Desert Dawg build...what a switch!

And great thread btw - yours is my favorite 5th gen refresh I've seen so far. And you've got me thinking about that S/T Maxx, after agonizing over choices similar to yours for awhile I had decided on the STTs, but now I'm not so sure. Look forward to your continued feedback once you're offroad in them a little more (I will be getting new tires in August).

Again, nice truck man!
 
Paisano said:
I love this post. Mostly b/c of the time stamp 12:19 am. That may not have been your actual time but staring at the truck in the garage, that is fun.
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Paisano said:
And great thread btw - yours is my favorite 5th gen refresh I've seen so far. And you've got me thinking about that S/T Maxx, after agonizing over choices similar to yours for awhile I had decided on the STTs, but now I'm not so sure. Look forward to your continued feedback once you're offroad in them a little more (I will be getting new tires in August).

Again, nice truck man!
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Thanks Paisano! Yeah, I was up that late in the garage...lol.

I was considering the .Cooper SSTs too but really didn't want a MT again. The ST MAXX is a great compromise between an AT and MT while still looking good but with better street and trail performance than most. But you are right in that I need to report after I get more mileage and experience with them.
 
Update:

I noticed after the lift install that I definitely have the "lean" as the passenger side is about an inch lower than the driver side. I talked to Desert Rat and they think there would be no issue if they tweak the passenger side up a little more to even things out; they will realign at no additional cost to me too. So getting that corrected this weekend.

So far, I love the Coopers! I had the truck up to 80 mph on the highway and no additional tire noise at all, and they rode great! I am really pleasantly surprised how quiet these are (compared to other meaty tires I have run in the past). Love the suspension too; I have been flying over speed bumps and the rear is tad stiff but the front just absorbs them with no loss of control. Can't wait to go trailing again in CO in a couple more weeks and really test out the setup.
 
So tonight I tried out my Rigid D2 LEDs; man, are these things BRIGHT! Sorry for the grainy cell phone pics!

Pic with just low beams on:



Pic with just low beams and the set of the little D2 LEDs:



Dead on:

 
Desert Dawg said:
New to T4R.ORG and to Toyota as well, but after recently purchasing a used 2004 4Runner for my kid and having fun upgrading it, I got the bug.

My recent build: our newly purchased 2004 4Runner Sport 2WD. I added a Toytec 3-inch lift, BFG AT LT275/70R17, MB Chaos 6 17x8.5 with -6mm OS, Rola Roof Rack, KC Driving Lights, AVS Bug Deflector, AVS Window Visors, PIAA Windshield Wipers, and Hobbit "Shire Life" window sticker...lol. He loves it and is working to pay his share and has to take good care of it, but Dad had to have his fun too..lol:



I knew that name looked familiar. I've talked to you over on f150online a few times! I just made the switch to and sold my f150 for a new 4runnner. Small world! And welcome
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justind2405 said:
I knew that name looked familiar. I've talked to you over on f150online a few times! I just made the switch to and sold my f150 for a new 4runnner. Small world! And welcome
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Hey Justin, good to see you here too! Congrats on the new ride as well! I certainly miss some things about my F150 but have to say I have been thoroughly enjoying the new 4Runner and definitely having fun with my builds!

Good to have another familiar face on the forum. :cheers:
 
GRIMACE said:
I'm picking up my TE tomorrow morning and showed my wife a pic of your's. She thinks I got a lift and black wheels. The wife is so mad at me right now. So awesome! ::sniper:
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Oh, that's too funny. Sorry for causing you some grief but hopefully that means she is looking forward to some mods! :bluejump:
 
You've done more to your 4R since I've been deployed than I've done since I've owned mine. I bought my silver '13 about 6 months before I left and only upgraded the tires for my girls to make it through the winter. Seeing yours with the lift makes me drool! It makes me want to scrape up my quarters and go for it! I'm just not sure which route to go. Yours looks great!
 
derekp said:
You've done more to your 4R since I've been deployed than I've done since I've owned mine. I bought my silver '13 about 6 months before I left and only upgraded the tires for my girls to make it through the winter. Seeing yours with the lift makes me drool! It makes me want to scrape up my quarters and go for it! I'm just not sure which route to go. Yours looks great!
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Thanks derekp! And thanks for your service; where are you deployed at?

Yeah, I am not much for waiting on things...lol...when I bought the 4runner I was doing so with the mods in mind as to how I would want it, so had to move on modding it immediately...lol.
 
ive had my 2014 4runner trail for a few months now and I'm thinking about lifting it and doing tires and wheels. how big could i go on tires with a 3 inch lift without doing any chopping?
 
Spent the morning at Desert Rat fixing the "lean" issue that became more noticeable after the lift install. The kit did not come with the spanner wrench needed to adjust the coilovers (you have to purchase that separately from Toytec) so the tech had to make his own, but it now looks much better leveled out from side to side. No more lean!

However, I am not happy with the new alignment that had to be done again after adjusting the one side. I got tired of waiting over 2.5 hours for the tech to try and dial it in right (thankfully he is a perfectionist but even he was getting frustrated). So I took it back for now but definitely going to have to schedule another realignment:



One good thing that happened while there is that I got to meet up with another T4R.ORG forum member "Clevelando" as he drove in so we could compare notes on the trucks. He has been having some issues on his new 2014 including a KDSS "clunk" after his lift was installed (I had not heard of that yet on the 2014s as mine has no such clunk or any other noises), as well as some shudder/wobble at higher speeds with his Duratracs and Spidertrax spacers; of course, we couldn't duplicate any of the issues when we went driving around...figures...lol. Anyway, he is going to test drive mine after I get the alignment issue resolved to see if it drives better or not.
 
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Desert Rat needs to update their alignment machine. It says he's using 03-07 specs (which are probably the same but something like would drive me nuts).

I would try to get the left camber to match the right and bring the caster closer to 4°. I would also ask to spread out the toe just a hair.

How does it drive now?
 
gm350reratliff said:
Desert Rat needs to update their alignment machine. It says he's using 03-07 specs (which are probably the same but something like would drive me nuts).

I would try to get the left camber to match the right and bring the caster closer to 4°. I would also ask to spread out the toe just a hair.

How does it drive now?
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That is exactly what the tech told me today; they need a new machine! I thought the caster was too low too. It drives okay although it does favor towards the right if you let it, The steering seems "quick" and tends to stick.

I want it perfectfully straight so may have to take it to another alignment shop with updated equipment. Thanks for taking a look at the results!
 
Trucks Unique may have there machine updated but it may be a toss up whether or not you get anybody good on it. Last time I checked they did have a younger guy ( I think his name was Travis or Josh) that was ok at it. I would tell them exactly what you want and they should be able to do it.

It drives me nuts having someone else do the tires/alignment on my vehicles these days. Thats what I used to do ( for over ten years ) and it seems that I took more pride in my work and was a little more careful. I wish I had my own rack, I would dial it in for you.
 
gm350reratliff said:
Trucks Unique may have there machine updated but it may be a toss up whether or not you get anybody good on it. Last time I checked they did have a younger guy ( I think his name was Travis or Josh) that was ok at it. I would tell them exactly what you want and they should be able to do it.

It drives me nuts having someone else do the tires/alignment on my vehicles these days. Thats what I used to do ( for over ten years ) and it seems that I took more pride in my work and was a little more careful. I wish I had my own rack, I would dial it in for you.
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I wish you had an alignment shop too...lol. I will call Trucks Unique too and see what they have. Thanks!
 
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