I dont know that i can call this a build up yet, but i have been fixing this 4runner for the past 8 months or so off and on when i had the time. I bought it in February 2012 for $1000.


The good:

• It ran strong, both engine and transmission seems to be in good shape. 22RE with 5 speed with 204,000 miles.
• One owner truck since it was new
• Newish radiator
• Newish plugs and wires
• Newish tires, but they are only 29's
• AC, Heat, Rear Window all work
• The interior was dirty as heck but intact except for one rear headrest.
• Frame is rusty but not rotten through and is restorable with a wire wheel and some rust coverter and paint.

The bad:

• The starter only worked once every 20 cranks or so
• It had a broken windshield with a bad leak
• Every fender was rusted through or missing.
• It had a massive front seal oil leak and a gas leak
• The paint was in bad shape

The plan has been to get this thing in decent shape both visually and mechanically for a weekend, camping, beach, home depot truck. The wife isnt thrilled about a rusty old truck so it needs to look decent, and I wont put up with something that is not reliable or leaves me stranded. Oh, and as this isnt a daily driver I dont want to invest a ton into it so this will be done as budget friendly as possible. Oh, and I have never done this type of thing before, so i will be learning as i go.

Anyways, here is what it looked like when i brought it home minus the rusted through front fenders. I never took a pic outside of the whole thing before it went into the garage, but trust me, it was worse than it looks in the pic.



First thing i did was remove the interior for a cleaning. The seats were not bad but the carpet was nasty. Also repainted the rear panels.


Next I fixed the rust on the rear quarters. I know bondo isnt the prefered way, but i dont have a welder and again this is being done on a budget. Also, this truck will spend alot of time in the garage and out of the weather so it should last for a while. I used an angle grinder or a wire wheel to get all the rust off then used a rust converter as well.





I decided that with the price of new front fenders only being $70 it would be better to replace than to repair.


I removed the windshield and fixed some rust in the windshiedl channel. I had a local glass company put a new one in. We ended up using rubber trim as the old metal trim was ruined. I will add some pics of it soon.

Then it was time to sand. I figured it would be easier without the top on. I didnt pull or fix every dent.





I used a number of coats of white primer since I am going from black to a light color. All work done in the garage or driveway





Here are the first coats of the paint. Rattle can Rustolium Painters Touch in Navajo White.






It came out ok. I painted about 3 coats, wetsanding along the way. Then I used rubbing compound and then a wax at the end. Not perfect by any means but it looks decent. Not super shiny but the average person wouldnt think it was rattle canned. I though long and hard about a cheap place like Macco but decided that i could do it myself for less, and be able to touch it up easily whenever i needed to. All the supplies including paint, primer, wax, sandpaper, etc. was under $100






I also fixed the front seal leak with new seals. To anyone who is needing to do this, it wasnt as bad as i thought it would be. My old seal was so brittle it basically fell apart when i took it out. New seal was only $12 and it hasnt leaked a drop. A remanufactured denso starter was installed as well and now it starts up every time with no issue. Next on my list is some new tires. Probably 31x10.5 muds of some sort. I may do some sort of soft top or bikini top, and upgrade things as i go. I will update the thread as progress is made. Thanks for looking!

 

By the way, i havent seen hardly any other runners with mirrors like mine. They seem factory, and are stamped Toyota on them. Anyone know why mine are different than most?

 

Nice looking rig, there is tons of good info around here for cheap fixes and upgrades. Welcome to yotatech by the way.

 

You done a great job bring your runner back to life. I have seen those mirrors on trucks but not on a runner. My 86 has the same mirrors as yours but they are missing. So I am guessing they did put them on runners, not to many from what I have seen though.

 

good looking runner. nice job on the paint i like the color matched bumper

 

sweet paint job i need to do mine

 

Picked up some gently used 31x10.5's, Pep Boys Definity Dakota Mud Terrains for super cheap on Ebay. They make the truck look so much better than the 29's.

 

Went to the local salvage yard and found some seatbelts out of a Hundai and headrests out of a Ford Escort for the rear seats.





I also picked up a landcruiser bikini top and made it fit. Used an aluminum flat bar to fab the front attachment, and a piece of $5 conduit for the support bow. About a two hour project for about $100 and I really like the outcome. Now I am just waiting for it to get warm, although driving like this with the windows up and heat on isnt bad in the cab. Wouldnt want to sit in the rear seats though.





Here is how i attached the rear straps without drilling into the truck. I didnt like the way it secured with the straps going to the tie downs in the floor. I built this out of a few pieces of the aluminum flat bar and the stock top bolts.



This is a great cheap mod which is so easy. Even the bow was simple. I just used a MAPP gas torch to heat up the metal to bend it using my hands, feet and a hammer. No kinks at all, but make sure you do this with plenty of ventilation and a fan or resperator. Dont want to breath the fumes from zinc or galvanized cooking off. If anyone has any questions about how I did it let me know.