Ctmg8's DD/budget build

[cstmg8]

So, long story short (or just a little less long), I bought this truck from a CR member, I'm sure he'll chime in. I saw the add, almost 20 yr old truck, blown head gasket, but in great shape otherwise.
I knew nothing about the Toyota 3.4, except that I could fix it.... Or that my wife would kill me if I couldn't. I don't remember what the asking price was, but we agreed on $1,200. So I went to look at this truck:

I know, right? $1,200!! The exhaust was smoking(steam) pretty badly:

He was nice enough to let me run it through a few heat cycles at his house over the next two days. I picked up a bottle of Barr's carbon fiber stopleak for $45 (ouch) and got started, with the intention of just driving it home.
After 3 or so heat cycles it idled like this, and I drove it home:

I dd'd the runner for a full year like that! Already getting my $1,200 worth. Did I mention it had brand new geolander A/T's, and an in dash pioneer dvd? I honestly felt a little guilty at times, for the deal I'd gotten.
Then the head gasket blew for good, and I parked it in my garage for teardown. My first overhead cam work:

Unfortunately, life hit, and the 4runner sat this way for a year.....ish.... we had our second daughter and I started in the elevator trade, working 60 hrs a week for a year.
I decided to replace the rusted out exhaust with a walker replacement:

I finally got motivated in Aug 2017 and put her back together and fired her up. New gaskets, a roof basket, and a battery later (and a little plastidip), this is how she sat:

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[cstmg8]

Currently working on the suspension upgrade/replacement.
Front:
ebay longer UCA's
Wheelers off-road 3" lift coils
Bilstein 5100 adjustable shocks
1"diff drop
Rear:
Toytech superflex lift coils (3-3.75" depending on weight)
Rough country n20 shocks

1.25" hubcentric wheel spacers
Removing swaybars for now, as they are shot anyway.


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[cstmg8]

Finally got back to it tonight after a long day of family time. Driver's side assembled, hoping to get the passenger side done tonight, or at least coil/shock in and ball joint ready to beat out without waking anyone up.
FYI, no matter how much heat you use or hard you hit it, the ball joint will not come out of the spindle...........until you remove the snap ring. [emoji15]
Also, it may be a waste of time, but I've been wire brushing any rust I can get to and spraying with black Rust-Oleum rust reformer. Has to be slightly better than doing nothing.

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[cstmg8]

Gasser mode engaged! Maybe I should just throw some slicks on it and go run some 20 sec passes at the track!
...rear lift underway.

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[cstmg8]

Lift installed:

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[cstmg8]

Still running strong.
I burnt up the alternator trying to jump a bad battery in my G8, so I figured it was time for an upgrade. I went with the c144 from the caddy. I k ow there are good write ups on here, so I'll spare all of the details.
I also decided to upgrade the other wiring, and new terminals, basically the big three mod. Wasn't bad at all.
Had a little trouble with the tensioner bolt bending, but I was able to get it freed up in the vice.

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[cstmg8]

While I was in there I installed the thermostat. This one had no relief hole, so I drilled a 1/8" hole and positioned it to 12 o'clock. Cheapo hose clamp pliers were ok, but still allowed a drip.

Took her for a test run, and Torque says the alt and stat are good.

 

[cstmg8]

Next up is the 1" body lift to replace the worn body mounts, then 33's.

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[Hepar]

Nice work keeping her on the road!

 

[cstmg8]

I'm putting a new HVAC system in mom's house, so I loaded the old girl down and headed to Athens. She ran like a top, I feel good every time I get one of these two hundred mile round trips on her, feel better about the engine repairs and the fact that it's still running good. I think I am going to go ahead and replace the lower ball joints, just because they have 212,000 miles on them, and I'm using the bigger tires next week.

Couldn't pass up the opportunity to drive up on the back of the farm though, so she got a little bit of offroad practice and the mandatory Flex Shot.

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[cstmg8]

I think I am also going to go ahead and order the Firestone air bag kit for the rear, just to assist a little when I have a load. The toy Tech rear springs squat a little more than I would like if I have much weight back there as you can see from the shot up on the hill.

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[FlyingTurtle]

I think I am also going to go ahead and order the Firestone air bag kit for the rear, just to assist a little when I have a load. The toy Tech rear springs squat a little more than I would like if I have much weight back there as you can see from the shot up on the hill.

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Looked up that Firestone Air Bag kit: For $90 seems like a steal if they hold up. Let us know how they work out for you.

 

[cstmg8]

Looked up that Firestone Air Bag kit: For $90 seems like a steal if they hold up. Let us know how they work out for you.

Ended up getting the kit from Advance Auto, with the online coupon codes I ended up nabbing it for $75!

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[cstmg8]

Axles showed up, picking up lower ball joints this morning. Another weekend of wrenching on the runner.

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[cstmg8]

Haven't had time to update much, but I've made a little progress. I got the 1" body lift installed, airlift bags installed, and started on fitting a couple 8" subs I have laying around, into the cargo area.
There are great write ups on these things, so I'll just touch on what I did differently. Feel free to ask any questions.

I'm going to be installing a controller/gauge inside the truck, so I needed to route my airlines a little differently.
After installing the bags into my coils, I noticed these two grommets already existing in the rear cargo floor, directly above the springs.

I routed my airlines up through the springs and through a hole I made in the grommet with a tight fit. I then added a little wire look for rubbing protection. The best part is that this position doesn't move, as it's between the coil mount and the body.

 

[cstmg8]

So far so good, everything holds air. I'll finish up when my parts arrive.

This is how she sits right now.

 

[cstmg8]

New lower ball joint for the passenger side is in. I'll be installing that and the passenger axle this weekend, as it blew out the boot.
Ordered EMF uniballs for my uca's, but the lead time is 8-12 weeks. [emoji853]

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