Ratsack's 90 Series Prado

[ratsack Member Find all posts View Profile Close ratsack]

Originally bought this vehicle in November of 2012 as we were thinking about a replacement vehicle for our Holden Commodore VT and seen the Prado advertised locally on the side of the road. It all started there. Local was easy and no mucking around, the Prado only had around 125000km on it, had been well looked after, and basically only used as a city car (had only used 4WD a handful of times).

Current mods;
2" Lift - Tough Dog Shocks + Tough Dog HD front coils, King Springs HD rear coils
TJM T15 Steel Bull Bar + Custom Winch Cradle & Warn Magnum 9K Winch
Steel Sliders/Side Steps
TJM Airtec Snorkel
2.2M Steel Roof Rack
Tigerz11 2m x 2.5m Side Awning + Tigerz11 1.4m x 2m Rear Awning
Spare Wheel Rubbish Bag
Uniden UH7700NB (AT700 Aerial) & Alpine 7" DVD Head Unit
Mickey Thompson ATZ 4-Rib 265/75/16 (On Patrol Steel Rims)
IPF 800XS, 13.5" 72W LED Light Bar & +120% Head Light Bulbs
Redarc BCDC1220 + Champion 110Ah AGM Deep Cycle
Companion Xero 45L Fridge/Freezer (COMP45LMPC) + Waeco BordBar 8L (TB-08G) Center Console
Outbac 150L/min Air Compressor + 9L Air Tank (with cut-off: 90PSI on, 105PSI off)
Custom Rear Drawers
Extended Front/Rear Diff Breathers
AMTS Tyre Carrier Spacer + Light Mount Option With Reverse/Camp LED Light
Upgraded 2x Front Recovery/Tow Points + Rear Recovery Hitch
Swapped Center Muffler For Sports Muffler
Modified Front & Rear Mud Flaps

Future:
Brushbars
Rear E-Locker
Custom Steel Rear Bar


Still got a few mods to do but slowly getting there and having fun while doing it. The vehicle isn't a power house but still has enough speed for fun and plenty for 4WD'ing. 160L worth of fuel in the tanks last a decent amount to not have to worry as well.

[ratsack Member Find all posts View Profile Close ratsack]

Stock as a rock;



After the lift + bullbar;



With some Mickey Thompson ATZ 265/75/16;


With the LED light bar;


A little flex;



With the roof rack;


Most current picture:

[Ian Reid Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Reid]

Good to see what mine will look like after mods as its same model and colour. Though looking at some of your other shots maybe a set of Maxtrax might be a priority?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[ratsack Member Find all posts View Profile Close ratsack]

Good to see what mine will look like after mods as its same model and colour. Though looking at some of your other shots maybe a set of Maxtrax might be a priority?

Yeah, after I get the roof rack and awning... I don't even have a recovery kit at the moment so that'll probably come before the roof rack + awning.
We only go for drives with my nephew and he has a winch and recovery gear on his 04 SR Hilux (with 2" lift). So that's why I haven't worried about it yet.

Nice vehicle though. No issues so far and I prefer the older feel/roughness of the 90 series compared to the newer Prado's. Makes me feel like I'm driving more of a 4WD.

[Ian Reid Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Reid]

Yeah i just got a new 150 but am thinking of doing the 90 up. Looks just like yours. Needs a new rear main seal but figure i can mod it and if i break it no harm.

[ratsack Member Find all posts View Profile Close ratsack]

Well, just ran the wiring from the engine bay to the back of the vehicle. I only have a crappy soldering iron so I'll be going out to my brother-in-law's sometime today and will solder all the connections up. I used 4m of 8mm double insulated cable which should do the job just fine. 4m only JUST reaches so anyone who's thinking of doing the same, I suggest you get 5m of cable so you have a little spare to play with. Should have it all wired and ready by this afternoon so then when I can afford a battery, I'll just chuck it in and go hard.

[ratsack Member Find all posts View Profile Close ratsack]

Well, dual battery setup is all connected now (finished on Monday). Just need a battery and I can test it out!

Also, just before I picked up a Waeco Cooly T32-12 (LINK) for $10!! All that's wrong with it (that I can tell) is the 12V ciggy connector has a blown fuse. Cut the wires and connected directly to the battery and it powered up. So I'll be going down town tomorrow to grab a new connector for it. Pretty excited as we were wanting a fridge but didn't really have the money for it. Even if it only "cools" and doesn't keep stuff cold, that's enough to keep us happy until we have some money.

[ratsack Member Find all posts View Profile Close ratsack]

Got a 1700x900x15 piece of MDF earlier so I can do something like mentioned here; 3rd row seats out, rear shelf installed
Hopefully get it cut sometime before or over the weekend. Should also help the dog stay a little more sturdy when he's in the back (instead of trying to balance between a swag, battery box, chairs, and picnic bag).

Next time I go to bunnings, I'll get a thinner/smaller bit for the a trek table. Everything is slowly getting there!

[ratsack Member Find all posts View Profile Close ratsack]

Well, I just ordered a Champion 110ah battery off Ebay. Should hopefully be here in a few days. Can finally use the dual battery setup.

The piece of "wood" I got the other day was just that stuff that's basically like a few layers of cardboard. I'll just use it as a template and then get a decent piece of marine ply and cover it in marine carpet (or whatever it's called).

Next on the list is a alloy/aluminum roof rack. Thinking of just going a 180cm one.

[Steevo Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steevo]

Looks good mate

[glen_ep Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close glen_ep]

Coming along nicely mate! Where will the second battery be located? I may have to finally install one myself for a fridge.

[ratsack Member Find all posts View Profile Close ratsack]

It's in a Projecta battery box in the rear foot well on the passengers side (fridge is on the seat above it). I originally wanted it in the boot but with the shelf in there, the battery box is too tall and with the dog in the boot things may get nasty. I may end up moving it back in the boot but for now, it'll stay where it is.

Anyone got any recommendations on where I should put my little compressor?
Maybe I should make a little housing and put it and the battery box in it, in the boot?

[Steevo Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steevo]

Ratsack on my previous prado (96) I mounted my compressor in the engine bay in front of the firewall drivers side. I cant do it on this one as it has all the elect crap in the way. I mounted my compressor under the storage unit in the rear between the drawer and cargo barrier. I plumbed the hose to the front of the unit so all you see is the conection for the hose and the switch. Works good. I had my aux battery in there too but ended up fitting a holder under the bonnet and swapped my starter battery into that and my aux is in the factory battery cradle. Its great I have a 120AH battery there but could go bigger if I chose to

[glen_ep Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close glen_ep]

My ARB car mounted one is in the engine bay above the driver wheel (between airbox and cruise control). Always been happy with that location as I don't want to consume cabin storage space and the ARB lockers keep dripping oil from via the release valves (better to mess the engine bay rather than my interior).

[ratsack Member Find all posts View Profile Close ratsack]

My is just one of your normal portable 150L/min compressors, will it be fine in the engine bay? If it'll be fine in there, that might be where I'll put it.