Kung
New member
It shouldn't have taken me this long to get around to it...but frankly I suppose I had this idea that I needed to have some monster 'visible' mods done to the 4Runner before posting. CoB quickly disabused me of that notion, as I've done several mods already - some of them done by me, some professionally done (mainly because I wanted it done NOW and didn't have the time LOL).
First off, a pic as she sits today - largely stock to all external appearances, but with some notable upgrades under the hood, and more coming. I suppose it could be called the Kungmobile. LOL
(The tires are Firestone Destination A/T's; nothing special, but I got 'em for cheap - $600 installed for the 4 of them. Considering the limited amount of off-road terrain this has seen, they're more than sufficient to the task. Once they wear out, however, and once the lift is complete (coming in the next few months), then I'll go with something better.
The wife and I decided we wanted/needed a reliable vehicle that would be able to get us out of a jam if need be; I'm a civil service employee working for da gubment (I'll pause for the requisite jokes), and my wife's a nurse and diabetic educator and often needs to Get There™ when others get to stay home.
It didn't take me long at all to arrive @ the conclusion that if reliability was at the top of the list (and it was) then so was the 4Runner. It took MUCH longer to convince my wife, as her father used to work in the parts department for a Corvette dealership, and therefore 'he knew more' about vehicles than I did. LOL
We could have gone with a 4th Gen, and I was leaning towards it...but when I coupled the cost of some of the repairs I've heard of with the fact that around here, even a 2003 4Runner, regardless of mileage, will go for at LEAST $11,500 (more if it has the V6 and 4WD), I dropped back to the 3rd Gen.
So anyways....my wife was searching around on CraigsList one day and pointed me to a vehicle in Springfield, MO. It had 2 pictures and both were crap, frankly. LOL It was advertised as a 2000 4Runner SR5 V6 4WD. I had to almost be literally drug to Springfield by my wife; most of the time, with crap pictures and only a phone #, I've discovered they're spam.
We arrived in Springfield around 5 p.m.; we knew the seller was selling the 4Runner as his personal vehicle, but also had a day job as a Chevrolet salesman. (
So we had to wait until he got off work, which was SUPPOSED to be around 6 or so.
Well, a couple walked in FIVE MINUTES before closing time, and stayed until 9 p.m. haggling with him. About the only thing keeping me in Springfield was the knowledge that a) our house was 90 miles away, and I was d@mn well going to see this vehicle before leaving; and b) it wasn't really his fault. He came out apologetic as can be; it was obvious he felt terrible.
Still, I was hot under the collar. UNTIL he pulled the vehicle around. At first glance it appeared to be in immaculate condition; appearances can be deceiving, however. I went over the vehicle with a fine-toothed comb; I think I found ONE scratch on one of the plastic interior panels, and some of the aluminum coating on the rims was coming off. Engine compartment was squeaky clean.
He then opened the glove compartment and handed me a huge wad of papers. They were the maintenance papers; the former owners (both of them college professors) maintained the vehicle immaculately, doing literally ALL of the suggested maintenance in the Owner's Manual. SWEET.
In the middle of looking @ everything, I realized that the Owner's Manual had the word 'Highlander' on the front; I'd done enough research to realize what this meant, and being an honest guy, I had to point it out to him. He said "Eh, my mistake; it won't change the selling price."
Below are the pics I took the following day:
I'd fixed $7200 in my mind as the price I'd buy this at, and not much higher; I knew this could go for more than that, but I also knew that there would be some maintenance I'd have to do. Given the condition (it was almost literally in showroom condition @ the time) he could have asked about $8500 or $9000 and I would have haggled some but would still have bought it.
So I asked him what he wanted for it; he looks @ me, and said "I'm not trying to make much money on this; I just wanted to ensure it went to a good family who appreciates what they're buying, and make a few bucks on the side." He then told me he'd sell it for $7200.
I flat out told him I wasn't even going to haggle, as both he and I knew that was an excellent price. Once the in-depth inspection was done (which revealed the valve cover gaskets needing done, as well as a blower motor resistor), we drew up the paperwork, and a day later it was officially ours.
NOW....on to the mods.
The VERY next day I fixed my first 'problem' - the blower motor resistor. I noticed that the second to last speed on the heater/AC wouldn't work. I'm familiar enough with electronics and IT equipment to realize it was probably something simple, and as stated above, sure enough that's what it was. Had to replace this guy:
(For those of you who've never had to do this, easiest way by far to do it is to undo the two screws - one of which you can see - holding the bracket attached to the glove compartment, and then remove the glove compartment. Then it's a simple matter of undoing the harness in the picture, removing the top and bottom screws, pulling out the heater resistor, and then reversing the process with a brand new one. I don't have the P/N handy just now; I'll post it tomorrow.)
After that I went and got it aligned - it was RIDICULOUSLY out of alignment.
Next up on the list was an aftermarket HU install. I'm an IT specialist by trade, and was an electronics technician in the Navy; so installing this stuff is no big deal for me. I ended up completely removing and bypassing the stock amplifier hidden behind the center console, as it took up a ton of room. I had it done inside of about an hour or so. Not much to look at here, but hey, it plays music n stuff. It's a Kenwood KDC-X494.
Right after that I had a Koyo A1998 radiator installed to replace the OEM one (which as it turns out was squeaky clean, but eh, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure), as well as a B&M 70268 auxiliary transmission cooler. I chose to not bypass the radiator - IOW, the coolant is circulating first through the radiator and then through the transmission cooler. I wanted the extra cooling capacity. (07Dec2012 - I'll attempt to get pics tomorrow.)
In the beginning I was fairly happy to leave it stock for the most part. However, both during and after my search for a 4Runner, you guys ruined that for me. Thanks a lot. LOL
I about crapped my pants when I saw all the pictures of vehicles hosed up due to lower ball joints letting go; and then shortly thereafter realized that all I'd need to do would be to replace them and I'd be good. Well, I wanted to make d@mn sure they wouldn't cause any problems, and tried out the Tacoma LBJs/OTREs. Other than losing a few degrees of turning radius, they've held up nicely; in fact I noticed they tightened my steering up a tad.
FYI - the rust here is pretty much the worst rust there is, and it's all surfacile. One of my plans earlier in 2013 is to clean up the undercarriage/frame and then seal it.
At this point, we were about a week out from a 1000-mile Missouri --> Virginia trip; I knew I'd be pulling a trailer, so I hooked up the trailer - and promptly realized that the rear lights wouldn't work.
After doing some more nosing around, I decided to buy an aftermarket trailer light system. I bought one from Hopkins (P/N 43415). Additionally, I bought a 4wire Flat Mounting Bracket (P/N 48595).
Installing this SUCKED. Enough so that I forgot to take pics. It wasn't that it was all that hard...it had more to do with the fact that
a) the OEM factory installation of the taillight box, and the Hopkins aftermarket taillight box, are EXACTLY the opposite of each other (OEM box is on the left in the back; the Hopkins is installed on the right in the back); and
b) instructions sucked, and the tech support is about as effective as a screen door on a submarine.
At that point, I simply ensured the plugs on the Hopkins unit matched up with the OEM plugs; and once that was the case, I began to see where things needed to go. An hour later it was done.
(Side note: Should anyone need to do this in the future, I will gladly assist via pics, tips, etc. I don't want anyone to flounder around in the dark like I did.)
Frankly, other than buying new shoes for it (shown below) not much else was done up until about 2 weeks ago. Part of the reason was because I was busy turning THIS (our basement):
into THIS:
Other than the hanging/mudding of the sheetrock and the flooring, I did everything either by myself or with a buddy/family - from the studding out of the walls to securing them to the floor; from running the electrical wiring and tying it into the existing system to the mounting of the ceiling lights; and so on.
About 2 weeks ago, I got tired of dealing with the pulsating brakes, and decided to do the Tundra brake upgrade. After going back and forth between considering the 199m and 231mm sizes, I realized that the price difference wasn't that big, and reasoned that if reliability was primary, safety would be a close second...and from a safety standpoint, it's hard to argue with the 231mm upgrade.
I'd absolutely love to post all sorts of spiffy pics on the upgrade, but frankly, I've been the one legged man in a butt kicking contest at work; and given the fact that the Hobby Shop on base is staffed by ASE certified technicians who are very familiar with Toyotas - AND the fact that they charge maybe $40/hour and aren't out to make money - I let them do it. Not counting parts, the cost was $120.
As you can see in the above pic, the calibers never really get closer than a pinky finger width to the inside of the rims. (Additionally, you can see that I forgot to paint the calipers. Oh well....a project for another day.)
And that brings us up to the present. Today I started tackling this project:
I've stopped there for the minute because I need some clamped connectors to attach to the stock wiring, so that I can connect the wiring to the speaker terminals. I'll finish the front speakers up tomorrow and the backs on Thursday or Friday. Then on Saturday I'm having the local sound shop install my amplifier and QLogic box with 10" Kenwood sub (left over from a few years ago).
Additionally, this week I plan on installing these:
(P/Ns on the package, obviously)
and these (the steering guide, ring and spring, not the Nexus 7):
Additionally, I've got the following either on order or in the back of my 4Runner, to be installed before we go to Virginia:
- a Denso 671-6182 Spark Plug Wire Set (with spark plugs)
- a set of valve cover gaskets
- front and rear anti-sway kits from Wheeler's Off Road (no P/N's - they're labeled clearly on the site.
In early 2013, I plan on getting:
- a lift kit (leaning towards the Toytec Ultimate right now)
- and hopefully my rims powdercoated.
That's it for now. Not the most exciting build, but meh, more is coming.
And just so you guys know, this is me: (in a bathroom somewhere LOL)
First off, a pic as she sits today - largely stock to all external appearances, but with some notable upgrades under the hood, and more coming. I suppose it could be called the Kungmobile. LOL
(The tires are Firestone Destination A/T's; nothing special, but I got 'em for cheap - $600 installed for the 4 of them. Considering the limited amount of off-road terrain this has seen, they're more than sufficient to the task. Once they wear out, however, and once the lift is complete (coming in the next few months), then I'll go with something better.
The wife and I decided we wanted/needed a reliable vehicle that would be able to get us out of a jam if need be; I'm a civil service employee working for da gubment (I'll pause for the requisite jokes), and my wife's a nurse and diabetic educator and often needs to Get There™ when others get to stay home.
It didn't take me long at all to arrive @ the conclusion that if reliability was at the top of the list (and it was) then so was the 4Runner. It took MUCH longer to convince my wife, as her father used to work in the parts department for a Corvette dealership, and therefore 'he knew more' about vehicles than I did. LOL
We could have gone with a 4th Gen, and I was leaning towards it...but when I coupled the cost of some of the repairs I've heard of with the fact that around here, even a 2003 4Runner, regardless of mileage, will go for at LEAST $11,500 (more if it has the V6 and 4WD), I dropped back to the 3rd Gen.
So anyways....my wife was searching around on CraigsList one day and pointed me to a vehicle in Springfield, MO. It had 2 pictures and both were crap, frankly. LOL It was advertised as a 2000 4Runner SR5 V6 4WD. I had to almost be literally drug to Springfield by my wife; most of the time, with crap pictures and only a phone #, I've discovered they're spam.
We arrived in Springfield around 5 p.m.; we knew the seller was selling the 4Runner as his personal vehicle, but also had a day job as a Chevrolet salesman. (
Well, a couple walked in FIVE MINUTES before closing time, and stayed until 9 p.m. haggling with him. About the only thing keeping me in Springfield was the knowledge that a) our house was 90 miles away, and I was d@mn well going to see this vehicle before leaving; and b) it wasn't really his fault. He came out apologetic as can be; it was obvious he felt terrible.
Still, I was hot under the collar. UNTIL he pulled the vehicle around. At first glance it appeared to be in immaculate condition; appearances can be deceiving, however. I went over the vehicle with a fine-toothed comb; I think I found ONE scratch on one of the plastic interior panels, and some of the aluminum coating on the rims was coming off. Engine compartment was squeaky clean.
He then opened the glove compartment and handed me a huge wad of papers. They were the maintenance papers; the former owners (both of them college professors) maintained the vehicle immaculately, doing literally ALL of the suggested maintenance in the Owner's Manual. SWEET.
In the middle of looking @ everything, I realized that the Owner's Manual had the word 'Highlander' on the front; I'd done enough research to realize what this meant, and being an honest guy, I had to point it out to him. He said "Eh, my mistake; it won't change the selling price."
Below are the pics I took the following day:
I'd fixed $7200 in my mind as the price I'd buy this at, and not much higher; I knew this could go for more than that, but I also knew that there would be some maintenance I'd have to do. Given the condition (it was almost literally in showroom condition @ the time) he could have asked about $8500 or $9000 and I would have haggled some but would still have bought it.
So I asked him what he wanted for it; he looks @ me, and said "I'm not trying to make much money on this; I just wanted to ensure it went to a good family who appreciates what they're buying, and make a few bucks on the side." He then told me he'd sell it for $7200.
I flat out told him I wasn't even going to haggle, as both he and I knew that was an excellent price. Once the in-depth inspection was done (which revealed the valve cover gaskets needing done, as well as a blower motor resistor), we drew up the paperwork, and a day later it was officially ours.
NOW....on to the mods.
The VERY next day I fixed my first 'problem' - the blower motor resistor. I noticed that the second to last speed on the heater/AC wouldn't work. I'm familiar enough with electronics and IT equipment to realize it was probably something simple, and as stated above, sure enough that's what it was. Had to replace this guy:
(For those of you who've never had to do this, easiest way by far to do it is to undo the two screws - one of which you can see - holding the bracket attached to the glove compartment, and then remove the glove compartment. Then it's a simple matter of undoing the harness in the picture, removing the top and bottom screws, pulling out the heater resistor, and then reversing the process with a brand new one. I don't have the P/N handy just now; I'll post it tomorrow.)
After that I went and got it aligned - it was RIDICULOUSLY out of alignment.
Next up on the list was an aftermarket HU install. I'm an IT specialist by trade, and was an electronics technician in the Navy; so installing this stuff is no big deal for me. I ended up completely removing and bypassing the stock amplifier hidden behind the center console, as it took up a ton of room. I had it done inside of about an hour or so. Not much to look at here, but hey, it plays music n stuff. It's a Kenwood KDC-X494.
Right after that I had a Koyo A1998 radiator installed to replace the OEM one (which as it turns out was squeaky clean, but eh, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure), as well as a B&M 70268 auxiliary transmission cooler. I chose to not bypass the radiator - IOW, the coolant is circulating first through the radiator and then through the transmission cooler. I wanted the extra cooling capacity. (07Dec2012 - I'll attempt to get pics tomorrow.)
In the beginning I was fairly happy to leave it stock for the most part. However, both during and after my search for a 4Runner, you guys ruined that for me. Thanks a lot. LOL
I about crapped my pants when I saw all the pictures of vehicles hosed up due to lower ball joints letting go; and then shortly thereafter realized that all I'd need to do would be to replace them and I'd be good. Well, I wanted to make d@mn sure they wouldn't cause any problems, and tried out the Tacoma LBJs/OTREs. Other than losing a few degrees of turning radius, they've held up nicely; in fact I noticed they tightened my steering up a tad.
FYI - the rust here is pretty much the worst rust there is, and it's all surfacile. One of my plans earlier in 2013 is to clean up the undercarriage/frame and then seal it.
At this point, we were about a week out from a 1000-mile Missouri --> Virginia trip; I knew I'd be pulling a trailer, so I hooked up the trailer - and promptly realized that the rear lights wouldn't work.
After doing some more nosing around, I decided to buy an aftermarket trailer light system. I bought one from Hopkins (P/N 43415). Additionally, I bought a 4wire Flat Mounting Bracket (P/N 48595).
Installing this SUCKED. Enough so that I forgot to take pics. It wasn't that it was all that hard...it had more to do with the fact that
a) the OEM factory installation of the taillight box, and the Hopkins aftermarket taillight box, are EXACTLY the opposite of each other (OEM box is on the left in the back; the Hopkins is installed on the right in the back); and
b) instructions sucked, and the tech support is about as effective as a screen door on a submarine.
At that point, I simply ensured the plugs on the Hopkins unit matched up with the OEM plugs; and once that was the case, I began to see where things needed to go. An hour later it was done.
(Side note: Should anyone need to do this in the future, I will gladly assist via pics, tips, etc. I don't want anyone to flounder around in the dark like I did.)
Frankly, other than buying new shoes for it (shown below) not much else was done up until about 2 weeks ago. Part of the reason was because I was busy turning THIS (our basement):
into THIS:
Other than the hanging/mudding of the sheetrock and the flooring, I did everything either by myself or with a buddy/family - from the studding out of the walls to securing them to the floor; from running the electrical wiring and tying it into the existing system to the mounting of the ceiling lights; and so on.
About 2 weeks ago, I got tired of dealing with the pulsating brakes, and decided to do the Tundra brake upgrade. After going back and forth between considering the 199m and 231mm sizes, I realized that the price difference wasn't that big, and reasoned that if reliability was primary, safety would be a close second...and from a safety standpoint, it's hard to argue with the 231mm upgrade.
I'd absolutely love to post all sorts of spiffy pics on the upgrade, but frankly, I've been the one legged man in a butt kicking contest at work; and given the fact that the Hobby Shop on base is staffed by ASE certified technicians who are very familiar with Toyotas - AND the fact that they charge maybe $40/hour and aren't out to make money - I let them do it. Not counting parts, the cost was $120.
As you can see in the above pic, the calibers never really get closer than a pinky finger width to the inside of the rims. (Additionally, you can see that I forgot to paint the calipers. Oh well....a project for another day.)
And that brings us up to the present. Today I started tackling this project:
I've stopped there for the minute because I need some clamped connectors to attach to the stock wiring, so that I can connect the wiring to the speaker terminals. I'll finish the front speakers up tomorrow and the backs on Thursday or Friday. Then on Saturday I'm having the local sound shop install my amplifier and QLogic box with 10" Kenwood sub (left over from a few years ago).
Additionally, this week I plan on installing these:
(P/Ns on the package, obviously)
and these (the steering guide, ring and spring, not the Nexus 7):
Additionally, I've got the following either on order or in the back of my 4Runner, to be installed before we go to Virginia:
- a Denso 671-6182 Spark Plug Wire Set (with spark plugs)
- a set of valve cover gaskets
- front and rear anti-sway kits from Wheeler's Off Road (no P/N's - they're labeled clearly on the site.
In early 2013, I plan on getting:
- a lift kit (leaning towards the Toytec Ultimate right now)
- and hopefully my rims powdercoated.
That's it for now. Not the most exciting build, but meh, more is coming.
And just so you guys know, this is me: (in a bathroom somewhere LOL)
Last edited:
They called my cell and failed to reach me (was in a secure area working on computers) so they emailed me with all the info. I called back, put it on order at around 1 p.m. Monday afternoon, and it shipped out THAT DAY and was on my doorstep yesterday morning at 10 a.m. That's pretty good for UPS Ground.
It's being installed for me as I type this; I could do it myself, but as with a lot of other things, the hobby shop on Fort Leonard Wood is doing it for me, and considering how FREAKING busy I've been, it's worth the $100 to have it installed. LOL
