A Long Travel TRD Pro 4Runner Done Right

Long Travel TRD Pro 4Runner

Seth Kovanic is a passionate Toyota enthusiast, even helping run the annual Toyota off-road enthusiast gathering known as the FJ Summit. He got a sneak peak of the ’15 TRD Pro 4Runner at the 2014 FJ Summit, and instantly had to have one. He quickly put in an order at his local dealership in Pennsylvania and was one of the first in the country to get one of the new trucks in December of 2014.

Since taking delivery, Kovanic has used this Inferno ’15 TRD Pro 4Runner as his daily driver, road trip vehicle and trail rig, putting in about 93,000 miles of seat time so far. Toyota reliability has also proven itself on this truck, as it hasn’t had a single issue since new.

Before the 4Runner, Kovanic had a fully off-road modified ’07 FJ Cruiser. While he loved the FJ for its off-road prowess and quirky style, the 4Runner is better in many ways— most notably because it has 4 doors, more interior space and is far more comfortable on long road trips.

“EACH MODIFICATION WAS CAREFULLY CHOSEN TO IMPROVE OFF-ROAD CAPABILITY, WHILE HAVING THE LEAST NEGATIVE IMPACT ON STREET AND OFF-ROAD COMFORT AND PERFORMANCE.”

Early Years

For nearly two years, Kovanic did little to modify the already capable TRD Pro 4Runner. The only upgrade he did was fit larger tires. He stuck with the same Nitto Terra Grapplers that came on the truck from the factory, but increased their size from 31.5 inches (265/70/17) to 32.7 inches (285/70/17), which fit on the truck with no other modifications.

Within a month of getting the 4Runner, it was getting muddy at Rausch Creek Off-Road Park. It was mostly frozen mud, as it was the dead of winter in Pennsylvania, but it thoroughly tested all the off-road systems the TRD Pro 4Runner has to offer. Over the first two years of ownership Kovanic took this rig wheeling all over the country; Pennsylvania, Maryland, North Carolina, Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas. It was mostly easy and medium difficulty terrain, but the 4Runner handled it all with ease, especially considering it was only running a slightly larger tire.

Upgrade Time

After a few years of seat time, in a wide variety of conditions, Kovanic was ready to upgrade the capabilities of his 4Runner so he could explore even more remote and difficult terrain. Each modification was carefully chosen to improve off-road capability, while having the least negative impact on street and off-road comfort and performance.

An ARB Diff Breather Kit and Safari Snorkel make sure that the engine and diffs get clean air, no matter the dusty or wet conditions this rig might encounter. Metal-Tech 4×4 SR5 Sliders and a full set of RCI Aluminum Skid Plates protect this rig from impacts off road. Behind the front grill you’ll find a Rigid Industries 20-inch LED lightbar, with a driving/hyperspot combo light pattern, that truly lights up the night.

“DESPITE HAVING NO FRONT SWAY BAR, THE 4RUNNER IS NOW EXTREMELY STABLE WHEN CORNERING, UNDER AGGRESSIVE ACCELERATION AND IN HARD BRAKING SCENARIOS, EVEN AT HIGH SPEEDS.”

Going Long Travel

In the spring of 2017 Kovanic decided to take this 4Runner to a whole new level. He decided to have the whole suspension redone, with a Total Chaos Race Series inch Long Travel Kit. This kit consists of: chromoly boxed lower control arms, spindle gussets with sway bar mount, lower control arm CAM tab gussets, long travel secondary shock hoops, chromoly adjustable complete rear link kit, rear link mount skid plates, extended axels and factory Toyota CVs, limit straps, King 2.5-inch shocks and Old Man Emu 3-inch rear springs.

While Kovanic is a pretty handy mechanic, and had done most of the work on the 4Runner up to this point, he left this major conversion project to the experts at Main Line Overland in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

“THE KEY TO THIS 4RUNNER BUILD HAS BEEN KEEPING THINGS SIMPLE THROUGH USING QUALITY PARTS AND ACCESSORIES THAT TRULY ENHANCE THE PERFORMANCE AND CAPABILITIES OF THE VEHICLE.”

Extensive modifications to the stock vehicle are necessary to make this suspension system seamlessly integrate into the 4Runner chassis. Custom welding and the setup of things like the extended drive shafts and CVs were the most technically demanding aspects of the project. Little things like proper adjustment of limit straps, to maximize suspension travel while avoiding CV bind, are crucial to the durability and performance of the vehicle. Main Line Overland successfully installed and setup the entire system, including optimally tuning the suspension for the wide range of demanding off- and on-road conditions Kovanic would be driving this 4Runner.

This long travel setup also requires the front sway bar to be removed and the windshield washer fluid reservoir to be moved or upgraded. In order to help keep stability in the front end, without the sway bar, additional King bypass shocks were added up front. The new shock towers interfere with where the original windshield washer fluid reservoir lives, so Kovanic upgraded to a custom reservoir by ShockWorks. At $269 it might be one of the most expensive windshield washer fluid reservoirs out there.

Long Travel Adventures

The long travel suspension has improved this 4Runner in so many ways. The most surprising to many is that it handles much better than stock on road. The suspension is easily adjusted for on road performance with the adjustable remote reservoir King shocks. Despite having no front sway bar, the 4Runner is now extremely stable when cornering, under aggressive acceleration and in hard braking scenarios, even at high speeds.

When off road there is little comparison to the stock version of this truck. Kovanic says, “It is almost like cheating when you are wheeling.” The faster he pushes, even when the terrain gets rough, the better this suspension performs. It is very hard to find the limits of this suspension, especially without breaking the rest of the truck. Kovanic’s favorite feature of this suspension is the adjustable King shocks, as they allow him to quickly and easily tune the ride for the terrain he’s about to tackle. This comes in extremely handy when doing big road trips that involve long highway miles, tight rocky trails and high speed desert driving, a situation Kovanic finds himself in often.

Since the long travel upgrade, this 4Runner has been off road in Vermont, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, New Mexico and Colorado. The harshest conditions it’s seen have been in North Carolina’s Uwharrie National Forest and in the Rausch Creek Off-Road Park in Pennsylvania. Both of these places offer very technically demanding off-road trails. Some of Kovanic’s favorite trails he’s driven this truck are in the mountains around Ouray, Colorado.

Final Details

A project like this is never truly finished, but Kovanic is determined to keep the truck looking pretty stock, through the addition of only tasteful and purposeful modifications. With the new suspension greatly increasing the 4Runner’s capabilities and Kovanic’s desire to really push the limits of his off-road vehicle, it was important to improve the recovery capabilities.

A Southern Style Offroad Slimline Hybrid Front Bumper was mounted up front, providing more impact protection, solid recovery points and a secure winch mount. A Warn Zeon 10-S Winch is tucked away behind this bumper, and utilizes a Factor 55 FlatLink for safer closed-system winching.

Kovanic has stuck with the moderately sized 32.7-inch Nitto Ridge Grappler tires he put on this truck early on. This tire model and size provides capability and comfort both on and off road. It also allows the truck to run well in a wide range of conditions with stock gearing, which wouldn’t be possible with larger tires.

“EXTENSIVE MODIFICATIONS TO THE STOCK VEHICLE ARE NECESSARY TO MAKE THIS SUSPENSION SYSTEM SEAMLESSLY INTEGRATE INTO THE 4RUNNER CHASSIS.”

Looking Forward

The key to this 4Runner build has been keeping things simple through using quality parts and accessories that truly enhance the performance and capabilities of the vehicle. While it is very well sorted as is, the one thing that could be improved is power from the 4.0L V-6 engine, with only 270 hp. A Magnuson supercharger is in this 4Runner’s near future, and should help fix the power issue, adding another 35 ponies.

While Kovanic has truly used this impressive 4Runner in a wide range of terrains and conditions already, he’s got even bigger adventure dreams in the works. He’s hoping to do even more exploring in the Southwestern US, specifically in New Mexico and California, as well as go on a big road trip to Alaska. Completing the Dalton Highway is something he’d love to check off his bucket list, and this 4Runner is easily up for the challenge.

“WITH THE NEW SUSPENSION GREATLY INCREASING THE 4RUNNER’S CAPABILITIES AND KOVANIC’S DESIRE TO REALLY PUSH THE LIMITS OF HIS OFF-ROAD VEHICLE, IT WAS IMPORTANT TO IMPROVE THE RECOVERY CAPABILITIES.”

UPGRADES

2015 TRD Pro 4Runner

PLATFORM: 2015 TRD PRO 4RUNNER

ENGINE: 4.0L V6, ARB DIFF BREATHER KIT, SHOCKWORKS WASHER FLUID RESERVOIR BOTTLE

SUSPENSION: TOTAL CHAOS RACE SERIES 2-INCH LONG TRAVEL KIT, KING 2.5-INCH SHOCKS, OLD MAN EMU 3-INCH REAR SPRINGS

WHEELS & TIRES: 17-INCH TRD WHEELS, NITTO RIDGE GRAPPLER TIRES 285/70/17

ACCESSORIES: METAL-TECH 4X4 SR5 SLIDERS, RCI ALUMINUM COMPLETE SKID PLATES, SOUTHERN STYLE OFFROAD SLIMLINE HYBRID FRONT BUMPER, ARB SAFARI SNORKEL, WARN ZEON 10-S WINCH, FACTOR 55 FLATLINK, RIGID INDUSTRIES E2-SERIES 20-INCH DRIVING/HYPERSPOT COMBO LED LIGHT BAR