I have done the same. I have invested so much money into tint,lift,TXR tires that just dont cut it,blackout kits,personalized plates,roof rack,KCs,fog lights,back up lighting,spoiler, and the list just goes on and on. They are all things that made it look good. We all do things in the order we see fit. I saw making it look good before making it perform good as key. Today was the first time in over a year I have gone up on a run and gotten aggressive. I ran into powdery dust that if I had not dropped my tire pressure down I would have spun my tires as I did on a lower trail. I learned from spinning out there and at the next break I dropped my pressure to where I figured I would be better dialed in. I say, just keep at it man. We all start somewhere and even as bad as I wanted it all in the beginning I chose to start with looks aswell. Put an ad in your local paper to sell off your factory tires for a decent price that will get you into a new set of MTs. That will help you out alot and not void your warranty. I wish I would have gone over there even though I still had fun here. I was looking forward to meeting all of you guys. Well maybe later.

 

Hey guys, had a great time last night, as usual.

Ben, sorry you couldn't meet up with us. Ray, sounds like it was a pretty rough night for you! You learned a lesson that everyone that goes offroading learns sooner or later:
Every time you get in your car, whether its pulling out of the driveway, or trying to climb a nasty hill, damage to your vehicle is a real possibility. So, you have to weigh the risk of damage versus how much you enjoy the challenge, and make your decision accordingly.

It sounds like you were a bit embarassed not being able to make it up the obstacle, but believe me, there was nothing to be embarassed about. It was a tough climb, and you tried your damndest to get up it, and we're all impressed by your attempt. We're not the kind of group that is going to make fun of people for not making it through, and we wouldn't have even blinked if someone had decided not to try it all. At the end of the day, you're the one that has to drive home in your vehicle, so ultimately you have to make final decision. We all love our vehicles just as much as you love yours, and understand.

Now, with that said, just because you didn't make it up the hill doesn't mean that you should throw in the towel. There are alot of other trails where you wouldn't have had any trouble at all getting through. So, lick your wounds, don't dwell on it, move on,
and I'll see you at the 4ROC meeting next week.

BTW, please send any cool pics when you get a chance!

Thanks,

David

 

2001milli runner, I have the same problem, all I was told was "make sure it had a locker" from friends... so I saw my Sport Edition, looked in and hey! a locker button, this is it... so I bought it... thinking I was all cool and stuff till someone informed me... it was a center diff lock... sonofa#@$$!!! =) anyways... yea... so I now have to save up to get the factory locker installed, or get an ARB air locker... frigging money is where the problem is...

not to mention the stupid Traction control.... but be glad we have the center lock... some people dont, at least that brings us up to the Unlocked TRD tacoma level... man... I shoulda looked into it more than I did.... I wouldn't have bought this 4runner, I woulda got one with an actual locker, and before the VSC option was introduced.

But I still love it, its just going to take longer and more money to get it where I want it.

BTW when and where is the next 4roc meeting?

 

Hey Ray,

It was good to finally meet you after seeing your posts on here.

Don't be too hard on yourself or your rig. As you saw, not everyone makes that climb. It takes one of two things to get there; either some build out or the willingness to hit it *really* hard like Jim did. Personally, I thought you did really well over all and you have no reason to hang your head in shame.

"Sometimes you eat the bear, sometimes the bear eats you".

Stick with it and see what the limits of your current set up are, then decide if you want to make improvments on that. If not, then you will have an idea of what you and your machine are capable of. Otherwise, you will have a better idea of what needs to be done to compliment your wheeling style.

To everyone else, thanks for the killer run

 

Ducky,

The meeting is Wed. next week, the details are posted in the WA4ROC forum. PM me if you can't find them. Would be great if you could make it!

David

 

Where are the pics???

 

Well, I know I didn't get back to Seattle until ~1:00 AM, and I'm assuming other arrived around the same time, so you'll have to exert some patience, young Jedi!

 

hehe thanks for not laughing at me guys. And yes i did learn my lesson and hopefully i'll get enough courage to go up on another run soon =) It was great meeting you guy again.

BTW:

what exactly does a center lock diff do? can anyone throughly explain this? what kind of traction am i getting? when would i use it?

 

As rob explained it to me.... which he can chime in any time to correct me...


It basically makes your front and rear axle turn at the same time...

unlocked it transfers power between the front and back depending on situations...

locked it transfers the same power front and back.

 

Yep, that is it.

Rigs that do not have a center locking diff have both the front and rear driveshaft locked together when they are in 4x4 mode. With the center locking diff, it runs in an unlocked mode unless you specifically lock it. This makes it A LOT easier on the equipment if you use the 4x4 mode on the pavement, like you might during inclement weather.

Unfortunately, it also has the disadvantages of an open diff in your axle. It tends to provide power to the wheels with the least traction, it's just a front/rear axle thing instead of a left or right tire thing.

By locking the center diff, you are then on par with an unlocked rig (axles) with no selectable center diff. So, you could still put in a rear or front for that matter, locker, lock the center, then lock the axle locker(s).

You would leave the center in the unlocked position for using 4x4 on icy roads, then you would lock it in for off road to get power to both axles.

 

Ducky,

You're right on the money! With my vehicle (unlocked center), if both of my rear wheels started to spin, all the power would go to the rear, and front wouldn't get any. This actually happened to me the first time I did the tank trap at Tinkham. Even though I was locked in the rear, both tires were spinning in the back. So, while my front was sitting on solid ground, they were basically sitting there doing jack.

So, the advantage of the center diff lock is that you will always have at least one tire in the front and one in the back spinning. I say at least one, because since the front and rear axle diffs are unlocked, the tires on a given axle can still turn independently. As Ray figured out, if you're on some gnarly terrain, you can get one tire on each axle to spin, while the other two tires sit there being useless even though they may be on solid ground.

Now, with traction control and limited slip differentials, the ECU should realize which two tires have lost traction, and transfer power over to the ones that do. However, the ECU is only so smart. So, a selectable locker certainly has its advantages....

 

i still dont fully get the purpose it serves?????man, Rob explained it to me but i was not thinking straight at the time and Nevermind, on that, Thanks David =)

 

Nothing to be ashamed of. It takes a bigger man to try and know when to quit than it does to try and break because of ego...

'sides, if you'd broke, I certanly wasn't going to help you fix anything

 

HUH?

 

Just razzin' Ray a little. I was riding with Rob last night, and was afraid that Ray might break something with the valiant effort he was giving the hill (bouncing and such).

All in good fun. Anyone who knows me know I ain't gonna' leave noone stranded.

 

Check this out:

https://www.yotatech.com/forums/show...threadid=16181

 

I assumed you were just a newbie to the post that was being mean to Raymond. JK Its all good, did you have fun? I was spose to go but did a local run on this side of the Crashcades. This hill climb sounds mean as hell. I will be curious to check it out if I ever get in gear and head over your way. Ben

 

No prob. I've been around long 'nuff to know how BBS's are

I'm anxious to see how my Cruiser takes to the hill climb It's a nasty one, but it sure is fun haha

 

Is the hill rutted,dusty powder, or just plain steep?

 

All of the above...