Tacoma Front Clip/ 3rd Gen 4Runner

[the great him]

see, its not that its a bad idea overall. it has its merits. its that most every time it ends up being done improperly. sure its shiny, but look at the details, thats what makes or breaks a conversion like this. the flares and trim are all messed up which really throws it off in a bad way. the backs are low pro highlander fenders, still matte black, not even matching the front flares, which are likely bushwhackers, and of course they dont have anything on the bumper to even it out and make it line up. they should have used either no flares at all all around, or larger flares all around, along with limited bumper flares pieces. not to mention the sighon badge.


as to the argument its cheaper to replace the front facia, theres only two problems with that. one is that the headlights are plastic, not glass. that means fogging up, easier cracks and replacing them more often. the second is that you had to spend several hundred dollars at the least to do the conversion in the first place, which will buy a lot of headlights and grills. lol!

the pic was taken just after completion and the flares were matched later(yes the fronts are bushwhacker, and if you know anything about bushwhacker you have to buy all 4, he just had not installed the rears yet...) same for the gaps/holes in the front bumper, hadnt installed the fogs and turn signals. im not sure about tacoma headlights being all plastic, i think the factory ones are glass, but im not 100%. also this was done i believe after a front end collusion so he actually saved money because the parts were cheaper. i would never just swap the stuff over just for the "upgraded" look alone, yes that would be crazy to spend that kind of money on that with no reason. but if i got my front end hit, you better believe im swapping it out, why, well for one, it would make the truck more unique in IMO and i like the look. i dont think the front bumper missing the bottom front flare part is that big of a deal, infact i didnt notice that until you pointed it out

 

[Mf Baker]

the pic was taken just after completion and the flares were matched later(yes the fronts are bushwhacker, and if you know anything about bushwhacker you have to buy all 4, he just had not installed the rears yet...) same for the gaps/holes in the front bumper, hadnt installed the fogs and turn signals. im not sure about tacoma headlights being all plastic, i think the factory ones are glass, but im not 100%. also this was done i believe after a front end collusion so he actually saved money because the parts were cheaper. i would never just swap the stuff over just for the "upgraded" look alone, yes that would be crazy to spend that kind of money on that with no reason. but if i got my front end hit, you better believe im swapping it out, why, well for one, it would make the truck more unique in IMO and i like the look. i dont think the front bumper missing the bottom front flare part is that big of a deal, infact i didnt notice that until you pointed it out

well, i totally appreciate that. though it only proves my comment in that it was not finished right, granted only at the time. everyone should start posting a pic of the completed one instead, its like the third time ive seen this pic in two months as a reference for a taco front end conversion. :smashputer:

me and my buddy with a taco were talking and he was pretty sure the heads are all plastic from the dealership, maybe depo or someone makes glass ones. but i dont know. we was sort of upset about it. lol!

and i have to just disagree personally, not having the flares on the bumper is very noticable and i think if a regular front ended runner installed bushwhackers with no bumper pieces that a lot of people would say something about it on here. but its all personal preference i guess. but if all the pieces and such are on now i would love to see it. imp:

 

[maxspeed96ct]

well, i totally appreciate that. though it only proves my comment in that it was not finished right, granted only at the time. everyone should start posting a pic of the completed one instead, its like the third time ive seen this pic in two months as a reference for a taco front end conversion. :smashputer:

me and my buddy with a taco were talking and he was pretty sure the heads are all plastic from the dealership, maybe depo or someone makes glass ones. but i dont know. we was sort of upset about it. lol!

and i have to just disagree personally, not having the flares on the bumper is very noticable and i think if a regular front ended runner installed bushwhackers with no bumper pieces that a lot of people would say something about it on here. but its all personal preference i guess. but if all the pieces and such are on now i would love to see it. imp:

Your making it sound alot worse then it is, I have xenon flares on my 4runner which dont go onto the front bumper. And I think it loooks better then it if did cover the front bumper.

The front flares on that black tacorunner look great, stop hating.

 

[Dezert4Runner]

well, i totally appreciate that. though it only proves my comment in that it was not finished right, granted only at the time. everyone should start posting a pic of the completed one instead, its like the third time ive seen this pic in two months as a reference for a taco front end conversion. :smashputer:

me and my buddy with a taco were talking and he was pretty sure the heads are all plastic from the dealership, maybe depo or someone makes glass ones. but i dont know. we was sort of upset about it. lol!

and i have to just disagree personally, not having the flares on the bumper is very noticable and i think if a regular front ended runner installed bushwhackers with no bumper pieces that a lot of people would say something about it on here. but its all personal preference i guess. but if all the pieces and such are on now i would love to see it. imp:

Let's get some facts straight here. First of all, you say you could buy multiple headlights and grills etc with the money you save, but nobody's talking about doing the conversion for sh!ts & giggles. The taco conversion is being referred to by most here as an alternative to replacing stock pieces if the front end was already damaged.

Second, you're saying it doesn't look right without flares on the bumper? Notice that on the black 4runner that the fat lip bumper lower valence has been trimmed and angled in a bit. On a normal 2001-2004 taco, THERE ARE NO STOCK FLARES ON THE FRONT BUMPER. I'd say it looks like a Tacoma front end in regards to the front flares in relation to the bumper.

You're right about the rear bumper flares not matching and the fact that the tacos have plastic headlights. That's about it.

 

[BeachWagon]

I read an article on that 4Coma a while back. The reason for the Scion badge is that his brother was in a wreck which killed him. He picked up the badge at the scene of the accident while they were attending to his brother, in a daze not thinking about it. Later realized he still had it, and put it on as a way to remember his brother.
Not every mod has to make sense to you. Some mods that seem so out of place to you, on such a well done project have meaning to others. I have had lots of little pieces that have made it from one vehicle to the next over the years. Hell, I have a cigarette lighter that was in an 81 Ford Granada, but I have my reasons for it.
I left my fender flare caps off, and I love the way it looks without them.

 

[the great him]

if i remember right, the whole truck go painted falt black or a satin black and i dont like the looks of the truck like that, so thats why i continually post this pic.

 

[VA4runnerchic]

you mean this one?
View attachment 54653

d*mn thats sexy!!!

 

[Mf Baker]

Your making it sound alot worse then it is, I have xenon flares on my 4runner which dont go onto the front bumper. And I think it loooks better then it if did cover the front bumper.

The front flares on that black tacorunner look great, stop hating.

why is it that whenever someone gives an opinion here its automatically hating??? it doesnt look right to me, thats all. apparently they were added onto the bumper, so obviously the builder felt that it needed it too. i said it looked unfinished to me, and it turns out it actually was unfinished. how is that hating???

 

[Mf Baker]

Let's get some facts straight here. First of all, you say you could buy multiple headlights and grills etc with the money you save, but nobody's talking about doing the conversion for sh!ts & giggles. The taco conversion is being referred to by most here as an alternative to replacing stock pieces if the front end was already damaged.

Second, you're saying it doesn't look right without flares on the bumper? Notice that on the black 4runner that the fat lip bumper lower valence has been trimmed and angled in a bit. On a normal 2001-2004 taco, THERE ARE NO STOCK FLARES ON THE FRONT BUMPER. I'd say it looks like a Tacoma front end in regards to the front flares in relation to the bumper.

You're right about the rear bumper flares not matching and the fact that the tacos have plastic headlights. That's about it.

well, actually most of the recent threads about this conversion have actually been asking about what would be needed so that they could do it for ****s and giggles. i realize the build pictured did not do it for ****s and giggles, but the majority of the times that people do post asking about what is needed its cause they are interested in doing it for ****s and giggles. otherwise considering how many times this has been posted, there would be a lot more converted ones around.

and i still think the stock taco with no flares on the bumper looks like garbage. just my opinion. toyota is far from getting it right every time. and like i say, ill pay the extra to not have faded headlights in 3-5 years. i mean how much do you save??? the truth is that its still a ****s and giggles conversion on some level, if saving money were the issue you would just hit a junkyard i would think.


like i say, im not hating at all, i actually love the look of it, and its a non issue since its already been established that the pic is not a great representation of it since its not completed. i come from a place where people put bmw clips on civics and ****, so maybe i'ma little overcritical of stuff like this too, lol! :bat:

 

[the great him]

well me for one does not want to be in the heard of sheep, i dont want my runner to look just like everyone elses runner. i find uniqueness cool. but i also like function more. thats why so many of our runners look the same, there is some company(s) out there that make awesome stuff, both cool looking and functional, from roof racks, to lights, to wheels, to lifts ect. not to many runners have the taco front clip, and being as though its an almost straight across swap(a little drilling and welding) and its done, i think its pretty neat. you do like it and thats cool, you dont have to do it, but to come out here and say it looks cheesy and tacky and unfinished idk, i think you kinda asked for to get flamed on that one, i mean you yourself admitted to seeing a lot of people recently looking at this and wanting to do it or at least possessing interest in the mod... it something different, and something that would potentially set ones truck apart from the rest. while i dont ever have a issue with walking out to my rig in a parking lot and not instantly knowing what one is mine, i would also like to walk out every day and smile(even bigger than i do now) knowing that BA sunfire red 3rd gen 4runner with the taco front clip is mine! and for those that possess some interest in cars and trucks, im sure it would turn some heads and make people take a double look as you instantly know something is different about "that" runner, but its subtle enough most people couldn't put a finger on it. and thats the look i like. is not "BROed" out on 24s", or got a 8" small penis lift, or "ricered" out ect. its got a nice clean factory look that sets it apart from the rest. now you are just fine with the actual factory look and thats cool, you dont have to worry about doing it, which im ok with cause its just one more Tacoma front clip. oh and my brother inlaw has a 02 tacoma yes it does have acrylic lens headlights, but his are still the originals and they have not faded or cracked or gotten oxidized... if you get toyota quality(oe/jdm) lenses then you wont have that issue.

 

[Mf Baker]

well me for one does not want to be in the heard of sheep, i dont want my runner to look just like everyone elses runner. i find uniqueness cool. but i also like function more. thats why so many of our runners look the same, there is some company(s) out there that make awesome stuff, both cool looking and functional, from roof racks, to lights, to wheels, to lifts ect. not to many runners have the taco front clip, and being as though its an almost straight across swap(a little drilling and welding) and its done, i think its pretty neat. you do like it and thats cool, you dont have to do it, but to come out here and say it looks cheesy and tacky and unfinished idk, i think you kinda asked for to get flamed on that one, i mean you yourself admitted to seeing a lot of people recently looking at this and wanting to do it or at least possessing interest in the mod... it something different, and something that would potentially set ones truck apart from the rest. while i dont ever have a issue with walking out to my rig in a parking lot and not instantly knowing what one is mine, i would also like to walk out every day and smile(even bigger than i do now) knowing that BA sunfire red 3rd gen 4runner with the taco front clip is mine! and for those that possess some interest in cars and trucks, im sure it would turn some heads and make people take a double look as you instantly know something is different about "that" runner, but its subtle enough most people couldn't put a finger on it. and thats the look i like. is not "BROed" out on 24s", or got a 8" small penis lift, or "ricered" out ect. its got a nice clean factory look that sets it apart from the rest. now you are just fine with the actual factory look and thats cool, you dont have to worry about doing it, which im ok with cause its just one more Tacoma front clip. oh and my brother inlaw has a 02 tacoma yes it does have acrylic lens headlights, but his are still the originals and they have not faded or cracked or gotten oxidized... if you get toyota quality(oe/jdm) lenses then you wont have that issue.

i know, im just pissed cause mine looks like ass, lol!


but i agree. it looks killer overall no matter what i think. i dont really care if i get flamed on for saying a car didnt look done, when it actually wasnt done, and that the two main things i pointed out were shortly after addressed. flame away. ill still say an unfinished car looks unfinished.

like i say, plenty of the oem setups look cheesy and tacky as they are from toyota; my opinion of how it looks doesnt really in any way reflect my appreciation of the work that went into it. can i appreciate the fabbing and work it takes to add a bmw front end to a civic properly? hell yes. will i still say its ugly and a waste of money? all day.


but anyways, its a cool looking conversion. maybe there should be a sticky thread about it with some info for people to easily find like the other common/commonly asked about mods. does anyone thats done have a list of the prices someone can expect to pay for the parts to do it? diy anyone? :artist2:

 

[A.Wilson013]

FWIW, when I last saw someone ask him about the Scion emblem his answer was something to the effect of, "Because I thought it was funny, and looked cool."

I don't know where the dead brother came from. If his brother is indeed dead, RIP my friend.

Anyway, if I ever do this mod it will be 100% to just be different, and to do a mod. I will only own this thing once. I will get a good scoop though like my buddy Joe.

If that doesn't make something stir in your pants, you may want to consult the Doc.

 

[maxspeed96ct]

Wow that^ trucks looks like it would be a blast to drive, I bet negative nelly "mr baker" will still find someway to criticize it lol ...



Why is everyone trash talking plastic headlights?
Really ?

My truck has them and I love the extra clear look. Plus with 5k HIDS behind the lens its amazing !

 

[Mf Baker]

Wow that^ trucks looks like it would be a blast to drive, I bet negative nelly "mr baker" will still find someway to criticize it lol ...



Why is everyone trash talking plastic headlights?
Really ?

My truck has them and I love the extra clear look. Plus with 5k HIDS behind the lens its amazing !

yay!!! only a few months and i already have a nickname, sweet!

 

[ar1five]

Found these with a quick google search..At first I thought it looked awesome, now not so much....

 

[nrgwar]

I'd like to know what parts are needed to complete a build like this.

Found these with a quick google search..At first I thought it looked awesome, now not so much....

 

[tre9er]

Found these with a quick google search..At first I thought it looked awesome, now not so much....

I think the 96-98 front end looks the best, IMO. Simple, functional, doesn't look like it's trying to scoop up plankton, etc.

 

[MStudt]

I'd like to know what parts are needed to complete a build like this.

Post #9 tells you. Entire front end is needed. Build

Hood
Fenders
lights
grille
core support
bumper

 

[Twinky]

I think the 96-98 front end looks the best, IMO. Simple, functional, doesn't look like it's trying to scoop up plankton, etc.

I agree. Here is one that was done in that style.