Tacoma Trailblazing

(Narrator)>> Today on XOR our Toyota Tacoma gets flexed and our tires get put to the test as we take our rig off road on XOR.

(Jeremy)>> Hey all you off roaders out there welcome to XOR. Now our Jeep JL is pretty much buttoned up but we've got a few more tweaks we want to do to this thing before it's ready to rock and roll.

(Eliza)>> On the other hand the Tacoma is pretty much ready. And after all the work that we've done it's now sitting pretty 10 inches higher and riding on 37's.

(Jeremy)>> That's right this truck came to us in a pretty much stock form. It had a small little lift and some 32 inch tall tires. Now we picked it up not too far from here and we had a special little treat waiting for us when we got there. We knew we wanted more travel and way more flex out of this mid-size truck. So the first thing we did was grab some tools and of course the torch, and made the entire independent front suspension hit the floor.

(Eliza)>> After the IFS was thrown into the scrap bin we got right to work on our front axles. Stripping it of all of its stock brackets so we can make way for the new ones.

(Jeremy)>> And with the front axle buttoned up it was time to move on to the rear. We needed to re-gear this so it matched the front. We want to make sure we could turn over our bigger tires. So we went with 4.88 gears. Those will let us use our low end torque when we're crawling and still allow us to cruise at highway speeds, and they match perfectly with our tire size. With the axles all re-geared and buttoned up it was time to move on to the big part of the build, and that was the three link suspension and our coil overs. The chassis mounts for the links are designed to fit in the tight spaces on the inside of the Toyota frame rails. After taking some measurements and prepping the frame we grabbed the welder and we burnt them in, and man did they fit great.

(Eliza)>> And with the chassis side of the kit installed and welded in... [ welder crackling ]

(Eliza)>> ...we moved over to the axle brackets and shock mounts. We wanted to make sure this thing had a ton of flex. So after we installed the axle and three link we cycled the suspension without springs installed just to make sure that everything was working together.

(Jeremy)>> The suspense was killing us, and Eliza and I could not wait to see this thing on the ground. So we mounted up our General Grabber AT's and finally set this monster on all fours.

(Eliza)>> And then it was time for some cosmetic upgrades like some bigger flares, a hefty front bumper, a spray in bed liner, and a custom soft topper.

(Jeremy)>> With all the work we've done to this truck we want to run through it with a fine tooth comb. We want to make sure we check and double check all the nuts and bolts, especially on a big build like this.

(Eliza)>> Roger that! Why don't you take the back, I'll take the front. We meet in the middle and we take this thing out for a shakedown run.

(Jeremy)>> That's sounds great.

(Eliza)>> I'm gonna go get my tools.

(Jeremy)>> When you guys are working out in the shop you probably grab a mess of different tools. Plenty of tools out there to help you get the job done quicker. For those of you guys that are just starting you probably have some basic hand tools. That's gonna be something you're always gonna need. Now ratchets and wrenches come in many different sizes. All the way down to the small ratchets to get them small bolts out, to the big breaker bar to help you get them big stubborn bolts out. But you know what let's face it, time is money, and there's many different options out there to help you get the job done quicker. Air tools can save you guys a ton of time. You can grab your big air gun and zip off some lug nuts in a couple of seconds versus the couple of minutes it may take with hand tools. Multiply that over four tires and about 20 lug nuts. You guys can save yourself somewhere around 10 minutes, but they do have a down side. Air compressors can be awfully expensive to buy. A good air compressor can run you well over $1,000 dollars. Then you have the space they take up, the unbearable noise that they make, and the fact that you have air hoses laying all over the ground, but don't write these things off just yet. These things definitely have their place. You've got a small air compressor. You can do anything around the house or around the shop. And you never know, the kids may want you to blow up their basketball or blow up their bike tires. Now air tools are super handy, especially if you're doing fabrication work or metal work. Cutoff wheels and grinders work great, and you don't have to worry about running out of power. And let's face it, every time you grab your big air gun to take a tire off you feel like you're doing a pit stop at a race track. Making a huge surge in the industry are battery operated tools. Now cordless tools come in many different varieties so you can work on anything underneath your truck. You've got ratchets that come in a couple of different sizes. You've got your impacts from quarter inch, three-eighths, all the way up to the big boy that delivers 1,300 foot pounds of breakaway torque. Now these things are great for working on your old truck or your old rig. The fact that they're portable means that you can take them anywhere. There are even a bunch of different specialty tools that can come in pretty handy. You've got your cordless grinders, your cutoff tool. You've even got shears that can make short work of an all-day project. Now grinders have a lot of different uses just in themselves. They have a quarter inch chuck that house a whole bunch of different types of tooling. From cutoff wheel adapters to wire wheels, sanding disc adapters to dye grinder bits. These can be used in tight places as well. Or if you just need to cut or grind something in a hurry. Now you guys know the old saying. Pick the right tool for the job, and there are a bunch of different tools to choose from. So when you're ready grab some tools, head to the shop, and start wrenching.

We all want to protect that investment underneath the hood, and when those temps start to climb we want to make sure that investment stays nice and cool. Well Evans waterless engine coolant protects to above 375 degrees and it has anti-freeze properties to help protect when the temps get below negative 40 degrees. It eliminates corrosion and it reduces system pressures. It's suitable for all gasoline, diesel engines, and for you guys in power sports they've even got a container for you as well. So if you guys are looking for superior boil over protection why don't you guys take a look at Evans waterless engine coolant.

(Narrator)>> Up next our little Yota makes a break for it on XOR.

(Jeremy)>> Hey guys welcome back to the shop. We've got a great show in store for you today and it all involves this Tacoma.

(Eliza)>> That's right. We are going to have a lot of fun with this bad boy.

(Eric)>> And cut!

(Eliza)>> Hey, let's get out of here.

(Jeremy)>> How do we get past mister producer over there?

(Eliza)>> Follow my lead. Mister producer!

(Eric)>> Yeah.

(Eliza)>> We've got to go pick up some parts.

(Jeremy)>> And we need gas for the Tacoma too.

(Eliza)>> Yeah you okay with us getting out of here?

(Eric)>> Yeah, I guess I'll see you in an hour.

(Eliza)>> Okay, see you later, bye!

(Jeremy)>> Let's get out of here. [ tires screeching ]

(Eliza)>> Yes!

(Jeremy)>> Here we go.

(Eliza)>> Woo!

(Jeremy)>> You know to be fair this thing really does need some fuel.

(Eliza)>> There's a gas station coming up.

(Jeremy)>> Let's use this one.

(Eliza)>> You know what I could really go for right now? Talking about off road all this stuff we used to do, ice cream.

(Jeremy)>> Oh, ice cream. Hey let's go get ice cream.

(Eliza)>> Yes, yes!

(Jeremy)>> Done.

( )>> What can I get for you today?

(Jeremy)>> I'll take a waffle cone with just plain vanilla please.

(Eliza)>> I want a waffle cone with chocolate.

(Jeremy)>> Oh man, that's so awesome.

(Eliza)>> Thank you.

(Jeremy)>> Man that's good. Oh Betsy! Okay so I've got a great idea. We should totally go wheeling.

(Eliza)>> Yes let's go.

(Jeremy)>> Alright what do you think? This seems like a pretty good spot maybe to test this thing out? There we go, trail head. Let's go that way.

Let's go wheeling!

(Eliza)>> We're at Adventure Off Road Park near Chattanooga, Tennessee, and we're making our way up to Area 51 where there are lots of good trails and hard obstacles. This is gonna be a great shakedown.

(Jeremy)>> It's beautiful back here. Unbelievably beautiful back here.

(Eliza)>> I want to say rain. Those kind of elements really test out the limits of your rig. Today it's good for once to have some nice dry traction.

(Jeremy)>> And today is gonna be a good day.

(Eliza)>> Yes sir.

(Jeremy)>> This thing's doing pretty good. I mean this is nothing major, but besides for us getting thrown around the cab.

(Eliza)>> But I mean that's the fun part of wheeling.

(Jeremy)>> That's right.

So it's actually worked out really good with the JK front axle underneath here. It's got an outstanding turning radius.

(Eliza)>> It does. That and we've also widened our track width. I want to say about six inches.

(Jeremy)>> Yeah the full kit that we put up front has really worked out. I think we really nailed it. The truck sits nice. It flexes nice.

(Eliza)>> Responds nice. I mean granted a lifted vehicle is always a lifted vehicle. It's never gonna ride like a Bentley.

(Jeremy)>> You know some of those builds where you have to kind of have to rob Peter to pay Paul to get what you want. This is turning out really nice. We've got quite a bit of turning radius with this truck. The saying, a good day of wheeling is better than. No, a bad day of wheeling is better than a good day at work. Well we're supposed to be at work at least.

(Eliza)>> We're working! We're working on getting the parts we need. You need to stick to the story J or else this ain't gonna work. I can't be the only one getting in trouble here. You gotta stick to the story. No matter what it is that they tell you. We were getting parts. We went on a parts run.

(Jeremy)>> So do we actually have to stop and get a part?

(Eliza)>> If we do this right yes!

(Narrator)>> Up next.

(Jeremy)>> Dude this is just sketchy at best.

(Narrator)>> On XOR.

(Eliza)>> Welcome back to XOR. Jeremy and I have ditched our producer for a day of wheeling, and we're putting our 2001 Toyota Tacoma to the test at Adventure Offroad Park. This mountainous terrain provides over 120 plus trails and challenging obstacles for our little Yota to flex its muscles.

(Jeremy)>> I'll tell you what. You want to go through some elevation changes.

(Eliza)>> This is the one.

(Jeremy)>> Holy cow.

(Eliza)>> What are we? I'd say this is a good 30 degree angle.

(Jeremy)>> That's exactly what I was gonna say, 30, 35. It's just steady and steady, and we're just crawling. And this is an easy or moderate trail?

(Eliza)>> This is easy.

(Jeremy)>> This is as easy as it gets at Adventure Offroad Park.

(Eliza)>> On our way to trail 41 we ran into some precarious situations.

(Jeremy)>> Dude this is just sketchy at best.

(Eliza)>> Whoa! [ Jeremy laughing ]

(Eliza)>> Mommy!

(Jeremy)>> Mommy! As we make our way down trail 41 it's evident that we need a little less bounce and a little more grip.

(Eliza)>> Alright now's a good time to air down because we need to have good traction, and for that we need a larger contact patch on our tire. So we're gonna go down to roughly about 10 p-s-i. [ air hissing ]

(Jeremy)>> Woo look at that tire squat! [ air hissing ]

(Jeremy)>> Well I'm good.

(Eliza)>> It's my turn to drive. Hand them over.

(Jeremy)>> Alright, fine, I think the keys are in it. I'll go over here, you go over there.

(Eliza)>> Oh my god I'm struggling to get in here.

(Jeremy)>> With our tires aired down to about 10 p-s-i we're gaining massive traction. She's an animal Ricky. She's an animal Ricky. Perfect, exactly what you're supposed to be doing, awesome. Hang on.

You guys stay there.

(Rob)>> What are you gonna do?

(Jeremy)>> Moving that rock?

(Rob)>> What rock?

(Jeremy)>> Move that rock right there. It's in my way.

(Rob)>> You're gonna move that rock?

(Jeremy)>> Yeah it's called gravity. Goes down the hill, ready? What is it? A rolling rock gathers no moss.

Ta-da-da-da.

Yeah perfect, perfect. Look at this thing just crawl. Tiny little hill climb here. Our Tacoma made easy work of these steep trails. With a bigger footprint and our flexed out suspension we were able to climb with ease. I'm gonna take a nap. You let me know when we're at the top. It's really no fun when you have a truck this capable because what seems like would be a really hard obstacle they turn into not hard obstacles.

(Eliza)>> We're not even locked in in the front. We've got to go harder.

(Jeremy)>> We're just going. It's amazing what you can do with just a rear locker. Our little Yota floated over this rocky terrain. With only the rear locker engaged and our tires aired down it made short work of trail 41. It may not look too challenging on camera but the whole way up this trail we've been at a very steep incline. We might need to lock her now. Right here we're gonna do the same thing. Come on baby, come on baby, perfect! Now drivers. Just like that.

(Eliza)>> I kinda think I have an idea of what's in front of us.

(Jeremy)>> Eventually we're gonna hit something right over here.

(Eliza)>> About right here we've got a rock.

(Jeremy)>> That's easy.

(Eliza)>> I think we made it.

(Jeremy)>> Man this is simple, simple work. I can see how when you go wheeling you just want to go bigger, and badder, and more extreme because it gets to the point where it's too easy. And you turn and go, too easy. Trail 41 proved to be a tricky beast in certain areas, but our General Grabbers earned their weight in gold as we crawled our way to the top.

(Narrator)>> Coming up.

(Jeremy)>> Alright this is where it's gonna get tricky.

(Eliza)>> I like tricky.

(Narrator)>> Jeremy and Eliza are like two kids on a playground, next on XOR.

(Jeremy)>> Welcome back to XOR. We're flexing out our 2001 Toyota Tacoma at Adventure Offroad Park, and Eliza is behind the wheel.

(Eliza)>> We've made our way over to trail 38. This route is composed of a lot of technical obstacles, and will definitely put or upgraded rig to work.

(Jeremy)>> Well what do you think? I think I can get out here and spot.

(Eliza)>> I like this one.

(Jeremy)>> Alright let me get up. Let's see what happens. Let's do this. This area of the park is one that will test both the driver's and spotter's skills.

(Eliza)>> Ow!

(Jeremy)>> A few scratches and nicks won't stop our beast of a machine, and we would be challenged to find a spot where we would get hung up. High center. Back up a little bit. But even the best rigs can get snagged every once in a while, and with the help of a spotter you can avoid becoming high centered on large boulders.

(Eliza)>> Our little Yota has just the right amount of power and perfect gear ratio to crawl through this minefield of rocks.

(Jeremy)>> Okay now straighten out. You're gonna hit a really big rock on the driver's side. So you're gonna have to crawl up and over. So whenever you're ready go for it. Alright are you locked in the front? Okay so you're gonna go over a really big rock on the passenger side now. So it's gonna tip you that way. As soon as you get up all the way stop because I'm gonna have to have you turn to the driver's side to get past this rock.

(Eliza)>> Got ya.

(Jeremy)>> Give her the berries! Skinny pedal!

Yes, perfect! Just like that, absolutely perfect. Don't do anything different, just come on. You can really see our suspension flex as both our front end and rear maneuver over these large boulders. Alright big rock on the passenger rear now.

Too easy, too easy Eliza! That's just way too easy. Trail 38 is packed full of rocks and boulders, and as we crawl our way up some more challenging obstacles you can really appreciate the trail system at Adventure Offroad Park. Alright this is where it's gonna get tricky.

(Eliza)>> I like tricky.

(Jeremy)>> Now it's gonna kinda do this wonky thing. So we'll get it. Turn driver, more, more, stop. Now is when you're gonna start to do the rock step thing. So you're gonna start hopping up here.

(Eliza)>> Okay.

(Jeremy)>> Alright now your passenger's gonna crawl up. Perfect, perfect! Now then your driver's back's gonna do the same thing. Driver, driver, driver. Perfect! Now this is gonna crawl up your passenger's side.

That's all four of them spinning. Back up just a bit, stop, now bump. Give it a good bump.

(Eliza)>> Alright here we go.

(Jeremy)>> Yeah!

You got it. That was simple. Alright Eliza. That thing's doing great, actually great. Well what do you think? The truck did pretty darn good and I don't know. What do you think? We should probably go back.

(Eliza)>> I think Eric the producer is gonna be pretty upset. So let's keep wheeling.

(Jeremy)>> Let's keep wheeling. Yep I'm down with that, let's go!

(Eliza)>> Hop on in.

Woo!

(Jeremy)>> We don't need it. We're good!

(Eliza)>> Yep, we're good.