98 Single Cab Tacoma 2.7L "Smudge"
 

Now that we've made through winter and I no longer must rely on the v6 4x4 for it's capabilties, I splurged ($1,000) and got a flat bed 4 banger manual trans 1st gen Tacoma with 170,067.4 miles on the odometer. It's rough around the edges to say the least, but it rides nice. I got it home and dropped the oil and topped up all the fluids. It's a peppy little thing that I think I'll enjoy using this summer.

The bed height is 32'', width is 63'', and the length is 84''. I have plans to build a rack for it as well.
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Initial 10 mile roundtrip course with Pulse & Glide driving without Engine Off Coasting yielded 37.7mpg uncalibrated on the Ultra Guage. This was after airing the tires to 44psi and removing the passenger wiper. This truck has much taller gearing than the V6, so I found myself wanting to shift early. It doesn't have a tac either which I'll have to add to the front screen on the UG. The UG also powers down when I key off, so I will need to wire in a kill switch in order to EOC.
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I'm excited as this truck is already showing promise and has alot of aero possibilities on the table.

Updated 4/19/15
Current Modifications:
Tires at 55 psi
Passenger Wiper Delete
Grill Block
Moon Hubs
Power Steering Delete
Clutch Driven Fan Delete
1/4 Plywood Sides
Light Weight Wooden Flatbed
Warm Air Intake
Folded Side Mirrors (when not needed)
0-30w Mobile One oil throughout
LED Lights

Planned Modifications:
Aero Cap
Smooth Under panel
Hitch mounted tail extension
Alternator Disable
Kill Switch
Oil Pan Heater
Transmission heater
Coolant Heater

Nice find, those motors last forever.

P.S. How long have you had that Ultra-Gauge? The cheesy little mount broke for mine within like three months. I ended up just putting it in my wife's car sitting above the steering column, so she can still see her instantaneous mpg and average mpg, but nothing else.

Always good to see another taco around.

Are you planning on doing anything with the flat bed, i.e. modification or replacement?

You should consider trying to find a set of cheap 06-11 Honda Civic Hybrid alloy wheels, I believe they share the same lug pattern with your taco (5x114.3mm). All you would have to do is have the centerbore machined out from 64.1mm to 67.1mm. They would be light weight and fairly aerodynamic.

I have to ask… why the name smudge?

Thanks. Yeah these motors are known to go over 300k between overhauls. I've had the UG over a year now, the mount hasn't given me any issues. I woulda called the company and asked for a replacement if it had broke that quickly.



Yeah I really like them. The reliability is pretty incredible. The flat bed is actually a big part of the reason I bought it. I have a used appliance business and will be able to fit 6 units on this little puppy vs 4 in my regular V6 bed. Streamlining will likely be in the future if I can source good materials at a reasonable price.

How expensive/difficult would it be to have those rims machined to fit? Light weight is what I'm looking for. I'm planning to do flat wheel cover so aero/appearance are low on the priority list.

I was surprised when I saw that they were 14" wheels. My first thought was; "would Re92's work on this truck?" I'm considering trying it but I'm not confident the 9xx load rating would be a good idea. I'll probably try to find good cheap used radials for summer use, to replace my rear winterforce tires.

It has allot of permanent stains, interior and exterior. I thought it was appropriate considering the sad state it was in.

Yeah, I got mine about four years ago, so they've probably improved it by now. I would have contacted them, but the paperwork that came with it was so ridiculously strict regarding regular use/breakage that I just didn't really feel like going through them for anything. Plus a replacement mount was like $25., so I fabricated my own until the suction cup stopped working entirely.

Any machine shop with a lathe or milling machine would be able to do it, I am not really sure what they would charge. You would probably want to try to find one that did this sort of work regularly, as it would need to be done correctly. Shouldn’t be to expensive though, and I am sure you could get an estimate prior to buying anything. I know it is a fairly common practice in the off-roading world to have newer OEM alloy wheels machined to fit the larger hub bore on older trucks. The advantage to these wheels would be that they would not need a smooth wheel cover, as their surface is basically already flat.

Ok awesome. I'll be on the lookout for those rims. Added photos to first post*

Two partial fills recorded. Trying to get the UG dialed in. Reported 5-6%+ on both fills.

Just a hair under 40mpg though! I'm thinking 45mpg+ will be possible for the summer with some mods on here. Maybe I'll compete with nathan01xl for top gasser truck honors.

Next tank will have grill block 65+ Vehicle modifications for better fuel economy - EcoModder.com.

14" Full Moon Hub Caps Racing Disc Salt Flats Spun Stainless Full Wheel Covers | eBay hub caps should be here on Monday!

Grill made from my old air dam.

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Utility!
 

Tonight was the first time I put 6 on. Perfect fit! Also added Moons.

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