LROR-June2015-Newsletter - Low Range Off Road Blog

The following morning we headed on towards Murphy Hogback which is a very steep and narrow section of trail. Use
caution here because there is no room for two vehicles to pass. At the top of the Hogback is Murphy A, B, and C camp
sites. This camp easily has some of the best views but the high winds at the top could be a nuisance for campers. The
descent from Murphy’s was another switchback shelf road and at the bottom the terrain slowly changed from steep and
twisty to flat and sandy. Here we traveled around the rim often coming within feet of the drop off to the Green River
below. After roughly 39 miles, day two driving was complete and we rolled into our final camp at Potato Bottom B. This
camp site is in very close proximity of the river but because of the thick undergrowth and steep muddy banks it’s not
worth making the walk. That night we enjoyed some juicy sirloins, loaded mashed potatoes and grilled asparagus.
Copyright© 2015
COMING EVENTS
Issue #30
Orem, Utah June 2015
Colton “CoCo” Cook
Takes 3rd Place at
OSRC in Delta, Utah
A
W.E.Rock
Western Series
Round 2
Rangely, Colorado
June 13 & 14, 2015
27th Annual
Rubithon
nother Old School Rock Crawl is
in the books! This may have been
my first OSRC (and first
competition) but after judging the
year before, I was really excited to
compete this year.
We pulled up to course 5 on Friday
afternoon for our first course of the
day. We had a bit of a hang up on
the crack at the beginning of the
course, but eventually the buggy
crawled up it. The backside had a
big drop off that we were attempting
to drop into, between the two cones. When we dropped off the wall, the
buggy pitched itself, and we ended
The Rubicon Trail
June 23-28, 2015
FJ Summit
Ouray, Colorado
July 15-19, 2015
up rolling. After getting right side up,
we realized we should have just
taken the cone, and kept on moving. Funny thing was when I rolled; one of
the spikes stabbed the cone we were
trying to make it between.
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The next course covered some
terrain, but we were able to complete
the course and ended with a score of
2. This course had a new obstacle
on it, which consisted of a big wall to
climb up, then cross, and drop back
off the other side. After rolling on the
previous course, the steep drop offs
had me a little nervous, but as I
descended, I gave it a little throttle to
roll off and finished the course.
Course 7 was proving to be an issue
for most of the Pro Mod/Unlimited
rigs; everyone was timing out on a
steep wall that would high center the
rigs on their bellies. We gave it our
best shot, but also timed out.
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until then, and I was glad I was able to conquer the
obstacle I was most nervous about, and had denied
so many other rigs in the two day event. We ended
the course with a -19, my best of the event.
Course 2 was a fun course that involved a canyon
like section, and a couple tight turns. No issues on
this course to report other than a cone or two, and
we completed the course.
Course 8 was a fun short boulder-type course, and
was actually the course I judged last year. Though it
was setup differently, I had some experience with it,
and felt like we would do well. We took a couple
cones, but completed the course.
Saturday morning brought course 1, which was
probably the course I was the most anxious about. This course featured the infamous tube obstacle
called "The Vortex", a steep climb to the top of a
tube, then back down the other side. After
completing the rest of the course, it was time for the
“Vortex”. My spotter and I previously discussed
going up the unlimited only line for a -15 bonus if
completed. As I lined up for the tube, I gave it a
couple tries in different gearing options, but couldn't
get it to climb. I
backed down,
and decided
Up
for high in the
first case, low
in the 4.7 rear
case, and first
gear in the
transmission. After a hop or
two, I was on top of the tube! The adrenalin rush was
nothing like I had
experienced in the event
Course 3 brought "The Matterhorn"; another steep
wall climb, and another terrain covering course. This
course had a gatekeeper type entrance that would
also get you high centered if not hit with some
throttle. We entered the course cleanly and as we
progressed, we realized we had the course wrong,
and our next gate was different from the one we
walked at the beginning of the day. We quickly
corrected course, and continued on. As I pulled
around and lined up for the Matterhorn, we were
running out of time, I gave it several
tries in several different gear options,
but my motor didn't have the power
to keep the tires moving near the top
Over
of the climb (time for a turbo!). We
timed out on this course.
The final course of the event had a
steep wall climb entrance, and
circled back down through another
tight canyon, then back up near
the starting wall, then a hard right
turn and back down. We started
the course cleanly, and entered
the canyon. Continued on Next Page
"The Vortex"
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As we got into the canyon, I got sideways, and we
worked on getting free. The buggy layed on its right
side a couple times while working to get free, and
ultimately in the hole we were trapped, the right side
6 ARP hub studs let go on my FJ80 front axle.
(REALLY need Studless FJ80 Hubs! *cough TrailGear cough*) We gave it one last attempt to continue
the course, but without that tire spinning, we weren't
going anywhere. Recovery lifted the buggy free, and
we were done with the event.
After the scores were tallied, we walked away with
3rd place in the Pro Mod class! Not bad for my first
competition! All-in-all a VERY FUN event, and a
great time! I wish to thank my dad Jerry Cook for
spotting for me
in the event; I
don't think I
would have
done nearly
as well
without you! My mom
Lisa for her
support, and
tears of joy
after course
1 :) and all
my friends
Jerry Cook
and family
Colton “Coco” Cook
that were
there to help
support me.
Click Here to See Video
of Old School Rock
Crawl featured on At
Your Leisure TV. Click
Here to See Video of Old
S c h o o l R o c k C r awl
featured on At Your
Leisure TV.
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COMPETITION
REPORT
June
the rock cross. However,
we would like to
congratulate our spotter,
Casey Beach, on his first
place finish!
In addition to competing,
we also hosted a bingo
night to raise additional
funds for the OSRC. We
would like to thank
everyone who played
bingo with us. You
helped us raise over $300
for the next OSRC event!
We would also like to
thank the following
entities for donating
bingo prizes:
McGhie Offroad just returned home from
one of our favorite events of the year - The
Old School Rock Crawl in Delta, UT. This
event features classic cone dodging, a rock
cross race, and even a lawn mower race!
Rock Crawl: There was stiff competition
in the unlimited class including
professional rock crawlers Jesse Haines,
Todd Young, Steve Nantz, and Jared Neff.
Day 1 was a bit of a roller coaster with us
timing out on our first course but managing
to upright the vehicle from a tip over and
successfully complete our second course.
On day 2 we drove over the dreaded Delta
tunnel on our first try and even managed to
throw free t-shirts to the crowd from the
top of the tunnel! (T-shirts courtesy of KC
HiLiTES). It was exciting to compete
against some of the best rock crawlers
around and we are very proud of our 4th
place finish.
Rock Cross Race: Due to damage
resulting from the rock crawl, we were
unfortunately unable to race the 222 car in
KC HiLiTES • Low Range Offroad • The Sickline
• Teraflex Dirt Dreamers Photography •
Midnight 4x4 • Armor Coatings Craig Stumph •
Captain Rob Racing • Unlimited Fabrication
Type to enter text
[4]
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PARKER NOT PARKED AT
OLD SCHOOL ROCK CRAWL
By
Parker Jackson
watch!my!friends!attempt!the!tunnel,!some!
made!it!up!and!over!(kudos!to!Maddie!and!
CoCo!)!and!some!were!less!fortunate.!
!
The!mower!races!were!a!blast!to!
watch,!Captain!Rob's!Racing!had!a!pretty!
!
The!Old!School!Rock!Crawl!is,!by!far,!the!
greatest!event!I!have!been!to!thus!far.!Everyone!I!
knew!was!there!and!I!was!able!to!make!some!
new!friends!as!well.!!The!competition!for!both!
days!was!so!exciting!and!so!much!fun!that!half!
the!time!I!forgot!that!there!was!a!competition!
going!on.!!!I!didn't!see!anyone!letting!the!fact!that!
they!were!competing!get!to!their!heads!and!
everyone!had!a!great!attitude!about!the!whole!
weekend.!!
!
Day!one!was!a!lot!of!introductions!and!
"wait,!what!are!we!supposed!to!do?"!questions,!
along!with!a!lot!of!great!learning!experiences.!!
Lessons!like!putting!money!into!quality!parts!
being!one!of!those!learning!experiences.!!!I!was!
able!to!see!some!of!the!greatest!of!drivers!doing!
what!they!love!with!a!smile!on!their!faces.!!!I!even!
got!to!witness!some!pretty!gnarly!carnage.!!
Day!2!was!definitely!a!“tiring”!day.!!!But,!the!
weather!was!great,!not!too!hot,!and!not!too!cool!
with!a!bit!of!rain!here!and!there.!!I!was!able!to!
amazing!mower!in!the!event!!!
!
All!in!all!it!was!an!amazing!
weekend!with!some!of!the!greatest!of!people!
and!even!more!amazing!sponsors!to!put!the!
whole!show!together!!!!I!could!not!be!happier!
with!the!off!road!family!I!am!growing!to!love!and!
even!more!pleased!to!be!employed!by!Low!Range!
OffRRoad!who!had!a!huge!hand!in!everything!that!
went!on!at!the!OSRC!!!I!cannot!wait!until!next!
year’s!event.!!I'll!be!a!lot!more!prepared.!
[5]
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COMPETITION
REPORT
June
MY FIRST COMPETITION
old school rock crawl was my first time
Devereltacompeting
in an event. On day one and the
last course of the day, I ended up blowing up my
front ring and pinion. On day two I tried every
course in 2WD because I did not want to give
up. At the end of the event I knew I did really
well for being IFS and open “diff” in front. The
only damage I sustained was a blown front ring
and pinion, cracked radiator, broken fan, broken
bumper mount and some body damage from a
By
Tyler Roundy
spotting me. Also, huge thanks to Low Range
Off-Road and everyone else who helped me
along the way! I'm ready for next year, even
though my 4Runner isn't.
!!!!!!
recovery. Huge thanks to Capt. Rob Flandro for
getting my 4Runner ready for the event and
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[6]
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Captain'Rob'Goes'Big'at'the'Delta'
Old'School'Rock'Crawl
Captain'Rob'fought'hard'the'first'day'taking'his'wide'
ultra4'car'in'Pro'Mod,'the'cones'were'tight'but'with'
some'careful'help'of'his'spotter,'Oliver'Bradstreet,'
they'made'light'work'of'the'courses.'The'last'course'
of'the'day'had'some'steep'climbs'but'the'Maxxis'
Trepadors'didn’t'bat'an'eye'as'the'Jimmy’s'car'
hopped'right'up.
Day'two'took'a'rough'turn'as'Rob'and'Olly'geared'
up'to'take'on'the'“Delta'Vortex'Tube”.'They'lined'up'
and'hit'the'tube'with'just'too'much'power,'sending'
the'green'machine'skyward'then'backwards'onto'it’s'
top.'The'car'hit'so'hard,'it'broke'the'steering'wheel.'
Medical'crews'and'officials'were'quick'on'the'
scene.''However,'Rob'and'Olly'jumped'right'out'
without'any'injuries.''The'impact'jarred'the'
steering'pump'and'bent'the'links'so'they'had'to'
opt'out'of'the'rest'of'the'event.'All'in'all'Rob'
was'amazed'with'the'engineering'in'the'jimmy’s'
4x4'car'and'how'well'the'safety'equipment'
worked'from'DJ'Safety.'
!!!!
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Nick Schaefer Competes
at the
Delta Old School Rock Crawl
Delta Tower
By
Nick Schaefer
one to run Pro Mod lines in my group. We went
through pretty cleanly with only two backs, and no
cones . . . until the “Delta Tower” or what some call
the “Vortex”. I tried to get up it for almost four
minutes until my time ran out.
It was at this point that I realize I didn't have
any charge in my shocks. So I got my shocks
charge up (thanks to Chad of Pandemonium
Motorsports) and headed for course number 2. At
the start of course 2, there was a little confusion as
to where the Pro Mod cars were supposed to go and
we got sent into a bad direction. While trying to
make it back to where we needed to be, I broke a
rear axle shaft. Not knowing it had broken, we
continued further into the course where I fell into a
crack with only one tire touching. Sadly, it was the
tire with the broken shaft. We timed out, and had to
have the “crane-of-shame” pull us out.
I quickly headed over to camp, pulled the rear
axle apart and found that I had broken one shaft
clean off and twisted another. Because I, nor
anyone else, had any spare axles this was the end of
the event for me.
I want to thank Josh England for spotting,
and helping with the rebuilding process. Thanks also
to Low Range Off-Road, JM Rigging Supply, Armor
Coating, Williams Lighting, Blue Coils, and my mom
and dad.
T
his was my first time competing in my own
car. I have been co driving and navigating with
Captain Rob for the past 3 years.
Three weeks before the event I decided to
cut my car in half
and rebuild it. I
switched out the
axles, all the
suspension, the
steering, and
redid most of
the tube work.
I got it all done
the night before
the event, and
headed to Delta,
Utah. Thankfully,
it is nice and close; only an hour and half drive from
Orem, Utah. Soon, I was settled in and the party
began. I go to most of the off-roading events in our
area and this is, without a doubt, my favorite.
Now, race day is finally here. I was placed in
the middle of my group on course 1. I was the first
Hopefully I will see you all at W.E. Rock
Western Round 2 at Rangely Colorado June
13th-14th.
[8]
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Maddie’s F irst Rock
Crawl Competition
By Husband and Spotter
James Blackburn
COMPETITION
REPORT
June
Maddie has had her own buggy 3 years
now. She has really improved as a
driver and decided it was finally time
to compete at a rock crawl. We figured
Delta would be the perfect event.
We made it to Delta, walked the
courses and realized it was going to be
a lot tougher than we thought. Her
buggy is long, low, wide, and can not
do front digs. The courses were very
tight and technical and did not cater
to big wide vehicles, so we came up
with a new game plan; avoid the
“crane-of-shame” and HAVE FUN!
either course. The 3rd course went
much better, except I (her spotter)
stopped her to take a picture with my
cell phone. She yelled at me and I
didn't get the pic, luckily Britney the
LROR photographer was right there
and got some good pics! (See Next
Page)
On day 1 things started out about
how we expected. The first 2 courses
were rough and the break-over angle
on her buggy kept her from finishing
Continued On Next Page
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Continued From Previous Page
Then on to the last course for the day, which has
the Tube, Vortex, Delta tower or whatever you
want to call it. We had been excited for this
obstacle because it is big, tall and scary; perfect
for her buggy. I choose to ride with her so we
could get a -15 point bonus for the “spotter
ride”. It was the most scared I have ever been
in my life! Maddie and the buggy did awesome
though and we ended the day on a great note.
I wanted to call it quits at this point. We had had
fun and not broken anything, but Maddie was
determined to keep on going even though we
had some of the most technical courses still
ahead of us. It didn't go to well for us on day 2.
We ended up breaking a Dana 60 35 spline hub,
air shock, Driveline CV, my cell phone, and
stripping a pinion
nut. The worst
part was we ended
up having to get
picked up by the
crane of shame!
We reached our
other goal of
having fun though!
Maddie ended up
taking 5th place in her class. We are hoping to
build her a better promod buggy for next year!
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OTHER FRIENDS OF
LOW RANGE OFF-ROAD
AT
OLD SCHOOL ROCK CRAWL
Bryan& “Ponyboy”& Montague& drove &Captain&Rob&&
Flandro’s&old&Toyota &and& despite&a &broken& axle&
and& some& roll& overs& finished& with& a & solid& 7th&
place,&in&the&legends&class.
EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT
Meet: Jesus Roberto Osuna
Jacob& “hippie”& Laroque& came& out& strong& with&
6th&place&in&the&Promod&Class &and&as&always&was&
a&crowd&favorite!
Q: What is your job/role at Low Range Off-Road?
Q: How long have you been working here?
Salesman
Approximately a month and
a half.
Q: What is the best thing you like about working here?
The
atmosphere is cool and calm.
Q: Where are you originally from?
Q: What's your background?
Phoenix, Arizona Coal Mining and other small jobs in the
automotive field.
Q: Any favorite sports teams? Not the biggest fan of sports, but I like
boxing, does that count? If so then I like “GGG” (Gennady Gennadyevich Golovkin)
better known as the “Goodboy Killer.”
Q: What vehicles do you own?
1991 Toyota 4Runner & a 2008 Yamaha R1
motorbike.
Q: What is your family like? We are very close. If anyone in the family
needs help, everyone pulls together to help out as best they can.
Q: What are your hobbies?
Going to the gym, eating (I consider that a
hobby) riding my bike and wheeling anything outdoors.
Q: When you were young, what did you want to be when you
grew up? A Wrestler.
Q: What is your favorite restaurant?
Q: What is something that people may not know about you?
My mom’s kitchen, real authentic.
I’m not to sure, but if there is something
specifically you want to know; it doesn’t hurt to ask :)
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1985 Toyota
June 4Runner
By Owner:
RIG OF THE
MONTH
From:
Dustin H. Wright
Wilsonville, Alabama, USA
My most notable improvement was the Hy-steer. I am currently saving for
4.70 transfer case gear install. The only thing I wish I had done differently is
the rear leaf springs; 64" is too long to bob the body. The rig of the month is
a great motivator for me and being chosen would be a honor.
Modification:
• Rear, 5.29, locker, chevy springs, ubolt flip.
• Front, 5.29, spool, Ruf, drop hanger,
Hy-steer, u-bolt flip, square drive shaft
• Bumpers front and rear I built, front
has 32" LED light bar mounted over
8500 lbs Superwinch, with four 4"
LED on the sides.
• Soft top I built
• Shock hoops I built
• Trimmed front, trimmed and tubbed
rear fenders.
• Rebuilt 22re
• Front seats out of Geo tracker.
• 33" Dick Cepek Mud Country Tires
• LED SMD rock lights
$50.00 Gift
Certificate
awarded every
month to the Rig
of the Month Winner! Simply
send your pics and mod list to
[email protected]
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FEATUREDSUPPLIER
June
ICON Vehicle Dynamics products are a mainstay at Low Range Off for a
reason. ICON strives to be miles ahead of the competition when it comes
to design and engineering. How can they stay ahead? ICON is
run by engineers who are the driving
force of their entire product line and
manufacturing process. This is only
possible because all of ICON laser
cutting, metal forming, CNC
machining, welding and assembly is
done in house at ICON's
headquarters in Riverside,
California. ICON strives
to offer products that
represent perfection in
both function and
aesthetics.
ICON Vehicle Dynamics
suspension systems are
much more than your
standard “lift kit”.
Through a process of
"holistic engineering,"
ICON analyzes a vehicle
from front to back in an
effort to find any disadvantages that may
be addressed when designing their
product. Rather than focus solely on
increasing lift height, or ways to make
money- ICON engineers develop vehiclespecific components that maximize wheel
travel and ride quality. All of this helps
ICON to create a perfect match of on and
off-road driving styles. Continued on Next Page
2005-2015 Toyota Tacoma Stage 4
Suspension System
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Continued From Previous Page
With most kits being bolt on, even your
weekend warrior can tackle the install of
almost any ICON suspension kit.
ICON's components are organized into
several staged systems, allowing you to
choose the level of performance that
suits your budget or driving style. ICON
offers superbly made shock bodies,
optional reservoirs and 6061 aircraft
aluminum components. They also have
ICON spec'd Eibach Coils and FK Rod
ends pre-installed on their coilovers.
Quality, performance, and service are at
the core of everything ICON does. ICON
knows how to make a product last and
handle even the toughest of beatings. A
testament to this is the teams ICON
supports in racing. Two of these names
are Tom Wayes in Ultra 4 Racing,
and Eric Barron of LOORRS short
course competition racing. These race
vehicles help ICON engineers to develop
and accelerate testing to continually
improve on the product line - making
them experts in vehicle dampening and
control. Tom Wayes
ICON Products are made in the USA by
a team of passionate Off-Road
enthusiasts like you and us. If you
install any ICON product on your vehicle,
it will have you staring back as you walk
away.
Eric Barron
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FEATURED
PRODUCTS
June
All prices subject
to change without
notice!
1989-1998 Suzuki Sidekick, Tracker, X90,
n
Sunrunner Front Frame Plate
ru
for SAS Solid Axle Swaps
to
ts ki n d
n
ou zu l o ne
If you want to weld spring mounts to run leaf
m r Su ima esig w
g
f
in you min s d allo ea ng
springs on the front of your Suzuki Sidekick,
r
a
L
ri
sp f y w o a
the options are very minimal on how to
ld nt o ver ate le t yot d sp f
e
w o e l ic o l o
mount them. This plate was designed to
o e fr s ar is p veh or T we ont very
t
weld to the front of the vehicle to allow for
nt n th ion . Th the rai t to e fr re
a
a
t
n h
u
w o
easy welding of Samurai or Toyota Leaf
u gs e op hem t of am wa n t ons
o
t n S u o ti
y in h
Spring Hangers.
If spr k, t unt fro of f yo ngs op
I ri he
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It creates a starting point by allowing you leaf ekic mo th ding .
sp k, t
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S ow eld w ge le kic
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your spring mounts to the factory thin
to r e g H to i S
material in the area needed to weld to.
fo prin nts zuk
S ou Su
m ur
• Welds directly to frame.
• Works best withyoshackle reversal.
$99.00
• Allows for easy mounting of Low
Profile Front Toyota Spring Hanger
(Using Toyota Front Axle) or Rear
Toyota Spring Hangers or Rear Suzuki
Samurai Spring Hangers (using
Samurai Front Axle).
• Creates a starting point for easier SAS
(Solid Axle Swaps) with use of leaf
springs.
• Made from 1/4" Thick CNC Laser Cut
steel and NC Bent for accuracy.
• Overall Length 32 3/4" (83.19 CM)
1989-1998 Suzuki Sidekick, Geo
Tracker, Vitara, Escudo,
Sunrunner HD Idler Arm Brace
If your idler arm isn't bent
yet, it is only a matter of time
before it is. Low Range Off
Road has created a simple
fix for a common problem.
This bracket strengthens
your factory idler arm by
mounting behind it and
bolting thought the factory
idler arm bolts and
nut.distances.
$23.99
If your idler arm isn't bent yet, it is only a
matter of time before it is. Low Range Off
Road has created a simple fix for a
common problem. This bracket strengthens
your factory idler arm by mounting behind it
and bolting thought the factory idler arm
bolts and nut.distances.
• HD Laser Cut and NC Bent Steel Bracket, Zinc
Plated for Corrosion Resistance
• Grade 8.8 or higher JIS Bolts w/lock washers.
• Permatex thread locker for additional insurance.
Fits: All 1989-1998 Suzuki Sidekick, Geo Tracker, X90, Vitara, Escudo, Sunrunner.
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June
$26.79
NEW PRODUCTS
$299.00
Tundra 10.5" 4.88 Ratio Ring
and Pinion, Silverback Gear
$259.00
1989-95
2005-2015 Tacoma | 2007-2011 FJ |
2003-2011 4Runner w/ 4.0L Engine
Transmission Mount
$209.00
1996-98
$299.00
Works with
Samurai
Calipers and
Rotors Which
are Sold
Separately
All prices subject
to change without
notice!
We have FULL COLOR
INSTRUCTIONS for many of
our products. Check it out!
CLICK HERE!
1989-1998 Suzuki Sidekick / Tracker /
Escudo / Vitara Rear Disk Brake Kits
Windows
$1.99
2005-2015 Toyota Tacoma |
2003-2016 4Runner | 2007-2014
FJ Cruiser Front and Rear
Wheel Stud
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Tundra 9.5" Reverse 4.88 Ratio
Ring and Pinion, Silverback Gear
$52.50
Quick Disconnect Mud Flap
Hanger Kit, 3" Drop
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