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Jan 29, 2012, 2:11am

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msrwerks
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The rest of the LONG box Trekker...
« Thread Started on Oct 15, 2007, 2:38pm »

This thread is to keep track of my Trekker project from the beginning. This is the truck that is receiving the “LONG box Trekker” conversion Corey is working on here:
http://toyotatrekker.proboards107.com/in....read=1192200169
As I am working on this post Corey is working on the last stages of the conversion. I am still trying to figure out a color for the whole truck. Right now I am leaning towards the new FJ40 blue, but I am also considering the original Toyota Truck blue in 1982 that my truck, and from the looks of Corey’s pictures, the Trekker parts he started with originally was. I have to make a decision soon

The whole outside of the truck will be done in the Line-X bedliner coating color matched to which blue i finally decide on.

Why the bedliner coating on the outside of a truck? My brother answered this question best by asking “Why would you spend the time and money you are spending on a truck you know your going to take off road, and paint it with something you know is going to scratch and deteriorate?”

As for the Line-X choice. That is more a matter of Corey doing his half of the truck in Canada and me getting the rest of the panels done in Texas. They have convenient locations for both of us.

The reason this whole project came to be.
I bought a brand new 1994 Toyota extended cab 4x4 truck. I named it the turtle truck. Camped Colorado and Texas in it. Traded it in for a brand new Jeep Wrangler in 1999. Man that 4.0L engine was nice

Bullet proof like the 22re but so much more power. But I lost a lot of carrying space with the Jeep. For 2 adults it is ok. Cramped, loaded with all of the camping stuff, but livable. Carrying anything over 5’ home from the home improvment stores can be dangerous and definitely not convienient. a 4x8 sheet of anything is impossible. Now it is 2007. I have a 3 year old son. Taking a week long trip to NM in a jeep with a 2 year old strapped into a car seat in the back seat severely limits your dry carrying capacity for everything needed to support 2 adults and one kid for a week.

Aside from the 2 previous vehicles (and the Honda Civic i traded the Jeep in for) I really do not like cookie cutter vehicles. Even with everything that I did to the Jeep, it was just a Jeep that someone had done some stuff to. You see those all of the time. (and I could not find a reasonable hard top Jeep Scrambler that the hard top covered the entire box)

What I was looking for.
So I traded the Jeep in for something that gets more then twice the gas milage as the Jeep to get me to and from work. I started looking for something out of the ordinary, but able to fit my new set of carrying requirements.
It needed to:
* Be able to pass Texas emissions. (it will be a daily driver as well)
* Parts had to be available for it. Both after market and replacement.
* Roughly the same power as the Jeep. (once you have it, it is very noticeable when it is gone. such as going back to a 22re)
* Have enough dry space to carry everything needed for 2 adults and one toddler through early teen to tent camp for a week.
* Be able to haul 2 x anything x 8’ - 10’ home from the lumber yard.

I was looking at the older 4runners, but really wanted a solid front axle. I still remember the ordeal of replacing the CV boots on my 1994 truck not believing how much work was involved for something Toyota (or any of the other manufacturers) know will wear out. As unique as it would have been I was not sure I wanted to do the front axle swap. I would like it to be as factory as possible but am not against upgrading / swapping thing out to fill the requirements.

What I have come up with.
In October 2006 I was driving somewhere locally and passed a 1982 Toyota Long bed 4x4 Truck for sale on a corner. Called the number and in 30 minutes it was mine. The bed is rusted but the whole truck is straight. The initial plan was to just put a camper top on it and call it even for a while. Then I read something about a Trekker that Toyota farmed out to be built. That seemed like the answer to all of my requirements! Right around that time Corey started posting on 4x4 Wire about recreating the Trekkers. He quickly popped my bubble about my truck by informing me there were only short bed Trekkers. I spent a half a day in the garage with a tape measure trying to figure out if i could shorten my frame to get one to fit. It was just going to be way too much work. He suggested that he could lengthen one of the 3 he had just purchased to fit the long bed frame.

So now there will be even more dry storage space behind the rear seat then an original Trekker. And as far as both of us know, it will be the only one in existence. I have since bought a complete running (even passes the texas emissions) 1989 4.3L s10 pickup which will be donating its engine and wiring harness to this project. (in the mean time it is hauling things home from the home improvement stores)

As it stands right now.
I had to take the “roll bar” off of it and take some air out of the tires to get it into the garage. Someone put 35“ tires on it, a 3” body lift and what i think is a 6” Rancho lift on it. The wheels I will be keeping, but the tires will go down to 33 x 12.5. The body lift will go down to 2“ and the suspension lift will go down to 3”. I have been collecting parts for the most part right now as I am waiting to get the body stuff complete. So far I have collected...
* The front Wincher bumper
http://www.kenmtn.com/html/wincher.asp
* Rear disk brake conversion kit
http://www.sky-manufacturing.com/
http://www.tsmmfg.com/3110.htm#Contact%20Information
* Carpet kit and matching extra carpet for the Trekker part
http://www.stockinteriors.com/AutoCarpet.asp?Itemid=3985&MakeId=37&ModelId=484
* the long bed Trekker
http://toyotatrekker.proboards107.com/in....read=1192200169

When I get the Trekker box from Corey it will be the color it needs to be and finished as far as the outside goes. My goal is to have the rest of the trucks exterior finished so when his part comes in the outside of the truck should be pretty much done.

Pictures and more lists to follow

Michael

« Last Edit: Oct 15, 2007, 3:11pm by msrwerks »