We just purchased an FJ cruiser last week after seeing what they are capable first hand bone stock in Baja, This is going to be our main chase and pre-run vehicle for racing, The mods have already began and here is a brief write up on one of the most important things to have while in the desert, Communications.

After reviewing Jordan May's article on the radio he installed in his Tundra we were very impressed with the performance and features the Icom IC-208H has, The most important being the removable face plate for easy and clean installation. We made a trip down to Ham Radio Outlet in Anaheim, CA. The cost of the radio is about $289.00 and till Sept. has a $20 Mail in rebate this is not including the cost of the Antenna and Cable required. I purchased both the PCI Antenna and Cable from Kartek Off-Road in Corona, Ca.

Step 1- Find a good mounting location: After inspecting the best possible location to mount the radio we found under the drivers seat was going to be ideal spot, Remove plastic guards to access the 2 rear bolts them remove the 4 seat bolts with a 14mm socket, After doing so Tilt the chair back towards the rear of the FJ so that the floor board is now exposed.

Step 2- Removal: Remove all drivers side running board pieces along the edge of the door, these pieces have no screws to remove like the Tacoma's and will just pull straight up DO NOT pull to hard or you WILL break the plastic clips, Now remove the Kick Panel first remove the plastic foot rest by pulling it straight out, again no screws just clips in, Now you will have access to the plastic screw holding the Kick panel unscrew and remove kick panel. Now you can begin running wires.

Step 3- Wiring: Icom includes a 15ft long 10ga Pos/Neg power cable with inline fuses on Pos and Neg and recommends running radio direct to the battery. First use any tool to fish the end of the power wires under the carpet and pop out where the foot vents are under the seat, Leave enough slack in the wires after pulling connector through floor, Now run the wires along the trim with the factory wire harness towards the firewall, Now with a razor blade cut an X in the Firewall grommet where you will be running the wires through. Now use any tool that works best for you to fish the wires through the firewall, Tape wires with duct tape to fishing tool and pull straight through grommet, While doing so make sure no wires are getting hung up inside that could potentially be yanked out on accident. Proceed with running the Pos/Neg to the battery now and use proper terminal connectors, Electrical tape any open connection and wrap wires with a loom that are near sharp edges.

Step 4- Almost Done: Now to mount Antenna and Face Plate, We decided to go with a Mag mount antenna which isn't the best idea for our application but we didn't want to drill through the roof on a brand new vehicle, We painted the antenna wire with Toyota matching white paint to make the wire not such an eye sore on the roof, Run the wire along the top of the roof and come down the Driver side rear door seal down towards the running boards, Run wire along running board and repeat fishing process under carpet to the radio. Now to run the detachable face plate it comes with 10ft wire kit, Run wire from the radio along the inside of the center console and pop out in front of the 1st cup holder, We used Industrial grade 3m velcro for the face plate to be mounted at the angle and spot we wanted, It works great and is very solid with the 3m tape. Done now test everything out and button it all back up and learn to use the radio.

Links:
http://www.jordansrealm.com/newprodu.../icom-208h.htm
http://www.icomamerica.com/products/amateur/208h/
http://www.hamradio.com/

 

Looks good!

Hey, here is an idea for your antenna mount.
There is a guy who owns an FJ that goes by bandi on the FJ forums, and he made a mount to take the place of a plastic piece you push off and replace with his $40 mount.

It is known to the FJ crowd as the "bandi mount."
All Pro Off Road bought the rights from him, so he no longer produces it, AP does.

Here it is on my FJ.



Here it is on AP's website.
http://allprooffroad.com/index.php?o...sk=view&id=129

I will be adding a ham unit to my rig at a later date.
I have more research to do first though as on what band to go with.
I hear 2 meter is good.

 

Corey, Thank you for the info we have seen those mounts and have plans to use that mount for a safety Amber/Reverse light mount that we use for desert racing, It allows your vehicle to be visible while in dusty condition for faster approaching vehicles. We use nothing but Ham based radio's in our vehicles operating in Freq range of 150-165MHz. ICOM our Kenwood would be your best bet for easy operation for off road applications.

 

Corey,

I've been doing a lot of research on an Ham myself. This is what I've decided on. "YAESU FT-8800R, 2M/440 DUAL BAND MOBILE" about 375.00 on HRO until the 31st, but it comes w/ a free head separation kit for remote mounting.

Here's one of the reasons I'm getting it.
Just what I'm looking for in a mobile!