I did the battery and airbox swap. There isn't a lot to say about this. You have to unravel the wire loom and re-route the wires for the throttle body. The wires are long enough though. For the battery you'll have to extend the positive wire and make a new ground spot. I used some weld-nuts as my base: I put some super glue on the ends and then set my little bent tray on top. Well, the super glue had a 75% success rate. lol. From here I welded them (the glue was just for placement). And for added support I put on this brace: *poof* it's powder-coated: fits nice. cleared the hood. I modified the stock top bar, but it's not in this photo.
For the throttle body/air filter I used this 90 degree rubber tube. Spectre Performance Couplers 8791. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/SPE-8791 I think I used part of stock tube to get the diameters to match (but don't quote me on that, it's been a while since i did this and my memory isn't the best). I welded up a small rod and plate so the throttle body wasn't hanging off the front of the engine. the air filter is just a cheap paper filter. It's coming together (woot!):
I wanted to add A/C but, man was that a project. I ended up in about 4 junkyards and hitting people up on CL trying to find everything i needed. You should know that not every truck has the same equipment. Somewhere along the line they changed the fittings on the lines. I ended up with a bunch of parts just to find one setup that would work. I was able to clean it up nice though: Ultimately I bought new compressor, condenser, evaporator, and a couple switches. Still worth it. A/C is so nice. --- at this point my funds were running thin so I got aftermarket grill, bumper, valance, and turn signals. Aftermarket works, but you have to make it work. This bumper was rippled so badly from the press that I used some glaze putty to clean it up. I guess i shouldn't complain since the aftermarket is still available, but jeez. it's like 3/4 of the way there is good enough. Some fresh paint and several hours of fitting it, here it is: (btw, the plastic aftermarket parts were pretty good actually. it's just the stamped metal that suffers).
I did the interior in spurts, but for sake of simplicity I'll just cover it in one post. Stripped it all out: I wish toyota had taken the time to treat this bar. i'm fairly certain the PO preferred his drinks on the floor instead of a cup. With a hose, lots of elbow grease, and a strong greaser i got it pretty clean. The seat was cleaned to: I bought sound deadener from Noice. I got way too much and i used way too much. The rule I later learned was 60% coverage is enough. Oh well. I used an old plastic shower curtain to replace the film on the inside of the door. That was.. well the lazy option. The door card/skins are in good shape. I wish the PO hadn't cut a hole for a speaker. But what is done is done and I just ended up putting a new speaker in it's place. like new, yeah?: final note: I had so much sound deadening mat left over I put it on the hood.... which btw did nothing and I feel it was a complete waste of time.
First drive! Just like getting it back form paint; this was a huge moment. sigh of relief and also a lot of anxiety. Overall it was pretty smooth. Learned a few things. Like I desperately wanted a tach and I did not like the shocks. But we put on a few miles and made it home just fine. I had the windows tinted later that week. I tried to keep it tasteful and went fairly light on the tint. this isn't the end of the story. I'll be back to post more as I have time.
thanks! This photo, like the rest of the interior, are out of order. I did the interior in between the rest of the project. to be specific I pulled the engine back in the beginning.
Yikes, would you say that all Pace-Setter products are trash? I've been considering one for my 18R-C. Great build btw!
I can't speak for all their products, just this truck/engine combo. From what I've seen, Pace-setter is more budget friendly than other brands. So keep in mind you get what you pay for. Thanks