Building a pavement princess - 2014 TE build thread

[TEQ.FZJ]

Hey man looking good! I love your rig in your garage. I keep showing my wife, and she keeps saying.... Uh huh we are not buying another car.

Incidentally could you tint the reflector and not the outside lens? Hadn't ever seen that done but thought it might look cool.

Ha thanks! You know, that's a good idea and it's had me thinking lately. I've opened up headlights before using heat guns or the oven, but never taillights. Would definitely look a lot better. I wonder if anybody has opened them up. I should post a thread!

where do you source that nifty japanese paint?

eBay or Amazon, sold under the "Vans" brand

I also have the Mag Gray, but I love the chrome accents on the tails. I think it's one of the distinctive features on the new tail lights, and I think it looks great when combined with the silver bumper trim on the Trail, but to each his own.

I agree, but on certain colors. On white I think it looks great. On dark colors like gray or black I don't like it. Makes it look too bright and too busy. I plan on painting the rear chin black too so it will all look dark and subdued.

 

[bimrunner]

Ha thanks! You know, that's a good idea and it's had me thinking lately. I've opened up headlights before using heat guns or the oven, but never taillights. Would definitely look a lot better. I wonder if anybody has opened them up. I should post a thread!.

I don’t think you can open these tails up. I think there was a few tries from someone else. If you are wanting to open them up (or try), you may want to talk to me about my old tail lights first so you don’t mess up those nice new ones!

 

[marshal]

you can't open them up, they're sonic welded

 

[TEQ.FZJ]

Cool, good thing I asked. I was about to get trigger happy with my heat gun. I'll just leave the tint until I get bored of it, then have a body shop do it with a clear coat.

What do you guys think? Instead of using a clear tinted with black, tint it Mag Gray, same color as the truck. Would that look weird?

 

[bimrunner]

Cool, good thing I asked. I was about to get trigger happy with my heat gun. I'll just leave the tint until I get bored of it, then have a body shop do it with a clear coat.

What do you guys think? Instead of using a clear tinted with black, tint it Mag Gray, same color as the truck. Would that look weird?

Honestly I think it would look weird but if ya like it, do it! If I could just have smoke chrome, it would be perfect IMO.

 

[TEQ.FZJ]

Honestly I think it would look weird but if ya like it, do it! If I could just have smoke chrome, it would be perfect IMO.

Yeah, I can't picture in my mind how it would look. Seems like the best option is a clear coat tinted with black paint. That would give you a true 'smoked chrome' look. I would have them spray the top portion, the red stripe and leave the middle as it is. Then cover the whole thing again in a coat of clear.

 

[superwhite]

Playing catch up on this thread and enjoying the look of the truck so far! Love the subject change on your part after the girl. Well played.

On a related note, I wanted to ever-so-slightly tint/smoke my tail lights on my '14 (super) white and looked into some high quality vinyl films a local guy installs. In case you or anybody wanted to take that route, he told me that the way the top juts out would make it tough for the wrap to stay on permanently. I was pretty bummed because he does really nice, subtle work...

 

[KiruxaT4R]

I got white 14 TE and you are doing what I have to wait do till its warm outside. either way, your truck is my inspiration!
You will somewhat have a white TE copycat...haha

 

[TEQ.FZJ]

IT'S LIFTED!!!

Spent about 8hrs today installing the lift. I thought my IFS days were over. Such a pain working on IFS lifts. My Land Cruiser's solid front axle has me spoiled. Anywho, here's a list of the parts I used:

Toytec Adjustable "DIY" coilovers, $590
Front adjustable coil over kit with Bilstein 5100's

Matching Bilstein 5100 shocks for the rear, $199, but I got them on eBay for $150 shipped
Bilstein 5100 Rear shocks for FJ/4Runner

1.5" Rear spacers, $89
Rear 1.5" lift Black Spacers Poly for FJ/4Runner

To remove and install the coilovers I ended up removing the tie-rod and separating the spindle from the LCA. That gave me plenty of room. The hardest part of the whole project was setting the lift height in the front. Took a lot of measuring, jacking up, removing the wheels, adjusting, repeat. I think I'm finally happy with the look. Getting an alignment tomorrow. Only quirk is the driver side rear is sitting almost 1" higher than the passenger side rear, not sure why?! Well, onto to the pics:

Toytec coilover before assembly and the factory strut

Compressing and disassembling the OEM strut. The Toytec kit uses the stock top plate and hardware and is essentially the same coilovers as the Toytec "Ultimate" kit, just a bit cheaper since you do the labor yourself.

Toytec coilover assembled using the OEM top plate

Shoved into place! You can see my hand pulling the spindle/rotor assembly out the way. I don't see how you could get this thing in there without disassembling the spindle/LCA

And the rear, nothing exciting here. The back suspension was a piece of cake compared to the front

And final shots! I had a bit of rubbing in the front fender liner. Did the "liner mod" trick and will trim a bit of the bumper away. That should take care of any rubbing. Trimming should be very minimal.

 

[Izlu]

Looking great but it's Pavement Princess no more, it's a mean guy Subscribed to this thread since day one, will sure be one of many inspirational build threads if I buy TE some day

 

[shaneotool]

The stance looks perfect.

So what amount of lift do you think you ended up with up front?

 

[mfregeau20]

IT'S LIFTED!!!

Spent about 8hrs today installing the lift. I thought my IFS days were over. Such a pain working on IFS lifts.

Turned out nice, especially with the wheel color combo, probably looks even better in person. I am sure someday i can post up in the spotted Thread when I see you around town.

 

[TEQ.FZJ]

Looking great but it's Pavement Princess no more, it's a mean guy Subscribed to this thread since day one, will sure be one of many inspirational build threads if I buy TE some day

Haha thanks! I'll need to take it off road first before it loses the princess title

The stance looks perfect.

So what amount of lift do you think you ended up with up front?

It's hard to say, wish I took better measurements. I took some before/after measurements but I also changed tires along the way. I like to the think the final was about 2.5". Right now from the bottom of the fender to the ground is about 38.5" in the front. I may adjust it more depending on how the rear spacers settle.

Good thing I bought the Lifetime alignment at Firestone!

Turned out nice, especially with the wheel color combo, probably looks even better in person. I am sure someday i can post up in the spotted Thread when I see you around town.

Thanks! Rocklin I see - we're usually down and around the 50

 

[shaneotool]

I'd be interested in what you think about your suspension set-up after you've driven around on it for a few days. I have spent an unhealthy amount of time researching various lifts, and I like what you have done with yours. I like the ability to dial it in with the front coilover, and the spacer in the back keeps the costs and height down a bit.

Nice job on your rig all the way around..

 

[TEQ.FZJ]

I'd be interested in what you think about your suspension set-up after you've driven around on it for a few days. I have spent an unhealthy amount of time researching various lifts, and I like what you have done with yours. I like the ability to dial it in with the front coilover, and the spacer in the back keeps the costs and height down a bit.

Nice job on your rig all the way around..

Thanks! I think this lift is a good compromise between cost and quality. At first I was set on doing a simple spacer lift to keep things as cheap as possible since it wasn't meant for offroad use. But the more I drove it the more I hated the nose-dive when braking. It really annoyed me.

In order to completely eliminate it I'd have to replace the front shocks and springs. The adjustable Bilsteins are nice, but the pre-set heights weren't enough. And if using an aftermarket spring, the adjustability was even more reduced.

That's why I chose these coilovers. They actually use the same adjustable Bilstein shocks that everybody has, but they come with the threaded collar that sits on the same C-clip. Then just assemble yourself and enjoy. The same coilovers I bought sell for $800 assembled: ToyTec Coil Overs (FJ, 03 & UP 4Run, & 05 & UP Tacoma)

As far as ride quality goes, I LOVE it. Nose-dive is GONE. Truck is stiffer, but in a good way. It's not harsh, but it rides and handles like what you'd expect from an SUV. The Bilstein 5100s are a really nice shock for a daily driver. In fact, I have these same shocks in my FJ80 Land Cruiser. They absorb bumps very well. For a daily driver and mild trail rig I think they're great. If you're doing high-speed runs on desert washboards, then you'll obviously want to pay more for a shock that can absorb massive hits.

 

[shaneotool]

Thanks.

I was/am also considering a spacer lift as well because my off road use will be basically just dirt roads. I really don't like feeling like I'm riding on a pillow of marshmallows though...

Your description of the ride sounds like what I'm after.

 

[TEQ.FZJ]

While not related to my pavement princess, it's still Toyota so I figured you guys would enjoy the pics. Went to play on the local lake bed with my buddy in his 3rd gen. Miserable weather but fun times!

 

[KiruxaT4R]

wow I love your 80s. I used to have a 1HZ right hand drive with 0 rust and 100,00 kms for a diesel with one previous owner. They are truly great vehicles!
not to steal your thread but heres one pic:

 

[KVA]

Nice pics...love the gas guzzler sticker...lol:thumb3:

 

[GU4runner]

Question about your HIDs. You still have your ability to do DRL?