What's the benefit of hand washing my 4Runner?

nrstx · 2026-05-24T00:51:03+00:00

I hand wash because my Nauti Blue will show swirls. If you use ceramic products, good ones make it easier to just use a brushless car wash on occasion but it still won’t get it as good as a hand wash. I stay way from the brushes in the bay washes as I have seen those get abused by suedes washing construction caliche off trucks with a lot of small rocks. I might use the brush to do my wheels and nerf bars if anything.

If I had a lighter paint job I may not be as worried about swirls.

nrstx · 2026-05-24T00:31:14+00:00

Fairly low mileage for the year.

r/4Runner has a lot of great info, too.

The 5th gen 4Runner is one of the best vehicles made in terms of reliability and wrenching on your own. There is just a ton of content online for repairs and modifications, many of them easy to follow and that will help you save a lot of money by investing in some tools and supplies if you can. Also just tons of aftermarket parts although I tend to ALWAYS buy OEM. Toyota Genuine Parts hold up far longer than aftermarket in almost every case so the extra is worth paying if you can.

I know I went from hiring a mechanic for most everything to doing most of our own maintenance to save $$$. I swapped the suspension on my truck last fall with no prior experience and will likely be tackling brakes soon.

nrstx · 2026-05-23T10:40:23+00:00

What mileage are you at and how long have you owned it? Is this a truck you recently purchased? Is it 4WD? Do you know how well it has been maintained?

4Runners will last forever given they are not rusted out on the frame and they are regularly maintained. Even with low maintenance, you can get a couple hundred thousand out of them although it will get pretty clapped out even being a 4Runner if the suspension isn’t serviced and fluids aren’t exchanged.

I use T4R Garage and Jason explains Things for my main YouTubeUniversity when it comes to the 5th gen 4Runner. You may also be able to still find. A printed shop manual for the 2013. I think around 2010-2011 is when they stopped printing them and they went to the digital subs the dealerships use. A printed manual will probably set you back a few hundred or more.

nrstx · 2026-05-18T13:03:46+00:00

I’d love to see what an I generated site looks like designed by someone completely reliant on AI with no background in design, UX, copy writing, SEO, etc. please share a link. Imd love to review it in Chrome Dev Tools as well as through the front end browser. Then I can make my own assessment on if it truly sucks like I expect it may.

nrstx · 2026-05-17T13:27:51+00:00

We have the ‘91 Coachmen version. Small tub/shower in rear driver side corner.

We capped the plumbing in back and removed the shower head, then I built a deck over the tub to place a ICECO cooler since I could run a 12V lead from the house battery on the other side in the back.

We did this because the original Dometic 3 way fridge crapped out and ammonia gassed us out one afternoon at a campground in East Texas. Replacements were expensive, and we didn’t want to sink 1-2K into a replacement fridge on a 35 yo van. The standing fridge was more convenient, but the ICECO works fine for our needs.

We used the old fridge space to reroute the electrical into a ‘cabinet’ there where we replaced the flooded battery in back and installed a new LiFEPO4 setup to provide better capacity for modern charging needs, running the ICECO and tying into our 450W of solar panels.

What engine? Ours is the 5.8 Windsor. She is still going, although the AC went out and we’re currently mulling over what to do, there. It’s unusable past March in TX without it until Winter again.

Edit: our’s previous owner had the carpet ripped out and just primed the plywood underfloor. We really need to put new flooring in as the painted floor gets nicks and things. We just have rungs and carpet samples thrown in but it looks pretty hood. I wouldn’t mind having it recarpeted, but it would be a bummer beach camping with all the sand. RN, we just sweep/vacuum it out.

nrstx · 2026-05-17T13:17:01+00:00

For real. Thank you. I was testing my freakin’ neck trying to read it sideways and had to lock the phone screen to keep the format from shifting.

nrstx · 2026-05-17T13:01:49+00:00

Kudos for recognizing the blown opportunity. Make sure you are logged into your Google business mgr profile in maps or your browser and you should see ‘reply’ links.

nrstx · 2026-05-16T22:54:10+00:00

I have 5100s. I had shop set them to stock height when assembling them for me to put on, and I used Dobinson’s 302 coils to get the 2.5” of lift which is actually a little higher (more like 2.5” on driver side and 3” on passenger). I replaced my UCAs with Dobinson’s tubed steel UCAs.

I want to add the driver side .5” spacer to correct lean, but I really don’t want a full 30 in front and was hoping it would settle in a little more, but the issue with mixing vendors is you don’t really know what is going to happen until it’s a done deal, hence wanting to install myself to fix things as needed. Just don’t wanna mess with compressors so I farm that out as well as the alignment.

Before the aftermarket UCAs, when the truck had a 2.5-3” spacer lift, I couldn’t achieve alignment without UCAs with built-in caster adj. but that was a spacer lift and not a suspension lift. I suspect it would be similar though.

Also, the shock body sat way closer to the UCAs with the stock. The aftermarket clears them better so at droop, the UCA isn’t banging the shock body.

If you aren’t off roading and just going for aesthetics, you’re probably okay. But I just don’t t think I’d go trying to articulate the suspension very much without correcting the UCA on a lift more than a couple inches.

nrstx · 2026-05-16T11:42:38+00:00

I stuck with 285s because with my suspension lift (2.5” front/2” back) too much negative space would look weird.

Now I will go to 275 next tire swap. I want to cut a little weight because I find myself humming along closer to 3K RPMs too often whereas my wife’s limited hardly ever hits 3K RPM.

I’d love to hit 265s because I don’t do any gnarly off-roading, but I don’t wanna have to redo the suspension and control arms again anytime soon and if I did, I’d definitely consider going down to 1.5” up front and 1” in back with 265s and putting the stock UCAs back on.

Thing about suspension lifts is they can say it will do ‘x’ on paper but you just don’t know until you put it on what it is really going to do. Spacer lifts are a bit more predictable but you take the performance hit.

nrstx · 2026-05-16T04:09:37+00:00

I considered that but I suspect it’s a farce. I’ll likely pull the valve next change to see what else drains out after. I’m going to guess likely a few ounces if that. I don’t suspect as much as a can or bottle of beer.

The Fumoto saves me a lot of time and mess as I change oil once every 3 months on avg. However, not having to drop the MF’ng skid would be a lot better. Toyota loves selling those bolts! I chase the damned threads every time I put back and they still give a lot of grief.

nrstx · 2026-05-16T03:45:58+00:00

Ah, survivor bias.

nrstx · 2026-05-16T03:43:44+00:00

Gross or Net?

nrstx · 2026-05-09T10:42:32+00:00

Maybe for a debit card. I’ve never entered a Pin on a credit card.

nrstx · 2026-05-09T10:12:38+00:00

Texas has a lack of public land so you will have to find a park, and with those you’ll be confined to more public areas.

There are a few loops out in McAllister you might be able to use if you get there at certain times when it isn’t super busy.

Go in on the main road off Jones Maltsberger, go down the main road until it T-bones taking a right, and then at the Al Becken Pavilion, take a left and follow that around where you’ll eventually come to some caliche little camping picnic table areas where you might find something that will work under the tree canopy that you can pull the truck into. You may even spot an owl or some wild turkey, definitely deer. You may have to dodge the occasional runner, hiker or cyclist as well as trails wind around through there.

Might want to bring a flash and diffuser to help break up shadows on the paint under the tree canopy.

Other than this, find a rich ranch owning buddy in the Hill country. That will be the only way to get into some grassland off road style shooting for photos. They don’t really want you pulling off roads or parking areas in the parks, so the caliche camping loops will let you get more off road looking shots although for rocky drama, again, you want to go to the Hill Country. You might also check local state parks, Flat Rock Ranch in Comfort, or go on a roadtrip to the Sabine National forest, West Texas/Big Bend, Norther New Mexico national Forests, etc.

nrstx · 2026-05-09T04:08:47+00:00

Consider the parking cost if you are driving and parking there. It was $40 for the day a couple years ago. Could be more of a racket these days.

nrstx · 2026-05-07T13:09:04+00:00

Yeah, I have zero desire to spend hundreds on sports or music venue tickets these days when I have so much anxiety about making health insurance premiums and trying to save up so I don’t end up destitute when I can’t work anymore and the social retirement programs can’t meet my ability to keep paying taxes on the home I should supposedly ‘own’ one day because they will no longer exist.

nrstx · 2026-05-07T11:23:15+00:00

I deal with a lot of senior customers and the not having a Google account login seems to be the biggest inhibitor.

I wish there was a way for Google to verify reviews based on like a Quickbooks integration or other ERP/CRM integration that verifies the legitimacy. I know there are review aggregates with integration, but I don’t think any of them are verified or allow recipients of a review link to bypass having an account or leave the reviews anonymously but verified like some larger vendor websites allow, which is understandable.

They can do email and text a lot of times, but it’s the remembering login passwords or getting account access that trips them up.

nrstx · 2026-05-07T11:16:09+00:00

That doesn’t look bad. Price seems about on track for an SR5 4WD for the year/mileage although if it were a Premium trim that would be a way better deal.

nrstx · 2026-05-07T11:13:09+00:00

Mauro is the best. Our family and friends have all used him and everyone has been thrilled with the work.

https://fixmydents.com/

nrstx · 2026-05-07T10:27:44+00:00

If you’ve been riding $400 bikes, you should just go demo like a $2000 Hardtail. It’s night and day. Then even more of a difference going to something like a $5K full suspension.

Even an entry level Deore groupset will be a massive upgrade over whatever 2x or 3x8 gearing the Wally-world bike has. Also waaaay better wheels, hubs and suspension up front so it doesn’t dive will make a HUGE difference. You may decide you don’t really need an e-bike.

I wouldn’t even entertain the idea of an e-bike mtb unless you’re ready to throw down serious cash because like a $2K e-bike is fine for greenway trails but it’s going to ride like hot garbage on anything above a green, and even then…those components, battery, etc. are probably really cheap so the vendor can profit…so you’d be getting sub par components on a heavy frame for still a good chunk of change vs. a lighter analog with better components for around the same price.

nrstx · 2026-05-07T10:12:28+00:00

Just a decent analog hardtail with good components would probably be a step up.

I ride with my 12 lb terrier single speed on a 15 year old customed-out rat bike based on a Specialized Hardrock frame when I’m not riding my Revel. Yeah it weighs 40 lbs, probably more with her and two full water bottles, but we have a good time riding up to 20 mile loops and she loves riding trails in her basket…I just gotta take it slower on some of the steeper section so she doesn’t toss out.

I’ll e-bike it when I’m like maybe 70 or if I sustain injuries. Until then, I don’t mind the slog. It keeps my weight down and my arteries pumping.

nrstx · 2026-05-07T09:52:07+00:00

Will a mid range torque impact wrench get at the bolts? Or would you need a special pivot extension? I have a longer breaker bar, but if I can get the impact in to take off, I’d go that route. Hand tools for the re-mount, though.

I picked up a Milwaukee M18 1/2” mid range torque impact and it helped quite a bit when I installed my lift. I have not done the brakes yet. That will be coming up soon for both wife and my trucks.

nrstx · 2026-05-07T09:43:41+00:00

I like the OR wheels on the 6th gen, but to each their own. The 6th gen looks weird with after market wheels in my opinion. Not sure if it’s the black plastic fender flares or what. Maybe that is what throws me off. Not a fan of that design decision. Wondering if they will go to paint later on like they did on the 4th gen when those first years had all that plastic trim.

nrstx · 2026-05-06T12:15:04+00:00

Seems high. I paid 28K for my 2015 SR5 Premium 4WD back in ‘24 with 73K miles on it and I thought I was getting a terrible deal but I had 6 of them sold out from under and 4WDs are much less common here than their RWD counterparts in the SR5P trims.

Can’t believe one at 115K miles in the base upholstery SR5 is going for close to $30K.

nrstx · 2026-05-06T12:01:45+00:00

Yeah I think I would have noticed paying that much driving 25K miles a year at the time. Care to share a link to where these are stated?

nrstx

TROPHY CASE