amgraham

I bought my 1987 Toyota 4Runner around April 2006 with 263,XXX miles on it. It is a DLX model, 22-RE 5-Speed. Some mods that were done when I got it was the Smittybilt Rear Bumper, SR5 wheels with 30" Michelin Tires, SR5 seats (driver's seat broken), old school Sony tape player with JBL front speakers and Pioneer rears, bug shield, and I think the rest was original. It ran and drove very well for the miles but the clutch was slipping pretty bad. Here are pics of right before I swapped the clutch (it came with a top, it was just off the truck so I could clean it up):



In that phase I put in a Daikin clutch kit, had my local machine shop resurface the flywheel, installed Marlin Crawler shifter bushings and boots, and filled the transmission and transfer case with Valvoline Synthetic gear lube.

Soon after that I pitched the Sony stereo for a JVC CD player w/Aux input for the mp3 player. My stock rollbar was bent so I found a straight one in the junkyard and had it sandblasted and powdercoated (it turned out great!). I ebayed the bugshield and one of those dash rugs that came with the truck. I also had to replace the O2 sensor. To help with the typically feeble Toyota headlights I found a set of generic driving lights for $5 at a yard sale and mounted those to the bumper. I ran across an excellent deal on some 1997 Tacoma rims with 31" BFG A/Ts already mounted (and only a couple months old). Here are pics about that stage:



Those were actually comparison photos as I was getting ready to do some rear add-a-leaves and bushings. I used Pro-Comp AALs and Energy Suspension poly bushings. I wish I could say this was an easy mod. It would have been if not for one of my forward spring mount bolts being frozen in the bushing. I fought with that thing until I finally succumbed to the dark reality and I dropped the gas tank and ground the ends of the bolt off untill I could pop it out of the mount. Here are pics:



I saw that my shackles were corroded pretty bad so I plan to replace those. Also, somewhere in the process I scored an SR5 instrument cluster on ebay, had it recalibrated to my mileage (and the guy compensated it a bit for the oversize tires.. it's within 3 MPH of dead on). When I swapped the cluster I replaced all the backlighting with red (I drive BMWs alot and like the less glare and fatigue that the red provides). Here's a night pic of the cluster:



On 9-18-06 I was rear ended at a stop by a Camry doing about 40 mph. It did damage to both the front and rear of the truck because she knocked me into the vehicle in front of me. The damage includes:

• Bent Smittybilt rear bumper
• Mangled stock front bumper and valance
• Broken grille
• Broken driving lights
• Multiple blown bulbs

The damage was over $1600. I'm using that money to mod some more stuff along with the repairs. As of this writing I have in the mail or waiting to be installed:

• TJM T-17 Bumper Channel
• Hella 500 Driving Lights
• All Pro Offroad U-Bolt flip kit (my U-bolts are a little too short for comfort after the AALs)
• Downey 1.5" lift shackles
• Cobra CB and Firestik II antenna
• Hi-Lift 48" Jack

I will put up before and after pics of the damage and improvements after I finish it. Also, I have a website for the truck that I'm working on quite a bit and I try to keep it up to date. That address is:
http://www.anthonygraham.net/1987_toyota_4runner.htm

Thanks for looking and feel free to PM me with any questions, comments, etc.!