Help us spend $2200 on rig upgrades!

[Ben Cleveland]

Hey guys! So my wife and I sat down and did some planning for next year. We’ve got more trips we want to do, and a lots of things about our rig and setup that need to be addressed and upgraded. I had a huge long post typed out with our plan but I thought hey. Why not just see how other people would approach spending this money? So we have a $2200 budget. Help us spend it!

GOALS:
Next years goals are more off-roading and overlanding focused. We are planning a 8-10 day trip out west hitting trails and boondocking, plus multiple weekend trips around TX. The goal for all of these trips is simply being off pavement, and off grid as much as humanly possible, and doing actual off-roading trails wherever available. Being able to do multi days off grid requires more upgrades IMO to do well and safely. We’re sort of past the whole “take your stock rig out and try it” phase.

NEEDS
-Tires (still on stock size street tires)
-base camp style weather protection/shade (awning or something like that)
-lighting ( OEM headlights suck and that’s all we got)
-In vehicle storage-have good totes, but it’s still messy and unorganized while camping
-recovery (really want a winch-don’t have anything currently other than HD recovery points, traction boards, and a strap and shovel)
-armor (OEM front and gas skid is all we got)

Already got a complete dobinsons suspension setup, recovery points, prinsu rack, all the camping gear we need, RTT, etc. Taken this setup out multiple times this summer, which is where our list of top priority needs have come from.

Pic of the rig fo funsies

Pic of our setup

What would you do? How would you spend our budget, what needs would you address, ignore, etc? Help us out!

 

[dblack]

Sounds like a good plan is coming together!

I like the winch, sliders & skid plates. I'd prioritize them in about that order. Tires would be job 1. Any kind of rough country is going to eat up a street tire.

Personally I think the drawer system is cool & I'd love one... But I have a collection of rubbermaid totes that have seen me through 20 some odd years of bush camping just fine and cost me a grand total of $50.

The awning would cost me a small fortune to get up to Canada and I wouldn't go out of my way to have. If it's raining I throw up a $20 tarp or wear a rain coat. If I need shade I sit under a tree. But then again I don't get the heat that you might so it's a different kettle of fish.

Lights... I LOVE lights. I put ARB Intensity lights on my Overlander truck. Then I put JW Speaker headlights in my off-roady Jeep. Between the 2 theories I use the headlights a ton more than the bumper lights. I honestly wouldn't go too crazy with lights. I debated putting lights in my RTT before I finally just bought a $10 flashlight and left it in there. Saved me a day of wiring and screwing around. Around camp I just throw on a headlamp when I need it. I tend to enjoy and prefer some darkness, but that's me.

Just my 2 bits & it's probably worth less than that.

 

[REWDBOY]

Ha! dblack, I think you're def under budget with that plan there, and that's always a good thing!
bencleveland, I'm right there with you. Stock all around looking to upgrade w budget right about there too. Interested in reading the various takes from all these cool folks.
Sidenote, might be my connection, but couldn't view you're pics.

 

[Ben Cleveland]

Sounds like a good plan is coming together!

I like the winch, sliders & skid plates. I'd prioritize them in about that order. Tires would be job 1. Any kind of rough country is going to eat up a street tire.

Personally I think the drawer system is cool & I'd love one... But I have a collection of rubbermaid totes that have seen me through 20 some odd years of bush camping just fine and cost me a grand total of $50.

The awning would cost me a small fortune to get up to Canada and I wouldn't go out of my way to have. If it's raining I throw up a $20 tarp or wear a rain coat. If I need shade I sit under a tree. But then again I don't get the heat that you might so it's a different kettle of fish.

Lights... I LOVE lights. I put ARB Intensity lights on my Overlander truck. Then I put JW Speaker headlights in my off-roady Jeep. Between the 2 theories I use the headlights a ton more than the bumper lights. I honestly wouldn't go too crazy with lights. I debated putting lights in my RTT before I finally just bought a $10 flashlight and left it in there. Saved me a day of wiring and screwing around. Around camp I just throw on a headlamp when I need it. I tend to enjoy and prefer some darkness, but that's me.

Just my 2 bits & it's probably worth less than that.

@dblack thanks for the feedback! Pretty sure you replied before I consolidated my post a lot, and your reply was actually super helpful. I sat down and looked at my list of wants and honestly just simplified a few things. Lighting being a big one. Cut out the switch setup I wanted completely, cut out the roof mounted light bar, and I'm sticking with ditch lights as the one lighting upgrade I do this fall/next year. I'll just reassess after our next bigger trips, and see if more lighting is necessary or not.
My wife and I already went from wanting camp lighting all around our vehicle to being happy with just flashlighs this summer, we do appreciate the simple approaches.

Ha! dblack, I think you're def under budget with that plan there, and that's always a good thing!
bencleveland, I'm right there with you. Stock all around looking to upgrade w budget right about there too. Interested in reading the various takes from all these cool folks.
Sidenote, might be my connection, but couldn't view you're pics.

@REWDBOY the budget is really the real reason I posted. We've already upgraded SOME stuff, but even our priority list covers so many different things and different types of equipment, you could drop that entire budget on one line item without even trying.

 

[Ben Cleveland]

For now, I've stuck with basic stuff. With @dblack 's feedback I simplified some of the $$ we were going to spend on a drawer system, and lighting upgrades.
I've got a MUCH simpler design for a flat, 2 piece cargo platform in the rear, so we can safely secure cargo, and slide away some bulky items like the folding table. I expect to spend maybe $150 total on the cargo tray setup. Also, after an unexpected windfall of some truck funds (not much, but every bit helps), I'm choosing to forgo most of the big light upgrades, and JUST add ditch lights from caliraised offroad. Pretty confident those will give me some good light upgrades for dark trails and roads, without the cost of an entire lighting setup.

That leaves this list below, to be covered with my $2200 budget. Still don't really know which direction I'm going to go for this stuff.
-Tires (still on stock size street tires)
-base camp style weather protection/shade (awning or something like that)
-recovery (really want a winch-don’t have anything currently other than HD recovery points, traction boards, and a strap and shovel)
-armor (OEM front and gas skid is all we got)

 

[RedRob]

On the other hand, you could send me the $2,200, have no further decisions to make and have the warm inner glow that philanthropy brings. Just saying

 

[4wheelspulling]

You already have a good list, buy a set of good used not more than Two tires sizes over stock, tell you regear if you think you will. Get you vehicle in tip top shape if any maintenance needs to be done. Then save the rest for gas, food and fun. After your trip and even a few more, you will know what you need and how you are planning to use your rig. The best way to learn is to just get out and have fun, a dependable rig should be first on the list. You have a great rig, so just make sure everything you know is working as it should then go from there. Remember, many things others have and use are because everyone else does the same. Kind of like the fisherman that has every know fishing gizmo there is and is not catching any fish, when a kid with a simple set-up and a can of worms for bait is catching fish after fish! Benz.

 

[Ben Cleveland]

You already have a good list, buy a set of good used not more than Two tires sizes over stock, tell you regear if you think you will. Get you vehicle in tip top shape if any maintenance needs to be done. Then save the rest for gas, food and fun. After your trip and even a few more, you will know what you need and how you are planning to use your rig. The best way to learn is to just get out and have fun, a dependable rig should be first on the list. You have a great rig, so just make sure everything you know is working as it should then go from there. Remember, many things others have and use are because everyone else does the same. Kind of like the fisherman that has every know fishing gizmo there is and is not catching any fish, when a kid with a simple set-up and a can of worms for bait is catching fish after fish! Benz.

I appreciate the feedback, and in theory I agree with you. While shooting the money cannon at our rig would be super fun, we're fresh out of money cannons around here. We DO go on trips, assessing in between, and we have 3 more trips planned for this fall. Also, I would consider the rig pretty tip top maintenance-wise already, and I'm constantly improving and working on that. Some more fluid changes, tranny flush, diff breather extension, new water pump (simply because we can, and its got 200k on the original one), and second round of sea foam plus short oil change with oil sample analysis from Blackstone, followed by new spark plugs, are all on the books for this fall and winter. Also have a intermittent freon leak in the AC, that we've been progressively throwing parts at all summer. There's always small improvements and continued maintenance items to be done, while its important, right now none of those items are standing in the way of our forward movement. There are constant needs, and I'm always working on them, crossing things off the list, and finding other preventative maintenance items to add to the list. All these things are happening as a priority ABOVE the upgrades.

All of that said, our current want/needs list isn't a shot in the dark. We already know how we're using the rig, and have specific trips planned in the next year requiring more of it than we're already asking. We've already arrived at the point where we know upgrades are nice. Necessary for us to survive? No. But let's be honest, its relatively rare for the upgrades commonly discussed on here to be a life or death issue. However, these upgrades will be nice, improve reliability and capability, and its sort of time for us to plan those next steps. And getting out there and learning is great for someone who's never been outdoors before, that advice as a SUBSTITUTE for planning upgrades isn't helpful when someone is doing research for specific upgrades they've already learned would be helpful.

While I appreciate the "get out there and learn, then go from there" advice, and agree with the theory of it, its not a substitute for advice about gear and upgrades needs we have right now. For us right now, we've already been doing that for a bit and have a good idea of our next steps. More specific advice about the gear and upgrade choices for those needs is a LOT more helpful.

 

[Lindenwood]

For that budget, Id probably skip the armor if you arent building it yourself. An awning could be cool--I am planning on making my own.

As for recovery, I get the feeling that despite an increased interest in actual 'wheeling, you probably arent going to be actively seeking out trouble. Thus, in the once-per-year you get into a bind that you cant get out of with 5 minutes of digging or the traction boards, a well-accessorized hi-lift (winching kit and lift-mate, specifically) should do everything you need.

Otherwise, you'll honestly spend all your budget on a winch and front bumper.

 

[Ben Cleveland]

For that budget, Id probably skip the armor if you arent building it yourself. An awning could be cool--I am planning on making my own.

As for recovery, I get the feeling that despite an increased interest in actual 'wheeling, you probably arent going to be actively seeking out trouble. Thus, in the once-per-year you get into a bind that you cant get out of with 5 minutes of digging or the traction boards, a well-accessorized hi-lift (winching kit and lift-mate, specifically) should do everything you need.

Otherwise, you'll honestly spend all your budget on a winch and front bumper.

Thanks! You're pretty much dead on in your assessment...growing interest in wheeling, but NOT planning on breaking things or going through rock gardens.
I have not really wanted to go down the full steel bumpers approach, mainly because of weight and cost. My thought for a winch was going the hidden winch mount approach, which would be significantly less expensive than a full bumper.

As another variable, we don't travel with other people. We go alone. We don't have friends who wheel, and we enjoy family time in nature.

Winch still not necessary with those caveats?

 

[Lindenwood]

I started a couple threads about this that went long, asking if a winch was worth it for a daily-driven overland rig.

Based on the first one centered on that question, I concluded that a winch was one of those things that most everyone hardly uses (and many reported singular uses were moving trees or pulling folks out of ditches). I have used mine twice, and neither time for solo self recovery; in both cases, I could have more quickly and safely completed the same tasks with the straps I already carry.

Still, I let myself get talked into a winch. But, for a while I was seriously considering removing the winch and just keeping the hi-lift and accessories. The 2nd thread, however, was me testing the time it took to winch my vehicle out of a creek, about 6', with either system. Including setup and tear-down, it took something like 4.5 minutes with the winch, and 13.5 minutes with the hi-lift. That was expected, and honestly not a big deal. However, the fact that I was sore for the next two days WAS something to note. Doing the math, that recovery basically simulated deadlifting 100 about 100 times :P . I am not in bad shape, but I wouldnt have wanted to start a week-long overlanding trip like that :P . So, I kept the winch :P . That said, I built my bumper for like $100, and am using a $300 SmittyBilt winch, and when I did this testing I already had them both mounted and wired.

Long story short, in spite of all that, I am still highly skeptical that 99% of the winches you see on daily-driven vehicles are even remotely necessary--including mine. If I could do it all over again, I'd have skipped the winch, knowing I could absolutely get myself out of whatever situation with my hi-lift just as capably (if not moreso, given the below closing statement)--and just accepting the knowledge that it would suck :P .

Oh, the only two times my 4Runner has required a recovery from another vehicle, they pulled me out backwards .

 

[Lindenwood]

And, I wouldnt even waste time on a hidden mount. You still end up over $1000 into the setup with the mount and winch, add perhaps 75-125lbs to your rig, and will probably only ever need the winch once in the vehicle's life.

Also, I forgot to add. Nobody ever tells you about the PITA of maintaining a winch. Remember, when you get home after a long day (or week) in the boonies where you decided to play with the winch, you have to spend another half-hour washing the winch cable and carefully re-spooling it for the next use :P .

I am all for winches on dedicated trail rigs and rock crawlers who always go out in groups. But yeah, I think they have simply invaded into the American psyche as being far more necessary and easy-to-use than they are.

 

[RedBeard303]

As stated before, tires are probably #1 on the list for both functionality and you can do it for 1/4 of your budget leaving a lot left for other things. I have a 2005 t4r and i just put the falken wildpeak at3 on my truck for $573 + $99 install for 5 tires. I put the 265 70 r17 on (32+ inch tire) with almost no need for modification for rubbing. There is a slight rub with the front wheel well, but I'm going to use a heat gun and bend it back out of the way instead of cutting it so it'll maintain the functionality. If you only wanted to do 4 tires that'll save you $120 ish.
Upgrade your high beams to led lights from amazon 12,000 lumen for under $30 for the set. That'll throw a lot of light and you could do your headlights too if you want for a similar price. It's all plug and play. Ditch lights will be a cheap upgrade and maybe do some reverse lights too. You can do both for under $100 if you do the install.
I keep a come along with extra recovery straps and shackles. You could buy maxrracks or an off brand for less money and eliminate the need for a winch. After all that you should still have 1,000-1,200 left for other stuff. Don't buy a hi-lift Jack unless you have lift points to use it otherwise it'll just do a lot of damage. Hope that helps.
Note: i got my tires online through discount tires with free shipping and found a local shop to mount and balance for 19.95/tire.

 

[Ben Cleveland]

Yall these suggestions are SUPER helpful.

@Lindenwood I've often wondered this about winches. I like having useful tools, but until your comments today I've never really researched the winching capability of a hilift...now I'm starting to understand why people rave about the multi-functionality of a safely used hilift jack. Your feedback from your own winch ownership is so helpful!
I think we're going to go the hilift direction for now, at least until we've done our big trips next year. If we find ourselves with tons of practical uses for a winch, we can always upgrade to a winch or winch/bumper combo down the road. But for now, especially with the limited budget we have, this seems to make so much more sense. Especially since we've never needed a winch so far.

Also your comment about only having to be recovered from the rear got me thinking. The ONLY time I've gotten really really stuck and couldn't dig and get myself out was the same as your story. Buried up to the rear axle in mud, and a forward facing winch would have done me NO good. My buddies and I went to the local tractor supply, bought a cheap comealong, and we pulled the rig out, you guessed it, from the rear.

@Red Beard thanks for your suggestions too! Tires are next on our list. We're in the process of paying off our second vehicle, and expect my bonus to be able to JUST cover the remainder of our vehicle debt, and still get us new tires for the 4runner.
Its great to know there are cheap options out there for tires. I'm pretty stuck on Cooper ST Maxx's (which will run about 1000 for 5), mainly because I tow occasionally, I've gotten cut sidewalls before, and I really want an E-rated tire rather than a LT C tire.

Upgrading high beams is an awesome cheap suggestion too! I don't really like the LED/HID plug and play kits because of the glare they produce, but upgrading high beams only is something I hadn't thought of. Glare for oncoming traffic doesn't really matter with high beams, if you're using them correctly, because you wouldn't turn them on when there's oncoming traffic.


I think biggest things we've figured out from the suggestions so far is:

1) not dropping all that coin on a multiple auxiliary lights. ditch lights plus some minor oem light upgrades will be fine for now.
2) Scratch the winch, hilift plus winching accessories is probably all we need for next year's stuff
3) Also scratching the vehicle mounted awning, and going to a cheaper, free standing clam style shelter that will be more versatile.

 

[Lindenwood]

Nice!

Also, I personally am a huge fan of the lift-mate, which allows lifting from the wheel, rather than the frame. With a lift-mate and winching kit you can theoretically use the Hi-lift move your vehicle in all 3 dimensions as long as you have at least one recovery point front and rear.

 

[Kyle & Kari Frink]

Hey guys! So my wife and I sat down and did some planning for next year. We’ve got more trips we want to do, and a lots of things about our rig and setup that need to be addressed and upgraded. I had a huge long post typed out with our plan but I thought hey. Why not just see how other people would approach spending this money? So we have a $2200 budget. Help us spend it!

GOALS:
Next years goals are more off-roading and overlanding focused. We are planning a 8-10 day trip out west hitting trails and boondocking, plus multiple weekend trips around TX. The goal for all of these trips is simply being off pavement, and off grid as much as humanly possible, and doing actual off-roading trails wherever available. Being able to do multi days off grid requires more upgrades IMO to do well and safely. We’re sort of past the whole “take your stock rig out and try it” phase.

NEEDS
-Tires (still on stock size street tires)
-base camp style weather protection/shade (awning or something like that)
-lighting ( OEM headlights suck and that’s all we got)
-In vehicle storage-have good totes, but it’s still messy and unorganized while camping
-recovery (really want a winch-don’t have anything currently other than HD recovery points, traction boards, and a strap and shovel)
-armor (OEM front and gas skid is all we got)

Already got a complete dobinsons suspension setup, recovery points, prinsu rack, all the camping gear we need, RTT, etc. Taken this setup out multiple times this summer, which is where our list of top priority needs have come from.

Pic of the rig fo funsiesView attachment 64670

Pic of our setupView attachment 64669

What would you do? How would you spend our budget, what needs would you address, ignore, etc? Help us out!

I really like the bold approach to pick other members minds before making any decisions. Good Luck!

 

[Ben Cleveland]

Thanks Kyle and Karl!

I feel like an update is due, since we're sort of already in the middle of some of the upgrades listed above.
Added ditch lights this past weekend. Haven't even seen them on at night yet, because we immediately dropped the rig off at the mechanic to hopefully finally actually fix the AC issues that have been plaguing us all summer. But the lights look super bright, mount brackets are solid, and I like it.
These lights, a single OEM style switch mounted in one of the switch blank spots on the dash, polishing the headlights with a $5 turtlewax kit, amber lamin-x on the fogs, and upgrading the H11 lowbeams to H9 bulbs will complete our lighting upgrades for now. Best part is all that has cost us less than $200 total. I honestly saw a HUGE increase in light output just from polishing the headlight lenses.







Up next is a snorkel install plus scuba mod and various waterproofing of connectors...$69 from Amazon plus maybe $20 for diff breather extension odds and ends. I might have been a little excited when the snorkel came in today.



As more of our budget becomes available, I'm going to work on building a low cost plywood platform in the rear (not a fancy drawer system, just something with space underneath for thin stuff, and some tie down points throughout), and we're going to get our hilift stuff.

Fall is my off season, so I'm gearing up for some intensive maintenance stuff too. Water pump replacement, a bunch of fluid changes, gonna be lots of fun. Since I have a lot more free time in the fall and winter, we're trying to focus on more time intensive work on the rig, saving simpler stuff for next spring right before we start our bigger trips.

 

[Lindenwood]

Awesome!

On the drawers, I initially ran with just the platform and no drawers. But, it turns out slide-less drawers were still very cheap and easy to build (only took one sheet of plywood plus some basic handles). It is a little ghetto having to literally drag them out across my cargo carpet, but they are way more useful than simply sliding stuff under the gaps! I think the whole project was about $60-65. I eventually want to box it in with a smooth panel on the bottom against the floor, but it is functional enough now that I haven't bothered (plus I dont know if I can actually get the platform out...).