The Acid Test

lehiguy

lehiguy

New member
So... having come from a seriously built FJ60 that I have had for 16 years, having built or fabricated every scrap of it and knowing exactly what it will do, I had some reservations about switching rides, especially to something with electronic nannies and IFS. I am no longer concerned. I found myself bombing down some "roads" in the Arizona strip. The FJ coils with Daystar spacers plus the FJ Bilsteins up front and Skyjacker Nitros in the rear took far, far more than I ever thought they could, turning ugliness into a nice controlable ride with very predictable oversteer, just like my FJ would do, but so much more smoothly. What this suspension setup can do is quite impressive. Then the stupid traction control ruined my bliss by bringing me to a complete and sudden stop in some deep sand. I wasn't expecting that. I have installed a switch to disable it, which I then did, and then I simply mashed the throttle and took off again. Aside from the idiotic ATRAC or whatever it's called, it was a fantastic experience, one that gave me great confidence that this little rig actually can fill the shoes of it's Big Brother, the mighty FJ60.
 
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Good to hear! I'm still adjusting to the changes myself. My last truck was a modded '88 FJ62 with a 5-speed, 35's, etc that could handle just about anything. I'm happy with the 4Runner and added the switch a bit ago but haven't had the chance to test it though. I'm prepping the truck and loading up my hybrid travel trailer today for a morning departure to Moab. I'll find some sand to play in during my week stay and see how it does.
 
lehiguy said:
So... having come from a seriously built FJ60 that I have had for 16 years, having built or fabricated every scrap of it and knowing exactly what it will do, I had some reservations about switching rides, especially to something with electronic nannies and IFS. I am no longer concerned. I found myself bombing down some "roads" in the Arizona strip. The FJ coils with Daystar spacers plus the FJ Bilsteins up front and Skyjacker Nitros in the rear took far, far more than I ever thought they could, turning ugliness into a nice controlable ride with very predictable oversteer, just like my FJ would do, but so much more smoothly. What this suspension setup can do is quite impressive. Then the stupid traction control ruined my bliss by bringing me to a complete and sudden stop in some deep sand. I wasn't expecting that. I have installed a switch to disable it, which I then did, and then I simply mashed the throttle and took off again. Aside from the idiotic ATRAC or whatever it's called, it was a fantastic experience, one that gave me great confidence that this little rig actually can fill the shoes of it's Big Brother, the mighty FJ60.
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KidVermicious said:
That sand on the Strip is deep, too. Good to hear you like your new truck!
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where is this strip you guys speak of?
 
gm350reratliff said:
Hmmmm.....dunes, flat, any rocks? I'm interested.
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It is so vast, there are dunes, flat areas, rocks, rocks, rocks, mountains, it is a place where you can spend weeks. There are several places where the Grand Canyon is accessible, one called Tuweep Canyon (not Toroweep although Toroweep is a must-see) where we walked down a short trail and bathed in the Colorado River; we were right down in the bottom of the Grand Canyon. I went out on Kelly Point years ago, a mesa that extends quite far south on the west end of the strip. It is possibly the most remote area in the United States.
 
CXS said:
Good to hear! I'm still adjusting to the changes myself. My last truck was a modded '88 FJ62 with a 5-speed, 35's, etc that could handle just about anything. I'm happy with the 4Runner and added the switch a bit ago but haven't had the chance to test it though. I'm prepping the truck and loading up my hybrid travel trailer today for a morning departure to Moab. I'll find some sand to play in during my week stay and see how it does.
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Pics or it didn't happen. :D absolutely love your runner man, keep trying to justify gettin that 3M strip on the hood haha
 
Very nice!

Out of curiosity, why not just lock the center diff/transfer case, which thereby puts you in traditional 4wd,and also disables traction control..? Not sure why everyone on this forum chooses to do a mod when Toyota built it right in there.

Not knocking you for doing it, and cool you got it the way you want it, but just wondering why people choose to go that route.
 
stanleybb50 said:
Very nice!

Out of curiosity, why not just lock the center diff/transfer case, which thereby puts you in traditional 4wd,and also disables traction control..? Not sure why everyone on this forum chooses to do a mod when Toyota built it right in there.

Not knocking you for doing it, and cool you got it the way you want it, but just wondering why people choose to go that route.
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Maybe they want to turn it off on surface streets?
 
jaybird93000 said:
Pics or it didn't happen. :D absolutely love your runner man, keep trying to justify gettin that 3M strip on the hood haha
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Pics will come but not for a while since we're here til Sunday. So far - Porcupine Rim, Hell's Revenge & Poison Spider in either rain or snow. Tomorrow Elephant Hill.

The trailer rocks too. Everything works except the water heater which I'll look into when it warms up.

No justification for a hood blackout is needed, just do it!
 
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stanleybb50 said:
Very nice!

Out of curiosity, why not just lock the center diff/transfer case, which thereby puts you in traditional 4wd,and also disables traction control..? Not sure why everyone on this forum chooses to do a mod when Toyota built it right in there.

Not knocking you for doing it, and cool you got it the way you want it, but just wondering why people choose to go that route.
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It's the Right Now factor that you cannot get waiting around for the front drive to engage then for the center diff to lock. Takes too much time when you need spin NOW. I like to be the driver. I don't like casting a vote and getting over ridden by Nanny McPhie.
 
lehiguy said:
It's the Right Now factor that you cannot get waiting around for the front drive to engage then for the center diff to lock.
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Not to imply that the mod needs any defense, but to follow-up the thought, why not just lock the diff and leave it locked when you hit dirt? No delay that way.
 
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JB. said:
Not to imply that the mod needs any defense, but to follow-up the thought, why not just lock the diff and leave it locked when you hit dirt? No delay that way.
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I would still have to kill the ATRAC and the locker causes increased wear on the tires and handling issues at speed. ATRAC and ABS are for people who do not know how to drive, I wish I could kill it permanently without all the dash lights coming on.
 
lehiguy said:
I would still have to kill the ATRAC and the locker causes increased wear on the tires and handling issues at speed. ATRAC and ABS are for people who do not know how to drive, I wish I could kill it permanently without all the dash lights coming on.
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"I'm gonna have to go ahead and disagree with you there". Lol - Seriously though, I really don't think traction control and ABS are for people that "don't know how to drive". I respect your mod and that's cool and all, and suits you, but just want to throw out that I disagree with the statement.. They have their place.

I do however fully agree on the kill switch!
 
stanleybb50 said:
"I'm gonna have to go ahead and disagree with you there". Lol - Seriously though, I really don't think traction control and ABS are for people that "don't know how to drive". I respect your mod and that's cool and all, and suits you, but just want to throw out that I disagree with the statement.. They have their place.

I do however fully agree on the kill switch!
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I guess what makes me nuts is there are people out there who would pee thier pants if they experienced oversteer on a snowy road, or threw the vehicle into a slide by locking the brakes. That is part of driving at certain times and in certain places. I hate nannies that take that away from me. My brother is a state tropper in Wyoming. He and every other trooper in the department make it a point to turn off the traction control on the Chargers they drive so the stupid system won't get them killed. My BMWs would "traction control" themselves to a complete stop in the snow. It had to be turned off to get any where. Nannies suck, and yes, they are for people who do not know how to drive past a very basic level.
 
I have found the ATRAC system very useful off road. It actually outperformed a 3rd gen with the rear e-locker and no tracton control. There was this steep, rough hill that was pretty difficult to get up. The 4th gens walked up it with no problems because the traction control helped a lot. The 3rd gen would get to a certain point and spin tires. Even with the rear differential locked, it took him multiple tries to get up it. I guess it depends on certain situations. It would be nice to have the freedom to shut it off though like they implemented in '08.
 
NJshadow93 said:
I have found the ATRAC system very useful off road. It actually outperformed a 3rd gen with the rear e-locker and no tracton control. There was this steep, rough hill that was pretty difficult to get up. The 4th gens walked up it with no problems because the traction control helped a lot. The 3rd gen would get to a certain point and spin tires. Even with the rear differential locked, it took him multiple tries to get up it. I guess it depends on certain situations. It would be nice to have the freedom to shut it off though like they implemented in '08.
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Wait, the '08s can turn all the nannies off? CRAP! I wish I had known that. Oh well, it's done now. I have ATRAC and an E-locker and both are selectable. I wonder if that feature can be installed on older vehicles or if we are stuck with the butch methods.
 
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