August 29, 2020. Well, it's been a while since a rig review - things have been working reasonably well; a nice side effect of constantly evaluating and tweaking the setup of the truck to dial it in. Since last time, we've completed the following trips: Nevada Backcountry Discovery Route Bridge-to-Bridge in the Middle of Nowhere Dead Ends through WA, ID, and MT Roaming Around Rainier So, lets dive right in. Seemingly solved from previous Rig Reviews Relentless Skid Plate Attachment Cooper ST/Maxx Tires It's Noisy in the Cab The Air Conditioning Doesn't Work Unchanged / Still an issue from previous…
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Everything on AdventureTaco is Epic, but only posts in this category will be sent via email to those who have subscribed to be notified of new content. A post with this category should always be included in at least one other category as well.
May 24, 2020. Our last two trips have both been to the Owyhee area of southeastern Oregon and western Idaho - Into the Owyhee Uplands and Owyhee Redux. The truck performed well on each trip, but as always there are little tweaks I want to make to the setup, so let's dive in to the rig review. Seemingly solved from previous Rig Reviews Front ADS Coilover Spherical Bearings - "solved" in that I know they are going to require constant maintenance for a while. Second (House) Battery Seems to be low - completely fixed with a new battery. Propane Bottle…
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I get asked - not infrequently - whether I carry gun(s) with me on my numerous outdoor adventures. So without further ado, here is what might be my most controversial post ever. You've been warned. First a few ground rules: I want to try to stay non-political. I recognize that this is a highly politicized topic in society today, but I'm not approaching it from that perspective. These are my current opinions. I reserve the right to change them at any time and I may or may not update the post. I'm totally fine with anyone else having the same…
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March 17, 2020 Back from the eastern Mojave, it's time for another look at how the truck performed over the course of the last 5 day's adventures. If you haven't read those - and want to - go right ahead, I'll wait. Removed from previous Rig Reviews The Swing-Out Table - I still don't have one and the truth of the matter is that I've been getting along fine without by using the tailgate. Adding a table would be a nicety, but would also add weight - even if only a small amount - so for now it's…
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If you missed the first part of this story, you may want to read 4Runner Accident, and the Saga of Repair when you're done reading this. It was a Monday morning when we showed up at Jim's Body Shop in Seattle. Arriving a few minutes after they opened, they were in the process of assessing where they were on their various projects and one of the guys made an off-hand remark that they might be "overbooked." I wasn't worried though - in my dealings with Humberto, he'd seemed genuinely interested in working on the 4Runner - and a few minutes…
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If you own vehicles long enough, it's a safe bet that one will be in an accident. Luckily for us, when the 4Runner was hit, no one was in it. This is the story of what happened, and the saga that followed. So, it was the first Friday in December when @mrs.turbodb drove the 4Runner a few miles to a school where she volunteers as a tutor, around 10:00am. I'd gone to help a buddy with some landscaping at his place. He and I were eating lunch when @mrs.turbodb called to let me know that a 17-year old girl had…
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January 4, 2020 Another year of wheeling and camping is in the books. I find myself here writing a rig review as one of 2020's first posts, for the last couple of trips that we took in 2019. By and large, the truck performed well on those trips In Search of Overlooks in Death Valley and though an unexpectedly snowy trip to the Mojave Preserve. There were - as always - a couple things worth calling out - so without further ado, let's get to it! Seemingly solved from previous Rig Reviews Front ADS Coilover Spherical Bearings Squeaking Unchanged /…
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Well, another year is nearly in the books - with a lot more trips to amazing places, memories made with old and new friends alike. As the end of the year rolls around, I generally find myself looking ahead to what's coming rather than looking back - so I thought I'd step out of my groove and make a pass through all the photos from the last year, pulling out the ones I really liked for one reason or another. So let's get started. My Top 11 It's not easy coming up with my 10 favorite photos, so here are…
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September 30, 2019. It was another whirlwind of trips through August and September, with three more trips and 21 more nights now in the books: The Whipsaw Trail in BC, Canada, a trip with Pops to the California Sierra, and a nearly two-week adventure through Wyoming and Colorado. Of those, the two driving adventures both ended early due to mechanical failure of at least one vehicle on the trip, so without further ado, let's get into what's bound to be a stunning rig review! Seemingly solved from previous Rig Reviews Front ADS Reservoirs Too Close to Tires Unchanged / Still an…
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I've built a couple of storage platforms in the past - a slide-with-a-slide style platform for my 1st gen Tacoma, and a fridge-slide style for my 3rd Gen 4Runner - so when a buddy of mine asked for help building one for his 5th Gen 4Runner, I was happy to help. The goal was relatively simple for this build - a simple platform with some L-track to secure loads, and a way to level out the back of the 4Runner to sleep at night. No fridge slide (yet), but the ability to add it in the future. And, lastly -…
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July 29, 2019. In perhaps our most-traveled month to date, July was nearly an entire month in Idaho. In fact, we've had four trips in the last couple of months to this tiny state - after only having visited once before. After our SE Idaho trip to Indian Hot Springs and City of Rocks, our trip to the Highest Roads in Idaho, and running the Idaho Backcountry Discovery route, there are definitely a few things worth mentioning on the rig. So let's get right down to it. Seemingly solved from previous Rig Reviews The Electrical System - now with moar…
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May 27, 2019. That sure didn't take long. It's been two years that we've been upping our adventure quotient, and the odometer is a stark reminder of what living in the northwest corner of the country can do. Still, it's a nice gig if you can get it! And while we're reminiscing - let's take a look at the truck a mere 3 years ago and today. Definitely a different beast! Looked good stock. Looks better now. As always, stay tuned for more .
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April 29, 2019. The trip to the Alvord Desert and Hart Mountain Antelope National Wildlife Refuge was one that we threw together relatively quickly and without much work on the truck after the previous trip. The only work really was maintenance - an oil change, tire rotation, and re-booting the passenger CV axle. That said, as the trip progressed, there were still several items worth noting. Unchanged / Still an issue from previous Rig Reviews There are some things that have been featured in Rig Reviews that are - as yet - unchanged from when I originally reviewed them. Rather…
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Rig Review is a new type of post that I'm going to try to write up after most trips, where I'll note any things that worked really well, or could have been better. The idea has always been to optimize the Tacoma build and setup over time, so there's nothing really new from that perspective. I won't talk about everything I've got going on - just new equipment to the trip and/or any outliers that deserve a mention. At the very least, I figure that long-term, real-world reviews of the products I use are good for everyone! March 30, 2019.…
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Rig Review is a new type of post that I'm going to try to write up after most trips, where I'll note any things that worked really well, or could have been better. The idea has always been to optimize the Tacoma build and setup over time, so there's nothing really new from that perspective. I won't talk about everything I've got going on - just new equipment to the trip and/or any outliers that deserve a mention. At the very least, I figure that long-term, real-world reviews of the products I use are good for everyone! February 18, 2019.…
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Rig Review is a new type of post that I'm going to try to write up after most trips, where I'll note any things that worked really well, or could have been better. The idea has always been to optimize the Tacoma build and setup over time, so there's nothing really new from that perspective. I won't talk about everything I've got going on - just new equipment to the trip and/or any outliers that deserve a mention. At the very least, I figure that long-term, real-world reviews of the products I use are good for everyone! October 16, 2018.…
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Rig Review is a new type of post that I'm going to try to write up after most trips, where I'll note any things that worked really well, or could have been better. The idea has always been to optimize the Tacoma build and setup over time, so there's nothing really new from that perspective. I won't talk about everything I've got going on - just new equipment to the trip and/or any outliers that deserve a mention. At the very least, I figure that long-term, real-world reviews of the products I use are good for everyone! September 8, 2018.…
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March 24, 2018. "I feel sorry for anyone who needs a cam bolt sleeve in the Seattle area this weekend." said Mike @Digiratus as he and Zane @Speedytech7 walked in the door a little after 4:30pm. See, they'd just driven a 50-mile loop to get every last one they could find - since we were in the process of destroying all four of Mike's. But we are way ahead of ourselves. For several months, Dan @drr and Mike have been planning a shop day. Mike wanted to install a new set of W53377A Whiteline LCA bushings as well as a new steering rack…
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December 31, 2017 Well, this happened yesterday. Definitely racking up the miles faster than I used to, but there are a lot of good miles to go!
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This is a whole different kind of trip report. In fact, it doesn't involve my truck at all, and is yet perhaps the most Tacoma-heavy trip report I'll ever make (and that has perhaps been made to date) on TW! You see, we have somewhat of a tradition each winter - as the weather gets cold and gloomy in the Pacific Northwest, we escape for a week to Kauai. We always try to stay in the same cottage; we eat lunch every day at our favorite café on the island. We walk the beach, we snorkel, and we relax. We…
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