84 Toyota "Old Red"

4th of July.
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Mind sharing the pros and cons. Was planning to run a softtopper on my 4runner
 
YotaOnRocks said:
Mind sharing the pros and cons. Was planning to run a softtopper on my 4runner
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I believe the softopper for the 4Runner will be a little different than what I’m working with for just a truck bed but here’s what I’ve noticed.

The first difference I see between the two is how everything seals up. The side rails and cab end of the top seal to the bed in a similar manor for the two brands, but the way the canvas seals to the side rails and tailgate are very different. The bestop folds into the rails just like a Jeep top does where as the softopper just snaps to the rails. At the tailgate, the bestop has a “rail” type insert that slides through the back window, (again similar but different design as the softopper) but the bestop has a rubber seal that sits on the top of the tailgate like a door seal. The softopper does not, it has a longer flap that hangs lower over the top of the tailgate to keep out rain. The overall design allows the bestop to keep out more dust than the softopper will ever dream about doing.

I believe both tops will keep out most water but over the softopper will leak more elements into the bed the way it’s designed. The bestop allowed some stuff in but it definitely had a better overall seal to the bed.

The top portion of the canopy on the softopper seems to be designed in a better way to keep the fabric tight and has adjustability to keep it tight. The bestop did not and on hot days driving on the highway, the fabric would stretch allowing the mid section to cave in a bit.

The back window on the softopper seems to be a little more floppy when in the full enclosed position. There is adjustment in this area and I plan to play with it a little more, but this will also create a larger gap between the tailgate and the flap that hangs down which will allow more road dust to be sucked up in the bed.

The softopper is about 2” higher than the cab and you can see how large the gap is between the top of the cab and the softtop. Bestop seemed to fit better here also.

The softopper with windows rolled up is much nicer than how the bestop performed the same task. You had to remove the windows from the bestop and store them somewhere. When doing this the bestop still had fabric from the canopy section down to the bedrail which catches a lot of wind and created a strain on the top when driving. Softopper has solved that issue.

I like the top, just wish this model was a little more specific for my truck than it seems to be. Looking at the invoice this top part number covers all 6’ bed Toyota trucks from 2004 and back as well as the Nissan Frontier.
 
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Saw the softtopper for sale on FB Marketplace (live outside of Moncks Corner) and thought damn thats a good looking truck rare extended cab too. Nice looking project and keep the photos coming
 
More signs of head gasket failure. The o2 sensor had pink coolant char on it (picture doesn’t show it well). No big deal, the new engine project starts on the 9th.

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Put in a new aisin fan clutch today. The new engine is running a little warmer than it did. It will creep up to about 3/4 scale after driving for a while and sitting at idle for a about 5-10 minutes.

Anything to be worried about or can I attribute it to only 80 miles on the full rebuild? The engine is bored 20 over with new everything.

I need to replace the heater core because of a small leak which does not drip coolant to the floor. I have been running the hvac on cold to help alleviate pressure in the core until I can replace it next week.
 
dark knight said:
Put in a new aisin fan clutch today. The new engine is running a little warmer than it did. It will creep up to about 3/4 scale after driving for a while and sitting at idle for a about 5-10 minutes.

Anything to be worried about or can I attribute it to only 80 miles on the full rebuild? The engine is bored 20 over with new everything.

I need to replace the heater core because of a small leak which does not drip coolant to the floor. I have been running the hvac on cold to help alleviate pressure in the core until I can replace it next week.
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I had a heck of a time with mine running above average. I ended up bleeding the system several times to get it correct. Also replaced the tstat with a Toyota replacement and everything was good. Another thing is having a complete radiator shroud including the little bottom piece.

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cgm147 said:
I had a heck of a time with mine running above average. I ended up bleeding the system several times to get it correct. Also replaced the tstat with a Toyota replacement and everything was good. Another thing is having a complete radiator shroud including the little bottom piece.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk
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Got a new Toyota thermostat, and fan shroud but I should get the little bottom piece. The radiator is new also. I’m willing to bet that the new heater core will help. It has to be allowing air into the system. Also ordered a new MagnaFlow catalytic converter just incase my old one is holding up exhaust flow.
 
dark knight said:
Got a new Toyota thermostat, and fan shroud but I should get the little bottom piece. The radiator is new also. I’m willing to bet that the new heater core will help. It has to be allowing air into the system. Also ordered a new MagnaFlow catalytic converter just incase my old one is holding up exhaust flow.
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Yea I was at witts end trying to get mine fixed, i do believe that little bottom piece did help among all the other things.

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Slowly but surely getting better. Third time burping the hell out of the coolant system with the front jacked up. Each time I get a little more air out of the system. The engine has never over heated but it does run a little warmer than the tired 310k+ mile engine I took out. Still only 235 miles on the new engine.
 
A preliminary drive around town with the new aisin 180 degree thermostat shows the temp is much happier. Temp shows a tick below mid way and doesn’t move upward when at stop lights.

The 190 degree OEM one I got for the new engine was from Yota shop. It’s weird because I have read 190 is correct and 180 is correct. 180 is definitely more correct.

Next up I have a new MagnaFlow CAT coming next week along with an allpoop front winchbumper. Need to find a good deal on a winch.
 
dark knight said:
A preliminary drive around town with the new aisin 180 degree thermostat shows the temp is much happier. Temp shows a tick below mid way and doesn’t move upward when at stop lights.

The 190 degree OEM one I got for the new engine was from Yota shop. It’s weird because I have read 190 is correct and 180 is correct. 180 is definitely more correct.

Next up I have a new MagnaFlow CAT coming next week along with an allpoop front winchbumper. Need to find a good deal on a winch.
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I've always had better luck with the 180 t stats in my Toyota's. 190's always ran too high.
 
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