Imagine my surprise when I was told by the staff that my new company trail rig was a leftover Ultimate Adventure machine. I could barely contain myself when I heard "Toyota Tacoma" uttered in the same sentence! After all, I had seen photos and posters of the '01 Taco Supreme conquering mountains and huge rock piles. What more could a guy like me want? It's supercharged and has a 4.70:1 low-range gears, Bilstein coilovers front and rear, and a fully functional custom suspension.
Little did I know, the once proud UA vehicle has been well used-actually, beaten almost beyond recognition-and was nearly left for dead. But I love a challenge, and I know this vehicle is still fully functional, so I am taking on the job of getting it back on the trail. The first thing on the agenda is to make the battered rig run dependably. When the truck was dropped off it had a blown-out radiator, so cooling was on top of the priority list. I have a tendency to like quality components, so I gave Flex-a-lite a call and ordered up a cross-flow aluminum radiator. I've had nothing but good experiences with these radiators, and I especially like the way the radiator can be custom-mounted due to its external fins. The radiator core support and body on the old Taco weren't as sound as they used to be, so there was some fabrication in the installation of the radiator, but it was well worth it.
The high-quality all-aluminum...
The high-quality all-aluminum two-row Flex-A-Fit radiator with 1-inch tubes has internal fins that are designed to absorb more heat from the engine coolant, then radiate it though the external fins. This design offers excellent cooling and heat dissipation. It is available in three different core sizes to fit a variety of vehicles, including our beat-up Tacoma.
I used the truck's existing...
I used the truck's existing Flex-a-lite electric fan on the new radiator since it was in perfect working order and covers almost all of the core for better cooling. It mounted neatly on the radiator with only some minor trimming around the upper and lower hose inlet and outlet.
The factory radiator core...
The factory radiator core support was beat up and damaged so I needed to fabricate some radiator mounts at Off Road Evolution. After I bolted the fan to the radiator, I dropped it in place to mock up some mounts. The Flex-A-Fit side-tank T-channel design makes a tough radiator swap a simple one. It was easy to make notched brackets, then weld them to the Tacoma's existing cage.
I welded my custom lower radiator...
I welded my custom lower radiator mounts directly to the frame. The fins make it easy to adjust the radiator for proper positioning and clearance tolerances. The radiators come with a bracket mounting kit, but due to this vehicle's front-end damage, I didn't want to take the chance of mounting the radiator to a weakened factory core support.
I also installed Flex-a-lite's...
I also installed Flex-a-lite's new variable-speed-fan control module with a screw-in temperature sensor. This unit is simple to install and comes with complete, easy-to-following wiring instructions and a separate fuse. The unit allows the installation of on and off switches to control the fan during off-highway situations like water crossings.
This is the inline temperature...
This is the inline temperature sensor coupling. It's extremely easy to install and looks far more professional than units that shove a probe down the end of the radiator hose.