Big-block Taco
Vehicle: 1998 Toyota Tacoma
Owners: George and Christopher Gonzalez, San Gabriel, CA
Tires & Wheels: 44-inch Interco Super Swamper Bogger tires on beadlock wheels
Suspension: 6-inch front and rear leaf lift using K5 Blazer leaf springs, Bilstein 5150 front shocks, and 16-inch Fox rear shocks
Drivetrain: TH350 transmission, NP205 transfer case, Dana 60 front, 14-bolt full floater Corporate rear, 5.13 gears
Performance Mods: 454ci Chevy big-block V-8, 540 camshaft, Holley tunnel ram intake, Holley Truck Avenger carburetor, Headman headers
Other Doodads: Rear disc brake conversion, rollcage, sound system, winch
Funniest Wheeling Incident: Getting lost with an empty gas tank, a dead battery, no phone, and no CB radio
Does everything work the way you want?: Most definitely!
Anything you would change?: No, I wouldn’t change anything, but I would like to add more to it, such as a fuel cell
Inspired Isuzu
Vehicle: 1994 Mazda B4000
Owner: Kevin Roussin
Tires & Wheels: 37x14 Swamper Irok tires on 15x10 steel wheels
Suspension: Front 3-link with Panhard bar, Deaver coil springs, and Ruff Stuff brackets; 63-inch rear Chevy leaf springs with extended shackles
Drivetrain: 5-speed manual, manual transfer case, Ford Dana 44 front, 9-inch rear
Performance Mods: 4.0L V-6 with modified intake and exhaust
Other Doodads: A/C converted to onboard air, home-brew high-lift jack, axe mount, Smittybilt 8,000 pound winch, auxiliary lamps, auxiliary reverse lamp, auxiliary off-road lamps, fire extinguishers in cab and pickup box, CB radio
Does everything work the way you want?: For today
Anything you would change?: Lower gearing and new snorkel
Anything to add?: Ali Mansour’s Danger Ranger project [Mar.–Aug. ’12] was the original inspiration for this truck
Cheap Thrills
Vehicle: 1987 Toyota Short Box Pickup
Owner: Derek Emerson, Helena, MT
Tires & Wheels: 37x13.5 Pit Bull Rocker tires on 16x8 American Racing Baja wheels painted olive drab green
Suspension: Toyota rear springs up front, 63-inch Chevy rear leaf springs, Sky Boomerang shackles, Monroe shocks
Drivetrain: Old prototype Budbuilt adapter that mates two Toyota G/W series 5-speeds (you read right, my reverse-reverse-4-Lo gearing is 224:1!), stock transfer case with Trail Gear twin stock remotely shifted, stock axles, 4.38 gears, high steer, front IFS hub swap, rear Aussie locker
Performance Mods: Lead foot Other Doodads: Many! Home-fabbed exocage/tube bed, power steering cooler converted from an old dirt bike oil cooler, ammo boxes for modular storage, jerrycans strapped to the bed, Humvee front/rear signal lights, Summit seats with RLS 5-point harnesses, custom transmission tunnel
Funniest Wheeling Incident: Having a friend’s battery break on the trail and hiking to my rig to borrow its battery for a jump. It wasn’t very fun to hike a 4-rated obstacle while carrying a battery and jumper cables!
Does everything work the way you want?: So far, I’m loving dual 5-speeds. Shifting on the fly with a much lower range than dual transfer cases. No coupling shafts were required because the male and female shafts on the Toyota transmissions are both 21-spline. Not to mention, no one at the parts store even believes me!
Anything you would change?: Finish up my custom crossmembers and run a 2-piece front driveshaft and tuck part of it under a flat belly pan, and link suspension and add another locker when I no longer need to DD during winter
Anything to add?: Got to thank my parents for fostering the 4x4 bug, and 4WOR Editors-in-Chief Péwé and Freiburger for showing me how to get away with doing things cheap
Too Pretty?
Vehicle: 1987 Toyota FJ60 Land Cruiser
Owner: Paul & Amy Carrill, Kansas City, MO
Tires & Wheels: 33x15 BFG A/T tires on 15x8 widened Toyota stock wheels (originally 15x5.5), OEM hubcaps
Suspension: 3-inch BDS suspension lift with BDS shocks, 4-inch Old Man Emu lift kit in the box and ready to install soon
Drivetrain: Australian H55 5-speed transmission, rebuilt transfer case, U-joints, balanced driveshafts, rebuilt/packed front Birfield joints and knuckles with Toyota parts, rebuilt rear axle with Toyota parts
Performance Mods: Stock I-6 with 230K miles
Other Doodads: Underhood ARB compressor, dual batteries, snorkel, ARB front bumper with Warn 8274 winch, SOR rock sliders, SOR custom rear bumper with spare tire mount, ladder, work lamp, fuel can carrier, roof rack, utility interior panels, security console, rear seats for increased storage, Engel 12V refrigerator, rooftop tent, interior camping storage
Funniest Wheeling Incident: Other than people always calling it a Land Rover, during a Cruise Moab event most people thought it was “too pretty” to wheel. Everyone was stunned when it crawled up several step on a near-vertical climb on a portion of the Devil’s Backbone.
Does everything work the way you want?: Yes. The truck was built to travel long distances to backcountry destinations and back. It’s not the fastest, but it has taken us to some of the most beautiful spots in America and back home without a single problem.
Anything to add?: You learn so much about an old truck when you restore one. The Rhino Ride started life as a ranch truck on a poultry farm, so when I pulled the interior every crevice was full of feathers! I’d love to meet the original owner some day and learn about his experiences with this truck.
Dirty Datsun Hybrid
Vehicle: 1974 Datsun Pickup
Owner: Kyle Pheneger, Houlton, WS
Tires & Wheels: 235/75/15R Sport King steel radials on 15-inch steel wheels
Suspension: ’74 International Scout II frame and suspension
Drivetrain: 3-speed manual, Dana 44 front and rear, 3.54 gears
Performance Mods: International 345ci V-8
Other Doodads: Hydraulic dump box and snowplow
Does everything work the way you want?: No
Anything you would change?: Suspension lift, bigger tires, lockers, 4-speed transmission
Anything to add?: Because it’s a Datsun on a Scout II frame, I call it the Scoutsun
The Daily Beast
Vehicle: 1994 Toyota Pickup
Owner: Daniel Jones, Moreno Valley, California
Tires & Wheels: 33x12.5 Timberline M/T tires on 15-inch steel wheels
Suspension: Stock with Pro Comp shocks
Drivetrain: Stock
Performance Mods: 22RE I-4, K&N air filter, Ice big-bore throttle body, intake tube, Stage 2 cylinder head, handmade headers, 21⁄2-inch exhaust, Flowmaster muffler
Other Doodads: Prerunner-style fenders with sledgehammer modification to fit the 33-inch tires
Funniest Wheeling Incident: During an easy Sunday my brother and I thought it needed some mud on her and found a small lake nearby. Seven hours later and two more stuck trucks, we finally got out. Yeah, that was a good day
Does everything work the way you want?: She is my daily driver and does everything amazingly
Anything you would change?: I really want to change out the 5-speed for a 6-speed and add a Total Chaos, generation-two Caddy kit for the front with a nice set of bypass shocks, and a 4-link setup for the rear
Anything to add?: I call her Beast and she goes anywhere
Fun with Fords
Canadian Twist
Vehicle: 1979 Ford F-150
Owner: Tyson Heuer, Sparwood, British Columbia, Canada
Tires & Wheels: 35x10 Pro Comp M/T tires on 15x10 white steel wheels
Suspension: 4-inch Rough Country suspension lift and Rancho shocks
Drivetrain: 4-speed manual transmission, NP205 transfer case, stock axles
Performance Mods: 429ci V-8 with Dove-C heads, Wiseco flat-top pistons, Comp Cams camshaft, over-the-frame headers for 450 hp
Anything to add?: It may not be the prettiest, but it sure turns heads in the bush!