MattJakobs Build Thread-2001 Stellar Blue Pearl

[MattJakobs]

Dometic CFX 50

Over Cinco de Mayo, I put Zach's (4x4Runner2002) ARB fridge in my car to better take food to the beach and since then, I've had the itch to get one. I researched a bunch and ultimately settled for the Dometic CFX 50 and insulated bag. I picked it up last week before heading to Potts Mountain and it did everything I needed it to. Food and drinks were cold and there was no soggy food. The two that really caught my eye was the Dometic and the ARB but I ended up with the Dometic since it has an app to change the temperature, turn it off and on, and to adjust the battery settings. I also liked the hinge on this more than the ARB as you need less height to open it. Right now, it's just been in my back seat but I'm working on a better, more permanent way to mount it.
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[MattJakobs]

Small Updates

Last week I got an alignment and my tires balanced at 236,538 miles. All of my tires were our of balance since this is the first time since owning them that I've gotten them redone so all feels good in the steering department.
This past weekend, I went wheeling/camping in Uwharrie in NC and had an interesting time to say the least. I'll upload some pictures and make a little trip report sometime this week or early next but there was definitely an unforgettable night in there. If I can find out a way to upload a video to here, I'll link that as well.
I built some rear storage in the back and I'm working out all the little things now so once that's done, I'll upload some pictures and info here. So far, I'm happy with them and they helped me stay a little more organized this past weekend.

 

[MattJakobs]

Update

Been a real bum on here lately but a little bit of an update.
Took the 4Runner wheeling this weekend, all is well with it. Have a leaking rear passenger side axle seal that I'll have to address but problem free besides that. I have rear disc brake parts in the garage but VA inspection is annoying so that may have to wait.
I'm in discussions with a company out of Northern CA and I'll likely be out there come next June-ish. Building the 4Runner will come to a halt until I get out there. If this happens as planned, I'll be focusing a lot of my 4Runner money on maintenance to make sure it's up for the drive out there. CA has emissions with no state inspection so I'll have to clear my P0420.
Had a lot of thoughts on whether to sell it and buy a more reliable DD to make the drive but I've come to the decision to take it out there and let it become a toy. Couple thoughts have come to mind on what to do with the it when I get out there...

 

[onemanarmy]

Last week I got an alignment and my tires balanced at 236,538 miles. All of my tires were our of balance since this is the first time since owning them that I've gotten them redone so all feels good in the steering department.
This past weekend, I went wheeling/camping in Uwharrie in NC and had an interesting time to say the least. I'll upload some pictures and make a little trip report sometime this week or early next but there was definitely an unforgettable night in there. If I can find out a way to upload a video to here, I'll link that as well.
I built some rear storage in the back and I'm working out all the little things now so once that's done, I'll upload some pictures and info here. So far, I'm happy with them and they helped me stay a little more organized this past weekend.

no pics/vids?

 

[apohl17]

Just wanted to say, of all the threads I've read through, yours is one of the most fully-encompassing I've seen -- and informative to boot. You've got yourself a rig that lots of guys drool over, and the pics from the start to the beginning are spot on. If mine gets anywhere close to yours in the future, I'd be happy as a clam!

:fullsend:

 

[MattJakobs]

Uwharrie June 22-24

Very late on a trip report but I've been busy with life and school.
Headed to Uwharrie in North Carolina earlier this summer and had a very interesting and unforgettable trip. Went wheeling with Zach (4x4runner2002), and brought a buddy and my lady friend who rode with. We got in Friday night and after some food (Pork chops. Going to brag about them really quick-My lady friend's family owns a farm and these were fresh from there. They were huge and delicious), we headed out to run some relatively easy trails at night. Zach was in front and I was following, when we came to two guys and a dog walking on the trail. After Zach talked to them, we found out they rolled their car. We didn't really believe them just because they were so casual about it but sure enough, they flipped it. They hopped in and we drove to their car where Zach and I spend the next few hours trying to flip it back on four wheels. This is after we flipped it again... Neither of us have winches so it was definitely challenging but we got it. Some how or another, the Land Rover started back up and the guy drove it back to the main roads.
This kind of set a damper on the weekend, just seeing someone roll their vehicle. Everyone involved walked away injury free but it still rattled us enough to not want to run anything too extreme. We spent the next two days running some easy stuff and just hanging around camp.
Some of the pictures are probably not the best since they were taken with a phone.
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Let lady friend drive here. She puckered
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[MattJakobs]

no pics/vids?

Uploaded. Totally forgot about this one.

Just wanted to say, of all the threads I've read through, yours is one of the most fully-encompassing I've seen -- and informative to boot. You've got yourself a rig that lots of guys drool over, and the pics from the start to the beginning are spot on. If mine gets anywhere close to yours in the future, I'd be happy as a clam!

:fullsend:

Thanks man. I've tried to include as much as possible as I didn't know how to change my oil before owning this vehicle so I figure the more shared, the better.

She's still a big work in progress. Think it'll be a totally different rig this time next year so stay tuned...

 

[onemanarmy]

Thanks for the pics. So you were there front and center for the Land Rover rollover. I remember reading about that. Always good to see pics of Uwharrie. Was there last weekend.

 

[MattJakobs]

Thanks for the pics. So you were there front and center for the Land Rover rollover. I remember reading about that. Always good to see pics of Uwharrie. Was there last weekend.

Didn’t see it happen but was there right after. Plus we accidentally flipped it again trying to recover it. I couldn’t believe the thing started again but was stoked to get it out of the way. I’ve got a video of me wheeling past it that’s kind of funny. It’s a cell phone video and I uploaded it YouTube and the quality was awful so I’ll play around on Flickr tonight and see if I can get it any better on there.

But it’s a fun place, hopefully I’ll be able to get a trip or two in during the spring when they open back up.

 

[thezentree]

Running Daniel years ago on a CarolinaK5 trail ride I saw a guy flop his (pretty nice) square body Suburban on Daniel. I haven't been there in close to a decade but despite those trails not being crazy extreme you can definitely get yourself in trouble.

I'm trying to get some of my buddies from Wilmington together for a URE trip in May, maybe we'll run into y'all out there.

 

[MattJakobs]

[MENTION=107816]onemanarmy[/MENTION]
Here's the video of me wheeling past him to get to the bottom of the hill to try and flip him right side up. Per what they said, they braked hard on the rock I climbed and touched slider and rear bumper over, causing all of their momentum up and over. I also think they were going a lot faster than I was.

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[MattJakobs]

Maintenance

Rear axle seal and O-Ring done on the passenger side, rear diff drain and refill with new fluid, oil change, and new uniballs in the UCAs have been done. Getting ready to drive this thing across the country. LCA bushings and LBJs need to be done too, getting around to ordering those parts.

 

[MattJakobs]

Just finished up with a decent sized overhaul on my front suspension. I'm moving in June and driving my car across the country for that move.

A list of what was done:
D-shaped steering rack bushing
FK Bearings in the UCAs
OEM Lower Balls Joints
OEM LBJ bolts
Solo Motorsports Stock Width Lower Control Arms
PlasticsGuy DuroBumps
OEM Alignment Cams

The biggest upgrade in there is Solo's LCAs. I've posted more info in this thread but there's a few reasons I went with them. Most of it has to do with the fact that I was due for new LCA bushings and LBJs. LBJs got done as well as the Solo's LCAs, but nothing special on that front. I decided to opt for Solo's instead of new OEM bushings, poly bushings, auto-part store arms, or any other options because I wanted something stronger and I liked the fact that they pushed the LBJ forward 1". I'm due for tires soon and will likely step up in size, and this should make clearing them much easier. Beyond that, I'll be moving soon and wheeling in all new places. I don't want to do too many upgrades since that alter stock geometry because I don't know what I'll be faced with.

These lowers will provide me with a ton of strength with a few more benefits that made them worth it for me.

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/150884531@N04/32260157257/in/dateposted-public/" title="Solo 1"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7915/32260157257_b4e8d8dae5_b.jpg" width="1024" height="683" alt="Solo 1"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/150884531@N04/47242691221/in/dateposted-public/" title="Solo 16"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7815/47242691221_02e169c349_b.jpg" width="1024" height="683" alt="Solo 16"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/150884531@N04/47242692041/in/dateposted-public/" title="Solo 13"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7876/47242692041_a0535117d4_b.jpg" width="1024" height="683" alt="Solo 13"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/150884531@N04/33397969378/in/dateposted-public/" title="Solo 17"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7886/33397969378_4dab0ec5cd_b.jpg" width="1024" height="683" alt="Solo 17"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/150884531@N04/47273795171/in/dateposted-public/" title="Solo 20"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7830/47273795171_ea01070f58_b.jpg" width="1024" height="683" alt="Solo 20"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/150884531@N04/33397966818/in/dateposted-public/" title="Solo 21"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7868/33397966818_fa0da79d9a_b.jpg" width="1024" height="683" alt="Solo 21"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Road Bull]

Nice upgrades. Those LCAs look sweet! Where are you moving to? West coast?

 

[MattJakobs]

Nice upgrades. Those LCAs look sweet! Where are you moving to? West coast?

These LCAs are beefy. Happy with how they turned out for sure.

And yeah, I guess I never really posted it but in June, I'm off to California. I have a job lined up, to start July 1st in Livermore, CA. I'll likely live somewhere in the East Bay area and commute from there. This June, I'll drive this pig out there, taking the shortest route possible. Last summer, I did the drive with many detours seeing everything I wanted to see. I'm excited for what's to come of this move and where it'll take me. It'll be a huge change of scenery, with it being a 3,000 mile move but hopefully there's good things to come.

 

[MattJakobs]

Wow, time flies... So in June, I shipped my car across the country and I'm now living in California. I had a job lined up to start after school and sure enough, I'm here (Walnut Creek, CA). I'm finally starting get settled in, finally have my new place furnished, and now the fun begins. I've met a few local people, been camping a bit, a little bit of wheeling, and so far so good.

Not much has gone on with the 4Runner since the last time I posted, and I'll post what has happened since then. I've got a lot of big plans for it as I actually have an income and I have plenty of places to explore.

Anyhow, here's a picture of some recent festivities.
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[MattJakobs]

Drawer System

With my move, I needed to keep things organized and sectioned off. I was also moving away from my parents so I no longer had their garage to store tools, spare parts, and camping supplies in, so it was time for a drawer system of some sort. This is what I came up with. Two drawers, side my side, with a small cargo space towards the front of the vehicle. The left drawer houses all my camping gear and some wheeling gear (cooking utensils, eating utensils, lighter, compressor, tire deflaters, etc.) and the right drawer houses mainly tools with a few odds and ends in there. The up front cubby holds a lot of things I hope I don't have to use (Recovery strap and gear, CV axle, LBJ and OTRs with associated hardware, etc.).
This configuration has worked great but it does leave me in a pickle with my fridge. Right now, my fridge goes in my back seat for wheeling - which is fine for now - but it gets tricky when friends ride along and the lady friend has been looking for a puppy which will go back there. I think there will be a refresh soon - on what will work best for my current and foreseeable future plus adding what I learned from the first go around.
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[MattJakobs]

Snorkel

I've been following this thread on TacomaWorld and decided to hop on the wagon with it. After talking to a few NorCal TacomaWorld members, I headed to a mod day to get this thing installed. Install was pretty straight forward, had to have the Tacoma inner fender tube, and picked up this cool little decal guy from a TacomaWorld member (See link above if interested in said decal).
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[Flemster]

Looking good man, glad the move went well and your getting things all settled. The snorkel came out awesome. It is on my to-do list if things would stop breaking.

 

[MattJakobs]

Looking good man, glad the move went well and your getting things all settled. The snorkel came out awesome. It is on my to-do list if things would stop breaking.

Thanks Alex. Having two moves back to back - one out of my college apartment and into my parents, and then the 3,000 mile trek out here about a month later - definitely had some stressful times in there but it's over now.

The Dorkel install was pretty straight forward. Somewhere in my move, I lost my Tacoma inner fender tube so I had to pick one up during the install but otherwise smooth sailing.