January 2013

By Jacque Arnondin, TRDParts4U.com
Photos By: Steve Wilson

In 2011 when I first saw the cement gray, Toyota color code (1H5) on the Scion I commented to the Famous “Wilson” of FJCruiserForums.com, that if Toyota ever made an FJC or Tacoma in that color “I had to have one”.
So here we are at the end of 2012, vehicle model year 2013 and I have my (1H5) FJC.  I’m no stranger to the 120/150 platform, but this is my first FJC . I sold a built 2006 Double cab Tacoma to purchase the FJC as my daily driver, light duty camping, and exploration vehicle.   So far I love it!

So many new FJC owners spend hours contemplating where the first $3,000 in modification money will go, so inspired by this thread on FJCrusierForums.com, we put together a few different lists to help you decide where to start. FYI, we upped the amount from the $2,000 to $3,000 to accommodate new tires, since the OEM tires are basically useless off-road. (Editor note: We know many people use stock tires off road and they work just fine, so feel free to ignore these tire recommendations)

The reality is that there’s no simple answer to the “First $3k” question. How you start your mod journey greatly depends on what you plan to do with your FJ Cruiser. Like all things, your initial plan may change over time, but the first step is definitely to think about how your truck will live in the offroad world. In most cases the tires recommended are a ‘plus one’ size, 285/70R17, which is about 1” taller than OEM FJ Tires.

With nearly 100,000 miles on our TRD FJ Cruiser, we’ve decided to rework and upgrade several items to get us ready for year #6 of the magazine and all the excitement that will come with it. In addition to the 100k milestone, our FJ will no longer be a daily driver due to a new member of the Williams household that will be arriving in July. With those things in mind, we’ve decided to work out a list of upgrades we’ll be doing on the truck over the next year. Since this is quite an extensive checklist, we’ll cover aspects of installs in future issues as well as through live streaming and on our website. You can also follow us on Facebook to keep track of our progress.

Just in time to start the new year off right! Our sixth year of publication is upon us and that means it's time for the January 2013 issue of FJC Magazine! This issue is HUGE with tons of great content, including Jacques brand new 2013 Trail Teams Edition (modified courtesy of TRDParts4U), FJ Summit Caribbean coverage, ideas for your first $3k in mods, SEMA 2012 coverage, Springtail Solutions new MPAC FJ MSM Drawer, a National Luna Dual Battery Management system install (thanks to our friends at Equipt), and more!

We're very excited to launch the latest issue of this great magazine in with 40 pages packed with FJC, 4WD, and overland articles, tips and tricks. Click the download button to check it out!

Until next time, Tread Lightly, Stay the Trail, and HAVE FUN!

To get your copy of the January 2013 issue of FJC Magazine: NOTE: Internet Explorer users should right click and select "Save Target As" FIND US ON: Twitter | Facebook