Just another build thread

[Zeke588]

Hi all my names Zeke. From Sacramento Ca. New to the 4th gen family. Previously owned a 2nd gen 4runner. Had procomp BJ spacers up front and procomp hd coils in the rear. Once I figure out how to post pics I’ll put a picture of it up. The 1993 blew a head gasket and with a new baby on the way I figure I might as well get a more family friendly vehicle. So I picked up a 2003 limited v8 with 172k miles. Man this thing is sweet. I’m pretty old school when it comes to cars. I hate my wife’s 2013 Honda Civic. Took me a while to figure out the whole radio system and buttons. Anyway I digress.

I picked up the truck all stock. It had Xreas suspension replaced at 115k miles. I’ve read they usually start to fail after 100k. So the ride was pretty smooth. Not like my old truck. As soon as I bought it I started ordering parts for it. I ordered the lift and tires. Also went with pfran led interior kit. Weather tech floor mats front, rear, and cargo. Got the dog barrier up also. The interrior is too nice to let my 50 lb dog tear up the seats and get hair everywhere.

I installed the lift this weekend, on Saturday. Everything went smooth except for the weather. I worked through hail too put this lift on lol. Set the Bilsteins at 2.5 and got OME 895e in the rear with bilsteins in the also. With the front I had to remove the sway bar. I got the front installed and took a ride around the block. The truck felt like driving a water bed haha. Brought it back and finished up the lift, all while I dropped off the Tacoma alloy wheels at America’s tire and had some 285/75/16 installed.

Once the ome’s We’re installed it stiffened up the truck ride quite a bit. I don’t mind at all because I feel like it compensated for no front sway bar.

I don’t have any picture of the truck stock or before and after measurements but here are some pics of the next day. After a quick test drive the alignment didn’t feel so bad. So I took it up the hill to play in the snow

 

[Zeke588]

Here’s what the trucks looks like as it sits now.

 

[Zeke588]

About a week later my pfran interior light kit arrived. I installed it and was very happy. The center consol light is bright enough for the whole car. I can say I am kind of disappointed with the door lights. But 50 bucks for a whole kit. That took 15 mins and a beer to install? It’s not that bad..

 

[Zeke588]

My old 4runner had an HID kit installed already after driving it for a few years I came to like the bright white color vs the dull dingy yellow that comes from a halogen. I couldn’t decide if I wanted to install an hid kit yet so I went with some 9012 bulbs for low beams. IMO the color is whiter and brighter however the distance isn’t much further than stock. For some reason whiter colors are easier for me to see in. I replaced the DRL light with an LED light from Amazon. Over all I’m happy with them.

I know my signature says Sylvania sze fog lights. This picture was taken before I changed those out. I will be posting about those as well at the faint blue lights that you can see under the truck lol

 

[Zeke588]

After I blacked out the headlights I could REALLY see the yellowness of the lense. I recently picked up some lense polisher at the parts store and went to work. Took about half an hour, they aren’t perfect but much better. The driver side is about finished. Compared to the passenger side.

 

[Zeke588]

I removed the running boards when I lifted the truck. I removed the light housings from the boards and ghetto mounted them to the frame with zip ties lol. I had some extra leds laying around from a recent project. Downside.. they are blue. I went ahead and installed them anyway lol it looks pretty cool at night when I unlock my doors and they light up. I’m looking for a way to tap into the door switches so I can turn them on and off via switch. When I put the switch in I will put white LED bulbs and have ghetto rock lights

 

[Zeke588]

Couple weeks ago I bought a d ring hitch. It came black but I wanted yellow. I bought some yellow engine block enamel and painted it. Diddnt use nearly as much paint as I thought I would so I said what the heck and painted the front skid plate!

 

[Zeke588]

I changed out my spark plugs the other day. Getting ready for the big move up to montana! Just bought a house up there. I noticed on one of the cylinders/spark plugs, the threads were slightly oiled. I haven’t been getting any engine codes. Could this just be blow by in the cylinder?

 

[Zeke588]

I currently don’t have a storage set up for the truck yet. I have a dog and have a dog cage set up in the back so nothing can really be a permanent storage system until it get tested with the dog in the back. Currently I’m running two boxes back there. One box is mainly camping/survival gear. Lol I’m ready to camp in 0 degree weather at a moments notice. And the other box up top is mainly vehicle recovery, small maintenance items. I carry 1-2 extra bulbs of all bulbs needed for the truck. Tow strap, wrenches, sockets and ratchets. Mainly basic stuff. I actually even carry cv axle bands! With a band crimped too lol. The box on bottom is a cheapish storage box I bought from Home Depot a few years back. I ran it in my other truck and it got beat up back there. The top box which is mainly recovery/tools is a kobalt box from Lowe’s. Feels like good quality. Let’s see how it stands up to the hot and cold in the back of a car. This is going to be a temporary setup for while before I can make a more permanent storage for the truck. I currently just have it all strapped together too keep it from bouncing around on the trails and in the city.