FJ Cruiser mods thread

[Corey]

I added the Kidde dry chemical one to the plastic lift off tray in the back.

Used a few stainless bolts and nuts, the same ones that held it onto my Husky floormats when they were in the 4Runner.

The Kidde will be used for outside fires not rig related since it is a dry chemical unit.

[Corey]

Upon having the FJ Cruiser lifted late last year, I noticed a bit of wandering at highway speeds.

This happens to 2005 + Tacoma users too, not just FJ Cruisers.
Upon researching the Internet (wonderful thing that thing be) I learned problem can often be traced to the caster being to high for the alignment.

The stock upper control arms often do not give enough adjustment when dialing in the caster.
I checked on Total Chaos Fab's website, and saw that is what they say.

When aftermarket lifts are installed on these model vehicles the OEM suspension design looses caster.
By altering the factory caster, the vehicle will lose on road handling & performance and has a tendency to wander when driving down the road.

TC developed the UCAs to add caster to the suspension when aftermarket coil over shocks and other lifts are installed.
This will increases overall handling and aids in the alignment of the vehicle.

These new arms also eliminate the ball joints as they utilize what is known as uniball technology.

You can see in my alignment chart from the other day that the caster was to high, not within specs.
With the addition of the new control arms, the alignment is now within specs.

I had my local Toyota dealer install these while I was at work.
They were happy to do it, as they realize they may be getting more requests from lifted FJ Cruiser owners.

I really wanted to see how they improved the ride on the freeway coming home from work today, but alas I was bucking high winds, and the FJ was getting tossed around a bit.
I will have to wait for a much calmer day to get a feel how much the ride has improved with the addition of these.

They sure do look nice though

[Toddski]

Very nice. Did it feel any different on the way home?
Gonna have to take it off a sweet jump now

So, whats your next project? ;-)

[Corey]

To windy to tell Todd, I was fighting some strong winds at 1:30 this afternoon on the commute home.

Next project coming up very soon...

BlueTorch Fab dual battery box



Painless 250 Amp Dual Battery Current Control System

Bought from Jegs



And this is going in the box.



Might have it all done late Saturday.
If so, pics by Sunday, that is if it gets done.

[Corey]

Just a quick update on the Total Chaos upper control arms.
Drove home from work two days in a row, and the rig is a different well behaved animal at highway speeds.

Not a super huge difference, but I no longer wander around, so I do not have to keep making course directions.
Before it was like sailing the Queen Mary at freeway speeds sometimes.
Now it tracks a lot straighter.

Ride is still not perfectly smooth, but that can chalked up to the aggressive tread pattern of the Dick Cepek Mountaincat tires.

If you are lifted and experiencing the wandering syndrome, I would recommend looking into these.

[shazaam]

very nice build Corey. Definitely a step up from the 91 runner

[Corey]

Thanks shazaam, I am having so much fun with this rig.
Onto todays new mod:

Dual battery kits are cool, and high on many an off roaders list of modifications to do.
With it you can safely start your vehicle should you accidentally run down your main battery.
This mod also goes towards the "Expedition" type of rig I am building.
A few more mods such as the Safari snorkel and perhaps a roof top tent, and a new rear bumper will round out my rig for the look/setup I am trying to achieve here.

I had my local Cartoys do the install on this, as the Clifford battery backup alarm was in the way, and I needed them to move it to keep it under my warranty with them.
I had asked them a few weeks back if they have installed dual battery kits before, and indeed they had.

They had one of their best installers on this today.
He ran into one snag which was not his fault.
The Painless provided switch is to big to fit into the dash switch blanks.
I had forgotten that Wayne had procured a smaller three way switch to go into the switch blank in the lower console.

I suggested to the installer that he could drill a hole in my drivers side air vent panel.
He was able to do that, but had to turn the switch sideways.
There was not enough room with the shape of the switch in the back to have the handle operate in the up/down position, so it now operate back and forth, left/right.

For kicks I called up my local Toyota dealer to see how much one of these vent panels go for, and it is a shocking $149 or so.
I may in the future buy a new one, and then get a switch like Wayne's and mount the switch and LEDs down below in the lower console like he did.
But it really does not look to shabby where it is now.
I just may decide that it is not worth the $150 to move the switch.

Pictures one, two, and three show the stock battery with the new positive wire coming off it it, and the other two pictures show the new Optima battery, the Painless solenoid, and the Bluetorch Fabworks battery tray.



Picture four shows the six bolts with the heads in the fenderwell with the threads pointing up.
The two at the rear of the tire and the two in front of them about one foot are the 5/16th bolts holding the battery box down.
The two up front above the Old Man Emu coil assembly are 1/4" bolts used to hold the solenoid to the fenderwell.



Picture five shows my alarm LED moved to the new location to the left of the rear diff lock switch.
Previously the LED was up on the dash between the mirror adjusters and the for lamp switch.



Picture six shows the red and green LEDs now mounted where the alarm LED use to be.
Picture six also shows the switch in its centered position.
This manes the main battery is only used for vehicle operation.
The solenoid is not activated, and the auxiliary battery is not being charged.

Picture seven shows the switch in the green light position.
The main and auxiliary batteries are connected for charging and starting, and the green light is illuminated when the key is in the on position.
The green light will not activate when the key is in the off position.

You would use this position to start your vehicle if you drained the main battery.
For example, winching with your engine off, running your stereo to serenade your friends with the engine off, or using a fridge/freezer such as like the ARB one I have, and you drained your main battery.
If that happens, you would flip the switch from the center position (main battery only connected) to the green light or the red light position, and you would then be able to crank over your engine to start the vehicle and charge the main battery.

Picture eight shows the switch in the red light position.
The main and auxiliary batteries are connected together and the red light is illuminated at all times regardless of the ignition switch position.



This will come in so handy when I am out camping running the ARB fridge for a few days.
If I accidentally drain the main battery, I will be able to have a way to start the vehicle and then charge back up the main battery.

Here are some additional pictures I grabbed off the websites below.

The box before being modified by Wayne, and a Yellow Top battery by Optima



The Painless dual battery kit showing all of the parts laid out



Parts used:
Bluetorch Fabworks battery tray
http://bluetorchfab.com/store/produc...?products_id=1
The box has been modified by member KD7NAC_07FJ (Wayne) by welding on a plate in the rear that follows the contour of the FJ Cruisers fenderwell, and thus giving it a more secure mounting by running those bolts above the rear of the tire as seen in picture four.

Painless 250 Amp Dual Battery Current Control System
http://www.painlessperformance.com/w...rchField=40102

Bought from Jegs
http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/store...10002_20324_-1

Optima Yellow Top model D34_78
http://www.optimabatteries.com/optim.../yellowtop.php
Do an Internet search to find the best price.
I got an excellent deal on mine at my local Cartoys stereo shop.

[BT17R]

Well done, clean install. Looks like the 2nd horn is gone, but the upside is plenty of room and juice for air horns!

[Corey]

Thanks Bob.

I moved the 2nd horn up front and left about 2' from the stock horn.
There is a hole there that the bolt from the 2nd horn will fit into perfectly.

It is also louder with it up front too.

Stand by for the next mod...
When mod fever bites, it bites hard.

[Corey]

Just a small update.
I had not put in the ARB fridge since adding the new fire extinguisher next to the Powertank.
Put the fridge in for the upcoming Fall Colors Run this Saturday.

I was not sure if it was going to squeeze in or not, but it fits in OK.
Tight fit back there for sure, and will still look into rotating that fridge one day 90 degrees to the right.

[Nate C]

good grief man! Do you drive around with all that gear on a daily basis???

[Corey]

Daily
Well, the fridge is not in there all the time.

Now you wanna talk about gear, http://www.yotatech.com/f153/how-muc...s-pics-128138/

Next mods to come:

M Packs, shipping this week
http://www.springtailsolutions.com/

Safari snorkel

[minidisc8]

Corey,
I noticed that the springtail pouches will have prices up in a few days. Have you gotten any prices already since you seem to have ordered them?

[Corey]

Yes, I think the combo price they gave was like $260 for the whole setup.
Mine just shipped, they will be here on Monday.

[Corey]

Beautiful sunny day here in Western Wa. with the temperature creeping up to 55 as I type.

The M-Packs and rack is in from the group buy I got in on awhile back.
Anyone interested in installing these into other rigs besides FJ Cruisers and Jeeps should contact Springtail Solutions.
All URLs will be at the bottom here.

The kit allows you to mount a rack on the rear of the FJs door, and that rack will then let you mount bags of different sizes and configurations to it.
They use the military Molle strap system, something I was not really familiar with until I saw the thread put up by the vendor on fjcruiserforums.com's site.

I suspect it is some type of setup my favorite Sci-Fi show StarGate SG1 uses on their uniforms they wear too.

Here are the parts laid out, the rack, then the bags.
The bag at the very top of the pictures goes into the compartment in the right rear.
Those with the factory subwoofer would not be able to put that bag there, as the subwoofer occupies that space.

The two big bags and the smaller ones with the two straps mount to the M-Pack rack.

The smaller one strap packs go into the front door pockets for a perfect fit.



The next set of pictures shows:
Rack mounted to the rear door
Pack in the rear right hand side compartment
Packs in the front door
Packs mounted to the rack



I have a lot of filling to do on these packs still.
The front two packs in the doors each house a Boeing first aid kit I received at work as an award for something I did
Before the first aid kits sat in the front pockets and shifted around a lot.
With them stuffed into the Molle packs there is no movement now, it is a nice tight fit.

The mounting of the packs and what you carry possibilities are endless, and using your imagination I am sure you might find a way to bring along the kitchen sink on your next overland travel, camping trip, or 4wheeling trip.

Springtail Solutions/M-Pack
Installation instructions for the rack
Installing the Molle packs onto the rack

At the main URL for Springtail are more photos and an FAQ that explains what the Molle system is.

[BT17R]

Now there's so