Here's my "Setup":





I've had it for a while now and it is amazing. I love it. I do a lot of mountain climbing/hiking and when I take trips I always take this along and camp right at the trailhead (where permitted) or even just out for a weekend in the wilderness with my dog. I've got a nice comfy air mattress that fits the contour of the bed (but it's currently leaking) or I use a Twin size air mattress that fits right between the wheel wells. It's held up extremely well with some signs of wear and tear. The poles are not the greatest, but they're your typical fiberglass poles. If I can find some DAC Aluminum poles to replace these I'll be all over that.

 

thats one nice first gen dude, ever thought of changing it to the circle headlights? IMO they look better

 

LOVE your camping set up, bud! PS> BEAUTIFUL DOG! That's a great pic of the pup in the engine bay, hahaha.

PS> I loved my Square headlights, ...love the round ones too. I had a 79, but I kinda liked the square light change they made. It seemed to look 'right' to me they way they set up the grill, etc.

Mine with the squares...

 

sweet I like that set up. its nice to know that a twin fits between the wells, I hope fully will build a vinyl camper shell for mine but the is a good thought.

 

that is awesome. Dog crate as a step?

REI makes replacement poles. I had one made a few years ago, can't remember how much it was though.

 

Honestly, like once or twice.. I'm just not ready to change them. I guess thats partially because I just got some Hella E-Codes. But I respect the round lights no doubt. Maybe someday I'll swap them.

Thanks Chef! I'm really happy with it. I'm going to look into replacing the pole thats starting to spinter with OC's REI suggestion. Hopefully they can fix me up.. I'll be heading up north soon anyhow to climb some 14,000 ft peaks with my dog later this month/early October. So I'll stop by the Santa Fe REI on my way north to Colorado.

Thanks for the kind words on my pup. She's just about 1.5yrs now, but she's my baby girl.. VERY protective and loves being out on the trails with me. She pretty much goes anywhere with me. She's climbed 13,000+ft mountains with me while carrying ~15-20lbs in her saddle bags. She's a "animal".

Your old 1st gen looks CHERRY! Very clean truck!

I was pretty bummed when my "fitted" mattress sprung a leak! I just simply went out and measured the bed dimensions between the wheel wells and went to Wal-Mart and got a Ozark Trail air mattress that fit the dimensions I wanted and all is well. It was <$20.00 too and has held up on 5 trips so far!

LOL! I wasn't using as a step then, but not a bad idea! I was using it as a table.. Cooking my Mountain House Chilli Mac on my stove.. We'd just finished hiking Wheeler Peak, the highest point in NM and after slogging through the rain for 3 hours on the return trip, I was ready for a warm meal

I'll check out REI.. Thanks for the tip!

 

where did you get the tent to fit that truck that is a great Idea I want to be able to do that with my 81

 

4x4YOTA: I got it online.. Check out:

http://sportzbynapier.com/

They list them for the Hilux pickups. They're about $200 and change.

I just picked up a '97 3RZ out of a Tacoma 5spd! Picked up the 3RZ Bellhousing, and full electrical system. Swap coming soon!

I'll be selling my 22R longblock, almost new LC Engineering Header, very good working Aisin carb, and L52 Transmission.

 

Congrats on doing the 3RZ, looking forward to your writeup on it!

 

hmm..let me know what you might want for the header...

 

CONGRATZ! Good deal on the motor?

Hmmmm, I almost did the 3RZ swap months ago.... Wound up with a deal too good to pass up on the build I did..... But still want it! lol. I am just curious.... what is the HONEST mileage difference gonna be in a first Gen 4Runner, let's just say(ehehehe).... between a 3RZ and a 1UZ??? My guess would be 22-24mpg and 16-20mpg difference,.... am I guessing right?

 

I think I got a good deal.. $600 for the engine complete with the 3rz bellhousing, clutch fork, slave cylinder, Full electrical harness for the whole truck, ECU, and all the emissions stuff. And I get to pull it (my request) so I can ensure everything isn't just ripped out. Does that sound fair?

I think the 1UZ would get pretty good mileage in a much lighter chassis even if the 4Runner is "heavy" in comparison to my truck for example. The yard I got this 3RZ from had a 1UZ in a Tundra. I'm not going to lie, it crossed my mind. Has ANYONE done a 1UZ swap in a 1st Gen pickup?? I surely haven't seen one. But I decided to just do the tried and true 3RZ.

If you do a 1UZ you better just take video of you doing the swap, cause pictures wont due that justice!

 

Hahahaha, ... yeah, if I do that, it wouldn't be in this one any time soon. It would have to be in a project I find. I'm always looking, but haven't found one yet worth the cash they're asking. People in L.A., ...dime a dozen, 87 4Runner, no motor or trans.... 1200$???????? INSANITY! lol. But I'll find it, the "ONE", ya know? lol. I'd like to do 1UZ swapage on a 1st Gen IFS, LT set up.....OR a 1st Gen SFA that's just GUTTED, ya know? Not of everything, ...just gutted of the stuff I don't need in my way anynow! lol.

That 3RZ swap is gonna be GREAT TO WATCH! Can't wait, DSM!

PS> At this point in time, I'm trying to find a day to just do my freaking seat swap! hahahaha. But if the right things lined up and projects arose that I could do over time... I WILL do it. With RMA and others like that around.... IT IS LAID OUT for those who wanna do it! Course, ...I like the couple 7MGTE swaps I've seen, too! lol. Seems like those motors are not as dime a dozen and CERTAINLY not as cheap as a 1UZ, though.... so yeah, the V8 it would be! lol.

 

Well.. What a morning! Headed out to the yard where the Tacoma resides around 11:00AM this morning. Started getting everything gutted for the swap. Got started with the ECU, pulled that, pulled the harness into the engine bay, then I started with the underhood fuse box and charcoal caniser. Got those out and their respective harnesses. Then I disconnected all the transmission related harnesses (VSS, 4WD, O2 Sensors, ect) and pulled those up to the engine to keep things tidy. Removed all the periphrials from the motor (power steering, AC, radiator hoses, heater core) so the motor is free of that. I'll be keeping the A/C compressor to do onboard air! Got the drivers side motor mount disconnected. Removed the driveshafts and pulled the shifters. About all that is left is to disconnect the bellhousing from the motor and remove the 2 bolts on the passenger side motor mount. And yank that 3RZ out of the Tacoma.

I'm home taking a breather.. Sucking down some water. It's hot out there! I've snapped a few pics of the dirty engine before I started working on it.. I haven't been taking pics of the removal process as I figure thats pretty trivial and everyone knows what a 3RZ looks like. I'll hopefully be able to get this thing out of their this afternoon and have it mounted up on my engine stand later. I'll probably start getting it cleaned up and checking it out to make sure it's "healthy" enough to install in the truck.

Super excited!

 

Well I'll save you guys a long story, but suffice to say, getting a COMPLETE 3RZ out of the bed of a lifted truck and onto a engine stand by your self is ... Well I can't use that language here

But anyhow.. here it is:





Time to "go to work"

 

SICKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK! LOL. Have a great time with that, man!

 

I feel like a failure for somehow missing this thread until now...but it is amazing. First gen trucks are some of my favorite that Toyota has ever made. Nothing better than seeing somebody take the time to bring one back to life.

Great thread, dude!

Fink

 

i am watching this!!! one of my favorite trucks, my girlfriend is kinda doin the same thing to her 80 she bought,

 

Subscribe !!

 

Awesome...yes I have engine envy

These guys have a lot of the conversion stuff-motor mounts & oil pan that would be worth checking out:
http://www.chilkatdesigns.com/