guitarplayer360

How it currently sits:




Got My 1998 ltd 4runner after totaling my Ford Ranger. The previous owner had it for about 8 years, drove it 131,000 and surprisingly never did anything to it.


(ok not actually mine, but looks exactly how it did. I didnt get a shot of her when I first got her, oops...)


First thing I did to my 4runner was the stereo. Put in a Pioneer head, amp, and pair of MTX 2x12 subs.

The Head Unit:



The Amp:


And, the subs....minus the wrench that was accidentally thrown through them


Once Summer rolled around, I got a job and actually had money to spend, So i put on some pro-comp series 98 black steelies, just to look cool for the next few months..





after another year of being a broke student, My birthday finally rolled around and I got a new paint job, but these were taken during christmas:








Rolled around for a while until I decided to take those weird looking chrome hub caps off. Also, I decided to add some spidertrax 1-1/4 inch adapters/spacers. I have to say it looks MUCH cleaner than it did, and Im glad I made the decision to take the caps off:







Had to do a little trimming to fit the wheels with the spacers, but the lift is on it's way so soon enough I will have some clearance!

Also, I plan on doing the grey wire mod one of these next few weekends, and also plan on replacing the bulbs in the dash so I can have some bright whites instead of the ugly green ones in now.


Coils and shocks are in the mail, so new pics will be up soon!!

MaK92-4RnR

where in nor cal are you?

guitarplayer360

i live back and forth between san joaquin county and tuolumne county.

brian24

Hi,

I was wondering about the paint job you mentioned. Any details such as color, cost?

guitarplayer360

The paint job was done at a local maaco. I believe around $800. One of the cheaper ones you can get, but this also included taking all of the dents out, and re-buffing.

I had them do the original color because it was cheaper. I believe it is a forest/dark green. not sure what the name of the color was, they might have matched it with the old paint.

guitarplayer360

I went with the OME 881s up front (with spacer), and 890s in the rear, and N90004/60027 shocks. Also had the 1" diff drop put on.

Rear shocks and coils (890):



Front Strut:



It looks great so far. Can't wait to have the new tires mounted. Also, planning on doing 1-2" BL once I have the time.

Here are some before/after pics:

Overall:

Before:




and after:





Some of the wheel wells:

Front (Before/After):




Rear (Before/After):




Some extras:








Just for fun, the old, stock springs and shocks:




Just received some new LED lights, will have them installed soon. Also received all the electronics for my locker, which were removed around 4 years ago, so that will also be included.

Next comes the Body Lift (if needed), and tires. Still trying to decide between 285/75s or 255/85s, and looking at the duratracs or just BFG A/Ts.

thanks!

tlrskunk

285/75's and Duratracs will last quite a while.

guitarplayer360

Well If I go 285s I will probably just go with a/t. The extra grip on m/ts wont help my mileage too much, and this is my DD also.

tlrskunk

What is your reasoning behind that? The MT will have less contact with the pavement compared to the AT due to tread design alone. And I bet you won't notice a mileage difference between one 285 or the other. You will have a mileage difference just due to larger tires.

Maybe surf craigslist for some used 285's to see how bad they affect your mileage to see if you even want to go that route...

guitarplayer360

M/ts get worse mileage...there is less contact, but that is exactly why I would get worse mpg. Less contact = more traction, and more grip.

stockwell45

iTrader: (1)

lookin good man, some new tires on it will look nice

guitarplayer360

Did the dash/ignition lights tonight. Thought a quick update was due anyways..

First had to disassemble everything... the steering wheel covers had to come off first. These were easy...



then the ignition..



and then the dash came out..




The hardest part of the entire install was having to reconnect the harnesses to the back of the dash. The wires wouldnt go out too far, so I had to feel for them, and try to plug them back in. I ended up cutting the stupid zip-tie in place for the wires, so I would plug everything in, test it, and then put the dash back. This made everything much easier.



The back of the dash. All I had to do from here was twist the little green things, and pull them out. These contained the bulbs, which I swapped with my #194 bulbs. Here's the back of the cluster:



If anybody wanted to do this project for free (without having to dish out the ENTIRE 79 cents for each bulb), you could change your green lights into a bright amber/orangish color. All you have to do is take the little green sleeves off of the bulbs when you take them out of the dash. You can basically just peel them off.

Bulb with green sleeve:



without it:



This is what you get by removing the green sleeves:




However, I wanted mine to be white. I put my new bulbs in.

Here is the before shot:



and after:



I also did the ignition blue. Forgot to take pictures of this one, but it wasnt hard at all. Here it is:

Ignition before:



after:




I am very pleased with the results, and thought this was an extremely simple and easy project. Special thanks to wyorunner for posting the write-up. I had it on my laptop with me in my car while doing this...i strongly recommend following his write-up. Mine was a little easier, but mine is a 98 and his was an 02. I didnt need to remove anything off of the back of my cluster.

His write-up is here:

https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f131...ll-how-177866/

guitarplayer360

Not a build update at all...just thought I would share my grief, maybe connect with any baseball lovers out there.

I play college baseball, and today a foul ball went ahead and found it's way through my driver's side window. A line drive. The window was shattered, and got glass all over the truck...even in the back (?). took me some hours at the field after the game to clean it up.



seat....:



had to park by the bullpen to use the shop vac for the glass



Lesson: park in a safe spot...never next to a ball field.

space-junk

iTrader: (1)

or next to a golfing range...

that sucks you gotta replace your window... but dont think about that! think about how sexy your runner will look with those tires on it!

stockwell45

iTrader: (1)

Saw your runner in person for the first time on tuesday...I was walking down the sidewalk so you probably didnt see me. Where did you get the new bulbs you put in your dash?

guitarplayer360

space-junk, window was immediately fixed the next day, so no biggie. But yes, I am way too anxious for the tires. Having them ordered within the next few days.

Stockwell, I got the bulbs from superbrightleds.com. They were like 1.29 a piece.

Hopefully you didnt see that ugly spare wheel I had on. Ran over a nail a few days ago... hopefully I can see yours soon.

wyorunner

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the shout out. Glad to see it getting used!

guitarplayer360

Finally had my tires put on...

285/75r16 BFG A/T's. Very aggressive looking tread pattern for an all-terrain. But awesome, nonetheless. Only rubbing is full tilt in reverse, and its not bad at all. No body lift, just 3" OME/toytec. Although I hammered the pinch weld slightly, and cut out a little of my front fender. Couldnt be happier!











ill have more pictures up later...pressed for time tonight

sdsurfer

nice truck and nice pics too! I had the green ltd for first runner. i love 3rd gens...

yotaman85

Looks good! Now get out and wheel the damn thing...