[rivethead242]

2004 Toyota Tacoma 4x4 5-speed TRD SR5 3.4L

So far:

K&N Intake
Flowmaster Exhaust
Camburg UCA
SAW 2.5 C/O
Deaver custom 9 pack
Icon resi
Gas tank skid beefed up
ALL metal work is home made
custom tube doors
Rear Diff breather
Cobra CB
Grey wire mod
Energy steering rack bushings
BFG KM2 255/85-16
Sway-bar removed
Extended rear brake line
SS front brake lines, with low profile banjo bolt
4.56 Nitro Gears
ARB in front, Elocker in rear
Marlin Crawler "taco" box (4.70)


and some pics:

completely stock

and how she sits now

Aftershock, Johnson Valley:

more to come.....:saw::welder:

 

[rivethead242]

well after a long weekend of bending, cutting, grinding, and welding finally got the front bumper fabbed up. turned out better than i thought it would have as well, which is always a plus! still needs a little bit of work (paint and some plating) but at least its 98% done. and thankfully i have about 18ft of tube left to go towards the rear bumper.

 

[rivethead242]

well got the bumper painted black, and cb tuned (thanks to SAR_Squid79) today. ill get pics of it painted soon.

painted...and on the trail

 

[rivethead242]

Took advantage of the deal ARB had going on for the free compressor. Got the rd90 for the front. Now i just gotta wait till i get new gears before putting her in! She sits and waits till the gears come in....

 

[rivethead242]

got the rear bumper all done. few things might change with it in the future, but as it sits now.

*edit. finally got the rear hoops fabbed up and put on.

 

[rivethead242]

Got a transfer case skid made this past weekend. Got the idea from TacoDells Transfer Skid
write up. I just modified a few things. Removed the center support mount because i used 1/4" plate. Also extended my skid just a bit further to cover up the cat completely. Just need to finish the plate that connects the front skid to the transfer case skid and call it a day.

on the trail:

 

[rivethead242]

The gas tank skid has had a few encounters with rocks. Nothing too serious, gas tank didn't get touched. But the skid sure had a few dings in. After hammering them out, i took some 1/4" angle iron and added some ribs inside and out. I am sure one side would be enough, but as usual i like to go overboard.

 

[rivethead242]

Had the weekend set on getting some hoops put on the sliders to protect my cab, but due to a slight issue of not being able to get into my buddies shop things changed. BUT there are still a few small things that need to be taken care of with prior projects. Ended up getting the front bumper fully plated.

 

[rivethead242]

Slider hoops on.

 

[rivethead242]

Finally got some real shoes put on.
BFG KM2 255/85-16
Beat the fuck out of the pinch weld, still getting a little rub at full turn.....haven't determined if it is frame or firewall rub yet. *edit- its frame rub on full turn....nothing i can do about that unless i notch the frame or get spacers....im just going to deal with it.

 

[rivethead242]

Another step closer. Ordered up some 4.56 gears with solid f/r spacers from Just Diffs. Jeff took care of all my questions and really defined great customer service. Just added another toyota to the fleet, wife got a corolla. But she doesn't have her license yet, so its my DD for at least a month. Should be tearing out the diffs here in the next few days and taking them over to Yota Masters in Corona to have the gears installed as well as the ARB up front!

Out and waiting for the gears to go in

 

[rivethead242]

Picked up the front and rear diffs from Yota Masters last night. Got the rear installed and wheels on by midnight. Finished the front in this morning. Removal/Installation of diffs wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, but I sure hope I don't have to do it again anytime in the near future. The rear was a breeze, it was the front that gave me all the trouble. It was hard getting the leverage on the front diff while finagling it in a tight spot. I ended up having to use 3 ratchet straps in order to get it positioned just right to be put back in. I managed to do the whole thing on my own.....yes, it can be done!

Alignment, bleed the brakes, wire the electronics for the ARB, and 500 mile break in period and I am ready to test all the new shit out!

Locked, lifted, and armored.....time for a break......

With the new gears, and ARB in front.

 

[rivethead242]

Break is over.
Ive got my work cut out for me.
1) There was a burr left over from welding on the UCA. Over time it has rubbed against my AC hose and it finally ruptured.
bit fuzzy but you get the idea.....

2)Just about 100k miles....time for some maintenance. Timing Belt, Water Pump, new belts all around, and seals. I ended up getting everything as a package deal on Ebay. Everything is OEM and it has the newer style metal gasket for the water pump.
(clutch not included with package deal)

3)The stock clutch has been showing signs of old age for some time, but has just recently started slipping. I ordered up my clutch from Trail Gear. It was at my door within 3 days of placing my order. Complete OEM replacement. I had no issues with my stock clutch, and it lasted me near 100k miles.

 

[rivethead242]

First...the clutch

Now getting the transmission out is a pain in the ass. I ended up getting a transmission jack from Harbor Freight in order to get the job done by myself. After raising it and lowering it, twisting it and shaking it, pulling and pushing, few beers, few cuss words.....I finally got it out. Now to have the flywheel resurfaced and get everything changed out. Thanks ShowStop, Jmoney, and Scuba for chiming in with helpful ideas!

 

[rivethead242]

Timing belt, water pump, crankshaft and camshaft seals complete.
I followed the instructions based off this write up.
Big thank you to Scuba and Sparky for coming up and lending a hand. Definitely learned a lesson or two....
Few tips for others:
1)Properly support the crankshaft pulley when removing it, it is a heavy it will cause damage if it falls....
2)Loosen the camshaft pulley bolts while you still have the timing belt on.
3)Keep the tensioner completely out until the new timing belt is properly on. Even if the pin is in, you will still need the extra 8th inch it gives you with it out.
4)Careful when removing the crankshaft timing gear to replace the seals. It is very thin metal...be sure to replace this gear if you damage it.

I ended up fabbing a spanner wrench to get the camshaft pulleys off, as well as torquing the crankshaft bolt down. It was far easier and safer than jamming something in the flywheel. Isn't the prettiest tool around, but it worked like a champ!

Only picture I have from being torn down. (compliments of Scuba)

Other than that, it isn't an extremely complicated job given the proper tools. If it is your first time doing it, I would highly recommend you spread it out over two days.

 

[rivethead242]

Have had a few people asking about the little red filter I have under my hood. Figure I should add it to here. I have replaced the factory rear diff breather with a breather that sits up higher, keeping sand and water out. I used the same union as others have used, only difference is I have brought my line up into my engine bay rather than the gas filler neck. I have a spectre filter attached to the end of the hose. (cheapo knn look a like from autozone, or one of those places). I intend on getting some t-connectors sometime in the future to bring the front diff, xfer case, and transmission all into the same line. Nothing fancy, but gets the job done. Made the bracket out of leftovers from chopping off the stock skid.

 

[rivethead242]

Got a rear diff skid fabbed up using prior 1/4" I had left over from the other projects. Pretty simple design that gets the job done. First time playing around with CAD programs, and CNC machines.

 

[rivethead242]

My front brake lines (banjo bolt) kept getting knocked loose from what I thought was rocks(having nicks/cuts in the lines supported this theory). Come to find out, it's the banjo bolt hitting the coilover's and getting loosened. Lost my brakes on more than one occasion, always at the most inopportune time. I have swapped out my stock front brake lines for some stainless steel ones with a low profile banjo bolt. Been out on the trail a few times with the new low profile banjo bolts, and voila I haven't lost my brakes on an obstacle!

out with the old

in with the new

 

[rivethead242]

Got some tube doors made recently using leftovers from prior projects. My buddy who has helped me with all my tube bending has since then switched jobs and no longer has access to a bender. So I had to get creative and work with what I had. A chop saw, grinder, and 110 mig welder. They aren't perfect but get the job done. I cut the pin on the hinges and replaced it with a bolt for quick release. The "slam latch" is simply a rubber stopper with to tabs to put a bolt through. They have absolutely no rattle in them, so I am happy enough. Sure beats replacing my AC line.

(hinges courtesy of Scuba, thanks again man!)

Tested and approved

 

[rivethead242]

As much as I like the smell of burnt clutch...the time has come for stupid slow. After getting burned on a local used deal, I called up Brendan (Freds40) at Marlin Crawler. Contrary to what some say about the poor customer service, I was quite pleased. Before ordering I was informed they were waiting on the input gear which would be a week wait, and 2 weeks to ship. The part came early and they were able to have it built and shipped to my door one week prior to what they had stated.

The cat had to approve first.....

I still need to take care of the drive shafts and figure out what I am going to do about reinforcing the mounting.