Rich's 2006 V6 SR5 4WD

[telum01]

I find these threads to be really valuable resources for people researching for their own builds, so I might as well make one, too!

This is the first SUV I've modified, so it's a whole new learning experience for me. My past vehicles:

2002 Nissan Pathfinder 4WD (left stock)
2006 Nissan Xterra 2WD (left stock)
1993 Mazda RX7 (moderately modified)
2002 Subaru 2.5RS (left stock except sound system)
2002 Subaru WRX (left stock except sound system)
2005 Subaru STi (heavily modified)
2004 BMW 330i (lightly modified)

And my current vehicles:

2006 Toyota 4Runner V6 SR5 4WD (getting started!)
2007 Aston Martin V8 Vantage (moderately modified)

Fun story: I bought my Aston 2 1/2 years ago from a guy in Tampa (met on another car forum) and we became really good friends. At the time I was living in Georgia. A year later I was visiting him and had just sold my Subaru STi. His wife was baffled that I had just sold my Subaru and only had an Aston to drive when I was about to move to northern Virginia in the middle of winter. I mentioned I was looking for a 4WD 4Runner or something similar, and it turned out the guy across the street was in the process of trading his in for a new one. So I gave him $500 over what the dealer was giving him and boom, done. Now here I am in Virginia with two vehicles that I bought from neighbors across the street from each other in Tampa while I was living in Georgia.

The original owner put in a new stereo head unit (and I think speakers, too), backup camera, and leather seats. It was very well maintained but high mileage (his job had him on the road a lot, mostly highway), but that was reflected in the price so I don't mind.


Engine Stuff
aFe Dry Flow intake filter
Intake HCF delete
Telum01's Catch Can Kit
Denso iridium spark plugs

Running Gear
Konig Six-Shooter 17x8" gunmetal wheels from @FNWheels
General Grabber AT2 265/70R17 tires
Daystar 2.5/1.5 leveling kit
Light Racing UCAs
All Pro front braided stainless steel brake lines
All Pro rear braided stainless steel brake lines (waiting to be installed)
EBC USR Sport slotted brake rotors incl. Sport Edition fronts
EBC Yellow Stuff brake pads
NAPA reman Sport Edition front calipers
NAPA reman rear calipers

Lighting and Electrical
Eclipse AVN50D head unit w. Sirius and backup camera
Two lighter/power constant-power sockets on the console just below the hazard lights button
HID headlights from XenonPro (horrible company to deal with)
Seat heaters for front seats
Dual battery setup
-Odyssey PC1500 battery
-Artec battery box
-T-Max dual battery kit
Fog/reverse/interior lights from @Whitebeauty

And Whatnots
White Knuckle sliders
Front driver/passenger door windows tinted to match the rest of the vehicle
Maglite 2D LED flashlight mounted in rear cargo area
Full leather interior

Next Up
Headlights
-Painted housings
-TRS Black Series 2.5 Lenses
-Morimoto XB LED angel eyes
Sound system (at least the head unit, if not more)

Here's my T4R the day I bought it

Here's how it looks with now

And here's some gratuitous pornography

 

[natehack5]

That is a beautiful car!

You stated the Vantage is 'moderately modified', how so?

 

[telum01]

Thanks! I love the thing. And, 2.5 years later, I still stare at it. Mods on the Aston:

Aston Martin Power Kit
VelocityAP oil catch can kit (my design!)
RSC/VelocityAP 200-cell cats
RSC/VelocityAP exhaust
RSC/VelocityAP Green air filters with open air boxes
RSC/VelocityAP heavy-duty clutch
RSC/VelocityAP brake cooling ducts
VelocityAP/Wilwood 2-piece brake rotors
Porterfield R4-S brake pads
H&R springs
Custom wheel spacers
Clear bra on all forward-facing surfaces
35% tinted windows all around
Out Motoring shorty antenna
Custom accelerator pedal (for heel/toe - still impossible in this damn car)
Custom LEDs in interior lights
Upgraded to 2011/2012 Sat Nav
Custom XM/Sirius Sat Radio with MP3/iPod connector
Lloyd carpets (driver/pass/trunk)

343 whp, 277 wtq on a Dynojet, running pig rich above 4500 rpm

I've got a new MAF sensor on the way since one of them is bad (there are two, one for each of two air intake boxes). I'm guessing it went bad due to the K&N air filter the original owner had on the car, but that's purely my assumption. Can't think of anything else that would have caused the problem, though. Once that problem gets fixed, I'll probably be getting the car tuned. BHP right now is about 410 hp. With the new tune I'll be at about 430

 

[telum01]

Here's a pic of the power sockets I added. Got the idea from @Brutalguyracing. Very easy to do!

Here's the build thread I got the idea from:
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/161799-brutalguyracings-build-thread-3.html

I tapped into an always-on power source and grounded nearby. Works perfectly.

 

[jr19]

Looking good so far. Always nice to have additional power outlets...sort of makes me want to do the same.

 

[FoxNJ]

Looking good so far. Always nice to have additional power outlets...sort of makes me want to do the same.

Ditto. I think an additional power outlet or two is in order after seeing these. Between my passport, GPS and phone charger... one just doesn't cut it anymore.

Looks good!

 

[telum01]

It's definitely worth doing. I had to buy a hole saw bit for my drill, but that's an investment in tools. The sockets were less than $15, if I remember correctly, and I already had plenty of wire, tape, connectors, etc on hand so I didn't have to buy anything extra for the installation. I did buy a dual-USB plug to go in one of the sockets, though, which was well worth buying.

I spent far longer figuring out where I wanted to tap in, ground, and run the wires than I spent doing the actual installation.

 

[JEL]

4runner looks great and all, but I have to say I'd rather drive around in the Aston. They are probably the best looking cars on the road IMO. How has the Aston treated you overall?

 

[telum01]

4runner looks great and all, but I have to say I'd rather drive around in the Aston. They are probably the best looking cars on the road IMO. How has the Aston treated you overall?

I absolutely love it. It's had plenty of random problems and it's stupid expensive to fix most things, but overall it's well worth it. And they're surprisingly rare, even among exotics. I did a car show a few weeks ago for a no-kill animal shelter in PA and I was one of two Astons there. Meanwhile, there were literally about 20 Ferraris. And that ratio is pretty much the norm!

It's amazing on track, too. I've been on Road Atlanta, NCCAR, and Summit Point, and it is fantastic.

I took this at NCCAR to get the exhaust note. It's a GoPro2 using the internal mic. My tires were horribly over-inflated so I couldn't get any front-end grip. But the exhaust note during the initial run to the first corner gives you an idea of how the thing sounds
NCCARGoProRear.mp4 Video by telum01 | Photobucket

 

[JEL]

I absolutely love it. It's had plenty of random problems and it's stupid expensive to fix most things, but overall it's well worth it. And they're surprisingly rare, even among exotics. I did a car show a few weeks ago for a no-kill animal shelter in PA and I was one of two Astons there. Meanwhile, there were literally about 20 Ferraris. And that ratio is pretty much the norm!

It's amazing on track, too. I've been on Road Atlanta, NCCAR, and Summit Point, and it is fantastic.

I took this at NCCAR to get the exhaust note. It's a GoPro2 using the internal mic. My tires were horribly over-inflated so I couldn't get any front-end grip. But the exhaust note during the initial run to the first corner gives you an idea of how the thing sounds
NCCARGoProRear.mp4 Video by telum01 | Photobucket

Man that's a beauty, they are stunning and it sounds fantastic. I see tons of Ferraris and even Lambos (not to mention the GTR, love that car but it's becoming the "Microsoft Civic") in and around the Seattle area, but it's a very rare day when I see an Aston, if I were in the market for such a car it certainly would be my choice.

 

[telum01]

Thanks for the compliments!

GTRs are great, but you're right... they're a dime-a-dozen here, too. And they always drive around in groups!

 

[Whitebeauty]

Hehehe wait till u all see his fog lights.... Oh boy....

 

[telum01]

I got the windows tinted a couple days ago. Only had the fronts done, at 40%. Legal everywhere so I shouldn't get hassled. It just about matches the factory tint on the rest of the windows. Plus it was professionally done for just $100 in only 20 minutes and includes a lifetime warranty.

Before

After

 

[Mytoy4]

Lookin' good! ... I love the copilots too!

 

[telum01]

Daystar 2.5/1.5 leveling kit arrived today! I'll be installing tomorrow!

Lookin' good! ... I love the copilots too!

Thanks! And the pups are awesome. They love cruising around in the 4Runner with the back window down lol

 

[telum01]

Attempted and failed to install my Daystar 2.5/1.5 kit yesterday... and today...

The front passenger side came apart and reassembled just fine:

But the front driver's side has a ton of run on the nuts and bolts. This is how pretty much all of them look:

Two things are keeping me from finishing - either one out of the way and I can finish the job. One is the castle nut on the UCA ball joint. It's pretty messed up and starting to strip, will not budge. So I went another method, which is to unbolt the LCA from the frame. I did this on the passenger side and it worked just fine. Back to the driver's side... nope. The camber adjustment "sleeve" (or whatever its actual name is) is not budging.

My buddy that owns and wrenches in a shop catering to exotics says he usually has to cut them out when they're stuck like mine is. So... It looks like I'll be going that route. I'm about to order some parts on RockAuto... and then find a Sawzall.

 

[telum01]

My new Moog caster/camber bolts and sleeves arrived yesterday, and my new LCA bushings are scheduled to arrive today. I'm also picking up a Sawzall and workbench vice from Home Depot this afternoon. One way or another, I'm getting this done!!

The All Pro wheel spacers, ET lugnuts, and transmission fluids I ordered last week are also supposed to be arriving today, so I'll be installing the wheel spacers while I've got everything torn apart.

 

[telum01]

Still no progress on the front driver's side suspension. I've got a buddy coming over tomorrow or Saturday that's pretty experienced with rusty stuff lol.

But I did mount a Maglite 2D LED flashlight. I was going to mount it between the driver's seat and door, but I didn't like how tight that spot is. So I tried putting it where the upper oh-sh!t handle mounting points are for the driver's seat (on the ceiling, not the A-pillar), but it didn't work out. So I stuck it in the back. No fitment issues and doesn't take away from my "lounge" spot

Also applied some Zymol to the rubber door seals and rear hatch seals.

 

[telum01]

FINALLY got the Daystar kit on! The front driver's side was an epic nightmare but it's sorted out now. The rear was a piece of cake. I'll take a pic to show how it stands now in the next couple of days... after I get an alignment. Nope, I didn't mark anything off beforehand :der:

Also put the All Pro wheel spacers on while I buttoning everything up. All in all, I LOVE the new stance.

I also ordered some Light Racing UCAs and stainless steel brake lines today

 

[telum01]

Before: stock suspension

After: stock suspension plus Daystar 2.5/1.5 kit and All Pro 1.25" wheel spacers