Toyota Xtra-Cab Pickup Becomes YotaTech Member’s Second Blessing
An unexpected situation threatened to end his Toyota obsession. But he wasn’t about to let it go that easily.
While we all own some sort of Toyota, the story behind each one is obviously different. And that’s a major part of the appeal of hanging out around the YotaTech forums. Sure, we see all sorts of awesome builds. But we also get to hear the fascinating stories behind each and every one of them. So, when we came across CreeperSleeper‘s awesome 1985 Xtra-Cab build recently, we knew it was too good not to share.
Interestingly enough, the story behind this awesome Toyota pickup starts with a bit of an unexpected miracle.
“Isn’t it funny how life changes and flows? In the last two years, my wife and I got married, bought a forever home, built her 5th-gen 4Runner for adventuring, acquired a really cool rock buggy, bought my dream Tundra, picked up some quads, and got a couple trailers to haul everything around.”
“We were having a blast playing with our toys and finally being in a spot that we had dreamed about. However, God had other plans and answered a long-forgotten prayer. Amy, who was told that she could never have kids, got pregnant and we are expecting our little boy to be born in March.”
Of course, that major life change required a few changes to this Toyota-loving couple’s lifestyle.
“With a new baby on the way, our lifestyle and finances needed an overhaul. Child care is expensive! We sold the buggy, then the car hauler, then the Tundra, then one of the quads. We were able to get out of some payments and pay down some debt to get ready for the next chapter in our lives.”
Difficult choices, no doubt. But that didn’t spell the end of the OP’s Toyota obsession. Not by a long shot.
“However, that left me without a truck and that wasn’t going to work. I made a list of what I needed a truck to do for me in this stage of my life and figured out how much we could spend. This truck is the result of that and I hope that it will be a member of our family for quite a while.”
“I was looking for a pre-1992 Toyota pickup or 4Runner. Wanted a truck that was mostly turn-key as I wouldn’t have time (or extra money) to build anything. I needed a truck that I could wheel pretty hard but still drive 4 hours on the highway to take me elk hunting. Long term dream would be something I could load up, drive from Portland, OR to the Rubicon Trail, wheel the trail, then drive home. Oh, without spending a bunch of money on it. That is not a small order! After shopping for a while, I ended up with this.”
“This” turned out to be a pretty awesome ’85 Xtra-Cab with an ’87 body and a bunch of mods. Including 3-inch Trail Gear springs, 14-inch Fox remote shocks, a Detroit locker, and 5.29 gears. To top it all off, a rebuilt 22E promises proper reliability. And so far, this old Toyota has proven to meet all the needs of its owner.
But that doesn’t mean the OP is going to leave well enough alone. He’s already working on swapping out his wheels and tires as well as replacing some worn out items. So be sure and head over here to keep up with this awesome Toyota pickup build (and second blessing!) as it comes together.
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