CoffeeIntern94
New member
Love the skinny tire look. I know you said road noise isn't bad, but how much more noise than the stock tires? Thinking about doing this with bilstein 5100s to level it out, not really needing a lift.
T4RZAN's Build/Adventure Thread
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Love the skinny tire look. I know you said road noise isn't bad, but how much more noise than the stock tires? Thinking about doing this with bilstein 5100s to level it out, not really needing a lift.
T4RZAN
New member
Definitely more noise than stock and it seems to get ever so slightly worse with wear. Another benefit to the skinny tire is less road noise, since there is less tire touching the ground.
If you drive with the windows up and no music and little to no ac you can hear them. If you drive with windows up, no music and ac at full blast you cant hear them. I only occasionally notice them and that is when I've got the windows down.
The trade off of road noise is a better performing tire. They do exactly what they are supposed to do. I've driven them on road, dirt, sand, rock (large rock and small rock), gravel, grass, etc. and they perform extremely well. One big advantage to these particular tires is that they drive very well on wet roads. I've never had an issue with driving on wet roads at any speed. I live about an hour north of Houston and with all the rain from the Hurricane I had no issues. Cooper has done a great job at this.
Hope this helps! And glad to find another mountain biker! And one with a dope bike as well. The Fuel EX line is awesome.
T4RZAN
New member
This picture is from Hidden Falls adventure park in central TX back in April. This one has some updates to the build:
ARB awning 2000mm mounted to the factory roof rack with some home brewed brackets. Don't ask for info on them as they didn't last longer than two months with the weight of the awning
I've also added rock sliders from Bay Area Metal Fab with a kickout. These have been awesome. And I have needed them several times. I do have two complaints about them though. First is the lead time. I ordered these during their black Friday sale and was told a 6-8 week lead time. I didn't receive them until March 25th which is over 12 weeks after I ordered them. Second complaint is their powder coat. It has a texture similar to bed liner. So it isn't very thick and it doesn't slide well at all.
Beyond that the build has been coming along extremely well and I've got big plans coming up soon.
ARB awning 2000mm mounted to the factory roof rack with some home brewed brackets. Don't ask for info on them as they didn't last longer than two months with the weight of the awning
I've also added rock sliders from Bay Area Metal Fab with a kickout. These have been awesome. And I have needed them several times. I do have two complaints about them though. First is the lead time. I ordered these during their black Friday sale and was told a 6-8 week lead time. I didn't receive them until March 25th which is over 12 weeks after I ordered them. Second complaint is their powder coat. It has a texture similar to bed liner. So it isn't very thick and it doesn't slide well at all.
Beyond that the build has been coming along extremely well and I've got big plans coming up soon.
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T4RZAN
New member
Been so excited for this part of the build that I didn't take any install pictures.
Installed all new suspension! The stock suspension performs decently but it lacks in many areas. So I went with a setup that I wouldn't have to worry about and couldn't handle everything that I would throw at it. Up front I went with the King Racing Shocks 2.5 Coilovers and Rokmen Offroad Performance upper control arms. In the rear I went with the King Racing Shocks 2.5 shocks and Icon Vehicle Dynamics 2" Coil spring. This setup had been great so far and completely changed the feel of the vehicle. I will be putting it to the rest shortly at the Toyota Jamboree in North Texas.
I've also added Lamin X yellow covers to my fog lights. Yellow does a phenomenal job cutting through denser conditions whether that's rain, fog, dust or snow. In central Texas we get all of the above except for snow. So I needed something that performed well in those and wasn't able to drop money on a fog light kit yet so I added these covers. They're cheap and install is very easy and they look great!
Installed all new suspension! The stock suspension performs decently but it lacks in many areas. So I went with a setup that I wouldn't have to worry about and couldn't handle everything that I would throw at it. Up front I went with the King Racing Shocks 2.5 Coilovers and Rokmen Offroad Performance upper control arms. In the rear I went with the King Racing Shocks 2.5 shocks and Icon Vehicle Dynamics 2" Coil spring. This setup had been great so far and completely changed the feel of the vehicle. I will be putting it to the rest shortly at the Toyota Jamboree in North Texas.
I've also added Lamin X yellow covers to my fog lights. Yellow does a phenomenal job cutting through denser conditions whether that's rain, fog, dust or snow. In central Texas we get all of the above except for snow. So I needed something that performed well in those and wasn't able to drop money on a fog light kit yet so I added these covers. They're cheap and install is very easy and they look great!
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T4RZAN
New member
Toyota Jamboree at Barnwell was a success. Didn't get a ton of pictures because we were out enjoying the trails but the event was amazing and I can't wait for the next one.
Side note: the King suspension setup worked flawlessly. Handled everything from slow crawling to faster dirt trail to a jump or two. Very impressed and happy with the decision!
Side note: the King suspension setup worked flawlessly. Handled everything from slow crawling to faster dirt trail to a jump or two. Very impressed and happy with the decision!
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T4RZAN
New member
Decided to take a trip up to Arkansas and explore the Ozark national forest and the Oachita national forest. Turns out that they are absolutely incredible. Could not believe some of the places I got to see and everything I got to experience. This was an unbelieveable weekend trip with my adventure dog and I cannot wait to go back and explore some more.
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T4RZAN
New member
The following weekend I made the trip to Angel Fire, NM for a weekend of downhill mountain biking. Angel Fire has one of the best mountain bike parks in the Rocky mountains and is actually the closest park to home with chairlift access so I come as often as I can. Ended up making a sweet setup that allowed me to store my bike inside and have plenty of room to sleep. The 4Runner continues to amaze me at how versatile it is.
Also Angel Fire is extremely beautiful and well worth a trip.
Also Angel Fire is extremely beautiful and well worth a trip.
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T4RZAN
New member
Update on the build:
Jumped on a Rago Fab group buy for some ditch lights. Went with 4 of their in house lights, putting two on each side of the truck. These are incredible. The brackets are a perfect fit. One of the easiest installs I've ever done. The lights themselves are ok. They provide a significant amount more light than the headlights appear to but they don't shine out very far. So not ideal for faster night runs.
I went with this light setup because it allows me to focus two lights ahesd and two off to the side. So I get a very broad spectrum of what I can see. And since most of my night time trail driving is slower paced through right trails or rock crawling these are perfect. I will eventually upgrade the lights but that is further down the road.
Also I've been using a Plano Rifle case for roof storage. This thing is awesome. It's completely weather proof and is lockable. Right now I've got a bunch of recovery gear in it so when that time comes it is easy to access no matter the situation.
I have also become and Overland Bound member and I placed the emblem on the C Pillar. I joined the group because I really enjoy community and I like supporting things that I believe in. I feel like the group itself has great potential to bring people together that are into the same thing. Plus I've learned a ton on the Overland Bound forum from people that have experienced things from different walks of life.
Jumped on a Rago Fab group buy for some ditch lights. Went with 4 of their in house lights, putting two on each side of the truck. These are incredible. The brackets are a perfect fit. One of the easiest installs I've ever done. The lights themselves are ok. They provide a significant amount more light than the headlights appear to but they don't shine out very far. So not ideal for faster night runs.
I went with this light setup because it allows me to focus two lights ahesd and two off to the side. So I get a very broad spectrum of what I can see. And since most of my night time trail driving is slower paced through right trails or rock crawling these are perfect. I will eventually upgrade the lights but that is further down the road.
Also I've been using a Plano Rifle case for roof storage. This thing is awesome. It's completely weather proof and is lockable. Right now I've got a bunch of recovery gear in it so when that time comes it is easy to access no matter the situation.
I have also become and Overland Bound member and I placed the emblem on the C Pillar. I joined the group because I really enjoy community and I like supporting things that I believe in. I feel like the group itself has great potential to bring people together that are into the same thing. Plus I've learned a ton on the Overland Bound forum from people that have experienced things from different walks of life.
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T4RZAN
New member
Took the rig out to the local mountain bike park and found a nice grass field to take some pictures.
The big update you can see is the addition of a ladder from Baja Rack. This ladder is one of my favorite things about my vehicle now. One of the reasons I went with this ladder is because of the shape. I really like how it follows the body lines of the T4R without being unuseable. Install was fairly easy. I was able to do it by myself in about twenty minutes. I did watch a few install videos before I received the rack which helped. One negative to this ladder was the lead time. I ordered through TRDParts4U out of Dallas and they were out so they had one ordered and drop shipped from Baja. Baja said 6-8 weeks and it took almost 14 weeks to get. So that was a bummer. But it's over and its installed and I am beyond happy with it.
The big update you can see is the addition of a ladder from Baja Rack. This ladder is one of my favorite things about my vehicle now. One of the reasons I went with this ladder is because of the shape. I really like how it follows the body lines of the T4R without being unuseable. Install was fairly easy. I was able to do it by myself in about twenty minutes. I did watch a few install videos before I received the rack which helped. One negative to this ladder was the lead time. I ordered through TRDParts4U out of Dallas and they were out so they had one ordered and drop shipped from Baja. Baja said 6-8 weeks and it took almost 14 weeks to get. So that was a bummer. But it's over and its installed and I am beyond happy with it.
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T4RZAN
New member
Went back to Angel Fire, NM for another mountain bike trip. This time I went with two friends. Bikes are awesome but bikes with friends is even better. This trip was really fun and we even got to do some exploring after the park closed for the night.
The rack is a Kuat NV 2.0. It is by far the best bike rack I've ever owned. It is extremely stable and comes with a ton of features on it. Like being able to raise and lower it with your foot. And the amount of adjustability it has is great. I would not recommend this rack for offroading. It significantly decreases your departure angle. That is the only reason. It has held up flawlessly to countless dirt trails and gravel roads, but I would not want to take it down any demanding trails.
The rack is a Kuat NV 2.0. It is by far the best bike rack I've ever owned. It is extremely stable and comes with a ton of features on it. Like being able to raise and lower it with your foot. And the amount of adjustability it has is great. I would not recommend this rack for offroading. It significantly decreases your departure angle. That is the only reason. It has held up flawlessly to countless dirt trails and gravel roads, but I would not want to take it down any demanding trails.
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T4RZAN
New member
Skids! Jumped on the 4th of July sale from RCI and C4 and ordered skid plates!
I got the full kit from RCI in aluminum: front, transmission and transfer case. These are super solid. I got the additional support braces for the transmission skid since i figured I would need them. I'm not sure why they don't come with them anyways since that seems like such a long segment with no support but either way I'm glad I have them. Josh was awesome to work with and got them all to me in less than two weeks even with the group buy
I purchased the gas tank skid from C4. I went with their gas skid for two reasons. One it's steel. Since it is one of the lowest hanging pieces and considering what it is protecting I wanted something that was going to stand up to the abuse. The other reason was the front of it. This skid was the only one that actually had an extension at the front of it. Many others just had a curved lip up but this one I knew I wouldn't have to worry about getting hung up on something because that extension would help slide over anything it hits.
Side note the C4 skid is gorgeous. The welds are immaculate and it is pieced together insanely well. Very nicely done.
I got the full kit from RCI in aluminum: front, transmission and transfer case. These are super solid. I got the additional support braces for the transmission skid since i figured I would need them. I'm not sure why they don't come with them anyways since that seems like such a long segment with no support but either way I'm glad I have them. Josh was awesome to work with and got them all to me in less than two weeks even with the group buy
I purchased the gas tank skid from C4. I went with their gas skid for two reasons. One it's steel. Since it is one of the lowest hanging pieces and considering what it is protecting I wanted something that was going to stand up to the abuse. The other reason was the front of it. This skid was the only one that actually had an extension at the front of it. Many others just had a curved lip up but this one I knew I wouldn't have to worry about getting hung up on something because that extension would help slide over anything it hits.
Side note the C4 skid is gorgeous. The welds are immaculate and it is pieced together insanely well. Very nicely done.
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FunBobby
New member
Next time your planning a trip in that area send me a message, the wife and I are close to that area and try to get out that way eveery couple of months for some wheeling/hiking/camping. :cheers:
T4RZAN
New member
Thank you!
T4RZAN
New member
Will do! There's so much out there to see and do. I can't wait to get back.
T4RZAN
New member
Here's my current rock light setup. Thanks to [MENTION=106176]wfo9[/MENTION] for the idea. Purchased 12 pairs of LED strips and wired them up to a cheap wireless 2 channel radio transmitter. So I could have the wheel well lights separate from the other lights. Then, since the transmitter was the same frequency as the Toyota Homelink, I was able to set them up to turn on and off using the 2nd and 3rd garage door buttons. So no switches to wire and no blank spots used up.
Side note: these lights are super cheap. Meaning they may or may not fade over time. I have had to swap several that have changed to a purpleish color. Super easy to change though and they are cheap so it wasn't a huge hit to have to get new ones. These have been super helpful while out on night runs.
Side note: these lights are super cheap. Meaning they may or may not fade over time. I have had to swap several that have changed to a purpleish color. Super easy to change though and they are cheap so it wasn't a huge hit to have to get new ones. These have been super helpful while out on night runs.
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T4RZAN
New member
Received my tire carrier from Detour USA. This thing is legit. It does exactly what I needed it to. With the spare in the stock spot I've taken several chunks out of the backside of my rim and didn't want to risk cutting the sidewall. This guy goes into the hitch and has a really good anti wobble setup to keep it stable. There are two variations for dropping back and I got the half drop. Which is plenty of room to still open the hatch and get into it. Love the fit of it and how close it hugs the vehicle.
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T4RZAN
New member
Loaded down for the 10 days ahead. Strapped the Max Trax to the spare on the Detour USA tire carrier with the Southeast Overland edition Trasharoo on as well. Spare gas cans in top with a Plano all weather rifle case holding the recovery gear.
After several months of planning and saving up vacation days, my friend and I finally headed out on a trip from Houston, TX to Moab to Winter Park, CO and back over the course of 10 days. I'll post pics in several posts to not have one long post.
After several months of planning and saving up vacation days, my friend and I finally headed out on a trip from Houston, TX to Moab to Winter Park, CO and back over the course of 10 days. I'll post pics in several posts to not have one long post.
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T4RZAN
New member
Left after work Friday 8/11 and drove 8 hours to Littlefield, TX and stayed at the Waylon Jennings rv park. Which is completely free! Ended up raining on us throughout the night. Wasn't a huge deal just made packing up in the morning terrible since we had to put our gear away wet. Got on the road decently early as we needed to make it to Moab, UT by sundown.
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