SPOTLIGHT: TOYOTA ››› s 4WD TOYOTA OWNER GREATEST HITS ... · upgrades to your engine. If you have the 3.4L, you’ll want to do something to combat the tendency of the supercharged

s SUPER TACOMA

4WD Toyota Owner 73

Supercharged, super strong, superior!

4WD TOYOTA OWNER GREATEST HITS: SPOTLIGHT: TOYOTA ›››

I ’ve been wheeling in Toyotas since 1985, when I bought a pickup new off the showroom floor. I tricked it out (or so I thought) with a lift, bigger tires, and of course a double roll bar with four smiley KC lights up top. Yeah, I thought that was a cool

truck, and it was. Since then, I’ve had the privilege to see and wheel with a lot of pretty badass Toyota rigs.

Words: David Zartman, Photos: David Zartman unless otherwise notedNovember/December 2005 | www.4wdtoyotaowner.com/order-past-issues

4WD TOYOTA OWNER GREATEST HITS:

SUPER TACOMA

SuperTacoma_73-79.indd 1 8/26/19 11:58 PM

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74 September/October

SPOTLIGHT: TOYOTA ››› 2001 TACOMA EXTRA CAB

This one is in the top ten.The Toyota in question is a

2001 Tacoma, owned by Rob Perin, of Duvall, Washington. One look at this post-millennium rig will convince even the jaded eye that this is a seriously well-built 4WD Toyota. You see, a Toyota that really stands out is the one that has been put together as a package. Not just a lift and tires, but upgrades and improvements to all parts of the game. Brakes. Engine. Driveline. Recovery. These things take time. If you’ve ever thought about building up a Tacoma, here is one fine example to learn from—and be prepared to be patient.

AT THE BEGINNINGRob picked up his red

auto-tranny Tacoma in May of 2001 and the first mod he did was a bedliner and toolbox. A simple mod, but things didn’t stay simple very long. His very next upgrade was to install a TRD supercharger, TRD headers, and a TRD cat-back exhaust system. Why the headers and catback?

“The headers smoothed out the power band of the supercharger considerably, helping to bring the point where you can feel it really

"kick in" from around 3K rpm, down to around 2500rpm,” says Rob. “For me, it was worth the cost for the additional power at lower rpm. The catback exhaust is another story. Although I like the tone quality of the TRD system, I should have saved some money there and just had a Flowmaster or Magnaflow welded in. I probably would have been just as happy with that. But, the TRD system is stainless steel, so it will last and I did get that cool TRD engraved tip. Ha!”

Bling bling, Rob. Ok, we can forgive you, it’s TRD. But about the supercharger, have there been any downsides?

“The supercharger has been a great addition. The Tacoma had adequate power with the stock 3.4L, but there was room for improvement,” says Rob. “The supercharger was the right combination of performance for the money and it changed the performance of the truck from ‘adequate’ to ‘excellent’.”

“Beyond extra power (265hp from 190) to spin/self clean the tires in the mud,

the supercharger doesn't make a big difference for the kind of trails I run. However, since the truck is my daily driver, the blower makes all the difference in the world in keeping the 35" tires moving on the freeway and allowing me to come up to speed quickly. Once some fuel system improvements were in place to combat the tendency to ‘lean out’, there has been no downside except lower gas mileage.”

A supercharger is a pretty big step—like Rob says, there are cooling and fuel issues to get sorted, and he recommends several upgrades to your engine. If you have the 3.4L, you’ll

want to do something to combat the tendency of the supercharged V6 from running lean, and the dangers therein. You can get the TRD 7th injector kit, or look at the products from Underdog Racing Development (www.urdusa.com). Do it right or you’ll be roasting pistons and valves.

ON SOLID GROUNDKnowing that he’d be

using his Tacoma for serious off-road excursions, Rob decided he had to stuff a solid axle under his rig. Initially, he looked around for someone to do the swap, but wasn’t satisfied with the answers and solutions



4WD Toyota Owner 75

A burly Dana 44 solid front axle is the envy of many fellow 4WD Toyota enthusiasts. Rob dreamed up the shock placement for it—literally.

The bed of Rob’s truck holds a tool box, spare tire, recovery equipment, and a Max-Ax.

presented to him. So, Perin and his friend “ChrisCo” sat down and started to build a list of what they thought they’d need to do it. Parts and pieces were brainstormed, considered

or rejected, and then it was damn the IFS, full speed ahead. He decided on a Dana 44.

“There were no complete axle swap kits available, so I assembled parts from a

SUPER TACOMASUPER TACOMA

The rear bumper was made by Shawn Roots to the tune of hundreds of hours of labor. Shawn has a reputation as a true perfectionist and the end result is stunning. Scope the stainless steel D-shackles—sano.





variety of places, picking and choosing what I thought was the most durable and suited my plans the best. I had never done an axle swap before and ChrisCo had never even seen a swapped rig before,” says Rob.

It took nine days before the truck moved under its own power again and predictably, they encountered many problems along the way. Rob describes it as “a gigantic erector set, with hundreds of parts, some of which don't belong to the kit, no instruction sheet and you only have the vaguest idea of what it's supposed to look like when it's done.”

After about a month of wrenching, cursing, tweaking and adjusting, they took it for a shakedown cruise where the Tacoma was forced to fully flex on the toughest terrain the truck had been on

Rob Perin and his 2001 Tacoma take on a steep Washington trail. 35" BFG Mud Terrains provide the grip while a TRD supercharger provides the grunt. Yep, that’s a solid axle under this truck. Photo courtesy Rob Perin.

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4WD Toyota Owner 77

Ramp it! Rob Perin claims temporary dominance over the very cool 4Runner owned by Rob Galbraith. Check out those Demello Offroad sliders on Rob’s truck while you’re at it.

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to date. During the shakedown, Rob found that the shackle hangers on the rear of the new front leaf springs were a fraction of an inch too far forward. When the leaves stretched during the break-in process, they allowed the shackles to collapse against the frame. They rolled it back into ChrisCo's garage, moved the hangers back about 1/4" and have been wheeling it ever since.

“That was the only problem that I have encountered since the swap,” says Rob. “By some combination of luck and lots of discussion, ChrisCo and I managed to pull off an axle swap that rides better than most IFS trucks and flexes like nobody's business off road.”

Currently, the 2001 Taco sports Rancho 44044 front springs, Rancho shocks front and rear, Northwest Offroad rear shackles, and custom seven-leaf packs in the back. 4.56 Superior gears are used front and rear. The TRD package included a rear locker, and Rob installed a PowerTrax LockRight locker up front. Warn chromoly axle shafts, a custom High-Angle Driveline driveshaft, Warn Premium front hubs, and a Front Range Offroad custom crossmember complete the package.

For steering, Rob employs all Parts Mike parts: knuckles, “Super” steering arms, and tie rod and drag link for burly strength. The Tacoma rolls on Allied Daytona 15x8 wheels shod with 35x12.5 BFG M/T KM tires.

NOTHING BUT A DREAMWas this the hardest thing Rob did to

the truck? “The hardest was definitely the axle swap, just because of the sheer amount of work that was involved,” says Rob. “The most frustrating is a funny story. During the axle swap, I had bought a kit for the new front shock hoops. Unfortunately, the kit came with no instructions. Since I knew that the geometry of how the shocks mounted would have a huge effect on the performance and ride of the new suspension, I wanted them perfect. After several days of agonizing over how to get the geometry right, we were about the give up and use the tried and true Ford shock towers that others were using. The Ford towers weren't as strong as the hoops could be and certainly didn't look as cool, but they were easy to get right.

Late that night, I was driving home and dozed off on the highway. Luckily, the ‘drowse bars’ rumbled me awake. I realized that during the moments I was asleep, I had dreamed of how to position the shock hoops. When I got home, I took






a dry-erase marker and drew a diagram of what I had seen on the bathroom mirror, then went to bed.

In the morning, there was the diagram and it all came back to me. When I got to the shop that morning, ChrisCo was laying out the parts for me to put the Ford shock towers in. I grabbed one of the discarded hoops off the shelf, along with a chunk of string and showed ChrisCo what I had dreamed. The string allowed me to measure the correct angle for the hoop and we welded them in. They have worked perfectly ever since.”

There you have it, folks. Dreams really can come true.

WHAT ABOUT WET DREAMS?

One to more visceral matters: the Safari Snorkel. Rob isn’t a huge fan of deep water crossings. Rather, he uses the Snorkel for other equally valid reasons. For one, cool air intake. In the stock intake system, the engine draws air from inside the front passenger side fender. That air has already passed through the radiator, over the block and over the headers before it gets there. “With the intake raised, I found that it reduced the temperature of the air being

sucked in by greater than ten degrees,” says Rob. “The supercharged engine performs better, the cooler the air it takes in.”

Rob also says he likes the snorkel for the reduced dust intake. With the stock system, the intake is down where it sucks in dust from the front tire as well as from any rigs in front of you. For every foot you go up, the dust goes down considerably. “Since installing the snorkel, I have noticed a marked decrease in the air filter getting clogged up,” says Rob.

Does the darn thing ever get wet? Rob says his 2001 Tacoma has too many electronics to risk repeated deep water crossings. That said, he has waterproofed the cab, engine parts, extended diff breathers, etc. But he doesn’t seek water crossings out. “Just the same, I have found myself in the middle of a few of them,” says Rob. “At the ORV area in Tahuya, Washington, I have had water breaking over the hood during crossings and once I managed to fall into a hole during a stream crossing of May Creek at Reiter Trails, Washington, and water was coming over the bed rails. Definitely glad for the Safari Snorkel then!”

SPECS: 2001 TACOMA EXTRA CABSUSPENSION/STEERING:Custom Dana 44 solid front axle, Rancho 44044 front springs, Rancho RS99005 shocks (Front), Rancho RS99012 shocks (Rear), Custom seven leaf packs (Rear), Northwest O� road shackles (Rear), Parts Mike steering knuckles, Parts Mike “Super” steering arms, Parts Mike tie-rod/drag link

PROTECTION:Demello O� road sliders, Arma Spray-in Bed Liner, ARB winch bumper, Wet Okole seat covers, Rootsbuilt high-clearance rear bumper, Ex-tended front/rear di� erential breathers

TIRES AND WHEELS:Allied “Daytona” 15x8 wheels, 35x12.5 BFG M/T KM tires

ELECTRONICSPioneer CD/MP3/XM receiver, Pioneer XM receiver, Alpine V-12 amp, 10" subwoofer, Infinity speakers, 800/1600W inverter, 110v and 12v jacks in bed, Python Alarm System w/ Remote Start, RCI 10, 11, 12 meter transceiver, K40 antenna, Antenna fender mount, Garmin eTrex Vista GPS, Valentine 1 radar detection system, TRD Locker mod (Low

and High range), PIAA 520 fog lights, Hella rock lights, Northwest O� -road 160-amp alternator, Vehicle-mounted FRS radio, Handheld FRS/GMRS radios (x2), Coleman Powermate jumpstart system, Optima Yellow Top battery

PERFORMANCE:TRD Supercharger, TRD 7th Injector kit, TRD headers, TRD cat-back exhaust, Motorhome transmission cooler, TRD electric rear locker, Amsoil air filter, 4.56 Superior Gears F/R, LockRight locker in the front di� , Warn chromoly axle sha¢ s, Northwest O� road stainless brake lines, Custom long-travel front drivesha¢ , Warn Premium front hubs, Front Range O� road Fabrication custom cross member, Safari Snorkel

ACCESSORIES:Warn HS9500 winch, Amsteel Blue Synthetic winch rope, Master Pull aluminum hawse fairlead, Viair 550C compressor, Air Jack on front bumper, 2.5 Gallon air tank, Jumper cable jack on bumper, Betterbuilt toolbox, Deckplate Mod, Staun tire deflators, Amsoil fluids throughout, 60" bed rail-mounted Hi-Li¢ , Bed mount tire carrier, Stainless D-shack-les on both bumpers, Downey O� Road 15-gallon aux fuel tank, Confer shovel and axe mount on bed rail, Tu� y center console, Tailgate lock, TRD radiator cap, Black grille

Loose, fl aky dirt and a step-up ledge pose little problem for this lifted and blown Tacoma. Massive room to fl ex is part of the solution.

Below: Repeat after us: Power and torque are good. A TRD supercharger gets the air in, while a TRD header and stainless steel cat-back exhaust assist the exit. Power is upped 75 horsepower at least. You’ll need to attend to cooling and fuel issues to make it run right, however.




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GETTING UNSTUCKWater and mud are

two common enemies in Washington state. As such, Rob has taken pains to make sure he’s got good recovery equipment on board. Am ARB bull bar sits up front, cradling a Warn HS9500 winch. Amsteel Blue synthetic rope is wound onto the drum, and slides out over a MasterPull aluminum hawse fairlead. A 60" Hi-Lift is mounted on a bed rail. Ultra-trick stainless steel D-shackles are ready for action on his equally trick rear bumper. He even has jumper cable jacks built into his bumper. Is there anything this guy didn’t think of?

Probably not. He installed a huge motorhome transmission cooler to keep his slushbox in good shape. An on-board Viair 550C compressor and an air jack on the bumper take care of tire inflation in a snap. An auxiliary 15-gallon fuel tank from Downey Offroad gives a big boost to the length

of any 4WD trip. An Optima Yellow Top battery keeps the Tacoma juiced even under heavy electrical load, if not from his Warn winch, then from his Pioneer/Alpine/Infinity stereo system, Garmin GPS, Valentine radar detector, and RCI 10/11/12 meter

transceiver. Demello Offroad superduty sliders keep his truck safe from stumps and rocks.

THE LAST WORDAll in all, this truck is how

a 4WD Toyota should be built. Almost every detail

has been looked to, in every department. It’s stronger, more powerful, and has excellent attention to details (including recovery), which all adds up to superlative performance off-road. That’s what the Toyota is: a Super Tacoma. ✔

Sometimes you just have to go full throttle through the mud! And ARB bull bar with Warn HS9500 leads the way in case recovery is needed.



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SPOTLIGHT: TOYOTA ››› s 4WD TOYOTA OWNER GREATEST HITS ... · upgrades to your engine. If you have the 3.4L, you’ll want to do something to combat the tendency of the supercharged