ADVENTURE RIGS

WORDS / PHOTOS: MICHAEL SALVADOR | @4THGENMIKE

[FROM PAVEMENT TO DIRT] Igrew up being into cars, mainly the Tuner car scene - autocross, drifting, and time attack races. As I matured, I started to appreciate cars other than just import cars. I love the heritage of American Muscle, the sexy lines of European race cars, and the technological innovations in Asian vehicles. I certainly can appreciate classic cars more than anything.

I was about 18 years old when my fi rst real exposure to the off -roading scene happened. One day my brother’s best friend took me off -roading in his 1986 SAS (Solid Axle Swap) Toyota pickup truck powered by a 22R-TE motor. Before this, I wasn’t really into off roading, but I was aware of the scene. This single event riding shotgun in a Toyota pickup sparked my interest in off -roading even more. Then I went off to college in Colorado, and one of my closest friends in school had a 1988 2-door Jeep Cherokee with the I6 motor and 4-speed in it. That thing ripped! These exposures to 4x4 vehicles solidifi ed my interest and involvement with off -road rigs.

The Sparco Fighter driver’s seat makes Mike feel safe and secure on sections of the trail that his 4Runner shouldn’t be driving fast through.

The 4Runner is my fi rst off -road vehicle and the fi rst build I ever did. Th With my 4Runner being 2WD, I went in not knowing much of what mods W I could do to the rig. The 4Runner wasn’t the fi rst choice, to be honest. I co The Tacoma was, but it was out of my price range. I wasn’t always a Th Toyota fan. I was a fan of Nissan because of the cars they had produced To from the 1970s to the early 2000s. Toyota was a thing in my family fro though, so I just naturally gravitated towards the Toyota brand. When tho I was growing up, my dad had a 2000 Toyota 4Runner SR5 in that “old I w man” gold color. Haha. I loved that 4Runner! So, the 4Runner brings back ma some childhood memories. so

When it came to picking out parts, it was a matter of quality, pricing, and the ever so favorite question: “Do I need it?” As far as philosophy goes, I always stood by, “It’s cool to be diff erent.” Besides the apparent front end Tacoma swap, my good friend Bradlee and I fabricated the front bumper and I fabricated the rear bumper by myself. The Taco front end was “made-to-fi t,” which is what I like to say. It sets me apart from everyone else. It’s diff erent and I love it because I did it. It fi ts my personality. I also built the drawer-platform in the trunk during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown. It keeps everything organized in the back of the truck.

I love to go fast and I love to be diff erent. How I lo many 4th generation 4Runners do you see out m there with long travel kits, 35” tires, mobbing th around in the desert? Very few, and I know all of ar them, which is pretty cool. The very few I know th are all very humble, down to earth dudes and ar it sucks to say it but we’re sometimes frowned it upon by many in our community. 4Runners up are these 4x4 machines that are either built ar to do some crawling or used for Overlanding. to We mix ourselves with both the crawling and W Overlanding crowd, and having suspension Ov setups that allow us to do high-speed desert se runs makes us feel like oddballs and misfi ts ru at times. We don’t fi t in a specifi c rig style or at philosophy of use. Maybe we belong to a new ph off -road category. off

For the most part, I do most of my parts installs Fo and all the adjustments. My buddy Bradlee has an helped me from the beginning when it came to he the fabricating of my bumpers. In my opinion, th the off -roading scene in Las Vegas is getting th smaller, with fewer shops into the type of off -sm roading that I do. Most of the people I know that ro can help me are in SoCal. Upfi tting this rig never ca ends. There is still so much needed to be done en to my 4Runner. That list contains lower control to arm (LCA) cam tab gussets, solid motor mounts, ar and possibly a spring under rear-end swap. an

So far, my favorite mod on the 4Runner are So the seats...out of everything done to the rig, th the seats are my favorite. I picked up a Sparco th Fighter seat for it and it is my favorite seat ever. Fi Buckets in an SUV, let alone a soccer mom car? Bu Heck Yeah! Haha. In all seriousness, the seats He keep me in place while off -roading. I feel safe ke and secure on corners and sections of a trail that an you usually shouldn’t be driving through fast, yo like whoop sections. lik

King Shocks long travel suspension make going through whoop sections a breeze.

I’ve also installed race headers. Yes, you read that right. One of my favorite mods is that my 4Runner has URD Spec U race headers...meaning there is no catalytic converter. Yes, it’s loud, and yes, I’d get State reff ed in California, but luckily I live in Nevada.

Locally, my favorite trail is just the Jean, Nevada dry lake bed. There are tons of trails out there leading to Laughlin and Primm. Through all this, there are jump sections and a lot of whoop areas. Mind you that this is the area that The Mint 400 uses, so trophy trucks and other race rigs receive a good bashing through there. I love speed and I try to push the 4Runner’s limits out in the open desert.

I did go on a challenging technical trail ride a few years ago in the winter at Wheeler Pass, which is supposedly a 4x4 only trail. It’s a trail from the

Jean Dry Lake Bed is a local favorite of many Las Vegas off-roaders because of its miles of unobstructed flat surface.

northwest area of Las Vegas that dumps you out in southern Nevada in Pahrump. Out of the 7 trucks that went, 3 of us were 2WD and I was the only one that kept my momentum up. Unfortunately, we didn’t fi nish it because a Tundra in our crew kept getting stuck and a 2nd Gen Taco broke its carrier bearing. The only thing I broke off was my quarter panel trim on my driver’s side, stuff ed with my 33” Hankook Dynapros at that time.

My 4Runner isn’t much of a road trip vehicle because of the horrible 12mpg I get on it. But, when I do local stuff or drive to the lake, I always prepare for those “just in case” situations… primarily when I work the Mint 400. I always get the tires checked, bring spare parts (mainly tie rods), toolbox, and pack up my spare 35” tire in the back. I also make it a habit to always check my suspension hardware and my wheel lugs before and after each outing. After those things, I check coolant, oil, and the essential part when you’re in the desert, A/C!