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Ryan Kovac photos
From Tundra to T-REX - 1
The plan of attack consisted of a BDS 7-in. lift kit with Fox coil-overs, Radflo bump stops and TMR bump stop cans. That should take care of the big hits. The Tundra had previously been fitted with some teeth power wise with a TRD super charger and TRD true dual exhaust.
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Ryan Kovac photos
From Tundra to T-REX - 2
TMR Bump stop cans were grafted into the stock bump stop mounts and boxed for strength. These were filled with Radflo 2.0-in. air bumps with 4-in. of travel, which are both rebuildable and tunable. We cycled the suspension to insure we got the maximum amount of available travel with out any binding of the CV shafts at full compression and extension.
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Ryan Kovac photos
From Tundra to T-REX - 3
Rear air bumps were also incorporated in to the factory bump stop locations and the rear portion of the frame was boxed to help prevent the frame from twisting under heavy impacts. Custom bump stop pads were fabricated along with extended sway bar links for the TRD rear sway bar. The rear suspension is lifted with 4-in. blocks and dampened by Fox shocks.
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Ryan Kovac photos
From Tundra to T-REX - 4
BDS offers this 7-in. Toyota Tundra suspension system featuring Fox 2.5-in. coil-over remote reservoir shocks. This system has been rigorously tested to maximize travel and performance on and off the pavement. Looking to maximize the drop travel, we adjusted the ride height 2-in. lower. This provided us with 10.5-in. of suspension travel up front and 11-in. in the rear. We charged the air bumps to 150 psi and the coil-overs to 100 psi as a baseline.
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Ryan Kovac photos
From Tundra to T-REX - 5
This system utilizes 1/4-in. steel one-piece front & rear cross members coupled with a 1/4 skid plate to protect the front differential and tie the cross members together.
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From Tundra to T-REX - 6
Precision machined ductile cast iron steering knuckles. The knuckles are also considerably more robust in both the mass and strength categories over the rather light-duty stock components. The steering knuckles are designed to work within the factory traction control constraints and provide stock-like handling characteristics.
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Ryan Kovac photos
From Tundra to T-REX - 7
We went with Mickey Thompson Baja Claws 35/12.5/17 to give the Tundra some serious off road traction. The tires were wrapped around Dick Cepek Torque 17x9 wheels . These wheels are designed for late model trucks to clear large brakes and beefy aftermarket steering knuckles.
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Ryan Kovac photos
From Tundra to T-REX - 8
The race proven Fox 2.5-in. coil-over front shocks with the external reservoir mounted up and out of the way of the front tires. The external reservoir increases oil cooling capacity and nitrogen volume for a more consistent and comfortable ride over large bumps at speed.
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Ryan Kovac photos
From Tundra to T-REX - 9
T-Rex is jacked and ready for attack. Next time we will turn our attention to reinforcing the frame, trussing the rear axle, installing Ready Lift off road series control arms, bumpers and roll cage.
Story and photos by Ryan Kovac
Adam's 2013 Toyota Tundra arrived at the shop a little banged up. Apparently he had mistaken the Tundra for a Raptor? The Tundra is no slouch of a pickup, but it was going to require some mechanical wizardry if it was going to take a bite out of Ford's flagship off-roader. We were ready to work some magic and knew a thing or two about Raptors, and what it might take to compete with them.
All the above-mentioned parts can be seen online at www.4wdaddiction.com.