4biker

Now every time I look at this thread, I want to ride my bike.

Anyway, here is a shot of the wheels after a few days of driving through the muck and snow. Also, it's a good shot of the first real snow we've had since October when I almost froze to death on the Elk hunt! If the color isn't a perfect match, it's pretty darn close and I couldn't be happier. Now I want to paint all that silver a darker color, so we'll see if/when I move forward on that.

4biker

I'm wondering what the prevailing thought is on fuel consumption in the 3rd gen with the 5VZ-FE. When I purchased the thing it had super light-weight tires on it (compared to the bfg carcasses I have now) in a smaller size, and granted, I've added some weight, some air resistance, and now it's breathing through a straw. I've got 4.30 gearing at the moment, so I shouldn't be overtaxing at this point. When I first got the 4Runner I was getting as good as 23mpg out of a tank on the highway, and about 20mpg in town. After adding some bigger, heavier tires (265/75/16 yokohamas) and the lift, it dropped a good 2mpg easily. Over the past year, it's gone to an ABYSMAL 13.5mpg on average. A few weeks ago I started to tackle this problem by replacing the plugs. They were 3-4 years old and were obviously done when I pulled them out. Before I did that, I did a seafoam treatment through the PCV valve as prescribed in the famous seafoam thread. It seemed to pull a little harder after those two things, but no change in mileage. I tried Lucas fuel additive with absolutely no effects that I noticed. On Saturday last week I changed the upstream O2 sensor, and that seems to have helped a little as well. That made sense to me to do as well. The old one looked pretty cooked, but obviously wasn't throwing codes. I'm wondering what your opinions are on the following (since they are the next things on the list if things don't improve):

- Injector cleaning (take them out and get them done)
- MAF sensor cleaning
- Throttle body scrubbing
- Deck plate mod (especially since I have the snorkel)
- ISR mod
- Vacuum hose replacement

ANY other ideas??? There are only 185K on the clock, and I'll be keeping this thing for a looooong time.

4biker

Well things are about to start changing again...

I just ordered a set of new shoes for the 4Runner that will have a little more meat on them. I'll be sporting a set of 255/85/16 BF's that are becoming all the rage. Just FYI, I was planning on buying them on Amazon Prime for $200 each with free shipping but just yesterday they jumped to $219. I'd been watching them for weeks now, and just when I go to purchase, they jump. Huh. I ended up just using tirerack.com, since I've bought from them before and it was a pretty good experience.

I'll (most likely) be selling my wheel spacers that I've had for about 4 months, but I'll have to see if/where I get rubbing without them first. Also, it's time for a re-gear. I'm torn between 5.29 (per Scotty's silver 3rd gen "Intervention" build) or going to 4.88's. Honestly I'm planning on 5.29's unless something drastic changes. I'm pushing so much more weight and drag that I think keeping the RPM's higher will be the better bet. It's a $1000+ mistake if I choose poorly, so I hope I get it right! I'll also find out if my 906 rear springs will be enough, or if I move to cruiser coils (even if I cut them down an inch or so)

Anyway, I'm pretty excited about this, and I'll be putting up pics when they get in (fingers crossed)

habanero

You're getting worse mileage than me with lights, a rack, skids and E rated Michelin AT2 33's and not even adjusting for tire size.
I clean my maf every once in awhile. Just too easy not to do it, if you haven't in a long while. Least check and see what the filament/wire/whatchamacallit looks like. Whatever you end up doing, do one at a time so you can see where a change happens, if any. Then you can tell us.

What sort of gas do you have- we've got 10% Ethanol year round = difference in mileage than using just gas.

4biker

We have 10% ETOH as well but only in the winter because our inversion is so bad. The valley just fills up with junk, so the guvment punishes us with crummy gas.

At this point, I'm happy to try just about anything. The O2 sensor seems to have given me a boost, so I'll keep watching that until I hit about half tank and see where I am. Then I'll do the MAF and probably scrub out the throttle body. I guess I've just heard horror stories about breaking the filament and those things ain't cheap! Thanks for the positive vibes, and I'll keep you posted!

4biker

Well look what the brown santa truck left me yesterday - New shoes!

4biker

Well, I've needed to update a little bit for about a week or so. Gas mileage numbers haven't really changed all that much. I did the O2 sensor, cleaned the MAF (super easy and noticeable difference in throttle response - well worth it!), run a couple different injector cleaners through, and just barely put in a new air filter (no more Fram for me, only OEM from now on). I've decided it is probably due to a couple of factors. I live on the mountain, so lots of gas going up every day. I only drive for about 12 minutes on average from work to home, and back again, on roads that are slow and stop sign-ridden. That's while the engine is cold, burning cold air. The ridiculous ethanol requirement is not helping matters at all. I've got 150lbs+ of aerodynamic nightmare on the front of the truck, and the snorkel can't be getting any positive airflow at my low commute speeds. I'm still going to change out the fuel filter, since it's only been nearly 15 years and 186000 miles.

The thing is, I'm still feeling good low end power, and the only time I'm bothered by the engine output is on the freeway. When I re-gear that should get better anyway.

Anyways, I got sick of having all that rubber on the floor in my garage, so I had the tires mounted up at walmart (only $20 to mount all of them). Here are the worst pictures in the world to prove it:





They look great if I say so myself, and they run pretty well. They're loud on the freeway, but don't howl. I'll be getting real pictures of them next month when we go to Hole in the Rock trail in southern Utah.

4biker

Yesterday I did something I've never done before - mess with differentials. I've got a guy setting up the diffs with 4.88's. I ultimately decided to go with 4.88's based on a couple of things. The low-end power was still actually good with 4.30's, but it's so low on the freeway that it bogs down way too soon. Also, I contacted SOAZtim and asked him if he was happy with his setup with 4.88's. He's driven his as well as 5.29's and doesn't like having the engine rev so high all the time, even though it's better off-road. I may regret not going with 5.29's, but we'll see. Hopefully it's a noticeable difference and I don't kick myself for going a little small on this.




I also helped my brother with a project on his Jeep for an upcoming trip. He already had a safari-type rack on the roof, but he wanted more storage above the spare tire. This is what we came up with:

4biker

I got the diffs back, and got everything installed (hooray! ) I'm still technically in the break-in period, so I'm babying it. I ended up with a diff leak in the rear because I was in too much of a hurry to get it back together. It runs on the freeway very well, and I'm back in the power band for the higher speeds. I had to reign it in a couple of times because I didn't realize how fast I was going. The engine seems happier now between 2600-3000rpm's on the freeway, where it belongs. If I ever want it more powerful, I'll need to get a supercharger. We'll just say I'm happy for now, and very satisfied with 4.88's.

It was funny - the guy that set up my gears pointed out that there is still yellow marking paint on the old (185k miles) R&P. Here's the new rear diff before it went in. The front diff was all sealed up, so no pics.


There was a significant whirring noise from the rear diff the first time I drove it, but it has since completely disappeared. I got the diff leak sorted out (hopefully for good) after another 3 hours under the car. My advice is to get the gasket surface looking perfect - take your time and do it right. I used the Toyota paper gasket first, then went to permatex bronze or whatever. Either one would have probably been fine if I had prepped the surfaces better the first time.

We headed out over the weekend for a break-in run on the Pony Express trail here in Utah. Here are some shots from that.

4biker

I finally made the leap and installed a CB. I hope it's not a one-time use item, so I guess I'll have to go on a bunch of trail runs with other guys & gals now

I picked up a Uniden Pro510XL and got it all installed. I reluctantly put it in the ashtray location. I hated losing anything on my dash, but it was super easy, and the cleanest location to install it. I also picked up a magnetic antenna that has a removeable mast, and the coax connector is connected with the cable running through the console to the rear seats. Here are some pics of the process:

I just took out the console (don't forget the only two screws are behind the heater control plate on the '96-'98's) and cut the back of the console out behind where the ashtray was.



I re-drilled the holes in the bracjet to draw the CB unit closer to the top of the opening.





I ultimately spliced into the ACC power on the stereo so the CB unit can only be turned on when the key is on. I soldered into the power and ground, so we'll see how it operates. I left all of the wiring intact just in case I get too much interference and I have to move the connections to the engine bay.

Finished product!

habanero

Nice install. I use the cb more than I thought I would. Traffic jam what's up, road conditions, weather and wheeling with people.
The Pony Express stop's neat. Moab's is all but gone but still cool. It was a stage coach stop too. Just a bit from it is a short trail with dino bone fossils and petrified trees. Good stuff.

4biker

All right, I finally got the sidewalls dirty going on a real trail. We headed to Hole in the Rock in southern Utah, where a group of Mormon pioneers did some amazing things in a crazy place. The trail is rough, and honestly it pushed my ability as a rock crawler. We got to see some amazing sights though.





This kind of off-camber stuff was happening all the time. Tippy!
















This is my wife on one of our hikes, doing some traversing over a mini slot canyon. Don't worry, she's only 33 weeks pregnant here


The Chute:

Going down


Going up




Grey Mesa

4biker

I thought I had more pictures...









To see an actual trip report, look here: http://www.rme4x4.com/showthread.php...rch-22-25-2012

It's not finished as of the date of this posting, but a couple of days worth are up so far. There will be some GoPro video up soon too. I may put up a couple of my lower quality videos here from the trip. If you have questions about the trip or the route, feel free to ask me rather than posting up in the trip report on RME

4biker

By the way, my gas mileage is getting back to excellent nowadays. I did the following:
Seafoam
Lucas gas treatment
new O2 sensor
cleaned MAF
cleaned throttle body
new air filter
Techron injector cleaner
New fuel filter
new 4.88 gears

For some reason, on the Hole in the Rock trip, it started at about 14mpg, went to 15.8, then jumped to 18.9mpg. I was cruising home at 75mph and feeling great power from the motor. I really wonder if everything I did helped a little bit, then the fuel map had to redesign itself. Who knows? At this point, I'm just glad I can drive this thing without a second mortgage. I also feel like the motor is happier at higher RPM's on the freeway. 3000 at 83mph is pretty good.

stockwell45

iTrader: (1)

Great pictures! Makes me want to head out to that area more...

What bracket did you use to attach your cb to the dash? If I could find something like that I'll be set.

Don't know how often you head to southern Utah, but my folks live in St. George so I am out there quite a bit. It would be cool to wheel around there with someone one of these days!

4biker

Actually the bracket is the one that came with the cb. That's the silver metal piece that goes up and over in the pictures. I drilled new holes above the original ones in the mounting bracket to snug it upward. The way I mounted it was I took the ashtray out, and the ashtray mount was screwed to the plastic trim piece above it. I used the screw-mount clips from that and drilled some new holes in the trim piece so it would fit the unit in lengthwise. Then plugged in the antenna and put it back together. There should be some mounting hardware with whatever cb you pick up.

St. George is a great place - one of my favorite places to mountain bike (Gooseberry Mesa, anyone?). I'm down there occasionally since my sister lives in Gunlock and my grandparents have a winter house down there. definitely check on RME4x4.com for wheeling trips down there, and there is a community of guys down there too.

habanero

Hole in the Rock as in the big painted "Hole in the Rock" sign that you see right before what looks like some kind of crazy tourist trap??? I did not know there was actual stuff to do and see there! Great pics! Looks like fun! And...like the pics of the cute wife with the biggish belly!

Pretty soon you're going to have to do a back to back pic- you'll need a watermelon, a roomy shirt and a wife with a sense of humor.

4biker

Thanks for the compliments on my cute wife. We've been waiting years for this youngster to come along, so we're enjoying every minute of the pregnancy.

There are actually two Hole in the Rock spots. The Escalante side is the Hole in the Rock "road." It's on the Bullfrog Marina side of Lake Powell, and it's a very long (apparently washboarded) road that leads to the actual Hole in the Rock that the pioneers descended. Here is the link to info on that: http://www.nps.gov/glca/planyourvisi...-rock-road.htm

The side we did is the Hole in the Rock "trail." It's located on the Hall's Crossing Marina side of Lake Powell. There isn't a ton of info about it, but there is a resource here: http://www.expeditionutah.com/featur...ock-4x4-trail/ The link I posted above to the trip report actually has the most comprehensive trail information that I've seen. I'd like to do it again sometime, but only with a group that's got good spotters. Definitely a great experience, and fun to do with my preg wife.

4biker

I decided that it was finally time to get skid plates back when I was planning on doing Hole in the Rock. I ended up ordering the tranny and t-case skid plate from Savage Offroad at the first of March. Unfortunately they took six weeks to get the order completed, so it was well into April before I received them. They told me it would be five weeks, so no huge surprise.

They arrived bare metal, just as advertised. I should have hit them with a flap disc on the grinder just in case, but I just cleaned, primed, and painted them. The rough finish was straight from the machine shop after the bending, so just a couple of scratches by the time I got them, and I should have had the insight to remove them first. I ended up trying the Rustoleum silver metallic paint that I used on my center caps, but it doesn't go on easily to large flat surfaces. I may flat-black them down the road, but it depends on how the finish holds up overall. I'm glad I used self-etching primer (Rustoleum) because even with a clearcoat applied the paint just rubbed right off with very little pressure (bolts, touching other metal surfaces, etc.).

The installation was a little annoying, since there was no instruction sheet included, and I thought I'd just "wing it." Turns out it's a lot easier to run a ratchet strap under the car (I used my sliders for the strap) and do the rear one first, since the front bolts to the rear anyway. The front (trans skid plate) bolts to the rear holes from the small tinfoil skid plate behind the oil pan.

Driving to work today I noticed as soon as I started up that there was a definitely "rumble" now, and it must be that the crossmembers are now tied directly together. That means more rigidity and transmission of vibration into the body. I only noticed it while at a stop. It's similar to the increased ride harshness after putting my sliders on with the more rigid frame.

If I ever come down on them I'll write a review of their durability, but they are good for peace of mind in the mean time.

I thought I got some pictures before and after priming/painting, but they must be on a different camera. Here is the finished and installed product:





*edit* note to self, always paint underside stuff black! The silver always just looks dirty and gross.

4biker

Well now it's time to get serious about this thing. A local 4x4 hero is planning a trip to the mighty Rubicon Trail this September, and I'm committed to go. For me, this is the pinnacle of off-roading; even more so than any particular trail in Moab. I want to do this right, and really enjoy this experience. That being said, I feel that the 4Runner could have some minor modifications made that will make the trail easier and more enjoyable. Unfortunately these mods are not free, but I may be able to squeeze some of them out before the trip.

One thiing I learned from my last trip is that I bump down on my hitch A LOT. This is not a big deal, but the less I do that, the better. I want to upgrade my coils in the rear to something taller than my 906's. The upside to that will be more clearance and softer ride. I love my 906's, but they're a little stiff. There really is no downside, other than cost and install time. I'm thinking 890's or perhaps 891's. If I get 891's I'll probably need to get a lighter winch rope so the front won't be so heavy.

Since I'm running SAW's in the front, I'm not sure about my cv's being perfectly safe. I'll be disconnecting my front sway bar (since a trusted source highly recommends it), and I don't want so much droop as to bind my cv's. On the last trip, the front would pull down so quickly when off-camber that it got a little to tipsy for my liking. mu solution is to get a diff-drop kit. Should I also plan on disconnecting the rear sway bar?

Last trip was the first time I aired the tires down. The guy who let me air up on his compressor burned it up, so I want to be my own guy on that from now on. I'd love to have an ARB compressor for tire inflation, but that's more coin if I have other mods to make. We'll see what I end up doing.

Front skid plate. I know I can handle most things out there with the stock front skid and the savage T-case and tranny plates. It's just that stupid worthless little "stone guard" under the oil pan that's about as tough as tin foil. Now I have a gap between the front skid and the tranny skid. I either need to fabricate something worthy or buy a whole new front skid.

I've got tons of rubbing when I'm at full stuff. It takes a LOT to get it there, but it ain't quiet when it happens. I may have to remove the rear mudflaps altogether, but I'd rather just trim/pound what I need. Any 255/85 owners can give me some suggestions if you feel so inclined - it would be greatly appreciated.

I've been toying with the idea of removing the limited trim, since it sticks out further than the tires do. If I do that, I would probably cut my sliders down since they extend to the same level as the trim. Unfortunately that will require a ton of work, and I don't have the time to do that work. What I would also look at doing is moving to Land Cruiser wheels with less backspacing, which would look a little cleaner, but I love the limited wheels I have now. They're 8' wide, and I like the 7" wheel with the 255's. It's a conundrum.

Winch recovery kit: $???
Taller rear coils: $160
Air compressor: $50-250
Diff drop kit: $20
Synthetic winch line (lighter, less pokie) >$180 - not a huge priority
Front skid plate $225 + shipping
Eliminate tire rub at full stuff $(time)
Mud flap delete $(free)
Exhaust jack $70

To be edited...