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Hi all,
Before I begin I would like to say that I have no real writing abilities and when at school was an at best average english student. Fairly new to the 4 wheel drive scene and want to chronicle the transformation from school taxi to into a mild off road tourer whom we have aptly named " Penny ". This is due to the fact that she will end up costing me a Pretty One.
We picked her up May 2011 and as you can see from the pic she was basically a blank canvas as far as mods were concerned, and was very tidy except for a decent scuffing on the front BumperThis was the start of what I see as a long journey which[I] may take a while to complete!
Penny is a 2003 120 Series Pearl V6 Petrol Prado.Originally looking for Diesel GXL Manual at the time but there wasn't any suitable locally and interstate the story was the same.We then found this one which was within the same price range, in a Grande ( which creates it's own problems which I go into later ) and it was Petrol.
Let the mods begin!
First thing to do was a lot of research about which mods are best for what, then price and lastly which order the fit out would take.
Dual batteries with Redarc Battery Charging system came first for the 40 L Engel we had, then Airtec Snorkel ( I also fitted a pair of Diff Breathers for both diffs mounted high in the firewall )along with some under body protection for the diff and engine.
Next was the Bull Bar. I went with a T13 Outbar bar from TJM and kept it standard Black colour as it came. Went against colour coding for 3 main reasons. 1. Cost 2. bush pinstriping when black wouldn't bother me but Pearl White with scratches would of. 3. Too much Pearl paint was too much, needed the black to break it up a bit..( this may change later )
Now I had the bar on the UHF and Phone Kit and Lights could be installed. I went with a set of HID Night Stalkers which seem to do the job.
A Compressor was next on my list as I like to have air with me ready to go and I like the fact that I don't have to pack it with me everytime I go out. I put in an ARB UNit that will also be used when / if I get any lockers on board.
Added some new rubber next. I went with Cooper AT3s but kept them standard size but am still battling with myself if I should go to 275/70/17 or bigger again keeping in mind cost including changing speedo to suit bigger tyres as it is the wifes daily driver.
When we fitted the bar I never noticed the gap in the guards..there wasn't much gap at all there with the weight of the Bar and the shocks were obviously shot. Probably never been changed since new as they were the original shocks. The problem I was facing was a common one among Grandes as they have the Airbags at the back,and to put 2 Inch lift everyone wants to charge the earth to rip it all out and put in a whole new 2 Inch raised setup. Through a very helpful guy on PP ( 1Coolbanana) he told me how he overcame this exact issue and for those who have not read about it on his Rig Build Post I will advise what I was told.
Basically,keep the original rear air bags, increase the space in the Auto-Levelling Sensors under each side of the rear frame and put in th enew raised shocks..start the car, it raises the rear to new height and there you have your lift, for under half of the cost.
The build on Penny stalled then due to an accident on New Years Eve.Hit from behind the way to Fraser, our first big trip and this happens. Not exactly what you want on holidays but stuff happens, no one was hurt so you deal with it and move on.
After we got Penny back from Smash Repairers she had a brand new door and she looked new again. I had a thought while she was being fixed about getting a Rear Bar to carry 2 wheels, jerry cans etc. instead of the old standard bumper. I ended up getting a KayMar rear bar fitted which I figure will come in handy for the trip to the Cape plus it gives me more protection that the standard old bumper.
So what's next for Penny..single side custom drawer has been ordered as I have 3 little kids and I do not want them squashed in the middle seats.. better for long distance travelling.
Winch is after that, providing I can decide on what I want and obvioulsy cost. Looking at Rope for sure, 12,000lb is preferrable but is it really needed. In dash GPS and the list goes on..
Anyway, hope you have enjoyed my first post and look forward to seeing you all out there, and if you do give me a shout,
Cheers
Before I begin I would like to say that I have no real writing abilities and when at school was an at best average english student. Fairly new to the 4 wheel drive scene and want to chronicle the transformation from school taxi to into a mild off road tourer whom we have aptly named " Penny ". This is due to the fact that she will end up costing me a Pretty One.
We picked her up May 2011 and as you can see from the pic she was basically a blank canvas as far as mods were concerned, and was very tidy except for a decent scuffing on the front BumperThis was the start of what I see as a long journey which[I] may take a while to complete!
Penny is a 2003 120 Series Pearl V6 Petrol Prado.Originally looking for Diesel GXL Manual at the time but there wasn't any suitable locally and interstate the story was the same.We then found this one which was within the same price range, in a Grande ( which creates it's own problems which I go into later ) and it was Petrol.
Let the mods begin!
First thing to do was a lot of research about which mods are best for what, then price and lastly which order the fit out would take.
Dual batteries with Redarc Battery Charging system came first for the 40 L Engel we had, then Airtec Snorkel ( I also fitted a pair of Diff Breathers for both diffs mounted high in the firewall )along with some under body protection for the diff and engine.
Next was the Bull Bar. I went with a T13 Outbar bar from TJM and kept it standard Black colour as it came. Went against colour coding for 3 main reasons. 1. Cost 2. bush pinstriping when black wouldn't bother me but Pearl White with scratches would of. 3. Too much Pearl paint was too much, needed the black to break it up a bit..( this may change later )
Now I had the bar on the UHF and Phone Kit and Lights could be installed. I went with a set of HID Night Stalkers which seem to do the job.
A Compressor was next on my list as I like to have air with me ready to go and I like the fact that I don't have to pack it with me everytime I go out. I put in an ARB UNit that will also be used when / if I get any lockers on board.
Added some new rubber next. I went with Cooper AT3s but kept them standard size but am still battling with myself if I should go to 275/70/17 or bigger again keeping in mind cost including changing speedo to suit bigger tyres as it is the wifes daily driver.
When we fitted the bar I never noticed the gap in the guards..there wasn't much gap at all there with the weight of the Bar and the shocks were obviously shot. Probably never been changed since new as they were the original shocks. The problem I was facing was a common one among Grandes as they have the Airbags at the back,and to put 2 Inch lift everyone wants to charge the earth to rip it all out and put in a whole new 2 Inch raised setup. Through a very helpful guy on PP ( 1Coolbanana) he told me how he overcame this exact issue and for those who have not read about it on his Rig Build Post I will advise what I was told.
Basically,keep the original rear air bags, increase the space in the Auto-Levelling Sensors under each side of the rear frame and put in th enew raised shocks..start the car, it raises the rear to new height and there you have your lift, for under half of the cost.
The build on Penny stalled then due to an accident on New Years Eve.Hit from behind the way to Fraser, our first big trip and this happens. Not exactly what you want on holidays but stuff happens, no one was hurt so you deal with it and move on.
After we got Penny back from Smash Repairers she had a brand new door and she looked new again. I had a thought while she was being fixed about getting a Rear Bar to carry 2 wheels, jerry cans etc. instead of the old standard bumper. I ended up getting a KayMar rear bar fitted which I figure will come in handy for the trip to the Cape plus it gives me more protection that the standard old bumper.
So what's next for Penny..single side custom drawer has been ordered as I have 3 little kids and I do not want them squashed in the middle seats.. better for long distance travelling.
Winch is after that, providing I can decide on what I want and obvioulsy cost. Looking at Rope for sure, 12,000lb is preferrable but is it really needed. In dash GPS and the list goes on..
Anyway, hope you have enjoyed my first post and look forward to seeing you all out there, and if you do give me a shout,
Cheers
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