"The Blueberry" built for adventure and & daily driver

texploration

Adventurer
After a few years in a Jeep TJ, my interests waned and bent elsewhere. I made the common mistake of overbuilding without knowing exactly what I needed/wanted and it just led to an uncomfortable and HOT ride all the time (no ac). My travels had become less of off road park rock climbing and more long distance vehicle based camping and exploring on dirt/gravel two track. I started the search with only a few key necessities mostly centered around creature comforts. I wanted air conditioning, a large enough passenger cabin to hold my daughter, dog & a weeks worth of living supplies, at least a RR diff lock with an initial budget of $12k. Initially, I searched hard for an LR3/4, 4R, FJ. I quickly shied away from the Rovers due to the budgetary constraints and feeling less comfortable/educated on a higher mileage LR. An FJ popped up on my radar a couple months later that met all my criteria and in an afternoon, my life changed.

Make: Toyota
Model: FJ Cruiser
Year: 2007
Mileage at purchase: 131k
Engine: 4.0 V6
Trans: 5 speed automatic

Desired modifications: * = completed
-Drawer/Storage System *
-2.5-3" medium duty lift *
-Larger, Narrower profile tire
-Tablet based navigation mounts/setup*
-Front tube bumper with winch & two recovery points


The rig came with a Safari snorkel already installed, stock suspension, and some skid plate evidence that it had been well used. Initial shake downs at the North Texas off road park I frequent illuminated my concerns with ground clearance while still clearing and carrying me through every thing I threw at it (with lots of clangs, bangs, and metal on rock sounds)
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BP2.jpg


The logical first step was to test what I had. A couple weeks after purchase, I changed all fluids, gave all mechanicals a once-over and set off from Dallas pointing West. Over the course of a week, my daughter & I explored Lincoln National Forest, Gila National Forest (by way of Chloride Canyon/Continental Divide), and Mescalero Dunes, with layovers in Cloudcroft and Roswell proper. I packed and outfitted making note of everything that I wished we had while bringing what went unused to attention to discard later. Every piece of equipment and system on the rig performed exactly as desired and allowed us a stress free, productive trip unencumbered by worry.



Plenty more to come, I'll be updating this thread with the March '17 to it's current state over the next couple days!
 

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TxJ

New member
Fellow FJ owner here, can you post some details and commentary on your drawer system? How do you feel about the stock sliders? Looking forward to this build, sounds like we have similar goals in mind!
 

texploration

Adventurer
Fellow FJ owner here, can you post some details and commentary on your drawer system? How do you feel about the stock sliders? Looking forward to this build, sounds like we have similar goals in mind!

You bet! Drawer details will be in the next post here soon.
 

texploration

Adventurer
After returning from New Mexico, the focus turned more towards getting expedition ready. Myself and the rest of Terra Firma Roamers started planning a trip for late Summer to Moab and with that came a swath of modifications to prepare for this.

The drawer system is plywood and 350# drawer slides both from Home Depot. It covers the footprint of the rear cargo compartment and is held in place with two turn-buckles on the front and two bolts into the OEM tie down spots. The drawer holds all cooking supplies, medical supplies, most recovery gear and quick grab essentials (headlamp, torch, fire/kindling supplies etc). It is such a stressful mess right now while I am purging and packing for Moab. Hopefully I'll be able to grab a clean picture of it soon.

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For Comms, nothing to write home about. A CB is a CB. I dropped the headliner down and glued a 3/4" block of wood to the top sheet metal and then screwed the radio mount through the headliner into said wood to mount in place up top. The result is solid as a rock with power and coax run through the headliner to minimize spiderwebs and clutter.

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Next up, suspension!
 

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