SDM Build Thread

[SamCarroll]

My 4runner forums suck so im going to make a thread here with my continued "build".

I figured it will be easier to make a build thread instead of blowing up random threads.

When i just purchased it.

2003 Limited 4wd v8 94,000 miles

It only took a week to take the steps off. I like it much better without the steps. Also quick detailed it.

Buffed, polished and then sealed my headlights and fog lights (hard photo i know)

Purchased a Pioneer AVHP4400BH with XM module and steering controls. Install was really easy and straight forward. I installed the XM module in the rear in place of the factory DVD/NAV. Was a little unnerving to tear it completely apart being so new to me.

Once that was all completed i got this gem in the mail.

I have XREAS and really like the ride so i didnt want to get rid of that for a little height.

Installed

Before:

After:

I looked over craigslist and found a really good deal on 265/70/17 Mickey Thompson MTZs so i jumped on it and got them mounted up. I really love the look. Ill be getting spacers here around Christmas time so thatll help even more.

Bought and installed an LED "pack". Does all the interior lights that's not a dash light. I'm impressed. Incredibly bright and easy install. Took about 10 min total.

Haven't gotten a pic of the door lights and cargo light but you get the idea.

Put spacers on

Before

After

Was driving to Toyota dealer when someone forgot to put it in drive, stayed in revers and backed right into me.

Its worse than it looks. Fender, hood, flare, grille, bumper and lower part and fog light cracked.

- - - - - - - - - -auto merged double post- - - - - - - - - -

little update.

Bought this for when it comes back

and as it sits now at the shop. Headlight, rad support, piece under the headlight and the bumper all being replaced.

Well the lady admitted fault so today is my day to get my 4runner back. I've been in a Chevy Cruze rental and while its a nice car, im 6'8" so i feel like a shriner in it.

So much was replaced, its amazing what can happen at under 10mph. But its all done finally and i get it back today.

Here was a pic from the body shop friend when my grille came in.

Ill take pics tonight when i get it back.

 

[SamCarroll]

they did a great job with it!

nothing "built" But just some pictures from today's work.

Been waiting on these since the accident.

Did the oil change before my road trip. First time i've done it on this one, thankfully my friend has a lift. Problem is, no extended oil catch so this was a treat.

Re clamped my CV boots so hopefully no more problems.

back from my vacation and had some free time.

My badge i guess just peeled off because of age but here it was.

look what showed up! More to come as the week progresses.

these BJs are beef

bought some plasti dip, had some free time.

I think it changed the look tremendously. Now i know ill be buying black wheels when i get some funding.

I got bored waiting for the drying so i took a lot of pics. Sorry.

 

[SamCarroll]

install pics to come later tonight.

super easy install, which i expected. I bought an LED relay from VLED and so far i dont have the Hyper Flash. Has anyone had the hyperflash after this mod?

all i have been given so far. The tech's are torturing me.

until i get better ones later.

Tires were way too close to the rear body mount and the fender at full crank so i took off the spacers. It was dark so this is all i got.

went a different route after i got rid of all of my lift stuff originally.

Found these Tacoma struts on craigslist and went and picked them up today. Just need a nice cleaning, maybe a little paint. I already ordered the 2" spacer so i should be about 3.25-3.5" up front.

Cleaned up these dirty struts. Now they actually look good! Im surprised how they cleaned up.

Before

After

I also debadged. I had a little paint fade but nothing too horrible. I polished and everything i could so im stuck with it now.

 

[SamCarroll]

Finally had a free weekend so i changed out my suspension. Got rid of the XREAS as it was sagging and really wanted more lift. I had the Daystar kit on but it just was sagging so much it made it almost stock height.

Before Measurements/After Measurements

RF 35.5 / 38.5
LF 35 / 38.5
RR 37 / 37
LR 37 / 37

I installed the Tacoma struts and the new LR UCAs. I was incredibly shocked at how fast everything went once i got started, i finished in under 2 hours total start to finish. XREAS is removed (will fully remove lines at a later date). New extended rear shocks, tacoma struts, top hat spacer for strut.

Alignment

While i had the wheels off i also trimmed my Method caps as they're 1970s large.

Im impressed with the Tacoma struts and the ride quality is tremendously better than my worn out XREAS. More responsive, softer when it needs to be and cruises great. I am very happy with this set up and would highly recommend it.

Picked these bad boys up today. Jerry is a really good guy, nice shop and i love that hes around the corner from my office.

Time to prime and paint!

heres an update

Cleaned, grinded, primed and painted these.

Also i ordered these (previous pic, not actual tires)

265/70/17 Cooper STT's

While i was busy i realized my driver side front sits 1.5" lower than the passenger side. Sweet, so this weekend i plan to place a 3" spacer on the driver side to correct the odd lean. I hope tires come in for weekend install as well.

Friend and I got bored so we went out and took some pics, figured id share new pics with the new tires.

Think we like Methods?

modified the stock rear mud flaps to hide that ridiculously weird open body.

stock cut

Before

After

Now i need to clean them up and throw some undercarriage spray on. Good to go, so much cleaner looking.

 

[SamCarroll]

threw on some glaze and a fresh coat of wax.

Also fully removed the XREAS lines and clips

finally had time to install my BAMF sliders. These things are beef and i love them.

So this weekend was fun but full of frustration. First off i was going down logging roads and hit some trail where there were a lot of obsticals so i went over those and then turning left i heard a very loud clicking and i can feel it in the floor. I figured i somehow blew up a CV axle or ruined something big by the noise.

I dont know if you can see that, but thats my slide pin sticking out and bent because it was tearing up the inside of my wheel.

I had to do some trail repair and take off my wheel and remove the pin and make sure nothing else was damaged. Meanwhile im 300 miles from home as well as 40 miles from any main highway.

*notice the beers, we were in a hurry as there have been many mountain lion and bear sightings in the area.

I got it out and put back on and went back to town gently. I bought a grade 8 bolt that fit and was perfect length, with lock washer and nylon nut. That was fixed.

Then we went to a rock quarry area and messed around, everything was great until my friend got really stuck

While trying to get him out i tried to lock in my CDL, well that apprently is stuck and didnt engage and made me freak out if i can even drive it home the next day. I tried everything to get it engaged and nothing worked so i risked it and drove back to camp.

I made it fine home but i've noticed its still flashing as well as when im idling, turning it almost comes to a complete stop. Today when i pulled into the driveway i heard the tires lock up and slide. Im going to Toyota tomorrow to see what the hell happened and how much this will cost as well as order new slide pins.

I also burned the shit out of my fingers on my lantern at camp, my change from Breakfast before all this was $6.66. I should have known.

What a weekend.

Found some time to install my Fox Resi Shocks

These ride great. I went over the worst patch of pavement i know of around here and I just glided right over. Very impressed. Now i need to save my pennies for coilovers!

FINALLY got time to hit the shop and lower my seat. What a difference! I feel like im so much lower. I see out of the middle of the windshield, not the roof, i no longer hit my head/hair, can close the sunroof and NOT hit it. Im so happy i was able to do this and i took plenty of pics for everyone.

Seat removed

Friend grinding the edges of the brackets

You can see our cuts on the lower bend here

Hit it with a hammer to flatten it out, can also see our second cuts on the outer most bend on the closer bracket. Farther bracket is flattened as well.

Test fit to make sure thats enough

left is original, right is the one we cut and bent (huge difference)

Little welding to sturdy the brackets and make it right, also welded the top cuts after picture.

Bore out the mount holes a little and tape up the side panel to trim. Used washers on the seat bolts to cover the bigger bore.

I taped and then cut the side panel with the dremel and a disk.

Closer look at the bracket now

Installed, you can see where i cut a little too much off. I also sanded down the burs/edges from the dremel cut. The picture makes the edge looks a lot more noticeable.

Installed the Toytec springs today, wow what a ***** these were. I guess i wasnt unhooking all i needed to to lower the axle more but it was a pain.

Outcome is worth it though

 

[SamCarroll]

I bought a cheap eBay "CAI" because the others are far too expensive and with CA smog i was going to have to swap 90% of the intakes anyway. So i ended up with an eBay one. It's for a Tundra so i was worried about fitment, so far only the heatshield had issues which i messed with and now works great.

Very Dirty before pic (only pic i have)

After

I had to cut the heat shield to even get it to fit.

Video

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/GJPsGAzsq1k?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

IAT Temps to show differences

Before (bottom left dial)

After (bottom left dial)

I havent noticed much of an MPG gain because ive been screwing with it. I can tell its a lot more responsive, butt dyno feels faster. I like the way it sounds, if it gets me a few extra MPG then ill be very happy.I did the JBL replacement today. Overall it was very easy thanks to ARK's write up. I took some pics of the job so ill post those as well in case others may have any questions, but for the most part his write up was very straight forward.

Wiring Kit and my amp

Panel removed, you can see my XM Receiver in the OEM disk changer location. I liked this better than under my seat.

my Rockford Fosgate P3

I chose the P3 because its thinner than the JBL replacement in the write up, no back panel modification was needed, it went right in. Mounting depth is 2.9".

Sub removed

I ran the wire through the grommet in the firewall and routed it through the console.

I routed it to under the passenger seat with the vent tube for the floor heat/cool under the passenger seat. I ran the RCAs down the passenger side so they would completely avoid the power wire and the remote wire.

I removed the rear box to find where the wires were originally routed.

Buttoned it all back up and you cant even tell i did anything visually. Very happy with this set up. I had to change all my EQ settings and it sounds perfect. Exactly the sound i was wanting and glad it all worked out.

Installed my coilovers today. What a HUGE difference. Insanely easier to install, everything went together very easily and it rides amazing! I am now 39.5" at all fenders from the ground. Very happy with these

Only picture I could get tonight. It got dark fast.

moved the resi mounts today. I like these a lot better.

Pics of todays festivities

Ill be cutting the lower grille out tomorrow, it hinders output pretty good.

 

[SamCarroll]

small update.

I replaced my front door speakers with these JBL 6x9s

Amazon.com: JBL GTO938 6 x 9-Inch 3-Way Loudspeaker: Car Electronics

Was a perfect fit and very easy swap. I had a weird driver door wiring issue but thats now been resolved. It sounds GREAT and was overall a very easy swap. Im planning on doing the rear doors soon as well just to get rid of these 10 year old speakers.

Also swapped out the train horn button as i just wasnt liking it. It wasnt as clean looking and i cant count how many times i've dropped something on it and it went off.

Night pics finally!

Headlights/Fogs

All on

Bar Only

- - - - - - - - - -auto merged double post- - - - - - - - - -

todays grille progress. I made a jig and cut to fit the board then screwed the mesh in to the board and bent the edges with a rubber mallet. Came out exactly how i wanted.

Ill install it later this week when i have some more time.

Finished the grille today, very happy of the outcome.

shit photo i know but you get to see the grille better from a distance. Really happy with it.

This came in the mail today. May try installing it today.

installed my SpeedoHealer today. Was actually extremely easy and its dialed in to 100% perfect via GPS miles/MPH. Im excited to see the change in miles per tank and actually not really be getting 11mpg like i've been tracking this whole time. Its also very easy to adjust and i put it in a hidden but easy to grab location for when needed. I ahad to adjust it to +7.1% for my 265/70/17s. I plan to eventually go 285s or bigger when these are done so this will help once again.

re-installed my rear shocks after the rebuild. So far im going to leave them at 200PSI as they dont seem to be too bad but i need to go out and test them more to really tune them in. Just happy to have them back and get rid of these terrible shocks i ran in the meantime.

I also really like these new clamps. A lot cleaner looking and hidden.

Installed the 285s finally. I will need to do body mount chop sometime soon but its not a requirement yet.

My new fender measurements are 40/40.5

 

[Tylers88]

:redneckwtf:

 

[SamCarroll]

Bought and installed Total Chaos Upper arms. I really wanted these to begin with so while i was swapping SPC bushings i decided just do it.

I didnt waste any time, UPS dropped it off and it stopped raining at the same time.

So far im loving these. it feels as if almost allowed a little more lift, ill take measurements but i highly doubt it.

got these goodies

difference between these VLEDs and the cheap kit i bought when i first bought the t4r.

Left is new VLED 5k temp and the right is the older kit. You can clearly see the difference. I like a bright white over a blue.

I also installed footwell lights, was more of a challenge than i originally thought but i got it all done and works great. I can get pics later for that.

Night picture

i found out my light bar mount broke so i ordered two Ballistic Fab end caps, they are a direct swap. A lot beefier so hopefully these will be a lot better.

Unbolted the side caps and took off the rubber seal. I had a little bit of moisture in the light so im letting it air dry for a day or two and then going to really seal this thing and re install.

Got these today too

Picking this beauty up tomorrow

primed and painted. Next thing to do is install. I have to fix my womans car first so i didnt install it today. I want to install it when ill be driving it so i can tell if something is wrong.

not the best pic but here she is. Hoping this weekend install

 

[SamCarroll]

Get a load of these beauties

been awhile since i've updated this so ill give a little run down on whats happened recently.

I got my bumper ends capped

I am absolutely loving these ICONs

Had to add a front plate since johnny law caught up with me.

Otherwise i havent done too much. I added a backup camera in the hitch plug toyota logo. Its hidden and easily removed for when/if i tow.

Future plans which should happen soon:

06+ Headlights
Sport Hood

Im still debating on doing flared fenders on the front. Not sure if im going to or not. Thoughts?

Drove down to SoCal this weekend. Had a detailing clinic and was hanging out with some friends. I went to explore Big Bear as it was 10 min away and i had a blast. Great sights, easy trails and some moderate ones. But i stuck to easy ones knowing i had about 500 miles to drive back home. All in all i drove just under 1200 miles and avg'd 18MPG which was surprising.

This was my first test of the ICONs and i cant be any happier with them. Everything was so smooth. I have a video im editing and ill post that as well once im all done.

Was a HUGE PeeWee fan so i had to see these guys.

Installed these today. Huge difference from stock jbl system. They really compliment my other replacement speakers. There is 5 of these little guys. Easy install and I highly recommend this mod if you like audio.

Had a wheeling adventure so I figured I'd share.

Here's a video I made of the fun.

Change to HD for optimal viewing.

Face lift time

got the fenders on. Meant to do the headlights but i need her bulbs for just about everything so i need to do some research on the bulbs and wire in the proper plugs. Fenders fit great, only had to sand one area and the lines are pretty damn good.

New HID bulbs and these gems came in today. Now I can finally swap over to my 06 headlights

Got my headlights in. I'm really shocked and disappointed Toyota has the 1156 bulb at the blinker. I remember those from my 68 cougar. Like seriously Toyota? Anyway I love the look of the 06 headlights. The blinker in the light and I love the way the lower filler piece actually clips in!

I also cranked the front an inch.

Paint next weekend!

I pick it up today

 

[SamCarroll]

I finally did my bushings and ball joints. What a pain, and I didn't even do them! I had a shop do them. He did not like me when I picked them up. But they're all done, rides way better and doesn't move when I hit bumps. My bushings were so shot they wiggled with a screwdriver and not much effort.

I used nail polish to mark where my alignment was and its pretty spot on. I'll see tomorrow how close I got it with the print out at the alignment shop.

 

[DemoN]

to be continued...

 

[Tylers88]

Looks good sam, don't see many clean 4 runners around here

 

[SamCarroll]

Reserving for more

 

[Bassmaster]

This is a lot more badass than I thought. Very nice!

 

[DemoN]

i never realized the depth of modifications this beast had. You've done a great job on this build so far. what's coming up on it?

:jackoff:

 

[marc]

that a pretty bad ass build man!! i dont know why but i always though you built a highlander not a 4runner :facepalm:

 

[Matts_Sierra]

dat hella stuck sierra tho

 

[mike.]

Do like.

 

[THE Mook]

I have to say that I am not a Toyo fan, unless it's yours. From afar I've watched you assemble this change after change, very impressed Sam. Didn't know too much about the Audio part either. COOL!