One of my favorite stories transpired when we were camping with neighbors last Labor Day weekend. We each pulled our trailers (our 24’ with the GX, their 17’ with the Diesel Nissan Titan) to a secret camping spot near Buena Vista, Colorado for the long weekend. The time came to head into town to our favorite steak house, Quincy’s, so I suggested we load all 7 of us into the GX.
As we tore down the unmaintained dirt road fully loaded with people, I stepped on the gas. Once we hit about 20mph the suspension really kicked in, and my neighbor Andre asked “wow, how does this thing ride so smooth?”. A Toytec Lift, of course, was my response.
Other than the suspension, I’ve been really pleased with how the Rhino-Rack pioneer platform has worked out. I was able to install our aging Thule ski/snowboard rack right next to the MAXTRAX. That allowed us to easily use the Metal-Tech OPOR sliders to store and retrieve our skis & boards.
For the last year that we owned the truck, we chose do add just a few small touches. The idea was to make the GX a little more useable for our weekly adventures, and help set her up to serve us for years to come. As it turned out, however, we ended up finish this truck of perfect just in time to send her off to a new owner. Read more about that story in a future issue ;)
Our final upgrades to Project 4 began with new all-weather mats throughout the truck. In previous vehicles we’ve run everything from OEM mats, universal fit all-weather, and entry level all weather. For the first and second row in the GX i chose WeatherTech due to their laser fit and well reviewed quality. For the rear cargo area, I wanted to try a Husky Liner. The idea was to compare high-end Husky to high-end WeatherTech.
While we only ran this setup for about 6 months, it was clear that either brand is a major improvement over OEM all-weather mats. If you already have OEM all-weather, wait for them to wear out, or sell them when they’re brand new. The WeatherTech are a little more pliable than Husky, but either version will provide excellent protection.
Another upgrade that was well worth the cost and effort are LED headlights + fog lights. Since the GX uses as standard bulb for both, I found a well-reviewed option from Amazon.com for high/low beams, and Amber for the fogs.
The amount of additional light from both upgrades is nothing short of remarkable. As long as you install the LEDs properly, which is not difficult, they will serve your truck well for years to come.
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While I was working on lighting upgrades, I also ordered a complete interior LED light kit. The kit included all the bulbs needed to outfit the GX. It even included bulbs for the foot light in each door.
When it comes to a perfect Family Adventure vehicle that still has plenty of power + towing capability, the North America market offers nothing better than the GX-460. The well proven Land Cruiser Prado 150 Series based vehicle will last for hundreds of thousands of miles if properly cared for. In all reality, the only reason we ended up switching back to the full size truck platform was for a bit higher towing capacity.
As we say goodbye to our awesome Project 4 Adventure, we know that the new owners will continue the spirit of this build. She’s likely in the middle of the Colorado mountains as you read this article. If you’ve started your own GX build, hit us up on any of the social networks. We’d love to see your vehicle!
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