New to the T4R Life

[eastsideride]

Hey T4R!

Just purchased my first yota! Got into a 2002 4Runner SR5 with 140k a week or so ago! Super happy with it so far, two previous owners with the first one from the Carolinas so it has minimal surface rust which I plan to treat and coat next month! It needs a little TLC but it seems like nothing major. I plan to get it looked at a Toyota dealership soon just so they can make sure everything looks right on it before I start the mod list.

I also want to sincerely thank everyone who has helped me in the buying process by giving your advice and sharing your knowledge. This is seriously such a great community and I can't wait to be more involved!

On a sad note, lets all take a moment of silence for the loss of my Acura TL. Sold her lad night :violin: But hey, 4Runner parts are coming because of it. I couldn't maintain both vehicles as I didn't have the space for them right now in my life.

Quick Q... Needing tires for someone who mainly drives highways (I like to travel and family is a 9hr drive) and might drive through occasional rough terrain or dirt/mud and snow. I was looking at Goodyear tires as I get a really good deal on them. Looking at size 265/75/16 for now and with a 2.5-3" lift. The tires I am thinking of are the Duratracs, Fierce Attitude, and All-Terrain Adventure with Kevlar. Thoughts??

 

[Scramble]

Nice TL, I dove my friends when he bought it new in 06. It might be nicest car I've ever driven. Power, smooth ride & handling. The complete opposite of a 3d gen! LOL

I hate Goodyear products, I've had bad luck with them over the years. Some people love their Duratrac's but everyone knows they suck in the snow.
I'd look at Yokohama & Hankook AT's for mostly highway & some snow & dirt. I have the Yokohama AT's on my Limited & they did great last winter. No complaints at all! Lots of people here say great things about Cooper's too. I have them on my Accord & Outback (CS5 & CS3) but not on the 4Runner yet. They're amazing in the rain.

 

[Rpreme]

Very clean platform! Glad you were able to get one with minimal rust.

 

[eastsideride]

Nice TL, I dove my friends when he bought it new in 06. It might be nicest car I've ever driven. Power, smooth ride & handling. The complete opposite of a 3d gen! LOL

I hate Goodyear products, I've had bad luck with them over the years. Some people love their Duratrac's but everyone knows they suck in the snow.
I'd look at Yokohama & Hankook AT's for mostly highway & some snow & dirt. I have the Yokohama AT's on my Limited & they did great last winter. No complaints at all! Lots of people here say great things about Cooper's too. I have them on my Accord & Outback (CS5 & CS3) but not on the 4Runner yet. They're amazing in the rain.

I appreciate the suggestion, but they are the only company I get a big deal on. It is a significant reduction in price so I really wanted to stick with them!

Very clean platform! Glad you were able to get one with minimal rust.

Thanks! I am glad I found it!

 

[gamefreakgc]

If I could make a suggestion, if you find yourself on the road more often than anything else, you might want to consider a less aggressive tread. Duratracs and other agressive treads are very noisy on the road, especially at higher speeds. 9 hours of tire drone might drive you bonkers, especially since you're coming from a much quieter ride.

I off-road from time to time as well as play in our Sierra snow, but I have HT's. I went with Yokohama Geolanders which are still Mud + Snow rated tires but very good in the rain, as well as quiet on the road. I love 'em. I can still off-road just fine as well, I went with a few guys with much more build rigs than I have and did just fine, except for scraping my running boards a couple of times.

I know you get a good deal on Goodyears, so perhaps look at something more like these. This would be very close to the tread I have right now with the Geolandar's: https://www.goodyear.com/en-US/tires/wrangler-fortitude-ht?cta=BBCardTireName

But if you are all about that aggressive tread (I am not) then I think this will give you the best comprimise if you really, really want to off-road a lot: https://www.goodyear.com/en-US/tires/wrangler-all-terrain-adventure?cta=BBCardTireName.

 

[Kanoe]

I off-road from time to time as well as play in our Sierra snow, but I have HT's. I went with Yokohama Geolanders which are still Mud + Snow rated tires but very good in the rain, as well as quiet on the road. I love 'em.

Good to hear this, Thanks. I am wanting a P rated HT and I have been looking at these. We mostly do highway touring with occasional dirt/offroad. Obtaining the best fuel economy is a factor.

Have you had them long enough to comment on durability and lifespan?

 

[gamefreakgc]

Good to hear this, Thanks. I am wanting a P rated HT and I have been looking at these. We mostly do highway touring with occasional dirt/offroad. Obtaining the best fuel economy is a factor.

Have you had them long enough to comment on durability and lifespan?

No, just 2 years so far. Another thing that I noticed is that stopping distances are better than when I had a more aggressive tread from the previous owner's tires. That's saved my bacon a few times. Tighter tread = more rubber touching the road = better dry traction. It also helps me not spin my tires when I floor it hehe.

My ABS has never kicked in once after getting these tires. Used to all the time in the rain with the other ones.

 

[eastsideride]

If I could make a suggestion, if you find yourself on the road more often than anything else, you might want to consider a less aggressive tread. Duratracs and other agressive treads are very noisy on the road, especially at higher speeds. 9 hours of tire drone might drive you bonkers, especially since you're coming from a much quieter ride.

I off-road from time to time as well as play in our Sierra snow, but I have HT's. I went with Yokohama Geolanders which are still Mud + Snow rated tires but very good in the rain, as well as quiet on the road. I love 'em. I can still off-road just fine as well, I went with a few guys with much more build rigs than I have and did just fine, except for scraping my running boards a couple of times.

I know you get a good deal on Goodyears, so perhaps look at something more like these. This would be very close to the tread I have right now with the Geolandar's: https://www.goodyear.com/en-US/tires/wrangler-fortitude-ht?cta=BBCardTireName

But if you are all about that aggressive tread (I am not) then I think this will give you the best comprimise if you really, really want to off-road a lot: https://www.goodyear.com/en-US/tires/wrangler-all-terrain-adventure?cta=BBCardTireName.

I really appreciate the feedback and analysis for tire suggestions!

When you said 9hr of drone would be annoying since I'm used to a quiet car, I couldn't help but chuckle, haha! My Acura had a loud drone exhaust, it was bad hahahaha! But I totally get your point.

I might go for one of the less aggressive tires. I think the adventure kevlar would be pretty slick. I will actually have a chance to drive on some next week from a friend who has them so I'll see how the road noise is. They have solid reviews!

 

[TheGrasshopper]

Very nice 4Runner, and low mileage to boot! If you ever consider trying another tire brand, I highly recommend Toyo Open Country All Terrain II. They are quiet on the pavement, work well in the rain, and are aggressive enough for light off-roading. I have about 40,000 miles on mine, and my parents run them on their 4runners as well. Discount Tire has pretty good prices.

Be sure to change out your lower ball joints and radiator with OEM parts!

 

[theesotericone]

Hey T4R!I plan to get it looked at a Toyota dealership soon just so they can make sure everything looks right on it before I start the mod list.

Quick Q... Needing tires for someone who mainly drives highways (I like to travel and family is a 9hr drive) and might drive through occasional rough terrain or dirt/mud and snow. I was looking at Goodyear tires as I get a really good deal on them. Looking at size 265/75/16 for now and with a 2.5-3" lift. The tires I am thinking of are the Duratracs, Fierce Attitude, and All-Terrain Adventure with Kevlar. Thoughts??

As mentioned look into LBJ's and a new rad. There both fairly cheap insurance on a 20 year old rig.

Are you planning on wrenching on this yourself? If so you could probably skip the dealer. Get an ODBII reader and check it for codes. Then use google to look up those codes, if any. Make sure all fluids are clean and replace any that look shitty.

Other then that if it's driving well and stopping well there's not to much that causes catastrophic failures on these rigs.

If your set on Goodyear I really can't comment. They make a good tire but I've never run them. Just read all the reviews for your choices and make a decision. If your getting a really good deal and you end up not liking them just sell them. You shouldn't loose much if any cash that way.

Welcome to the club.

 

[SonnySays]

Welcome to the forums! I'm new as well, just purchased my 99 last Friday. Slowly working my way to making enough replies so I can post an intro.

Feel free to hit me up anytime as we both move down this new road!

 

[thegipper]

I was sad too when I sold my 04 TL, very good car that I barely ever had to touch. Still miss it to this day although I do like my 2011 Camry SE V6 (plus is quicker).

I've never had any luck with Goodyears....ever. I suggest replacing your radiator, LBJ's (OEM only) and I like to replace all fluids on a new to me vehicle.

Where in Wisconsin are ya? I'm in West Bend.

Welcome!

 

[trackntrail]

Nice truck! I picked mine up 3 weeks ago, 97 SR5 4x4 5spd with 205k. I've got a used OME 3 inch lift from a friend's 4Runner and will be mounting my new wheels/tires this weekend. I went with the Falken Wildpeak 285/75r16 (32.8" tall). They're only available in E-load which is 10 ply but I hear they ride pretty decent since it's a slightly thinner sidewall and are very quiet on the freeway but still much more durable when aired down than a P rated tire. Wheels are SCS Ray 10s. I'll post some pictures once they're on if you're interested.

You may want to stick with a 265/75r16 if you're after fuel economy and comfort as more tires come in a P rating in that size.

 

[eastsideride]

Thanks for all the tips and info! I definitely plan to take care of the rad and LBJs soon if it will be something I can tackle in my apartment parking lot. I plan to do most of my own wrenching as I did on my past car. Just now I dont have my own garage which sucks.

Pretty set on the tires though. The Falken Wildpeak is what I would go for if I was going to use a different brand. As for sizing, I was going to do the 265/75/16 but with a 3" lift I feel that a size up may be worth it.

So I am from East Madison, i just drove it to Toronto, Canada with no problems and will be driving it back tomorrow. But the brake rotors feel warped so I think I am adding the tundra brake setup in the 199mm size. From what I read, my stock wheels would fit. But I plan to pick up a set of Method Racing Wheels 701s at some point.

Only other thing I have noticed, the transmission is a pretty solid movement into D or R so I may look at the mount and see if it needs replaced. And also a weird one, when going into reverse and hitting the brakes, I get one thunk up front but only the one time until you go back into drive. I have read that is related to the sliders for the brake. So hopefully the upgrade fixes that.

 

[spartacus]

Thanks for all the tips and info! I definitely plan to take care of the rad and LBJs soon if it will be something I can tackle in my apartment parking lot. I plan to do most of my own wrenching as I did on my past car. Just now I dont have my own garage which sucks.


Niece find. I worked on my car in apt parking lots alot but for some jobs I had to use my folks garage when I was young. [MENTION=120071]mtbtim[/MENTION] has a video thread that will be an asset to you when doing the lbj and radiator as well as the tbu etc
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/217550-3rd-gen-toyota-4runner-diy-videos.html
you can check out the videos and it will give you a good idea if you should tackle the job in the parking lot or make other arrangements.

 

[BrianSD_42]

Welcome to the 4Runner club!

Dude you are going to miss the HP of that TL for sure. I've got one as my DD. 2008 with 89K miles. I've done the water pump and timing belt, new plugs, coil packs, battery and lower front seat leather, also removed the Bluetooth module which was draining my battery. Other than that it's a super solid car and I'm very stock. I know several people who've had a 3rd gen TL go 200K miles without any major issues.

Unfortunately someone hit my TL yesterday and drove off. Luckily it was only the bumper. Now I've got to get that fixed.