Help Kinda im new

[Alpinestar]

i know that i will probably get hashed like 'newbies' do on all other forum sites.
but i am very new to 4 wheeling and other expedition activies. so the question im asking the senior veterans of 4 wheeling is what was the first thing you added to your vehcile and what do you think a vehicle needs first before other things can come... i have been searching for a vehicle for a while(almost a year or so)ever since i started driving legally. i belive i have come up with a choice: a Tacoma pickup 2000+ model my vehicle will probably be used on easy to moderate trails nothing too killer
thank you for your help.

[datrupr]

Alpinestar, welcome! There is no hashing or harrassing the newbies on this board so you can take a little solice in that fact. Several of us here are fairly new to off road driving and expedition travel, and some of us are veterans. everybody is always eager to help. I do not own a Taco, but it seems most people here do, I am a minority, but still welcomed.

To answer your question, the Tacoma is an excellent platform to begin with. It already has good clearance and is very capable off road in stock form. I would start with a set of decent LT rated tires, then get some body protection i.e. sliders, skid plates, etc. then you may want to consider a lift of around 2". You don't really need any more than that if you do not plan on doing any rock crawling. Also, I would highly reccommend a navigation system, i.e. GPS and some good topo maps of the areas that you plan on exploring. recovery points both front and rear, recovery gear, fire extinguisher, flash light, a system to keep them secured in the vehicle, and to go out and enjoy yourself in your new interest/hobby/passion. If you ever have any questions please feel free to post up and you will get your answers.

[Alpinestar]

thanks for the reply. i am trying to build a toyota that is good on and off road if that is possible, becuase i have to drive 60 miles our so to school round trip.

[datrupr]

Peruse some of the Toyota psts a bit to find out what kind of mods a lot of these guys are running. I am not sure of ideal tire size for the Taco's, but if it is going to be your daily driver I would reccommend not going to large, and keep the lift no higher than 2". You then should not have to deal with gearing issues, pinion angles, crappy gas mileage, etc. And then it will be capable both on road as well as off road. It is always nice to be cruising down the road and see a trail heading off to somewhere you have never been and being able to just turn up that road to see where it goes without having to worry about you vehicle.

Am I the only who does that??

[Alpinestar]

dont worry i do it but on 2 wheels with a honda xr 250 fourstroke(i love bikes and four wheeling but i know bikes better)
thanks

[pangaea]

Alpinestar,

Welcome aboard. As mentioned above, there doesn't seem to be any harassment of newbies here, and there is a pretty impressive collection of knowledge here with most of the members, and they all seem happy to share.

As far as a good starter vehicle is concerned, a Taco is defintiely a good choice. Personally, I'm a bit of a Land Rover nut, but I wouldn't recommend it to a typical student. The upkeep can be a bit tough unless you have time and money to throw at it periodically.

There was recently a good thread on priority of modifications for expedition use, that you might want to check out. This should link to it, but if not, just check out the vehicle modifications section of the form.

http://expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=200

[Suty]

Welcome Alpin, You will find alot of knowledge on this board as well as some ultra cool rigs. I must agree with Dat, Tires, Lift and Protection would be high on my list of Mods. Most of us have turned this "hobby" into a Passion/Addiction so watch yourself when you start doing mods or you may end up with little money for books and food. All kidding aside, don't hesitate to ask questions and seek advise here. Tu Compadre, Suty

[The BN Guy]

Howdy and welcome to the group! Not much more to add 'cept...I think Taco's are great but don't count out a Nissan. More parts and accessories for Toy's but our market is growing very quickly too.

[bluerunner]

Welcome Alpine!

Which ever mods you go with make sure you get plenty of BLING BLING!

J/k welcome aboard!

[Jonathan Hanson]

Get hashed? Where do you think you are, on the TTORA forum?

Nope, we're all nice here, and we all still remember when we were novices too.

If I can be redundant: Good tires. They'll do more than the next three or four modifications you add to optimize your performance off road.

My wife's 2000 Tacoma also does double duty--we live 40 miles outside of town. Because of that we try to balance modifications with retaining fuel economy. We stick with the stock (for the TRD package) 31x10.5 tire size, which works very well in all but extreme situations. A two-inch lift such as our kit from Old Man Emu gains you good clearance without disrupting the air flow over the truck too much or introducing problematic angles to the front axle CV joints. We still get 20+ miles per gallon on the highway with an automatic transmission.

Body protection is a worthwhile addition, as is a way to air up tires after trail sessions: a good air pump or a CO2 tank. A Hi-lift jack is essential kit, and bumpers that can take a Hi-lift, such as ARB.