Budget Overland Build

I thought id finally make a thread on my 02 tundra limited 4wd rig, i've had the truck for about two years and finally started to make some real head way. The idea behind the rig was to make an affordable overlanding build that a full time college student could afford like myself.
so far what I've done:
New drilled and slotted front rotors
ceramic from brake pads
new rear drum breaks
new Old man emu 2.5" lift
Icon AAL
SPC light racing UCA's
New OEM lower ball joints
New OEM outer tie rods
New Falken Wildpeak AT3W 285/70R17
New steering rack bushings

the new suspension was installed about two weeks ago so here are some pictures this was the initial setup


the rear end before refresh

took out the overload spring added icon 3 leaf AAL(not pictured) removed old 1" block lift and old bilsteins added ome shocks along with some paint to clean things up
what it looked like on the ground after

since i forgot to take measurements on the rear end both sides on the front end before were 24" from the center of the hub to the fender

the old versus new strut

the old spacer lift which the previous owner said was a 3" lift

look at the difference in the angel from before and after of the UCA huge difference imo

two weeks later this is what the settled ride height looks like both sides of the front end measure 23 1/4 inches from center of hub to fender well i did have to remove front mud flaps and hammer down the pinch weld to clear the tires. I went with this kit after doing some research and finding out it was a good all around lift with great reliability i was timid about installing this kit because it is not originally designed for this truck however after some research and talking to @Northboundtundra i decided to go with it next up i plan on build a sleeping platform in the bed and sealing the shell

 

Great write-up with pics, well done. Is it just the shadows in the pics fooling the eye, or do you have a little "bro lean" going on there? Is that what you were going for?

Keep up the great work on your build.

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Looks good. I wouldn't hesitate to buy old man emu products.

Have you measured the back yet? Almost looks like your front it a little higher than the rear. I had the same issue after lifting the front.

 

Awesome write up, pics and work bro. She’s sitting real nice, what’s the spec on your spacers? I’m planning on tackling UCAs, and U&L ball joints within the next month or two on mine. Any extra tidbits for a first-time job?

 

yes it appears the front is slightly higher the passenger rear 22 3/4" while the driver is at 22 however i did top off the tank today so im not sure if that affects the drivers side lean more. however it does look relatively level in person and i am about to order a set of hot metal fabs rock sliders which might help soften the ride more and bring the ride height down. i will try and upload more pictures when i go offroading hopefully soon or when this whole pandemic blows over. overall the ride quality has really impressed me im still getting used to the new ride so its a little jerky with how much more responsive it is now.

 

At this point there is no longer anymore spaces on the truck it is a full suspension lift. i did lose about 3/4 of an inch in lift in the front from pulling out a 2" spacer which was supposedly a 3" spacer lift. it was relatively an easy install for me however i did completely remove the spindles because i replaced everything that attached to it which made it easier to press in the adapter on the UBJ. it made it way easier to press out the old worn out UBJ I used multiple kits from o'reilly's and even had to use a socket to press it out which was probably the most complicated part. I would highly recomend watching multiple youtube videos on the topic that helped a ton.

 

The spacer lift isn't measured at the spacer itself. It's inboard on the suspension, the further out towards the hub you get the wider the angle gets. A 2" spacer inboard can provide 3" of lift at the hub. Love your truck with the camper shell. The rear definitely looks lower than the front. I'm looking for a rear leaf replacement and possibly 1" of lift. But mine are so worn out, a replacement alone may provide 1" of lift from its current saggy position.

 

Glad to hear you are happy with the Ome kit. I just put in a bilstein, and want to replace.

 

First trip out the rig did great really happy with the ride quality need to tighten my steering shaft where it connects to my wheel felt a little slop in it hopefully just need to tighten the nut.

 

Just curious, did you haul a heavy load or were you pretty light? Maybe 2hundred pounds or more?

 

Always like seeing 1st gen builds. Keep it up!

 

there wasnt any load in the bed it just sits a little lower

 

i forgot to post a picture of some of the clearance issues being worked out i chopped a good section out of the bumper and valance so it no longer rugs when the wheels articulate while i am turning plan on getting a new bumper eventually so it doesn't have to be perfect but i think it came out pretty good!

 

Man that’s a clean truck. Nice work OP!

 

Looks like it came out great! I think mine might sit slightly lower in the back too, but it seems to handle being loaded up well with all the camping gear and RTT. If you decide to put that bumper on it would probably level it out perfectly, but I think it looks good the way it is.

 

update so i've removed the camper shell for summer and looks like i need to sell as it has spider cracks across the roof looking into a rtt eventually, finally got some body armor added recently ordered the weld it yourself rock slider kit from hot metal fab came out really good imo and am planning another offroad trip soon.

 

So what ome kit did you get exactly. I am on the fence with 6112 billies or ome. I think the one will suit me better as I do spend 6 months of the year in Mexico. Where I'm at even on pavement it's pretty much offroad lol.

I have an 05 AC so we should have about the exact set up for the most part.

 

so it is the old man emu kit off of toytecs website for the first gen tundras under complete lift kits the only thing I did was swap out the AAL for icons AAL, this I believe is designed for Tacoma’s but the dimensions are all the same as our tundras Toytec just uses a top plate for the strut that fits our truck. Over all very impressed with the kit and I’ve heard people aren’t always with bilsteins but I don’t have any experience with them myself.

 

so i finally pulled the trigger on a smittybilt gen 2 xl roof top tent but it is currently on back order so I decided to fix some cosmetic issues such as the clear pealing on the oem hood, the inside had rust so i decided to just replace it with a Mcneil racing fiberglass hood
here is the before here is the new hood and grille mountedhere is the new hood painted on the truck super stoked on how this came out found a decent deal on the paint and i did the fab work of fitting the hood and hood pins let me know what you guys think of the finished product!

 

It certainly gives the truck a mean, aggressive look, I like it. Do you have any type of aftermarket exhaust on it? Some exhaust "bark" would compliment the looks, I think.

 

I agree I feel like that would make it sound how it looks! yea I added a Chinese knock off of a flowmaster 40 muffler and removed the resonator and it sounds exactly how i wanted it, its aggressive but not overkill.

 

I like the look, as well. Paint shop seems to have performed a nice job. Your fitment job looks tight. Are you concerned about water being introduced into and just above the starter area? Even being located in SoCal?

 

for the main part i wasn't too concerned im pretty sure the intake is in between the fender and wheel well but i could potentially block it off during the winter, but there is very little rain here.

 

So that middle intake is faux? The side intakes are open?

 

the side ones are not cut out the center is mesh and is open

 

so i started the big break upgrade today but ran out of light when it was time to bleed them. I also am getting the rack for my RTT within the next week i went with KBvoodoo's 10" rack and i've had the Roam vagabond waiting for it for a while. I got remanufactured calipers from NAPA and ceramic pads from autozone going to adjust the rear breaks as well as i've heard they are funky sometimes and my breaking has been lacking. looking into bumpers as well.