'96 taco to '04 taco front conversion

rynophiliac · 08-06-2007, 01:59 PM

i picked up a long travel 96 tacoma from a friend dirt cheap and it is missing alot of the body parts up front and have to buy all new ones, i was talking to a friend and he said the '04 grill and hood bolt right up, and aligh perfecetly with the fenders and turn signals, so i might as well buy those, and make it look newer. does anyone know if this is true or not?

thanks

thehackman15 · 08-06-2007, 03:07 PM

search, they dont bolt right up you'll need a new core support, grill, hood,etc

VF'N8 · 08-09-2007, 04:21 AM

Does anyone know if I would need a new radiator core support to convert the 95.5-97 taco front to the 98-2000 front? I want to be able to mount the headlights without rigging them?

Douglas711 · 08-09-2007, 12:47 PM

I put a 01 front end on my 98 no problem. There are some tabs that need to be removed to install the new 01 headlights. The cores are almost the same. Yes you can do it I did

Doug

VF'N8 · 08-10-2007, 04:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Douglas711

I put a 01 front end on my 98 no problem. There are some tabs that need to be removed to install the new 01 headlights. The cores are almost the same. Yes you can do it I did

Doug

If this was for me Im trying to see if the headlight from a 98 will mount on a 96 without a new core support?

Wheelin taco2131 · 08-10-2007, 07:39 AM

Bud did it. You may wanna give him a call.

thehackman15 · 08-10-2007, 11:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VF'N8

If this was for me Im trying to see if the headlight from a 98 will mount on a 96 without a new core support?

when i was looking through posts on custom tacos a guy did it. he said he had to cut the core support pretty good to get the lights to fit right

VF'N8 · 08-11-2007, 02:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thehackman15

when i was looking through posts on custom tacos a guy did it. he said he had to cut the core support pretty good to get the lights to fit right

Do you have a link to that thread? I have seen the CT thread about going from 96 to 01-04 style in which the guy said he had to cut up the core support to make it fit, but i cant find anything about the 96-98 conversion.

thehackman15 · 08-11-2007, 08:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VF'N8

Do you have a link to that thread? I have seen the CT thread about going from 96 to 01-04 style in which the guy said he had to cut up the core support to make it fit, but i cant find anything about the 96-98 conversion.

http://www.customtacos.com/forum/showthread.php?t=61142 i pm'd him a while back and he told me the grill bolts up, but the lights needed a lot of "massaging" to get to fit.

VF'N8 · 08-12-2007, 04:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thehackman15

http://www.customtacos.com/forum/showthread.php?t=61142 i pm'd him a while back and he told me the grill bolts up, but the lights needed a lot of "massaging" to get to fit.

Thanks for the link, looking on ebay I found there are two different radiator core supports for the 95.5-97 taco and the 98-00 taco. So it comes down to whether an extra 150.00$ is worth it to have a clean bolt-on install. I cant stand mis-aligned headlights which Id probably end up with trying to alter the core support.

j-mca · 11-30-2007, 12:51 AM

i know this is an old thread, if it helps any, i converted my 96 to a 98-00. (one of the best moves i made on that truck) i didn't replace my core, i just cut out the opening for the headlight backing and it worked great. the grill snaped right in.

08-06-2007, 01:59 PM	#1
rynophiliac Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Gilbert, AZ Posts: 67	'96 taco to '04 taco front conversion i picked up a long travel 96 tacoma from a friend dirt cheap and it is missing alot of the body parts up front and have to buy all new ones, i was talking to a friend and he said the '04 grill and hood bolt right up, and aligh perfecetly with the fenders and turn signals, so i might as well buy those, and make it look newer. does anyone know if this is true or not? thanks

08-09-2007, 04:21 AM	#3
VF'N8 Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Washington Posts: 509	Does anyone know if I would need a new radiator core support to convert the 95.5-97 taco front to the 98-2000 front? I want to be able to mount the headlights without rigging them? __________________ 1996 Tacoma 4x4 5VZFE Manual, S/C, URD Fuel Kit, 2.2 Pulley, Aquamist 2D

08-09-2007, 12:47 PM	#4
Douglas711 Newbie Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Riverside, CA Posts: 6	Front End I put a 01 front end on my 98 no problem. There are some tabs that need to be removed to install the new 01 headlights. The cores are almost the same. Yes you can do it I did Doug

08-10-2007, 07:39 AM	#6
Wheelin taco2131 Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: GA Posts: 2,505	Bud did it. You may wanna give him a call. __________________ D cab tacoma, hybrid fabtech 6" with custom deaver leafsprings, 1" reloaction plate, bils in the rear, 37 mtr's, 4.88's, 14" magnaflow dumped, AFE cold air intake, full cbi protection, wheeler type b's, tom woods shaft,compressors, 5 gal tank with train horn, yellow top, lights, skid 1980 truck build in progress d60's and airshocks to come

11-30-2007, 12:51 AM	#11
j-mca Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: layton utah Posts: 106	i know this is an old thread, if it helps any, i converted my 96 to a 98-00. (one of the best moves i made on that truck) i didn't replace my core, i just cut out the opening for the headlight backing and it worked great. the grill snaped right in. __________________ '05 4x4 6-speed double cab TRD Sport, 456's, ARB's front and back, on-board air, Icons, Allpro uca's, no sway bar, Dakar springs, Stubbs weld-on sliders, 35" KM2's on steel wheels, hot wife and high clearance custom bumpers

08-06-2007, 03:07 PM	#2
thehackman15 Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: NorCal/Zona Posts: 1,902	search, they dont bolt right up you'll need a new core support, grill, hood,etc

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