Rocks & Flops: a 1-Ton 3rd Gen 4Runner Build

It was a race to get the 4Runner ready in time for Rubithon, literally up until midnight the night before wiring in the speedometer and fixing a leak in the rear diff cover. With my wife and 2.5yo son loaded up at 4am the next morning, we drove the 4Runner from San Diego all the way to Loon Lake.

Thankfully we literally had zero issues with the rig, not too bad for a shakedown run and all the highway miles! Here are some photos from the run:

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Kickass work man!
And congrats on the smooth shake down run!

Looks:smokin:
Team_Jake said:
Have you ever had the desire to turn your 3rd gen 4Runner from something that's respectable, desirable, high value, a decent off-roader, and a great family vehicle, into something that's not?
Click to expand...
Every. Day. :laughing:
 
Those wheelwells look great, I am not looking forward to having to do that. Congrats on getting it done in time, I missed my deadline a couple times now.
 
After running a while without a windshield washer reservoir, it became annoying not being able to use my windshield sprayers. So I found a Nalgene bottle, drilled a couple holes in the bottom, and fitted the motors to it.

IMG_9851.jpeg

IMG_9852.jpeg

IMG_9853.jpeg


Space in my engine bay is tight, the only place I could fit it was where the ABS system used to be.

IMG_0479.jpeg


Works without issue! It sounds stupid but this might be my favorite mod so far!
 
Team_Jake said:
After running a while without a windshield washer reservoir, it became annoying not being able to use my windshield sprayers. So I found a Nalgene bottle, drilled a couple holes in the bottom, and fitted the motors to it.

IMG_9851.jpeg

IMG_9852.jpeg

IMG_9853.jpeg


Space in my engine bay is tight, the only place I could fit it was where the ABS system used to be.

IMG_0479.jpeg


Works without issue! It sounds stupid but this might be my favorite mod so far!
Click to expand...
That's low key genius. I kinda hate that I haven't thought of that.

Only issue might be a vacuum developing inside it. If you see that issue, a pinhole drilled in the cap would fix it.

I might have to do that on my truck.
 
Team_Jake said:
After running a while without a windshield washer reservoir, it became annoying not being able to use my windshield sprayers. So I found a Nalgene bottle, drilled a couple holes in the bottom, and fitted the motors to it.

IMG_9851.jpeg

IMG_9852.jpeg

IMG_9853.jpeg


Space in my engine bay is tight, the only place I could fit it was where the ABS system used to be.

IMG_0479.jpeg


Works without issue! It sounds stupid but this might be my favorite mod so far!
Click to expand...
Did this on my daily in college because I was poor. Even used the bicycle water bottle cage to mount it.
 
Team_Jake said:
I assume you meant the axle side panhard heim mount. I wanted to get the mount as far toward the passenger side as possible to minimize bump steer. I found that by turning the bracket horizontally, I could push it further toward the passenger side (as opposed to keeping it vertical), and get it tucked up nice and tight right next to the knuckle. The key was to make sure the misalignment angles of the joint all cleared throughout the cycling/articulation of the suspension. That is the nice thing about doing it all in CAD first, I was able to check all of that before building it, and it has virtually zero bump steer.
SASCapture11.PNG
Click to expand...

Badass build! Your CAD skills/fab work is top notch. Awesome to see the level of thought you have into this.

Any chance I could get the models for your front coil overs and bump stops? I want to run the same ones on my next build but do not have access to a set to make models.

Also, it is cooling down, had a chance to see how the rear end performs in the desert? This makes me want to do the same on my bronco one day.
 
LScout800 said:
Badass build! Your CAD skills/fab work is top notch. Awesome to see the level of thought you have into this.

Any chance I could get the models for your front coil overs and bump stops? I want to run the same ones on my next build but do not have access to a set to make models.

Also, it is cooling down, had a chance to see how the rear end performs in the desert? This makes me want to do the same on my bronco one day.
Click to expand...
DM sent.

Unfortunately I haven’t found the time to make it out to the desert yet, hopefully soon.
 
Blase No updates. I wouldn’t expect much in terms of updates anytime soon unfortunately, my focus has switched to house renovation projects for the foreseeable future. I think by mid-2026 I can start working on it again (I’m looking to add hydro assist, sway bars, and an aluminum radiator).

I still drive it about once a week to work and back, that’s really it for now.
 
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