T4R Trey's build thread.

[T4R Trey]

First, a little background:

I'm a Police Officer in Illinois and fell in love with 4Runners from seeing them driving around while I worked. I had planned on buying a T4R of my own but wasn't anywhere near being able to swing the cost. Then, I was shot in the head during a vehicle pursuit while on duty. I lost my right eye completely and due to Illinois worker's compensation law I was automatically entitled to a payout for the enucleation of my eye. Suddenly my dream truck was within reach. I decided that my situation needed an upside so I went for it. In November of 2016 I bought my 2016 Trail Edition Premium with KDSS. I initially wanted the TRDPro but decided to go for the TEP because I loved the improved ride that came with KDSS.

Here's the list of upgrades that are incoming:

1. N-Fab Hooped Nerf Bars (already installed)
2. FN Konig Six Shooter Wheels 17x8 in matte black
3. BFG KO2s in 285/70/17
4. ICON stage 2 complete suspension system
5. GOBI Stealth rack with 40" curved Rigid RDS LED lightbar

As of now, I'm undecided about what components I'll be installing myself if any. I'm no mechanic but I certainly value the idea of knowing my way around my own vehicle.

This thread will be a step by step of my build with plenty of photos. Feel free to follow along and chime in with new ideas or suggestions.

For now, here's two photos of my rig, Kira. The first was the day I brought her home. The second is how she sits now. Great Danes included as a bonus.

 

[bofa]

Well, that's a hell of an introduction. Welcome to the forums and good for you for making the best of a tough situation. You're going to love the 4R!

 

[Marrrk]

Great looking rig! I'm from Illinois too. Just got my T4R two weeks ago. You'll have a ton of fun with it.

 

[T4R Trey]

Well, that's a hell of an introduction. Welcome to the forums and good for you for making the best of a tough situation. You're going to love the 4R!

Thanks! Looking forward to sharing in the wealth of knowledge found in this forum. Can't wait for my first big trip west. Maybe Moab? Maybe elsewhere? Still struggling to find trails in my own neck of the woods.

 

[Vinsil]

Man your a young guy and had a bad situation that you turned into a good one!

I've been in LE for 16 years, thank you for your service and good luck on the build!


Use the rig and figure out your next mods!

 

[T4R Trey]

Man your a young guy and had a bad situation that you turned into a good one!

I've been in LE for 16 years, thank you for your service and good luck on the build!


Use the rig and figure out your next mods!

I appreciate it man, be safe out there!

 

[Vinsil]

 

[T4R Trey]

Today my BFG KO2s were delivered. (to my neighbors house lol) I also took delivery of my Icon Adjustable Rear Track Bar.

Annoyingly, I received a phone call from Toytec who explained that my rear shocks were back ordered and that it'd be another 1-2 weeks before they can ship them. I explained that I was sure they said "In Stock" when I placed the order. The guy gave me some story about how the website wasn't able to live update because another order for their last set of shocks was placed via phone. Oh, well.

I also got a call from Dustin at FN Wheels. I've read stories of this guys professionalism on this forum before. I can honestly say it was the most pleasant customer service phone experience I've ever had. Dustin was just calling to confirm the fitment of my wheels before shipping them to me. After speaking with him, I decided to wait an additional 30 days for some matte bronze Six Shooters instead of him sending the matte black ones I ordered. He also explained that despite my ordering a certain set. they have recently redesigned the Six Shooter wheels and that I would be receiving the new (superior according to him) version at no additional cost despite the price of the new version being higher. Pretty great. Dustin also told me he has some defective matte bronze wheels on hand that he'd be able to cut me a good deal on. He agreed to email me some photos of those in case I wanted to save some money and have the wheels shipped right away. I still haven't received that e-mail though.

I ordered my Gobi Stealth rack on 11/23/16 from Trailduty.com on a promotion they were running for Black Friday or some such. I took note that Trail Duty said the rack had a 6-8 week lead time. I called Gobi today to check the status of my order since tomorrow will mark 7 weeks. I was told that it was set to be shipped out on 1/27/17. I pointed out the fact that 1/27/17 is out of the projected lead time and was told that the 4Runner lead time is supposed to be 8-12 weeks. No one told me that. So, needless to say that was some annoying news as well.

At this point it's starting to look like Kira will be getting transformed all at once instead of a stage at a time like I initially thought.

Another fun thing I discovered today was that Kira had been scratched in front of the driver's side front tire by a local tunnel style car wash I went through last night. I won't mention names so we'll call it..."Finish Line Car Wash at 2605 W. Deyoung St. Marion Illinois 62959" *INSERT RAGE HERE* I took her over there today to report the damage. They took photos and explained that they'd be submitting an incident report and I'd hear from them in 3-5 days. We'll see what they say.

In the mean time I took her to the Marion Toyota Collision Center and got a quote for the price to fix the damage, $625.00.

Quite an eventful day for Kira and I. Hopefully things start going a little smoother.

Attached is one happy photo and one sad photo. The third shows the scratch as well.

 

[bofa]

You'll be very happy with those tires. Stick to only touchless car washes! Also, recommend some Optimum No Rinse to keep it clean between washes.

 

[T4R Trey]

Been thinking about it, does anyone anticipate me having fitment issues of the tires at 285/70/17 with the set up I listed in my initial post?

 

[travelintony]

Thank you for your service! Enjoy your rig man!

 

[T4R Trey]

Thank you for your service! Enjoy your rig man!

My pleasure! Thanks!

 

[Kashoggio]

Good start to a build. Enjoy it and welcome to the forum.

 

[T4R Trey]

Good start to a build. Enjoy it and welcome to the forum.

Thanks a lot! I hope she turns out okay. Still very much in the stressing out phase because it's my first ever build and I'm worried that I'm buying all these compnents that may or may not work together.

 

[Kashoggio]

Thanks a lot! I hope she turns out okay. Still very much in the stressing out phase because it's my first ever build and I'm worried that I'm buying all these compnents that may or may not work together.

That's the fun part and remember nothing ever goes silky smooth. Sometime you will wish you never did a mod and sometimes you will wonder how you went without it. Most of us do it because we enjoy the build process and not just the end result.

 

[bofa]

That's the fun part and remember nothing ever goes silky smooth. Sometime you will wish you never did a mod and sometimes you will wonder how you went without it. Most of us do it because we enjoy the build process and not just the end result.

And I swear the amount of time you spend on the forums has a direct correlation to how much you spend modding.

 

[Vinsil]

Been thinking about it, does anyone anticipate me having fitment issues of the tires at 285/70/17 with the set up I listed in my initial post?

More than likely you will, most do. The aftermarket wheels and wider 285's might rub on on the inner finder liner and possible the front lower part of the bumper. These are known and have easier fixes. The front bumper has a factory tsb out for the Pro models that had rubbing issues.

You might hit the body mount as well. All trucks are different.

I had no figment issues with my 275's on stock wheels. Some do, luck of the draw.

Good news is all are pretty easy fixes, except the chopping of the body mount.

 

[susanbanthony25]

Great build! Gonna look great when it's all together. Welcome to the forum and thank you for your service!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[T4R Trey]

Well, this is going to make waiting on those rear shocks and wheels a lot harder. Seeing this pile sitting in the garage and not being able to put it all on is awful.

 

[T4R Trey]

Plasti-Dipped my front and rear bumpers and all my chrome badging. Looks really good in my opinion. I don't however anticipate it holding up on the bumpers. Here are some photos.