian, Toyotas require Toyota red or pink antifreeze. According to the parts guy (and may be BS) Toyota seals are softer and require special antifreeze. Is Peak an ethylene-glycol coolant?

They don't require red or pink antifreeze. But they do require only one type of coolant. You mustn't mix any type of coolant; red & green, red & pink, etc., as they only work against each other. It is usually recommended to only use OEM coolant, but I have never used OEM red, and my truck came with green in the radiator. So I have always stuck with that. I guess that's why I never made it a big deal to only use OEM coolants.

Peak is an ethylene-glycol coolant. The actual chemical makeup (of Peak Long Life Prediluted):
Water: 49-50%
Ethylene Glycol: 45-48%
Diethylene Glycol: <3%
Denatonium Benzoate: 30-50 ppm
Organic acid salts proprietary: <3%

 

[kishanSR5]

Hey Brian757 what did you use to clean up/condition your leather seats?

Put the amplifiers back in. That was the biggest pain in the ace* about this whole project:




Installed the wiring. Had to ground wires and re-splice the new power seat wiring harnesses. It wasn't bad:
(The sunlight looks like stains on the seats, but these things are almost flawless.)

 

[Brian757]

Hey Brian757 what did you use to clean up/condition your leather seats?

I've personally always gone with Lexol, just because their products have day & night results, but their products also smell like urine. It's a tradeoff with that product.

With that said, I have been considering getting Griot's Leather Rejuvenator, and the Griot's Leather Cleaner. I have a friend that uses that stuff, and his leather looks amazing.

 

[kishanSR5]

Oh ok. Have you used/how do you feel about mothers products or armor all for leather? They seem to have some pretty good stuff.

I've personally always gone with Lexol, just because their products have day & night results, but their products also smell like urine. It's a tradeoff with that product.

With that said, I have been considering getting Griot's Leather Rejuvenator, and the Griot's Leather Cleaner. I have a friend that uses that stuff, and his leather looks amazing.

 

[Brian757]

Oh ok. Have you used/how do you feel about mothers products or armor all for leather? They seem to have some pretty good stuff.

I've heard good things about Mother's, and bad things about Armor All.
Mother's has quality products, and I have used their wheel polish.

Armor All uses a SH!T TON of oils in their products, and thats what sells them. People love the shine that Armor All gives everything, but its not always good for your interior. The shine attracts sunlight, and ArmorAll products don't really protect your interior from UV sun rays. So their known to overheat dashes, and crack plastic.

I usually stay away from Armor All. If you can get your hands on anything Griot, Meguiar's, Mother's, Turtle Wax "Ice", etc. it is amazing.
It all comes down to personal preference, and the type of leathers you have, vinyl, etc. But I really like the Lexol on our interiors.

 

[kishanSR5]

hmm. interesting and thanks for the advice!. I'll try and give the mothers leather care products a shot. I scored the rear set of leather seats for $40 off craigslist and they need a decent cleaning/conditioning to bring back that soft touch.

I've heard good things about Mother's, and bad things about Armor All.
Mother's has quality products, and I have used their wheel polish.

Armor All uses a SH!T TON of oils in their products, and thats what sells them. People love the shine that Armor All gives everything, but its not always good for your interior. The shine attracts sunlight, and ArmorAll products don't really protect your interior from UV sun rays. So their known to overheat dashes, and crack plastic.

I usually stay away from Armor All. If you can get your hands on anything Griot, Meguiar's, Mother's, Turtle Wax "Ice", etc. it is amazing.
It all comes down to personal preference, and the type of leathers you have, vinyl, etc. But I really like the Lexol on our interiors.

 

[Brian757]

Racing an Isuzu Trooper?! LOL damnit Brian...

So as an update, the 70/35 reckless ticket was dropped. The officer didn't show up to court. I am one lucky person! I've been driving Ms. Daisy ever since.

 

[1blink]

I'll say. That used to be easier to do, these days the officers get paid to show up to court dates. Congratulations

 

[Brian757]

Alright, so it's no fancy SAS update or anything like that, but I got LR upper control arms for Christmas and had today off, so I went to work on my truck. Went out to AdvanceAuto to get the ball joint master kit:




Here is a factory comparison(LR UCA on the left - OEM on the right):






The small piece above the bolt on the top of the UCA is the ball joint retaining clip. Just installed it last.


Now I'm going to purchase some '01 Tacoma OTRE's because supposedly they're beefier, and then sending it off to the alignment shop. Set the ring to "D". Torqued everything to spec except the top bolt. It called for 145 ftlbs. and I stopped at 110, just because it's not TDC. I figure the shop can torque it when she's all set.

 

[Brian757]

So years ago, when my sister owned my vehicle before me, the only addition she gave to the 4Runner was a nice dent in the rear passenger bumper extension. Well, roughly 7 years later I have finally fixed it.

My fiancee gave it to me for X-Mas.
Here:

BEFORE:

Sadly, I thought I had After shots. I will post them within the day, but just use your imagination until then. (No dent)

I also retrofitted some tweeters in the backseats, and haven't taken a photo of those either. All amplified and sounding gorgeous. (Infinity Kappas)