Sterling_vH111 - Long travel / Supercharged / Tacoma Build Thread

[Sterling_vH111]

2012 Toyota Tacoma Double Cab Long Bed Prerunner TRD Sport v6 Auto

How it currently looks (January 2023) :




Mileage as of (July 2023): 115,xxx
MPG’s with current upgrades: 10-11MPG Towing • 14-15mpg City • 17-18mpg Highway
Supercharger: 13-14mpg City • 15-16mph Highway
Off-road: 10ish at WOT.

I got the truck in October 2015. Needless to say I was beyond excited to have my first truck, until I joined TacomaWorld a day later, and realized I wanted to sink about $15k+ in mods worth into it. (here were are 8 years later, over 2x the $ in, and still not close to done.

MODS that make mine and do things I want it to do!

Exterior:

• 35% tint all five windows and 85% on windshield.
• Debadged / No TRD beside stickers
• OEM Bedmat
• OEM Bedstep
• Redline Tuning Hoodstruts
• DTF FAB Type “C” skid/bumper utilizing OEM bumper
• AVD Fiberglass Front Fenders
• Custom Fiberglass Bumper Caps
• Tube front core support
• ADV Fiberglass Bedsides
• TygerAuto Soft Toneu Cover

Suspension:

• Fox 2.0 Performance series coilovers set at ~1.5" lift (REMOVED)
• Camburg Racing 3.5"+ Long Travel Kit with heimed joint upgrade
• Camburg LT Bypass hoop
• Total Chaos upper control arm double shear
• Fox 2.5" Factory Series Coilovers 8" stroke with RR and DSC - LT spec
• Fox 2.5" Factory Series 3-tune Bypass 8" stroke with RR
• Fox rear 2.0 performance series smoothies (REMOVED)
• 2018 Ford Raptor Fox 3.0 Internal Bypass 12" shocks
• Wheelers 2" AAL on oem tsb springs (REMOVED)
• Deaver j66 pack (custom modified by Deaver)
• Maxtrac 4" spindle lift
• Wheelers front superbumps (REMOVED)
• Rear Locked Offroad 2x2” Pin Bumps
  • Wishlist: 2.0 bumps for the front
  • Wishlist: Linked and Caged

Wheels/Tires:

• (5) 17" Pro Comp La Paz 29 black no hubcaps
• BFG All-Terrain Ko2 in LT285/70R17 (WORN THROUGH, 55k miles)
• (5) WestLake SL369 315/70R17 (cheapest 35’s I could find, thru Amazon !)
• (1) old 285 BFG in the OEM spare location as weight & an emergency spare
• Kartek T-handle spare tire mount

Engine/Performance:

• Volant CAI with dry filter & filter splash cover
• Borla Cat back exhaust (Chopped just before the axle )
• 2012+ air injector pump filter Mod
• Tacomaworld @mightytacoman Cam Gears installed by Tacomaworld @greenEFSI
• TRD Supercharger (bought used in 2022 @107k miles)
• URD 2.85” stealth s/c pulley
• CSF FJ radiator w/ shroud
• 160° Mishimoto thermostat
• NGK LFER7BHX Ruthenium Spark Plugs
• Chiayi Racing Red Bullet VVT-I solenoids
  • Wish list: Full OTT Tune for the mods. Guesstimated HP is around 300 to the wheels with OEM tires. This is hopful though

Interior:

• Painted Center A/C vent dash piece black
• Midland 10001z CB with Pa (REMOVED)
• OEM all weather mats
• Coverking Ballistic Canvas seat covers in black
• Clazzio #1 Heated Seat kit
• Bedlinered kick panels, and front & rear plastic door sill step cover things
• Thinkware Q800Pro Dashcam
• SPOD Mini 6 Control System (for off-road lights)
• Cravenspeed flex pod gauge mount
• SpeedHut boost/vac Gauge
• SpeedHut AFR Gauge (wideband mounted after OEM Y-Pipe)
• Baofeng 8w Handheld UHF/VHF with corded mic
• Roof-mount Magnetic 3' whip for the Baofeng
• Full sound system upgrade (see below)

Sound:

• Doors and rear Firewall dyno matted
• Pioneer AV-H4500BT Head Unit
• Audio Control "The Epicenter"
• Focal 6.5" midrange component speakers front and rear
• Memphis Mids and Highs amp 200 watt
• Memphis subwoofer amp 500 watt
• Dual Memphis MC 10" subwoofers
• Custom Sealed enclosure behind rear bench seat
• Focal Access Tweeters (front and rear doors)

Lighting / Electrical:

• 30" Amazon bar behind the grill (REMOVED)
• Dual 3" Amazon pods on the rear bed rail (Removed)
• OTRATW Contura V switches (REMOVED)
• Dual inline 6" Led reverse lights on rear bumper
• Full interior and exterior Led replacements
• 5000K HID bulbs in headlights and fogs (REMOVED)
• Philips +130% halogen bulbs
• Black Headlight Mod (REMOVED)
• Amazon Chrome / Clear Reflector Headlights
• Spyder Auto Chrome LED Tail Lights
• Cooper Bussman fuse / relay box using 3 out of 5 channels (REMOVED)
• 2012+ Fog light anytime mod
• Diode Dynamic SS3 MAX LED SAE fog lights
• Diode Dynamic 30” White Combo Bar (behind grille)
• Diode Dynamic 30” Amber Spot Bar (behind grille)
• SPOD Mini6 mosfet electrical Control System
• SDHQ Behind Grille LED Mount

Recovery:

• 3.5" x 30' Recovery strap 35,000 lbs
• Hitch shackle
• Soft shackle
• Mini Shovel/blade/serrated blade mounted with quick fists in bed
• Philips and flat blade screwdrivers
• Blunt and needle nose pliers
• Full socket/ box end wrench kit covering all Suspension hardware sizes.
• 2 road flares
• 2 5lb Fire extinguishers in the bed
• Traction boards
• SmittyBilt 5.65 CFM Air Compressor with DIY dual-tire air hose
• 1.5t HF Racing Jack with DMZ Skids and mounts (FOR SALE!)
• ProEagle Jackpad (FORSALE!)
• HF Badlands 3 ton oFfRoAd jACk
• Grover Fab Badlands Jack mount (soon)

Some of the recent bad lines:


Read on to find out more!

 

[theycallmeWALLY]

So from the pictures I gather that.... Fast motor, big send, Broke a wheel/tire, and back living to living in your mansion haha.

Truck looks good. Will you be out at KOH?

 

[Sterling_vH111]

SHeesh, life got busy for a few months here. I will try and get back to building this thread.

 

[dwphoto]

welcome back

 

[Dirt Yota]

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Stage one of the build: Stock > "finished"

• FOX 2.0 Performance suspension
• BFG Ko2 285's
• Pro Comp 17"

Well, the tires rubbed so I decided on a 4" lift spindle from Amazon and a 2" Wheelers Add-a-leaf. Dropped the coil over pre-load down to 0".



This was the cleanest and best bang for buck the truck ever was. More fun dumb hooniganing with friends and not a single day spent in the shop or with broken parts for about 3 years.

#end/thread

 

[Exploder_M]

Ya, thats what everyone says, leave it simple and reliable, but we all want moar

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Juuust kidding, we know that's not what this forum is for!

Next starts the bad lines, but mostly good times.

Wheeling Trips / Places

1. Countless "Holy Jim" Romps Trabuco Canyon, CA / 2015-2018
2. Saddleback Santiago Peak / July 2016
3. Lake Havasu, AZ / August 2016
4. Brian Deegan's Backyard / July 2017
5. Lake Havasu, AZ / July 2017
6. Ocotillo Wells SVRA / June 2018
7. Saddleback Santiago Peak / July 2018
8. Pismo Oceano Dunes / September 2018
9. Pismo Oceano Dunes / October 2018
10. Pismo Oceano Dunes / November 2018
11. Cuesta Grade / December 2018
12. Flagstaff AZ / January 2019
13. Big Falls SLO / February 2019
14. Pismo Oceano Dunes / May 2019
15. Pismo Oceano Dunes Camping Trip / October 2019
16. Johnson Valley OHV / February 2020
17. Maple springs Santiago Peak / March 2020
18. Ocotillo Wells OHV / October Halloween 2020
19. TW Superstition Trip / January 2021
20. Sheep Creek and Lytle Creek Night Run / February 2021
21. Ocotillo Wells OHV / October Halloween 2021
22. Barstow OHV / Clean Dezert November 2021
23. Big Bear Trails / January 2022
24. Barstow OHV / January 2022
25. Ocotillo Wells OHV / October 2022
26. Barstow OHV / December 2022
27. Johnson Valley KOH / February 2023
28. Barstow OHV / March 2023
29. Barstow OHV / June 2023

 

[Motiracer38]

Dang, I wish I had kept a log like that. I can't barely remember the last trip.

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Dang, I wish I had kept a log like that. I can't barely remember the last trip.

these ARE the ones I can remember haha

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Stage 2: "Finished" > Bolt on LT = Trophy truck

Spring 2018. The OEM control arm bushings were wasted. I worked at a Toyota dealership and the parts guys said they could get me a discount on some cool aftermarket stuff from a shop called Camburg in Huntington Beach.

Picked up their standard 3.5" LT kit for the Tacomas and paired them with the FOX coilovers. Scott who worked there at the time suggested the heimed UCA's and FOXs. Buy once cry once right? Plus, after this, I'd be done. It was complete. Built.



By this time I'd painted the headlight internal bezels black and the one offroad buddy I had said that I HAD to get a roof light bar.
Thought it looked kinda weird with the OEM bumper so I ordered one of the favorite things about this truck to this day.
Anthony at DTF Fab provided his "Type C" bumper. A good compromise between protection, looks, and keeping the truck looking respectable.



I'd not a clue that I'd practically blow the fenders off the first time I went offroad driving with it.

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Got some ADV 4" front glass, painted the core support with satin black spray paint, as well as Raptor Liner'd the undersides of the fenders for hopefully some protection.





Also threw on some Amazon tail lights because the OEM rear was cracked, and I have a thing for clear(ish) tails.



And then made a big change, moved up to SLO and got a room in a barn house... Lived on a ranch on the west end of town... perfectly 15 minutes away from Pismo Dunes!
More pictures of Oceano driving (crashing?) to come.

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Late 2018 saw a bunch of small trips to Pismo dunes!
Big adjustment to learning to drive in real dune sand.

Found the happy spots at

• 8-10psi in the rear
• 10-12psi in the front
• Keeping it in 1st, 2nd, and a little of 3rd gear.
• Stop AT THE TOP of dunes and point down hill
• Keep my momentum up !
• The auto ECU controlled "LSD" did alright for what it is

Also met a few guys from the MobArmor crew, they showed me the ropes.




(hint, this is the first bad line)

Was cruising around the dune, trying to find a cool berm to blast... BAM there was a witch-eye and I dove right into it. Fortunately, only going about 20mph.

Not sure if I got those links in there correct. Let me know if yall can't view.

 

[DTF_TACOMA]

Nice bumper

Didn't know you were on the central coast now.

Hit me up if you need any work on the truck

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Nice bumper

Didn't know you were on the central coast now.

Hit me up if you need any work on the truck

It was actually a short stint... about a year... But I miss the area tons!
Your bumper saved my truck for sure in the dunes! 100%
I am back down in SoCal currently after graduating school and starting with a company in Murietta.

 

[DTF_TACOMA]

It was actually a short stint... about a year... But I miss the area tons!
Your bumper saved my truck for sure in the dunes! 100%
I am back down in SoCal currently after graduating school and starting with a company in Murietta.

Glad it helped!!!

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Had a cool dude named Nick Valentine (NV Fab) build me some tube inner fenders, along with straightening the core support as best he could. Remounted all components in Oem location.

Pleased with the work, price, and responsiveness of his shop, would 100% recommend him to anyone in SLO county.

Damaged pictures from Pismo 10/9/18:

Rebuilt photos:
With Oem stuff, the UCA’s were slamming into the sheet metal inner fenders, now there is PLENTY of room for those and larger tires...

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Cruised up Cuesta grade / TV tower road today, some killer views and a sunset provided for some cool pictures.
This is how she will look for some time.

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Aaaaaand some more Pismo dune shots in early 2019.

Also a video !

 

[Sterling_vH111]

Grabbed some ADV bedsides on the Black Friday sale and threw those on.
I found the bedsides to be easier than the fronts by far on these trucks.



In the picture above, you can see where I have my Smittybuilt 5cfm compressor mounted on to an expedition portal mount where the factory larger bed pocket goes.
Easy install, and has also worked flawlessly for a number of years now. Its got some rust on it from being exposed to some tire and road grime, but still works to fill the 35" tires I currently have.



I also grabbed a Harbor Freight 1.5T jack along with DMZ Fab skid plate and mounts.
Prior to this I had no way to get a wheel off the ground out in the dirt.
I used this setup until this summer actually, about three years and a few different scenarios.




I swapped a Pro-eagle jack pad onto the jack and got the taller extension. It went up to about 27" on hard ground, which was good for most cases.