2005 Toyota Tundra 4wd v8 TRD

UPDATE

The truck is now being built for Off-Road Magazine. The progress and pictures will be saved until the initial article has been released in the magazine. After that time I will post everything including the article on my website for everyone to check out.

With the purchase of my new truck I thought I would keep a running review of the performance, reliability and modifications I make to it in order to share my experiences. Along with factual information I will formulate my own opinions on various topics and products as I use them. Please keep in mind these are my opinions while other people may agree or  disagree or have had different experiences. If you would like to discuss anything regarding this review or my truck please email me at Jordansrealm@yahoo.com.

If you are looking for pictures and information regarding my old prerunner please click here.

This page will read bottom-top. In other words the very bottom of this page would be the first modification I have done to the truck. The top modification on this page would be the most recent. This way you don't have to scroll all the way down to see the new stuff! Enjoy!

Help me help you! If you contact any of the companies listed below about their products I talk about please let them know you saw it here on Jordansrealm.com. Looks good for the site and also let's them know where people are seeing their products! Thank you!

There is nothing worse than spending money on parts and having them ruined because of something as simple as a rock. Dirt Bags has an extensive line of quality, tough tool bags and cases. I have 2 of them in my truck at all times carrying my tools and various desert related equipment. Now, I am also running a set of their Coilover Boots. Your 7 year old son could install them for you as they are done with velcro. For $35 you can't go wrong! Would you rather buy these or spend $100 having your shafts replaced on your coilovers? You do the math! Pick up a set for your truck today at www.kartek.com. Ask for Mike Livingston or Pat and tell him you saw this on Jordansrealm.com! You an also pickup Dirt Bags carry cases and support bags through Kartek as well as many other great off road products.

After my first trip in the dirt I knew that I had to upgrade the rear shocks of my new Tundra. The rear is very bouncy with the stock leaf springs and shocks because Toyota was concerned not only with ride quality on and off road but also towing capabilites. I plan on carrying a few bikes in the bed of my truck so replacing the stock leaf pack is not an option, well not yet! A friend suggest I checkout the H5 Series Bilstein Shocks and give them a go. They are not expensive and I figured even if they make it somewhat less bouncy I would be happy. They did just that. I didn't expect long travel out of these and neither should you. I did notice driving around town and off road over bumps the rear end did not want to kick as much as with the stock much smaller TRD Bilstein shocks. These shocks are 1" longer and use almost twice the shaft diameter. If you are looking for a mild replacement shock without cutting holes through your bed give these a look. The part # is F4-BE5-A014-H5. The installation is straight forward being all bolt on. The top shock mount is a little tricky we noticed during installation. Be sure to have a set of allen wrenches on hand as the top of the Bilstein shock has a threaded point you will need them for. Don't forget a floor jack, jack stands and a good ratchet set!

Need a pair for yourself? Call Camburg and get yours today! www.camburg.com

Now that I had the truck leveled and riding much better on and off road I had to step it up in the performance and sound department. With my previous truck I had over 4 different makes and models of exhaust systems. None of them were perfect for the abuse I was throwing at the truck. This time I turned to a good friend of mine who works for Magnaflow and did some research on their Catback Exhaust System. After reading many good reviews across the internet about the system I decided it was for me.

As you can see from the pictures above the new MAG system is beautiful. Nice chrome and polished pieces and all the welds are finished with perfection. This is a quality exhaust system not some backyard muffler piece of tin. Compared to the stock exhaust it looks like night and day. The muffler is a 2.5" in and 3.0" out. The installation is extremely easy being all bolt on, no welding required. I would suggest asking a friend to lend a hand in order to fit the exhaust because it is rather heavy. After Ryan and I got it on the new truck we started the truck up and it purred like a kitten. In the past I have never been a big chrome tip fan but because Magnaflow designed it to where you can barely see the tip it gives it a good clean look. The truck now sounds great and all of the power I lost from stepping up to a larger tire is back! For more information and to listen to some sound clips of the system visit www.magnaflow.com and search for Toyota Tundra. Soon I will be replacing the factory Y-Pipe connecting the headers to the exhaust system. Just from looking at them they are restricting a tremendous amount of airflow through the truck. Not sure what a Y-Pipe is? Click here for a picture.

BFG ATKO Tires - 285/75/16

The truck was ready for some new shoes! BFG has always been good to me in the past so I am hoping they will also be good to me in the future. I chose a set of BFG ATKO Tires for the new ride. They are a taller and wider than stock tires which is what you want for offroading. The more tire you have on the ground the better. As much as I love the dirt this truck is for the most part a street queen. So, I needed a great all around tire that works well in various types of terrain. The ATKO is the best choice in my opinion on the market today.

The biggest question I have received since adding these to my truck is, do they rub? The answer is yes they do rub. Whoever is telling you they are running these tires with a bolt-on coilover and does not rubbing is wrong. The tires rub the inner lip of the mudflap and the frame at full lock. This is because the stock rims and backspacing are too narrow for the much larger tire. I will be upgrading soon to a 16x8" rim with a bigger backspacing which will resolve the rubbing issue. In the mean time I have cut out the section of the inner mud flap where it rubs which took care of that problem. The frame issue cannot be resolved without a proper rim or running wheel spacers/adapters. I am not a big fan of wheel spacers but they do work if you cannot afford to invest in new rims. If you go that route please visit www.wheeladapter.com and buy through them. Fred Goeske has been machining parts for many years and is a old school racer. His wheel adapters are hub-centric and will be your best bet. Good luck with your tire choice!

The ICOM 208H Amatuer Radio is a great choice for those of us in the off road world. Icom has always manufactuered quality products and the 208H is nothing short of that. Having had this radio in my truck for over a month I am very pleased with it's performance. Please click the image to the left and read my install article!

The very first modification that had to be made to my new truck was bolt-on coilovers. Through the suggestion of a good friend I decided to go with the Donahoe Racing Coilovers. The provide 0"-3.5" of lift for the front end of your Tacoma or Tundra depending upon application. The ride height is completely adjustable with a turn of the coil collar. Personally, I recommend keeping them as low as possible which will help keep your ride quality excellent. In the picture above you will see my truck with stock tires and coilovers set at 2.5" of lift. Donahoe makes a regular version and a 1" longer version of their coilover for guys like me also running an aftermarket upper control arm giving 1" more travel. Unfortunately, I was unable to get pictures and do a full install article on the coilovers but I will be trying to get one on another truck soon. The install was very simple and took roughly 30 minutes. All you need is a good ratchet set, floor jack and a set of jack stands and you are ready to go! For more information on purchasing a set of these coilovers, questions or concerns please contact Donahoe at www.donahoeracing.com.

The next logical modification for me was a set of Camburg Upper Control Arms. These are the arms to buy people! Camburg produces some of the better long travel kits out today and after having 4+ years on my Camburg Tacoma Long Travel I knew I had to turn to them again. Much like the coilovers these arms are fairly easy to install with a little automotive knowledge. The hardest part is pulling off the stock balljoint and pressing in the new uniball. Since I am running the longer DRE coilovers these added arms are now giving me an addition 1 inch of down travel. Coming from a heavily modified prerunner I need all the help I can get! For more information on purchasing a set of these upper control arms contact www.camburg.com.

Both of these products were installed at www.demello-offroad.com. Jason DeMello is a great guy who stands behind the quality of his work and service. If you are local to the OC area and need parts, installation or service on your truck please give him a call.