kford

Hey, i'm a n00b here on the forums. Actually I've done a lot of the mods I have seen on here, but never posted here. short list of mods:
deckplate, amsoil air filter, bf goody t/a ko's, custom painted dash trim, alpine head unit, kappa speakers, clear corners/bumpers, maglite mounted to husky mats, custom painted center caps.

On a side not, I just took off my running boards and i have mixed emotions. The SR5 black trim abruptly stops on the front fender now, but i realize that there are mud flaps for sale. Anyway, my 97 has 263,000 miles on it (my dad bought it new in 97, drove the hell out of it) and so the combination of the range of weather in Louisville and my mudding habits, a lot of my undercarriage is rusted (especially the cover over the gas tank) so that shows now that the runnin' boards are removed. This weekend i'll probably sand, prime, and paint some of the badly rusted spots. But it still looks a little bit off without the running boards. I don't know, somebody change my mind.

Here's a pic of my rig, sorry it's so dark but it's 8:30 PM and i dont' have any other pics of it.

Jonathan

Welcome to the forum . I like your truck, it looks pretty good for that many miles. For the mudflaps go to Toyotaparts4u.com and call their number and tell them what you want. They don't have the right mudflaps listed on their page, however, if you call they will know what you are talking about. I think I got both of mine for $35 plus shipping, which isn't bad since the stealership quoted me $95. Good luck and weclome again!

Plays_with_Toys

Looks good! I like the painted wheel hubs.

Are you still in highschool, or maybe college? That parking tag on your mirror looks alot like mine, only mine is gold.

I think once you get those mud flaps on there, it'll look even more awesome.

And welcome to yotatech! May you be happy, and have a lighter wallet!

kford

thanks for the link! Yep, Senior in HS. I can't wait to graduate, going to UK next year. Hopefully my truck holds up through college, i won't have as much time to spend modding and maintaining it then. Most people think the painted hubs look stupid, but I put a lot of clearcoat on them so when the truck is clean (it's disgusting in that pic) it looks good with clean tires. I long for car-washing weather...

Vato Loco

Hey welcome to Yotatech! I must say that is a pretty sweet 4Runner, reminds me of a <96 4Runner>'s 4Runner, a member here. I am also a senior in high school, just 3 more credits and I'm graduating!

Plays_with_Toys

Vato, I thought you were already through college!

I'm a senior as well, going to Colorad State in the fall, and I too won't have much money. Hopefully if I get the ROTC scholarship, that'll help with $150 month, but thats insurance and not much more.

PoBoy

wow! 263k miles...I dont know of may 3rd gen 4Runners with that many yet! Good testimoney to the 3.4L engine lasting! Have you or your dad had any problems with it?? Any major repairs?

keisur

Welcome to the forum. I like your avatar.

kford

I was waiting for somebody to ask that. This is the most reliable care me or my dad has ever heard of. No major repairs (a couple of wrecks thanks to my dad but only some replaced doors, nothing major).
EXCEPT...

This is the weirdest thing. But anyway this truck is on it's 9th radiator. REPEAT: 9 RADIATORS!! It eats them like crazy. Every few months. The dealership has paid for 8 of the replacements (parts and labor, completely free for us) because they can't fix it! (Oxmoor Toyota in Louisville is the best dealership i've delt with). Every so often a radiator will suddently (no warning) get overpressured and literally crack. Then all hell ensues; steam everywhere, entire engine compartment covered in antifreeze, immediate overheating. Well anyway, the dealership has obviously done all kinds of tests, they don't just give away radiators at 1000 bucks a pop, and they can't find anything. Between the 5th and 6th radiator, they even had a special team from Toyota come in to try and figure out what the deal was. they couldn't even figure it out. The last time it happened, Toyota offered to buy the truck from me so that they could tear it apart and see what was wrong. But it sounded like a bad deal, because it's an amazingly reliable SUV, minus the radiator part. (but they're free so oh well). It sounds like a cracked header, bad water pump, and other common things but trust me, it's not. Weird, huh? but other than that nobody can believe it's got so many miles and still so new. runs like it's a day old. steering is tight, ride is a little rough but it's a 4runner. accel is great (slow, but normal). I love it.

kford

Oh yeah and my avatar is my Shaggy Chia pet. I don't have any good pics of me wheelin' so I figured this was the 2nd best avatar.

Cebby

Try POR15 for the rust. When it warms up, I'll be taking care of a few areas...

kford

k thx

Breezey

welcome to yotatech!

When you get a chance, please feel free to Submit your truck to www.toy4runner.com

As always, be safe!

Zetoe

holy moly 9 radiators?! and the dealership replaced 8 of them at $1k a pop... dang that's a expensive truck! not for you but the dealership!

anyways welcome to the forums. por15 is very popular for dealing with rust.