drizzoh's build thread

[TCOTUE]

Ughhhh looks so sick!! I need to deaden my truck so bad! Guess I'll be looking into that deadener you used!

 

[drizzoh]

Ughhhh looks so sick!! I need to deaden my truck so bad! Guess I'll be looking into that deadener you used!

Appreciate it! Second Skin is the best IMO and I like that they're local to me in AZ. They offer a ton of different products based on what you are trying to achieve. Noico is fantastic value, but I didn't want to cheap out on anything with the truck.

 

[drizzoh]

Swapped out my Morimoto xB fogs last night for the new Diode Dynamics Elites. Much brighter on the road and have a sharper cutoff. Matches the xB headlights really well too. They look almost exactly the same on the truck as the Mori's so no new pics yet, but I'll post some after the pnp backlight harnesses show up and are installed.

 

[drizzoh]

Finished wiring up the new Diode Dynamics Elite fogs this past weekend. These have VERY good output and actually match the Morimoto XB headlights better than the Morimoto XB fogs somehow. They also have a very sharp hid-esque cutoff and a pretty sweet backlight when they're not on. So far I'm a little unimpressed with the backlight brightness though. I was hoping it would act as more of a drl but looks only bright enough to really be seen under dim lighting. At least they had perfect fitment. I snagged some harnesses from FBC to run the backlighting without having to splice anything and was very pleased with them. These harnesses use all OEM connectors and are built very well, absolutely worth the price.

Pic of the slickkkk FBC harnesses:

Amber backlighting:

Fogs on:

Used these 2 harnesses:
This T harness because I had halogens stock: Tacoma TRD 2016+ Halogen T Harness with grille lights | FBC Harness Solutions (square.site)
And this extension (1x12 and 1x60): Diode Dynamics Backlight Plug And Play Harness | FBC Harness Solutions (square.site)

 

[drizzoh]

There's not really anywhere to put small bits of trash in this truck and the little square pocket behind the shifter is pretty useless.. so enter the Tacos4Cheap bucket/coin sorter. I chose the empty box style as I never carry change around and wanted a place to throw straw wrappers and etc. Out of the box it didn't fit great and required me to line the complete exterior with felt tape to avoid rattles but it fits perfect now after 1 layer all the way around and 2 on the bottom. Another subtle MGM accent added to my interior.

Also mmmm that shift knob.

 

[SeaTownTaco]

Loving the detail you are putting into these posts! Trying to read this whole thing in between work meetings today but I'll definitely have to come back to read in more detail and choose which of these mods I want to do first. My MBRP exhaust can be a little droney (drony?), so that sound deadening would be awesome.

 

[drizzoh]

Loving the detail you are putting into these posts! Trying to read this whole thing in between work meetings today but I'll definitely have to come back to read in more detail and choose which of these mods I want to do first. My MBRP exhaust can be a little droney (drony?), so that sound deadening would be awesome.

Thanks d00d! To get rid of exhaust drone you might want to follow up the base butyl layer with a layer of their Luxury Liner instead - it's better at blocking those frequencies than the Heatwave Pro I put on.

 

[drizzoh]

There's not really anywhere to put small bits of trash in this truck and the little square pocket behind the shifter is pretty useless.. so enter the Tacos4Cheap bucket/coin sorter. I chose the empty box style as I never carry change around and wanted a place to throw straw wrappers and etc. Out of the box it didn't fit great and required me to line the complete exterior with felt tape to avoid rattles but it fits perfect now after 1 layer all the way around and 2 on the bottom. Another subtle MGM accent added to my interior.

Also mmmm that shift knob.

Well.. those letters didn't match close enough to the rest of my MGM things so... repainted them. Sanding that R sucked lol.

Before and after:

*I don't know why the MGM comes off so yellow in these photos, must just be how my cam is capturing it.

 

[drizzoh]

And went and got the truck dirty yesterday

 

[drizzoh]

Installed the MESO V2 fuse cover and washed all the desert off the truck from last weekend's adventure. Also added some weather stripping on the B pillars to hopefully get rid of the small amount of wind noise the truck has from there.

Obligatory pic that shows a clean truck but none of the changes I made:

 

[drizzoh]

Also added some weather stripping on the B pillars to hopefully get rid of the small amount of wind noise the truck has from there.

Well I think the weather stripping was a success! I haven't heard the noise from the top of the doors since it was added. Also the doors seem to have a more upscale closing sound now. All around wins from a very cheap and simple fix.

Last night I yanked out the overhead console and Second Skin'd as much of the roof as I could reach from that area and then applied felt tape to almost the whole underside of the console itself. This helped to get rid of the rattles that were coming from the console but the truck still isn't completely rattle-free yet. At least that's one less area that generates noise now. I still find it absolutely ridiculous how rattley these trucks are for the price point. I can understand it with my Scion, being Toyota's low end line, but I was really expecting this to be more solid. I haven't even done the stereo yet.

 

[drizzoh]

Been bored waiting for my sliders to get made so I installed the Total Chaos Bed Stiffeners last week. I wasn't sure these were completely necessary with an open/stock weighted bed when I initially ordered but during the install I found some chipping near the top of the bed that only could have been caused by flexing during offroading so I'm glad I threw these on. Install was painless and these have perfect fitment. My Ti drill bits tore thru the rear end in seconds (much quicker to drill thru than the frame lol). Another cool thing is that TC included about 900 stickers with these and they had fantastic communication after ordering, they also shipped these the day after placing the order. If I needed anything else they make I wouldn't hesitate to order from them again. The only bad part was masking the bolts after torquing to paint them to hide the bronze. I also sprayed some paint on the back side after drilling the holes to hopefully prevent any rusting. These also fit very well with the factory bed mat and it didn't require any trimming.

 

[Biohazard]

I like mine. The combination of my decked system and the leitner designs rack put a good deal of stress on the bed, and these help a good bit. Visibly less "wobbling" when hitting bumps and such as viewed from my rear view mirrors.

 

[drizzoh]

I like mine. The combination of my decked system and the leitner designs rack put a good deal of stress on the bed, and these help a good bit. Visibly less "wobbling" when hitting bumps and such as viewed from my rear view mirrors.

Good to hear. I didn't notice it moving much but my eyes are usually forward in any uneven terrain. It must have been though as that's the only way I could have gotten that chipping where I did.

Call me crazy but the truck is riding noticeably better after installing these. Didn't think it would make any difference in feel but it has in a fairly big way. I've increased the shock damping by 25% and the tires by 4 psi all around and it's still riding nicer. Can't wait to do the Hammers + cross brace and see how much that helps out.

 

[drizzoh]

It feels like forever since my last update here, but after a long 2-month wait my beautiful TIG-welded DOM sliders from Westcott Designs are finally done! IMO these are the nicest sliders available and are absolute works of art up close. They've been powder coated satin black in-house and are fully bolt on. Fitment was perfect and they should be more than adequate for what this truck is going to be put thru. With the 20° angle these are very low profile and subtle but make the truck as a whole look so much more finished.

Picked these up close to closing time on Friday and the guys at Westcott showed me around the machine shop and helped load these into the bed. They also brought out a bunch of foam for the 40-minute drive home to make sure nothing got scratched. It's awesome to have companies like this local to me, super cool shop and great staff. Wish I needed more parts from them because they are one of my favorite shops I've been to, and I would not hesitate to buy from them again.

Even the mounting hardware has been powder coated.

This was one of the smoothest bolt-ons I've done on this truck so far. Install took about 1.5 hours taking my time and everything fit perfectly. They only required one bolt hole to be finished drilling thru in the rear where the frame has an extra bracing plate welded in. The truck looks amazing and the kickouts almost exactly match my wheel fitment for a very finished look. Somehow the truck feels so much more aggressive now.

I also got my Baja Designs S2 Sport flush-mount chase light installed on the rear bumper. This was a much bigger pain to install than I expected due to there being a steel layer behind the plastic bumper cover which required lots of cutting in a place the dremel absolutely did not want to fit, but at the end of the day it came out really clean. It bugged me having nothing opposite of the trailer hitch wiring and this about perfectly fit the bill. The angle of the pic makes it look like it's mounted a little higher than the hitch harness but IRL it's dead-on and I'm very happy with how it came out. Looks a lot cleaner than putting big holes in the bumperettes to put lights too. The yellow is a little bright but I'm sure I'll get used to it soon. Flows really well with the truck as a whole I think, especially after I add some yellow lights up front.

This is being installed along with an Overland Equipped Auxiliary Power Kit and AOB factory style switches, but still waiting for the switches and daisy chain backlight harnesses to arrive. This little light has crazy good output though, it should be great for the dust out here.

 

[bonifacio]

Wescott has some beautiful hardware.

 

[drizzoh]

Wescott has some beautiful hardware.

They dooooo. I didn't really want a roof rack on the taco but I kind of do now after seeing Westcott's IRL. They're so clean lol.

 

[TCOTUE]

Damn that's fancy!

Did you have to chase any of the threads due to powder? I've always wondered this.

 

[drizzoh]

Damn that's fancy!

Did you have to chase any of the threads due to powder? I've always wondered this.

Not on these, everything threaded in without issues. It looks like they were plugged before powdering so the threads were clean.

I really like them, they are gorgeous sliders. They don't really serve as a functional step but they stick out far enough to where I can use them as one to clean the roof instead of needing a step stool. Usefulness ftw lol.

 

[bonifacio]

Not on these, everything threaded in without issues. It looks like they were plugged before powdering so the threads were clean.

I really like them, they are gorgeous sliders. They don't really serve as a functional step but they stick out far enough to where I can use them as one to clean the roof instead of needing a step stool. Usefulness ftw lol.

UpTop Overland.

 

[mgmyota]

I was able to talk to the westcott designs folks at overland expo west a couple years ago. Super cool people and their products look great up close. I'm going to be buying the same sliders.

 

[drizzoh]

UpTop Overland.

What about them? I don't need anything they make lol.

I was able to talk to the westcott designs folks at overland expo west a couple years ago. Super cool people and their products look great up close. I'm going to be buying the same sliders.

They are awesome. The owner and some of the fabricators were geeking out about some of the parts on my truck and that was super cool lol. Would not hesitate to buy more stuff from them if they made more stuff I needed.

 

[drizzoh]

With me getting to the point in this build where I am starting to add electronic accessories, I needed to find a clean wiring solution to not having a bunch of power leads off running off the battery. There are a bunch of options out there and I wanted to keep OE style switches (not a fan of how the Switch Pro control module looks). Took a while to find the right fit for me, and I know I'm not going to run anything close to 12 accessories, but the Overland Equipped Auxiliary Power Kit seemed to be the best option to accomplish this while matching my style. Installed it last night along with the Brite Box Fogster module and am very happy with how tidy it all looks so far. Hopefully I can start connecting some more stuff to it soon. Will be adding accessories along with a custom MESO switch panel and AOB switches.

 

[drizzoh]

Made a little progress on wiring that chase light this weekend but one of the pnp harnesses I received was pinned incorrectly, so the interior is still in a bunch of pieces until that gets replaced. But a least these cool little seat bolt covers showed up. The driver side power seat required a couple cuts with the dremel and some additional 3M tape from what it came with but the install was painless. It's so nice when an install goes as planned.

It drives me nuts with how many non-existent little things this truck should have come with as standard. Seeing those exposed bolts every day really bugged me. Looks so much more finished now.

 

[drizzoh]

Another smol mod completed last night. Threw on the smoked AVS low profile window visors. They feel pretty decently made and I dig their styling with the little ridge towards the bottom. However, in true spirit of installing aftermarket parts on this truck, this install did not go as planned. I had to remove and retape about 80% of the surface area in order to get the double-sided tape to not be visible once installed. Very clean now and the AVS logos wiped off immediately with Goof-Off aerosol. I then applied a quick coat of Butter Wet Wax to them to fill in the random marks they showed up with and restore the shine to the area where the logos were.

 

[bonifacio]

Another smol mod completed last night. Threw on the smoked AVS low profile window visors. They feel pretty decently made and I dig their styling with the little ridge towards the bottom. However, in true spirit of installing aftermarket parts on this truck, this install did not go as planned. I had to remove and retape about 80% of the surface area in order to get the double-sided tape to not be visible once installed. Very clean now and the AVS logos wiped off immediately with Goof-Off aerosol. I then applied a quick coat of Butter Wet Wax to them to fill in the random marks they showed up with and restore the shine to the area where the logos were.

Some reason I had to contact AVS to send me replacement adhesive strips. I tried to rub off the logo and mine got all hazy. I guess whatever I used was too harsh. I left it. Did you get the low-profile or the regular ones?
Are your Volks the -20 offset?

 

[drizzoh]

Some reason I had to contact AVS to send me replacement adhesive strips. I tried to rub off the logo and mine got all hazy. I guess whatever I used was too harsh. I left it. Did you get the low-profile or the regular ones?
Are your Volks the -20 offset?

I love the aerosol Goof-Off. It did make the deflectors a little hazy but the wax brought the shine right back. Had I not had a new roll of thin 3M tape I probably would have contacted them as well, but it didn't take too long to peel off with a plastic razor blade. these are the low profile version.

These are the M-Spec's which are 17x8.5 -10.

 

[bonifacio]

these are the low profile version.

Then where's the low profile side shot? T3G demands it!
Are the low profile ones in-channel?

 

[drizzoh]

Then where's the low profile side shot? T3G demands it!
Are the low profile ones in-channel?

LMAO. Yes they are I was reading on their Q&A and they said all their low profile offerings are in-channel. There is tons of room in these channels to add them too. Hopefully it helps with the little bit of random wind noise I still get even after adding some additional weather stripping between the doors.

I will have to take another pic, they're very streamline though. So far very happy I picked them up.

 

[drizzoh]

Yanked out the craptastic OEM y-pipe last night and replaced it with the Borla. I chose this option simply because I don't like the sound with the URD and the AFE doesn't reroute around the transfer case. It wasn't quite as friendly to install as I was expecting but overall it is a pretty nice setup. I like that it has proper ground and transfer case clearance, allows for increased flow and came with all the necessary heat shields. The only downside is that I have to source a new gasket between the y-pipe and catback. The instructions said to reuse the stocker but it absolutely would not fit over their 2mm wider piping. So far the exhaust note sounds a little throatier and seems like it's revving up smoother/easier. I'm still waiting on some more electrical components to arrive so I can wrap up that forever-taking project (have half-done wiring chillin in the engine bay and a bunch of stuff unplugged) so I haven't driven the truck with the Borla yet, but I don't notice any leaks even given the gasket fiasco.

I didn't take any installed pics because it was dark asf by the time I was finished, but at least we can all ewwww at the stock piping.