Post by Sponge Bob Square Fenders on Jan 18, 2005 15:38:43 GMT -5
(if you are still with me...read on!)
Before basically being retired from the "Bear Racing" stables in 1990, the '86 4Runner filled my den with trophies. I'll have to sit down and seriously figure out just how many races, but I know that I never lost a class race at any Pismo event I attended, and in some cases I moved up classes and collected more. From 1987 until 1990 didn't ever lose at Amarillo, and the 1990 race was done in 2WD (damn auto hubs failed on me right as I left the pavement after getting up there - this just after having the wheel bearings repacked at the dealer!)
But it was time to add to my stable with a "beater" Toy to do the mud and obstacle course runs. I started by finding a decent 1980 SR5 LB in Texas, and basically ran it bone stock while learning the ropes. I found that it REALLY lacked power (thanks to the 3.90 gears for that year), but it was a thrasher. It became junk one day on the way back from Arlington. I would flat-tow it behind the 4Runner, and pack the cab with camping stuff. No, I never disconnected the drive shafts
. At some point in the trip, something fell onto the 4WD shift lever, and popped it into 4-Hi. Next thing I knew the 4Runner started shuddering, and I looked into the rear view mirror only to see the P/U "pogo stick" in the air and slam back down. I pulled off to see what the hell had just happened, and found an oil slick draining out of the transfer case, the front drive shaft a mass of molten about 100 yards back down the highway smoking and melting into the pavement, and the floorboard of the truck beat to hell. Typical Toyota...the front driveshaft had separated at the slip yoke and propellered under the floorboard until it caught the ground and broke off - still attached at the u-joint, but took half the transfer case gears with it!
The '80 was sold for cheap to a guy who had a spare transfer case, while I went shopping again. It didn't take long to find another older 4WD Toy to play with. This one was a 1983 SR5 SB with the factory two-toned paint (white over blue), which matched my QuadSport perfectly! (who says women are the only ones who care about color coordination?). I put the ARE Outlaw IIs from the 4Runner over on the pickup, and bought new ARE Outlaw Is, which looked much better with the solid center, but basically left the pickup alone. I raced the '83 a few times, but didn't really have time to get serious with it before Desert Storm sent me away from home for quite a while, and then it was time to do the "military shuffle" again - this time back to Spain.
The 4Runner was packed up yet again, driven to California, then covered and stored at Gary's place. I flew back to Texas and drove the '83 to New Orleans (again) to put it on the ship while my wife and (now) two kids visited with family in California until I could get a place in Spain. The wait for the truck to arrive was miserable! We had the generic European family car - a Renault or something like that - but I WANTED MY TRUCK! It finally arrived 4 months later, and all was well with the world again.
This began my "dead zone" of sorts of four wheeling. Very little activity, and way too much work and family responsibilties. Spain wasn't the same as 5 years before, as the beach areas we used to run were being built up with hotels, and there weren't many off roaders on the base this time. The one high point in four wheeling during this tour was the "procession" to El Rocio - a religious pilgrimage that really turned into one big 4WD adventure and party! Amazingly soft sand, pulling out tons of stuck Land Rovers, and all night singing and drinking. These guys had been doing this procession for many, many years, yet were amazed at what lowering air pressure in their tires would do for their ability to get around! Sheesh!
Towards the end of my time in Spain, I got rid of the '83, although I can't remember why. I seem to believe it was a mechanical thing that was getting worse. Over there, you either had to maintain them yourself, or put your trust in some Citroen or Renault mechanic that doesn't know squat about your truck. If I remember correctly, my mechanic messed up a clutch installation or something, and the truck never was the same. I remember selling it to another sailor (a junior officer, of course.... sucker!), and buying a beat up '85 xtra cab. The front fender had been crunched in transit, but it was mechanically strong. I didn't four wheel much in it, but I did go to the top of the Rock of Gibraltar with it. That was a blast! I sold this truck to another sailor before I left, since I knew I had my 4Runner waiting for me.
By 1994, the war was over, as was my tour (and so was my marriage)
. Whatever....my 4Runner was always available. The wife and I parted ways when we got to California, and I went to Gary's to get the 4Runner ready for the road again. The next day, I was off to Florida for officer training, then a couple of weeks later up here to Maryland for duty. I really haven't left since......
Now when I was stationed here in the mid-70s, I hung around with a buddy who had a "J" vehicle, and we used to bust around the Columbia area all day and night. In fact, one night we almost landed on I-95 after clearing the brush! This was WAAAAAY before Columbia was finished.... I hadn't been back since, and I was really in for a rude surprise when I got here. So much development, and some four wheeling, but you really had to search for it.
I settled for the odd trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina (sand is still in my blood), and the south shore of 'Jersey, but for the most part the 4Runner had become my commuter vehicle in all kinds of weather. The most four wheeling I did was on the way back from visiting the kids in California after Christmas 1995. I chased the "Blizzard of '96" on the way across the country, and was opening closed roads until I got home and couldn't get up the steep driveway.
Wrapping up this segment of my story is a combination of a new beginning and a tragic end. 1997 was one of the best and worst years overall for me. I retired from the Navy and began a civilian career, met a knockout woman, and totalled the 4Runner 6 months later - a week before our wedding. She (the 4Runner) was basically the same as when I had uncovered her in 1994 after returning from Spain, but still very pristine. The odometer had 164K on it, and everything ran strong and reliably. Then a drunk in a van decided that he needed to turn left in front of me on the 2-lane highway near our house. I hit the van at 50+ MPH right at the sliding door support post - one the the strongest places it has - and I swear that the Smittybuilt double tube front bumper is the only thing that saved my life. It stayed perfectly in tact while crumpling everything back towards the firewall. Surprisingly, except for a slight buckling of the passenger side floor, everything from the firewall back was undamaged. That is why Black Beauty remains in the family - now in the barn hacked and chopped up, but still providing useful parts, as you will see later.
I walked down the aisle with a couple of broken ribs and a cracked sternum, known as "seatbelt trauma", and will admit I spent some of my honeymoon surfing the internet for another 4Runner. That doesn't mean my new bride couldn't keep my attention, but by now you should know that I have this Toyota 4X4 thing BAD!
I settled on a real clean '88 grey SR5 automatic, but really didn't like it soon after starting to drive it daily. This was the first auto Toy 4X4 I had ever owned, and it just didn't feel right. The wife loved it, though. Go figure.
Then I found her - a relatively nice '89 (black, again!) owned by a kid down in western North Carolina. After he sent me some photos and several talks over the phone, we settled on a price and planned a weekend trip down - all sight unseen. The truck had about 70K on it, but was in real good condition. Out here in the east, I have found that rust is a way of life with the older Toys, but this one only had a little on the lower window frame of the sliding rear windows, and little bubbles on one of the front and rear fenders. Despite all my time on the sand with Black Beauty, she never had any rust. I chalk part of that up to the tons of undercoating she came with, but also knowing how to pressure spray all of the hidden little areas most people miss. This kid kept the truck clean, but he missed some of the common spots.
It was a deal, and we drove it back to Maryland to begin my next love affair with the 1st generation 4Runner.
Before basically being retired from the "Bear Racing" stables in 1990, the '86 4Runner filled my den with trophies. I'll have to sit down and seriously figure out just how many races, but I know that I never lost a class race at any Pismo event I attended, and in some cases I moved up classes and collected more. From 1987 until 1990 didn't ever lose at Amarillo, and the 1990 race was done in 2WD (damn auto hubs failed on me right as I left the pavement after getting up there - this just after having the wheel bearings repacked at the dealer!)
But it was time to add to my stable with a "beater" Toy to do the mud and obstacle course runs. I started by finding a decent 1980 SR5 LB in Texas, and basically ran it bone stock while learning the ropes. I found that it REALLY lacked power (thanks to the 3.90 gears for that year), but it was a thrasher. It became junk one day on the way back from Arlington. I would flat-tow it behind the 4Runner, and pack the cab with camping stuff. No, I never disconnected the drive shafts
. At some point in the trip, something fell onto the 4WD shift lever, and popped it into 4-Hi. Next thing I knew the 4Runner started shuddering, and I looked into the rear view mirror only to see the P/U "pogo stick" in the air and slam back down. I pulled off to see what the hell had just happened, and found an oil slick draining out of the transfer case, the front drive shaft a mass of molten about 100 yards back down the highway smoking and melting into the pavement, and the floorboard of the truck beat to hell. Typical Toyota...the front driveshaft had separated at the slip yoke and propellered under the floorboard until it caught the ground and broke off - still attached at the u-joint, but took half the transfer case gears with it!The '80 was sold for cheap to a guy who had a spare transfer case, while I went shopping again. It didn't take long to find another older 4WD Toy to play with. This one was a 1983 SR5 SB with the factory two-toned paint (white over blue), which matched my QuadSport perfectly! (who says women are the only ones who care about color coordination?). I put the ARE Outlaw IIs from the 4Runner over on the pickup, and bought new ARE Outlaw Is, which looked much better with the solid center, but basically left the pickup alone. I raced the '83 a few times, but didn't really have time to get serious with it before Desert Storm sent me away from home for quite a while, and then it was time to do the "military shuffle" again - this time back to Spain.
The 4Runner was packed up yet again, driven to California, then covered and stored at Gary's place. I flew back to Texas and drove the '83 to New Orleans (again) to put it on the ship while my wife and (now) two kids visited with family in California until I could get a place in Spain. The wait for the truck to arrive was miserable! We had the generic European family car - a Renault or something like that - but I WANTED MY TRUCK! It finally arrived 4 months later, and all was well with the world again.
This began my "dead zone" of sorts of four wheeling. Very little activity, and way too much work and family responsibilties. Spain wasn't the same as 5 years before, as the beach areas we used to run were being built up with hotels, and there weren't many off roaders on the base this time. The one high point in four wheeling during this tour was the "procession" to El Rocio - a religious pilgrimage that really turned into one big 4WD adventure and party! Amazingly soft sand, pulling out tons of stuck Land Rovers, and all night singing and drinking. These guys had been doing this procession for many, many years, yet were amazed at what lowering air pressure in their tires would do for their ability to get around! Sheesh!
Towards the end of my time in Spain, I got rid of the '83, although I can't remember why. I seem to believe it was a mechanical thing that was getting worse. Over there, you either had to maintain them yourself, or put your trust in some Citroen or Renault mechanic that doesn't know squat about your truck. If I remember correctly, my mechanic messed up a clutch installation or something, and the truck never was the same. I remember selling it to another sailor (a junior officer, of course.... sucker!), and buying a beat up '85 xtra cab. The front fender had been crunched in transit, but it was mechanically strong. I didn't four wheel much in it, but I did go to the top of the Rock of Gibraltar with it. That was a blast! I sold this truck to another sailor before I left, since I knew I had my 4Runner waiting for me.
By 1994, the war was over, as was my tour (and so was my marriage)
. Whatever....my 4Runner was always available. The wife and I parted ways when we got to California, and I went to Gary's to get the 4Runner ready for the road again. The next day, I was off to Florida for officer training, then a couple of weeks later up here to Maryland for duty. I really haven't left since......Now when I was stationed here in the mid-70s, I hung around with a buddy who had a "J" vehicle, and we used to bust around the Columbia area all day and night. In fact, one night we almost landed on I-95 after clearing the brush! This was WAAAAAY before Columbia was finished.... I hadn't been back since, and I was really in for a rude surprise when I got here. So much development, and some four wheeling, but you really had to search for it.
I settled for the odd trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina (sand is still in my blood), and the south shore of 'Jersey, but for the most part the 4Runner had become my commuter vehicle in all kinds of weather. The most four wheeling I did was on the way back from visiting the kids in California after Christmas 1995. I chased the "Blizzard of '96" on the way across the country, and was opening closed roads until I got home and couldn't get up the steep driveway.
Wrapping up this segment of my story is a combination of a new beginning and a tragic end. 1997 was one of the best and worst years overall for me. I retired from the Navy and began a civilian career, met a knockout woman, and totalled the 4Runner 6 months later - a week before our wedding. She (the 4Runner) was basically the same as when I had uncovered her in 1994 after returning from Spain, but still very pristine. The odometer had 164K on it, and everything ran strong and reliably. Then a drunk in a van decided that he needed to turn left in front of me on the 2-lane highway near our house. I hit the van at 50+ MPH right at the sliding door support post - one the the strongest places it has - and I swear that the Smittybuilt double tube front bumper is the only thing that saved my life. It stayed perfectly in tact while crumpling everything back towards the firewall. Surprisingly, except for a slight buckling of the passenger side floor, everything from the firewall back was undamaged. That is why Black Beauty remains in the family - now in the barn hacked and chopped up, but still providing useful parts, as you will see later.
I walked down the aisle with a couple of broken ribs and a cracked sternum, known as "seatbelt trauma", and will admit I spent some of my honeymoon surfing the internet for another 4Runner. That doesn't mean my new bride couldn't keep my attention, but by now you should know that I have this Toyota 4X4 thing BAD!
I settled on a real clean '88 grey SR5 automatic, but really didn't like it soon after starting to drive it daily. This was the first auto Toy 4X4 I had ever owned, and it just didn't feel right. The wife loved it, though. Go figure.
Then I found her - a relatively nice '89 (black, again!) owned by a kid down in western North Carolina. After he sent me some photos and several talks over the phone, we settled on a price and planned a weekend trip down - all sight unseen. The truck had about 70K on it, but was in real good condition. Out here in the east, I have found that rust is a way of life with the older Toys, but this one only had a little on the lower window frame of the sliding rear windows, and little bubbles on one of the front and rear fenders. Despite all my time on the sand with Black Beauty, she never had any rust. I chalk part of that up to the tons of undercoating she came with, but also knowing how to pressure spray all of the hidden little areas most people miss. This kid kept the truck clean, but he missed some of the common spots.
It was a deal, and we drove it back to Maryland to begin my next love affair with the 1st generation 4Runner.