Early last month I picked up a new toy. its a 2004 Tundra SR5 AC 4x4 with factory rear LSD. Came with a basic coil spacer lift up front and a one inch block in the rear. Rides just like stock but taller. Also came with Rims and 285/70R16 tires. Tube Steps I will be removing once i find a set of real sliders. Interior was all stock with bench seat up front and fitted seat covers all around. HID High and Low Beam. Aux Reverse Lights. It had just a little over 97xxx miles and perfect to talk them down on price since the 90k service is due.
I basically did everything that was related to a 90k service along with stuff it needed.

current 90k service I have already did within 3 days of owning the vehicle with all Toyota Parts

Timing Belt
Water Pump
Pink Coolant
Spark Plugs
Engine Air Filter
Rack and Pinion
PS Fluid
4 Tire Balance
Front/T-Case/Rear Diff Fluid Exchange
BG LSD Additive
Drive Side CV Axle Boot Kit

Recently did the following

Camburg UCA
Alignment
Black Dash Mat
EGR Slim Window Visor
Alpine IDA-X305 Media Head Unit
Washed/Waxed














reason for Camburg UCA plus they have built in Caster

its close but not touching now






recent trip to 2013 huckfest and main reason for buy this toy haha


my buddy came over to see what the heck i was doing lol

 

i originally wanted it installed below the radio. i tried to enlarge the mounting holes to make the two fit. i think i could make it work but i would need to trim the top of the bezel cover. i might give it another try if i can find another cover i can trim just in case lol
anyways i found another spot that seem like it might just work. i can easily remove the cb unit if i ever had to. cup holder still works. i had to drill another hole in the cb bracket so it had alittle more support

 

Going to town with a vengeance in this one. Nice..
I know the new tundras tow more but this body style is way better IMO. ..plus it stayed true to it's toyota heritage..6 lugs

 

Yea I love it. As a Toyota tech. Not one guy in the shop would own the 2nd gen tundra. The 5.7 motor isn't proven at all. Very disappointed

 

so i think the tundra is a clear winner for my long distance/pismo rig now. i just need to build it accordingly. i plan on going to turf and surf 2 every year now at pismo. my 1st time going and the event was this last weekend. had so much find. its mainly land cruisers and FJ cruisers but all toyota are welcome i think haha.

one thing that almost made me miss this awesome event was not having any luck finding a used camper shell. its fairly cold at night on the beach at this time of the year. lucky someone on i8mud gave me the idea of doing a DIY truck tent. less than $30 and 30 mins later. i had this.















went to bed and the air inside was already warm with just us being inside it. was easy to stay warm all night long too. i love it. i still plan on getting a camper shell or make something i been thinking of. but this set up will do till than

some pictures from around the camp and some guys i decided to follow around. the other tundra kept getting stuck due to lack of experience. than some how all 4 of them got stuck but the 2nd gen runner was able to get out and had to tow the others out. i was gonna help but i just let the 2nd gen runner do all the work while i took pictures and watched haha. had a great time






















On 41 inch tires









stuck again and everyone else was stuck as well but me haha







2014 tundra didnt see the hole and got some air haha

 

Dayummmmm! I totally missed out. Great pix, love the rig buddy! Can't wait to go with you guys again.

 

again, im sorry. it was last minute and i should have at least told you. i was so busy trying to make it that i forgot to tell you. i still wasnt sure if i was gonna go till i made the truck tent and it worked the night before heading out lol

 

No worries man, lol. Tent looked very comfy and practical/easy tear down & set up, etc!

 

Hey, another thread going on for you....

Awesome tent idea! love it!



I seen something similar in mammoth one year except the guy used galvanized piping. One thing that you might see as a simple improvement is he pulled the tarp onto the cab and used magnets to hold it down. The bar type magnets that hold tools. This allowed him to open the rear sliding window, turn the engine on and run the heater so the tent would heat up real quick. I also imagine if you had a constant power 12v cig adapter you could plug things in it and run it through the window also, or play the radio, and just plain have access to the cab while in the tent.

These are type he used....he said harbor freight carries them.

 

Love all the dune pics!

 

Looks pretty good. I've considered lowering my 4Runner down, putting it on 35s, fitting it in the garage, selling my mustang and picking up a Tundra for a daily driver. but that's all here say...

Love the first gen tundras... awesome truck and plenty of power with the 4.7

 

Are there problems with the 5.7? I was under the impression they were very reliable.

My dad has a 2012 or 2013 tundra. Love that truck. Really fast.

Nice set up with that tent!

 

wow sorry i didnt even know there was new comments here. sorry for the late response and update. been busy after the new years and seem like im not the only one lol

i love it but i have already moved away from that hehe. you'll see pictures

the pvc is lighter, cheaper, rust proof and easier to cut lol
the magnet idea is genius. i can get these from old speakers hehe
i only used that pvc tent once and moved to a different set up. i may keep the pvc tent for a cheap quick ground tent since its faster set up than my coleman

me too lol cant wait till warmer weather to return

i cant have any of my rigs outside. i do what it takes to keep them indoors. toyota theft is pretty bad in my city. i live in a nicer part of town and still had my cat stolen a few years ago and that was when the runner was bone stock.
i love the 1st gen tundra. i wouldnt mind having a 5.7 and 6 speed auto swapped in it lol

of all the years i worked for toyota i have yet to see any 4.7 come in with any engine failure when properly maintain. since the 5.7. i cant even count how many have came in with needs of a short block. ring/piston failure and smoking/burning oil.

there was also a huge problem with the rack and pinion failure on the 2008 and up because toyota changed how it was made or something. the 2007 was the only ones that didnt have any issues.
alot of failure was seen on mild lifted tundra but have been seen on stock tundras as well. i think toyota has fix the rack issue in 2012 or 13 since i havent seen any failure yet. you can find alot of talk about this on tundra sites...

dont get me wrong the 5.7 is a good motor and its only a smaller % of failure but when compared to the 4.7. the 5.7 has more problems and overall the 2nd gen tundra just had more issues that im sure has been worked out by 2014 lol

i cant afford a 2014 since you can have a 1st gen 4wd with around 100k for around 10k. also compared to the most wanted taco. i can have a bigger truck for less and less likely to be actually used for truck use. when i got mine, i can tell it was a mall crawler lol

plus being a tech. i dont want to work on the 5.7 at all. everything takes tons of time and work. alot which is possible at home but i wouldnt even consider it if i had to.

in the end it came down the price and overall ease of working on.