Tshaw2009
2️⃣ Bronze
Firstly, I will introduce myself. I am Tony Shaw. I'm from a South Central Missouri town called Lebanon. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ first and everything else comes second. I will not tolerate aggression, profanity, or bullying on my build thread as I would like even children or teenagers who love Tacomas to be able to read this build thread without putting garbage in their minds. I'd rather you adults not fill your minds with garbage either, lol. I am the husband of the most wonderful wife on planet earth and the proud father of (almost) three under three. I am a Baptist Pastor in a nearby town. I am an Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) combat veteran. Now to explain how I came to be a Tacoma owner and my future plans for my truck.
I have wanted a Toyota Tacoma for a very, very long time. Well, pretty much since the 3rd gens arrived to market. I think they are just so sweet looking, especially with a big lift, small Off-Road wheels, and big Off-Road tires. They just look at home with a big lift on them. Anyways, back in late June I had my lifted Tuxedo Black F150 Lariat Supercrew with the 3.5 Ecoboost, which was nearing 185,000 trouble free miles and I was starting to get the itch to find something else before the inevitable "big" break. I absolutely loved this truck by the way. Here she is:
I had already canceled my order for a full-sized 2-Door Bronco with the Sasquatch Package earlier in the year due to the uncertainties that came with the COVID-19 pandemic, so the FSB was no longer an option, but the Badlands Bronco Sport seemed like an extremely capable off-road rig as well. I found one 3 hours away from our residence (which was a chore because the Badlands trim was limited availability) and I pulled the trigger on it. After trade, I scored a loaded Bronco Sport Badlands for just under $30k. As with anything I couldn't leave it stock as I was determined to take a vacation to Colorado in it and hit the trails. Needless to say my plans came together and our family took a trip to Colorado in the Bronco Sport Badlands and conquered the Loch Lomond trail, Yankee Hill, Kingston Peak, Indiana Creek Road, Red Hill, among others during our week in Colorado. We had a great time and there was nothing that I could throw at the Badlands that that little goat of a crossover SUV couldn't handle. Here she is:
Our time with the Bronco Sport Badlands was cut short (August and September) because we found out my wife is pregnant again with our 3rd child and the Bronco Sport was great, but the size was not family friendly. I got to looking at trade-in prices on a Badlands and was flabbergasted. I could stand to make a ton more money than what I spent. I then got to searching for my dream truck: a Cement Tacoma TRD Off-road with around the same miles (13k) as I had on my Bronco Sport. I found mine in Columbia, MO and pulled the trigger, which has had its bittersweet moments to say the least. I traded in my BS Badlands (for $10k more than I spent for it) and bought my Tacoma in the evening and did not immediately notice a few rather large dents in the driver's door, as it came with a clean carfax, so I didn't go over it with a fine-toothed comb. A couple days after when it was sunny, I looked back at the Tacoma and noticed the reflection was a little warped in spots. I got up close and was immediately ticked off. Here are the dents:
They had advertised my truck as having ZERO body damage. I called the dealership and said, "This is going to be fixed or I'm bringing the truck back and taking my Bronco." Needless to say, they fixed it, but not without a minor flaw I still noticed and it drives my OCD crazy. The fixed and re-sprayed door was blended into the fender panel but not into the driver's side rear door and the color is just ever so slightly off. In some light it looks pretty dang close, but in others, it looks just a tad darker than the untouched paint, and that bothers me on a truck I spent almost $40k for before trade-in. I also understand that it can take a few weeks for the paint to fully cure and it could change, so I will give it some more time. I have some work being done to it next week and if it is still noticeable after that work, which will be a little over 2 weeks since the paint job, they are going to fix it by blending it properly. I will add a picture of the fixed door tomorrow as I haven't taken a picture of it yet. Here is a picture of the truck on its "good" side lol:
Now for what is being done next week. I will be installing the RC 3.5" full suspension lift which includes lifted struts with assembled extended coils, forged UCAs, diff and skid drops, sway bar relocation brackets, carrier bearing drop kit, extended brake lines, rear shocks, and rear blocks for now until I can stick a whole new HD leaf pack in there. I will be running 16x8 +0 offset KMC Summit wheels wrapped in 285/75R16 Falken Wildpeak A/T3Ws. I will do the ECGS bearing in the future, but want to wait to see if I get any vibrations. I look forward to sharing my Taco journey with you all and will update this build as I add new things in the future.
I have wanted a Toyota Tacoma for a very, very long time. Well, pretty much since the 3rd gens arrived to market. I think they are just so sweet looking, especially with a big lift, small Off-Road wheels, and big Off-Road tires. They just look at home with a big lift on them. Anyways, back in late June I had my lifted Tuxedo Black F150 Lariat Supercrew with the 3.5 Ecoboost, which was nearing 185,000 trouble free miles and I was starting to get the itch to find something else before the inevitable "big" break. I absolutely loved this truck by the way. Here she is:
I had already canceled my order for a full-sized 2-Door Bronco with the Sasquatch Package earlier in the year due to the uncertainties that came with the COVID-19 pandemic, so the FSB was no longer an option, but the Badlands Bronco Sport seemed like an extremely capable off-road rig as well. I found one 3 hours away from our residence (which was a chore because the Badlands trim was limited availability) and I pulled the trigger on it. After trade, I scored a loaded Bronco Sport Badlands for just under $30k. As with anything I couldn't leave it stock as I was determined to take a vacation to Colorado in it and hit the trails. Needless to say my plans came together and our family took a trip to Colorado in the Bronco Sport Badlands and conquered the Loch Lomond trail, Yankee Hill, Kingston Peak, Indiana Creek Road, Red Hill, among others during our week in Colorado. We had a great time and there was nothing that I could throw at the Badlands that that little goat of a crossover SUV couldn't handle. Here she is:
Our time with the Bronco Sport Badlands was cut short (August and September) because we found out my wife is pregnant again with our 3rd child and the Bronco Sport was great, but the size was not family friendly. I got to looking at trade-in prices on a Badlands and was flabbergasted. I could stand to make a ton more money than what I spent. I then got to searching for my dream truck: a Cement Tacoma TRD Off-road with around the same miles (13k) as I had on my Bronco Sport. I found mine in Columbia, MO and pulled the trigger, which has had its bittersweet moments to say the least. I traded in my BS Badlands (for $10k more than I spent for it) and bought my Tacoma in the evening and did not immediately notice a few rather large dents in the driver's door, as it came with a clean carfax, so I didn't go over it with a fine-toothed comb. A couple days after when it was sunny, I looked back at the Tacoma and noticed the reflection was a little warped in spots. I got up close and was immediately ticked off. Here are the dents:
They had advertised my truck as having ZERO body damage. I called the dealership and said, "This is going to be fixed or I'm bringing the truck back and taking my Bronco." Needless to say, they fixed it, but not without a minor flaw I still noticed and it drives my OCD crazy. The fixed and re-sprayed door was blended into the fender panel but not into the driver's side rear door and the color is just ever so slightly off. In some light it looks pretty dang close, but in others, it looks just a tad darker than the untouched paint, and that bothers me on a truck I spent almost $40k for before trade-in. I also understand that it can take a few weeks for the paint to fully cure and it could change, so I will give it some more time. I have some work being done to it next week and if it is still noticeable after that work, which will be a little over 2 weeks since the paint job, they are going to fix it by blending it properly. I will add a picture of the fixed door tomorrow as I haven't taken a picture of it yet. Here is a picture of the truck on its "good" side lol:
Now for what is being done next week. I will be installing the RC 3.5" full suspension lift which includes lifted struts with assembled extended coils, forged UCAs, diff and skid drops, sway bar relocation brackets, carrier bearing drop kit, extended brake lines, rear shocks, and rear blocks for now until I can stick a whole new HD leaf pack in there. I will be running 16x8 +0 offset KMC Summit wheels wrapped in 285/75R16 Falken Wildpeak A/T3Ws. I will do the ECGS bearing in the future, but want to wait to see if I get any vibrations. I look forward to sharing my Taco journey with you all and will update this build as I add new things in the future.
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