Red Wagon

The size of those things helps make them a favorite in Australia. You can pack quite a bit into them.

How is the mileage on it?

bone collector

well you don't buy an FJ 80 for the gas mileage.... but its getting about 14-16 mpg on the highway... it is a far cry from the 35 mpg highway of the civic. the peace of mind and sanity on long trips is priceless. no more "he's touching me...." lol

bone collector

well its been awhile since I have updated this thread. I haven't really done much to the truck lately. If I have been working on anything it has been on the Cruiser. Just little stuff really. Put in a new radio and speakers, then had to chase down some bad wires in it, etc. then we had a rear window fall off track etc etc. I did some wheeling today. Went back to the same place, hung out with some friends, did some wheeling, and watched some S 10s and rangers try to copy what our band of yota's were doin... Of course we were laughing when they failed horribly... I will try to post some pictures later.. I also rode in a stock FZJ80 on 265/70/16 street tires and was amazed as he pushed that big rig into holes and up hills and the cruiser just begged for more. For something that big and heavy it was extremely agile and capable rig. got me thinking about my trucks

So here is my current plan for my truck... It really is the same plan as it always has been: just putting together in one place

1) bed bob about 10-12 inches
2)bedliner ( I have it sitting in the garage)
3) f 150 2wd springs. I am really starting to feel the axle wrap on my truck
4) cheap extended shocks https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f116...shocks-267013/
5) bucket seats
6) 33 x 12.5 inch tires I would prefer duratracs or wranglers, something a little more aggressive than what I have
7) sliders and bumpers - homemade
8) paint... http://www.rapcoparts.com/sppaperca.html tan with black trim

that's it pretty simple, and straight forward. Im not sure how the truck will sit with the f150 springs in the back so I might have to go with a bj spacer although I hope not. Most of the plan is labor intensive over $$. the buckets and springs I will get from a junkyard. The bed bob and bedliner is just time and effort. bumpers and sliders will take some time and money but steel can be had fairly cheap around here. A friend of mine is getting rid of his duratracs so I am hoping to snag those off of him. and then the paint would be last. its spray paint so I can touch it up easily but painting a truck is still a lot of work. I don't need a million dollar paint job, but I don't want it to look like a 5 dollar job either.

I am hoping to hit a junkyard next weekend

91 4Runner

I think you will need to install BJ spacers after the F150 leafs. I did it on my 85 x-cab with 4inch shackles (eye to eye) and it raised the rear of the truck about 7.5inches. Now keep in mind that the overload is installed and it has about a 25degree shackle angle and no weight from trail gear and spare tire, aftermarket bumpers, armor etc.. So some of the height can be adjusted down and or weighed down.



When I did mine I made a jig that with the outer holes 10.5inches on center, I wanted to stretch the wheelbase. If you are not going to then 11 to 11.5 inches would be better.



Jig in use.



Here it is sitting on the 33s.



Hope this helps...

bone collector

Thanks for the tips. But your 85 Toyota rear springs are 47 inches long. My 94 Toyota rear springs are 51 1/2 inches long and 80-96 2wd f 150 springs are 56 inches long. That being said.... I am planning to do a "hybrid" rear spring pack. The main leaf will be my original Toyota leaf. The other leafs will be the f150 springs. I am hoping ( HOPING!!!!) that I will not have to move the spring mounts at all. The idea is to use 3 leafs of the f 150 springs and the main leaf of the Toyota and clamp them together, with no over load spring. It should work, at least it sounds good in theory... lol But theory and reality rarely meet at the appropriate time.. So hopefully I can grab a set this weekend and play around some. If the truck sits too high I will take out a leaf and see how that work...

And happy 1000th post to me.... I would like to thank the Academy.... and my children's early bed time for leaving a lot of computer time to do research and plan away my retirement on this truck... But who really in Yotatech land thinks this is a bad plan??? lmao

lil_red_yota

If that works out for you with the hybrid spring swap I may need to do that cause my leads are almost flat. Thought about just doing a add a leaf kit from wab fab. But your way may be cheaper.

bone collector

Well I went to the junkyard to get my springs and other things. Came home without the springs.... my saw all ran out of battery and I didn't have the right sockets to pull them off.... grrrrrr. I did get a fan switch and some door pockets for my truck tho... I will post pictures later

bone collector

well here are my before and after pictures of my new door pockets. I got the pockets from on old Ford pick up at a Junkyard and only paid 15 dollars for them. I picked up a can of carpet/vinyl paint at Autozone for 7 dollars and change. SO ... for 22 dollars I added some much needed interior storage in my truck. Here are the pictures:

before:


paint:


my lovely assistant holding up to show the color difference:


here they are mounted and painted in my truck....

rustED

iTrader: (2)

Wow, looks really good, nice job! Looks like it came factory that way!

bone collector

Thanks a lot.... it is a nice cheap method of interior storage.

here is a quick picture I took while driving today:



small milestone, just felt like taking a picture

dsal_86Yota

Door panel pockets are sweet. Might have to borrow that idea. What year Ford? They look like 80s-90s, My 97 has plastic pockets

bone collector

Yes 80-96 door pockets should work. Mine came off of an early 80s ford. I think it was an 83 but I'm not sure

bone collector

I hope everyone had a great labor day like I did. I started off by cleaning my entire garage. It has been a LONG time since my has been this clean and empty. My uncle has decided to stop working on his Durango due to lack of money. So I got it out of my garage and cleaned it top to bottom.



After that was done. I got my old 87 and started to work on it. It needs a new slave cylinder. shouldn't be any big deal. but as soon as I put it in the garage, I got an offer to go wheelin... an offer you cant refuse...

So .......





Just some fun.. My uncle will pay me soon, so hopefully I can get some work done pn my truck soon. Rust repair and tires are top on the list

bone collector

Tonight after work I decided to add some rear speakers to my truck. I was tired of doing 75 mph on the highway with my windows down and not being able to hear my radio. I don't need a full blown setup, just something that sounds decent and doesn't break the bank. So I bought a nice set of 6 n half inch speakers made by Dual for 30 bucks. Went home and started to install them. I decided to put them in the side pockets of my extended cab. For what I paid I am very happy with the outcome.

I made the back plate out of 1 foot square pieces of MDF board that I had laying around. I cut the holes for the speakers and painted it 2 coats of primer.

After the fun task of wiring the truck, i finished up the install with the speakers mounted and I threw some insulation behind the speakers to keep some of the body rattle down. Seem to work pretty good.

Red Wagon

I've been really wanting to get some speakers in my vehicle.

Those little ones up front suck.

bone collector

Yes they do.....

Red Wagon

I started listening to country because of them.

I can't listen to anything with a beat so I just gave up. It's okay, me and the missus love country music now.

I still like beats too though so I'll get around to it.

bone collector

I love country music as well! These new speakers make it sound so much better! Makes the rock music a lot better too. I can listen to music at speed without making the tiny front speakers are work to hard and sound like garbage. Win win!

SpeedCrazy

Haven't read your whole thread yet, i followed your pics in the cheap mods thread. I have wanted to do this for a while now, almost did it in my old truck and will definitely do it now i know what it looks like done. Stock speakers suck.
I'm off to finish reading your thread from the beginning now. Looks good so far, have a good one.

bone collector

Thanks! I have so much more I wish I could do to my truck. It has been a fun reliable truck that has never let me down. Hopefully I will get more time this winter to get a few projects done.