sooooo....

I drove the 4runner the last 2 days back and forth to work.

a few observations:

I truly mean it when I say that it feels like it wants a 6th gear. does this mean it's because this thing has the right gears because it came with stock 31's that we have proper power in all gears?? at 55mph, it runs at 2400rpm.....that seems a bit much for me. but, again, it has plenty of power in all gears.

rides VERY SMOOTHLY.....much better than I had anticipated being that I am used to the almost punishing ride of my truck. I'm hoping to not screw that up doing the ZUK-mod.

Brandon.....you are going to have to take this thing for a spin (torture, yes I know it is....hehehehe) and tell me what you think of the front end. told Joe that it feels "nervous" for lack of a better description. drives straight. a little wheel wobble at 55mph. not the tires....at least not tire wear.....may be a badly weighted wheel or 4 or am more concerned about ball joints etc etc etc. so I'm gonna need some qualified eyeballs to look at this thing.

stock steering dampener is still there......not sure if that can even be the issue but it would be an easy switch-out to rule that in or out.

gas gauge works!!!!......filled up the tank Monday night and it worked. so maybe it was stuck from sitting for over 2 years......mind you the inspection had expired in september 2008, so maybe it was sitting for 3 years??/ not sure.

noticed alot of wind noise.....likely is from the windshield trim partially missing and the other parts looking pretty ragged. have some windshield trim pieces courtesy of KIYO via Alex's part-out......so that's a mini project. also from KIYO are 2 additional front seat belts that I want to mount in the back to give my little guy the proper safety....and whoever else is riding back there.

really wish the top was still off......that's quite the PITA to put on, so it doesn't look like it's going to be off again until next summer. likely will paint it, but will paint it on the vehicle. looks like this cap used to be white. headliner is gray and the plastic and the rear-most windows were spray painted gray.

gonna change the oil today.

need to get TOYOTA RED coolant.

need to install the stereo

ZUK mod

change the wheels

work on the exhaust again......have a vibration at the cross-member

clean up the engine bay a bit more.......can really see alot of imperfections when looking at it in the day-light and not just in the garage.

but.....it's a 23yr old vehicle, so I don't truly expect it to be perfect.

cupholder mod is wonderful......didn't use it yet for real but it looks sweet.


OK....that's it for now.

 

Jerry sue on the front end stuff. If it's a "shaky" wheel it's not the stabilizer, if it moves when hitting bumps (bump steer) it's the stabilizer.

I'd be willing to bet though the idler arm is wore out and/or pitman, just like on mine. But I'll take a look.

 

who is sue?

yeh...i have no clue on the front end stuff......just know it feels ALOT different than my truck

 

lol ooops sue = sure. damn keyboard. Oh and don't forget Plymouth Mud bog Sunday and maybe next sunday if they decide to use the rain date and then next Saturday is the Boondockers and the very next day Plymouth if they use the rain date.

 

Boondockers....maybe(birthday party that day for one of my little guy's friends).......Plymouth....NO...too expensive and was way lame compared to Boondockers.

 

Hey, the windshield mobile guys can fix that with their tubes of greatness! lol. They did mine... mine was leaking a bit, AFTER THEY'D DONE IT, lol. They laughed at the other guy before them's work...only in one spot, ..then re-did the whole section. They just pulled the trim on the inside and injected that goo properly, AFTER removing most of what they could without messing up or chipping the shield-glass.

 

Re: your top being white originally: My '88 that I got new somehow acquired a scratch and it was white underneath. I think it's the fiberglass gelcoat and then they paint them.

I noticed on the Zuk mod thread you are thinking of doing it. If you really want to save some $$ go to a shop that specializes in lifting Jeeps. They throw the OEM springs out. I got two front springs from a 2000-2006 Wrangler (YJ?) for $10. They are in brand new powdercoated condition! It looks like they will fit over the perches without any cutting on the frame. I will cut the springs though because they are 16".

 

hmmmm....that's an interesting idea. and I totally understand about the white cap.....but there is no doubt it was painted on the inside.

 

Hey, btw... on the Zuks.... Even though I don't have the 14"ers..... I went pretty nuts this last weekend and NEVER did my springs come close to coming out. I might be doing a leaf pack eventually, so I cut it clean and kept the portion I cut.... but for now, I couldn't be happier with the ride, especially when there's a lil weight back there, even a couple people.

 

we will be doing the "no cut " method

 

just me
http://shop.sportsmansguide.com/net/....aspx?a=868451

 

Hey, just to NUDGE you into getting them(or at least SOME) springs in..>>>>





You're gonna LOVE EM, no matter which ones you slap in there, no matter how you install em. I like this method because, as you can see, I don't have them even all the way drooped/stuffed, and they still will give/take more... Plus, even with weight in there... anddddddd, they aren't even close to popping out, even though, while I'm not SUPER drooped back there.... it is somewhat extended. Plus, wheeling in Havasu I went a bit crazy on a couple spots... if anything would happen, it would have happened then, really flying up stuff with good size moguls at 45*, etc. I LOVE EM!

 

i know....i know...

 

EEEk, .... hope I didn't tick ya off on the boys thread... Just trying to build the hype, ya know? hahahaha

HOpe you're all ok, Jerry!

 

no......never ticked off man.....nah. just alot of places to throw money right now..trying to get my truck back up to snuff....back to school shopping etc etc etc.

 

alrighty....status report:

I am OFF until next Tuesday...some vacation time being used up. no vacation planned as the wife is working all but 2 days of it. such is life.

the sag......yep....want to order the coils.....yep....don't have money to order the coils right now. yep.

the 4runner is running super fine!! surprised???.....yeh,,,pretty much......no leaks???....yeah....pretty much surprised there aren't ANY.

the "nervous" feel I spoke of with the front end....really is not that prevalent.....just that since I've been driving my truck for almost 20 years, it does indeed feel different.

also hearing different, infrequent creaks and groans and bangs.....trying to pin-down when and from where those noises are coming. I do know for sure that the stabilizer bar is secure to the frame but the driver's side is not attached to the LCA at all due to it being disintegrated and looking like a pencil point. going to have to get new links and do that up. i wish i could see underneath and see if a certain noise i hear when making a left turn is actually the bump stops...or not. again, none of this stuff seems to amount to anything significant but just want to look underneath and see what i see. getting under the vehicle is an issue because after years and years of neglect and abuse I have been feeling my age lately.

dash lights (all) do not work....they did.....they most certainly did that 1st night as well...we all saw them working, so i know i'm not nuts. have to try to figure that out.

gas gauge not working again. for how happy i was to see it raise all the way to the top when i filled the tank, it stopped working again. I have only put about 110 miles on this tank, so come thursday (pay day) i will top off the tank and check MPG's.

also on pay day, will buy a gallon of TOYOTA RED and drain and flush the water out and put in the thermostat.

exhaust...again...not sure what to make of the headers.....was it a performance increase????...i'll never know. i have nothing to compare against since we truly never drove this vehicle prior to yanking the motor.

also on the exhaust.....yeah, the goopy leak stop stuff did not hold. got under there again and went ape-crap on those connections again.......took the floor jack and a piece of wood and jacked up one portion because i was pulling so hard i was afraid of breaking it loose from the manifold or at the very least was afraid of fixing one leak and causing another.

bottom line with the exhaust, it still has at least 2 VERY SMALL leaks.,,,i can live with that, but that's not how i operate. someday i will buy a welder,and learn to weld myself and do this up. i hate the idea of some smug clown taking my money to do what i am perfectly capable of....if i had the means to do it.

need to install the stereo we have.

need to re-plumb the heater controls......when we got this vehicle, they were not connected and were missing pieces. scored a complete unit from ebay and installed that a long time ago, but it does not operate smoothly, completely or correctly. with colder weather coming, this is becoming a priority fix.

that's about it.

in other words, nothing exciting.....thankfully.

once again, thanks to you guys for checking in and encouraging us to move forward and once again, thanks to Brandon for helping us button this up.

 

You're great guys, one project at a time

 

tanx.....focus shifting a bit to my truck to get it on the road again.....then hopefully sell the Caddy and the we'll be all good.

 

Exhaust on the Joe's beast? Hmmmm.... I feel bad I missed that one.

That's a list, but you'll kill it, in time! Great looking rig.... it's actually the color I always searched for when I was looking for my first one... Could never find any!.... so I got a white one, first, hahaha.

Anyway, .... best wishes on all of it, Jerry, as well as to all of your family!

 

Mark the Doug Thorley are all slip-joints...we have 2 leaks of 7 connections....I've seen where people give up and weld it....thus, voiding the warranty.