1992 4 runner roof rack install on a 1990 4runner non roof rack model

olharleyman · 03-04-2007, 06:47 PM

OK so this weekend I had a pretty busy schedule with my 4runner. First off I installed my roof rack I bought from RUSTY DAVIS I repainted it first just for a new look not that it was in bad shape or anything truth is it was in real nice shape thanks again RUSTY DAVIS.

The first step was to pull the head liner and with the help of a good friend my mine who just happens to have 15 years working for TOYOTA we pulled the interior panels from one side of the truck to find the cross members. Once we found them and marked them with painters tape on the roof we then assembled the rack and found a suitable mounting point and marked it and set it up for installation then remembered one minor detail that we over looked. Thank god we thought of this minor detail that we overlooked THE SUNROOF.

Not that its a bad thing but we totally forgot to factor in the slide rail for the retract function of the sunroof , after rethinking the sunroof we came to the conclusion that the point that I choose to mount the rack was not going to interfere with the sunroof it was time to start the drilling.
First thing before drilling we taped the sides of the roof where we had the outsides of the rails and that gave us a good point to mark the roof with the sharpie.We then went back to the inside of the truck and reinstalled the interior panels and headliner.

We then went a got out the drill bits and a block of wood. The drill bit if I remember correctly was a 9/32s (don't hold me to that) then took the 2x4 and put the drill bit on it and cut the 2x4 to fit the length with we then took an extra 1/8 inch off so only the very tip of the drill bit was loner then the wood block.The reason for the tip of the drill bit being a bit longer was so after drilling Thur the block only that would come Thur and when drilling it to the roof it would not good to far Thur and catch the headliner tearing or ripping it.

Now came the drilling with the piece of wood set on the drill bit and the drill in hand it was time to commence with the task of drilling(Yes I was a bit nervous) but with the pre marked points in site I went to each mark with my punch and made a dimple in the roof so the bit would not walk.
Next was the moment of truth DRILLING the first hole. I went to the first mark with total appreciation and started to drill , this is where the dimple came into play because the wax on the roof made it rather slick and the bit would have slide pretty easily.

With the bit tip firmly in the dimple the drilling stated , first the metal shaving got me very nervous and then it happened the block of wood hit the roof stopping the cutting action and downward motion of the drill.

The first hole had been drilled and the block of wood did a EXELLENT job of stopping me from drilling Thur the headliner. After that drilling the next 11 holes was like walking , I didnt even think about it I just drilled next thing ya know all the holes were drilled and BRETT and I were pulling the tape off (the tape really was two purposes 1 good for making the marks for drilling and not hurting the paint and 2 it helps protect the paint if the drill bit slips no scratching the paint.(a trick I use when installing parts on a custom HARLEY or other high dollar parts)

Next step was to fit the (brass) inserts that BRETT graped from his tool box and see how they fit. I still don't know what they are called but they work like a rivets but the inside is threaded for a 6mm bolt. Just a note Friday I went to the hardware store and found 12 1/4" and 2 1" long tapered head stainless steel bolts that fit the tread in the rivet thing. BRETT had also the tool (matco tools) that inserted these in the roof don't know what its called either. But its basically like a rivet gun but where you place the rivet there is a threaded shaft the same pitch as the bolts.You screw in the insert set it in the hole and just like a rivet gun pull the handle until you feel the insert mushrooming , but don't pull to hard or you will ruin the insert and have to drill it out hoping that you can install another one without any damage to the roof.

We did both sides and placed the rack on the roof finding that all lined up perfect YES, once I was sure that it fit right it was time to fit the rack for good.

All the bolts went into the new threaded inserts and a drop of blue lock tight had them holding like they where factory installed (better if you ask me) The roof rack looks great and holds even better total time for the install was about 2 hours and was really not to hard to do maybe a 7 out of 10 but with the correct tools and supplies needed it was a breeze and fun at the same time.

Hope this will help others in the future and later this week in the sunlight I will take some pictures of the finished product to add here. But all I have is a web cam so I could not take any picture since I did this at another friends shop and he was busy doing business as usual. So I didnt want to freak out his customers either had I had a digital camera.
If anyone has any questions feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer them and yes I will find out the proper names for the inserts and tool used to complete this install and add them later.

heres a picture with the rack completed I dont own a digital camrea so this is a picture my friend took for me so I had something to show here atleast

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Kyle95sr5 · 03-04-2007, 07:08 PM

dang on man, get a freakin digital camera.

89macrunner · 03-04-2007, 08:21 PM

ahhh please use paragraphs....... i cant read a huge cluster of words like that it hurts my eyes haha

ChickenLover · 03-04-2007, 08:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 89macrunner

. i cant read a huge cluster of words like that it hurts my eyes haha

X2.. I won't even try to.

paxil4x4 · 03-04-2007, 08:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChickenLover

X2.. I won't even try to.

X3 my eyes are burning

just a 22re · 03-04-2007, 09:07 PM

i stoped reading after a few lines....then i looked down to see the pics and it was like a book! lol but now i wanna see some pics dangit!

SacRunner · 03-04-2007, 09:17 PM

Interesting write-up.

One question though...why did you reinstall the headliner before drilling the holes? It sounds like you used the 2x4 only so that you didn't drill through the headliner (vs drilling too far into the metal...I have no idea if this is a reasonable concern, btw), which could have been avoided by not reinstalling the headliner until everything was done, plus you could crawl back inside and see where the holes really ended up on the inside of the roof.

I gotta respect the effort though, I took the easy ($$) way out and bought a Yakima rack that attaches to the inside of the doors.

**DeathCougar** · 03-04-2007, 09:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by olharleyman

OK so this weekend I had a pretty busy schedule with my 4runner.

First off I installed my roof rack I bought from RUSTBUCKET I repainted it first just for a new look not that it was in bad shape or anything truth is it was in real nice shape thanks again RUSTBUCKET.

The first step was to pull the head liner and with the help of a good friend my mine who just happens to have 15 years working for TOYOTA we pulled the interior panels from one side of the truck to find the cross members. Once we found them and marked them with painters tape on the roof we then assembled the rack and found a suitable mounting point and marked it and set it up for installation then remembered one minor detail that we over looked. Thank god we thought of this minor detail that we overlooked the sunroof. Not that its a bad thing but we totally forgot to factor in the slide rail for the retract function of the sunroof , after rethinking the sunroof we came to the conclusion that the point that I choose to mount the rack was not going to interfere with the sunroof it was time to start the drilling.

First thing before drilling we taped the sides of the roof where we had the outsides of the rails and that gave us a good point to mark the roof with the sharpie.We then went back to the inside of the truck and reinstalled the interior panels and headliner.We then went a got out the drill bits and a block of wood. The drill bit if I remember correctly was a 9/32s (don't hold me to that) then took the 2x4 and put the drill bit on it and cut the 2x4 to fit the length with we then took an extra 1/8 inch off so only the very tip of the drill bit was loner then the wood block.The reason for the tip of the drill bit being a bit longer was so after drilling Thur the block only that would come Thur and when drilling it to the roof it would not good to far Thur and catch the headliner tearing or ripping it.

Now came the drilling with the piece of wood set on the drill bit and the drill in hand it was time to commence with the task of drilling(Yes I was a bit nervous) but with the per marked points in site I went to each mark with my punch and made a dimple in the roof so the bit would not walk. Next was the moment of truth DRILLING the first hole. I went to the first mark with total appreciation and started to drill , this is where the dimple came into play because the wax on the roof made it rather slick and the bit would have slide pretty easily. With the bit tip firmly in the dimple the drilling stated , first the metal shaving got me very nervous and then it happened the block of wood hit the roof stopping the cutting action and downward motion of the drill. The first hole had been drilled and the block of wood did a EXELLENT job of stopping me from drilling Thur the headliner.

After that drilling the next 11 holes was like walking , I didnt even think about it I just drilled next thing ya know all the holes were drilled and BRETT and I were pulling the tape off (the tape really was two purposes 1 good for making the marks for drilling and not hurting the paint and 2 it helps protect the paint if the drill bit slips no scratching the paint.(a trick I use when installing parts on a custom HARLEY or other high dollar parts)

Next step was to fit the (brass) inserts that Brett graped from his tool box and see how they fit. I still don't know what they are called but they work like a rivets but the inside is threaded for a 6mm bolt. Just a note Friday I went to the hardware store and found 12 1/4" and 2 1" long tapered head stainless steel bolts that fit the tread in the rivet thing. Brett had also the tool (matco tools) that inserted these in the roof don't know what its called either but its basically like a rivet gun but where you place the rivet there is a threaded shaft the same pitch as the bolts and you screw in the insert set it in the hole and just like a rivet gun pull the handle until you feel the insert mushrooming but don't pull to hard or you will ruin the insert and have to drill it out hoping that you can install another one without any damage to the roof.

We did both sides and placed the rack on the roof finding that all lined up perfect YES once I was sure that it fit right it was time to fit the rack for good. All the bolts went into the new threaded inserts and a drop of blue lock tight had them holding like they where factory installed (better if you ask me) The roof rack looks great and holds even better total time for the install was about 2 hours and was really not to hard to do maybe a 7 out of 10 but with the correct tools and supplies needed it was a breeze and fun at the same time. Hope this will help others in the future and later this week in the sunlight I will take some pictures of the finished product to add here but all I have is a web cam so I could not take any picture since I did this at another friends shop and he was busy doing business as usual so I didnt want to freak out his customers either had I had a digital camera.

If anyone has any questions feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer them and yes I will find out the proper names for the inserts and tool used to complete this install and add them later.

__________________

here, i fixed it so its READABLE

**DeathCougar** · 03-04-2007, 09:50 PM

also, this is the longest run-on sentence I have ever read...

"Brett had also the tool (matco tools) that inserted these in the roof don't know what its called either but its basically like a rivet gun but where you place the rivet there is a threaded shaft the same pitch as the bolts and you screw in the insert set it in the hole and just like a rivet gun pull the handle until you feel the insert mushrooming but don't pull to hard or you will ruin the insert and have to drill it out hoping that you can install another one without any damage to the roof."

olharleyman · 03-05-2007, 12:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SacRunner

Interesting write-up.

One question though...why did you reinstall the headliner before drilling the holes? It sounds like you used the 2x4 only so that you didn't drill through the headliner (vs drilling too far into the metal...I have no idea if this is a reasonable concern, btw), which could have been avoided by not reinstalling the headliner until everything was done, plus you could crawl back inside and see where the holes really ended up on the inside of the roof.

I gotta respect the effort though, I took the easy ($$) way out and bought a Yakima rack that attaches to the inside of the doors.

Well as I said we only pulled down one side of the headliner and found the cross members and marked them. Yes the 2x4 was in fact used for just that reason to not drill Thur the headliner. We tried to get this done as easy and quickly as possible. That was the reason for only removing half the headliner , still had to build and install rock sliders as well , so getting it done quick was the key to getting the sliders and roof rack done in one day. I was going to do a wright up about the sliders as well but man some guys picked apart the attempt to do this so I'm hesitant to do that one.

leebee · 03-05-2007, 02:43 AM

do a draft copy of your write-up and ask one of the mods to edit it for you. you can then post it in the tech write-up section for everyone to check out. just be sure to ask before you send it off, never know how busy they may be.

lee

pepsibluefloat · 03-05-2007, 03:20 AM

or just post it...if they bitch and moan so what. Nobody is forcing them to read it.

SacRunner · 03-05-2007, 09:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by olharleyman

Well as I said we only pulled down one side of the headliner and found the cross members and marked them. Yes the 2x4 was in fact used for just that reason to not drill Thur the headliner. We tried to get this done as easy and quickly as possible. That was the reason for only removing half the headliner , still had to build and install rock sliders as well , so getting it done quick was the key to getting the sliders and roof rack done in one day. I was going to do a wright up about the sliders as well but man some guys picked apart the attempt to do this so I'm hesitant to do that one.

I definitely just glazed over the part where you said you only pulled down 1 side, and just assumed you pulled the whole thing down, I was just curious.

reggie 00 · 03-05-2007, 09:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by olharleyman

Well as I said we only pulled down one side of the headliner and found the cross members and marked them. Yes the 2x4 was in fact used for just that reason to not drill Thur the headliner. We tried to get this done as easy and quickly as possible. That was the reason for only removing half the headliner , still had to build and install rock sliders as well , so getting it done quick was the key to getting the sliders and roof rack done in one day. I was going to do a wright up about the sliders as well but man some guys picked apart the attempt to do this so I'm hesitant to do that one.

Please tell me your not that thin skinned. The number of people that picked apart your write up are the minority of people that actually read the thing.
It was hard to read, and i hope you add some space next time.
I for one got alot from it. I need to put a rack on my 4runner and had no idea that you could get inserts to do it.

If you could ask your buddy what the part # is for those things so others can do it too.

now write up the slider post.

olharleyman · 03-05-2007, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by reggie 00

Please tell me your not that thin skinned. The number of people that picked apart your write up are the minority of people that actually read the thing.
It was hard to read, and i hope you add some space next time.
I for one got alot from it. I need to put a rack on my 4runner and had no idea that you could get inserts to do it.

If you could ask your buddy what the part # is for those things so others can do it too.

now write up the slider post.

No I'm not that thin skined just kidding as you can see i did fix the problems as they pointed them out. I will ask Brett to get me the part number for the kit and get it posted here as soon as tommorow if he knows it off hand but at least by the end of wensday

reggie 00 · 03-05-2007, 10:20 PM

Is all good

olharleyman · 03-06-2007, 01:24 PM

The special tool used is called a THREAD INSERT KIT sold by MATCO and the inserts are called THREAD INSERTS AND a few come with the kit and more can be bought thru MATCO. We could not find a part number on the box it comes in but Brett says any MATCO or SNAP ON guy will have it or can get it for you.

03-04-2007, 07:08 PM	#2 (permalink)
Kyle95sr5 Contributing Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Bucklesberry, North Carolina Posts: 1,181	dang on man, get a freakin digital camera. __________________ Kyle SOLD:http://www.yotatech.com/showthread.php?t=117624 1995 Toyota 4runner SR5 4x4 - 31x10.50 BFG ATS - MANIK Brushguard with 2 Hella 500s - Custom roof rack with 4 BAJA lights - Vortex Muffler - Rancho shocks all around - WabFab 1 inch body lift - Dual HU - Infinity Kappas in rear - Pioneers in the front

03-04-2007, 08:21 PM	#3 (permalink)
89macrunner Contributing Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Tempe, AZ Posts: 2,062	ahhh please use paragraphs....... i cant read a huge cluster of words like that it hurts my eyes haha __________________ Daily Driver: 2007 Windsor "The Hour" Fixed Gear 250 miles Crouch Rocket 2005 Felt F80 1100mi (purchased new in Jan 2008) 2006 Mazda3 GT 2000 TRD Tacoma..Bought back and crushed 1988 4Runner SR5 V6 5 speed..sold

03-04-2007, 09:17 PM	#7 (permalink)
SacRunner Registered User Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Orangevle (Sacramento), CA Posts: 109	Interesting write-up. One question though...why did you reinstall the headliner before drilling the holes? It sounds like you used the 2x4 only so that you didn't drill through the headliner (vs drilling too far into the metal...I have no idea if this is a reasonable concern, btw), which could have been avoided by not reinstalling the headliner until everything was done, plus you could crawl back inside and see where the holes really ended up on the inside of the roof. I gotta respect the effort though, I took the easy ($$) way out and bought a Yakima rack that attaches to the inside of the doors. __________________ -Wallace '91 4Runner \| 3.0 \| 5sp \| 4WD \| 33x10.5r15 BFG AT \| 15X8 Cragar black steelies \| BJ spacers \| OME 901 coils \| OME shocks \| OME steering stabilizer \| Sonoran Steel Rear IFS Truss \| ISR mod

03-05-2007, 02:43 AM	#11 (permalink)
leebee Contributing Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: marlbank, canada Posts: 2,428	do a draft copy of your write-up and ask one of the mods to edit it for you. you can then post it in the tech write-up section for everyone to check out. just be sure to ask before you send it off, never know how busy they may be. lee __________________ 93 sr5 v6 auto, 4x4 Photos http://s866.photobucket.com/albums/a...albumview=grid there are quite some attractive ladies on here with Toys. (compliments of ironmike) ifsc 3(.0) http://tlca.org www.of4wd.com www.sontt.com

03-05-2007, 03:20 AM	#12 (permalink)
pepsibluefloat Registered User Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico Posts: 382	or just post it...if they bitch and moan so what. Nobody is forcing them to read it. __________________ 1988 4runner::SAS\|3.4L swap\|Swap to 5speed manual\| RF1A \|5.29's\|Aussie Front\|LockRight Rear\|Longfield axles/Hub Gear\|4"Rear/3"Front springs\|Marlin High Steer\|Custom CV rear driveshaft from High Angle Driveline\|Rear D/S shortened and made into front D/S \|35" Goodyear MT/R \| Addicted Offroad front bumper \| Marlin rear bumper My 4runner n stuff

03-06-2007, 01:24 PM	#17 (permalink)
olharleyman Contributing Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: maryland Posts: 3,215	The special tool used is called a THREAD INSERT KIT sold by MATCO and the inserts are called THREAD INSERTS AND a few come with the kit and more can be bought thru MATCO. We could not find a part number on the box it comes in but Brett says any MATCO or SNAP ON guy will have it or can get it for you. __________________ 1990 4 runner 5 Speed Pro Comp Stage II 4" Lift 6" coils rear Aussie Locker front 5.29's Front And Rear 35 x 12.5 x 15 MT's Micky Thompson Classic II Wheels Super Charged 3.4 on the way 1993 SAS 4runner 22re 5 speed 4" front 5"rear 5.29's 35 x 12.5 BFG KM'S Dick cepek DC 1's 88 stock 4runner 3.0 auto for now 1955 Harley Davidson Springer Stock 1955 Hardtail Frame 4 Speed Kick Start Only 1998 Harley Custom Dresser 107 rwhp 139 ft.lbs.trq.

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