rear hatch and tire carrier ?s

[pattycakes77]

hi there! i hope this is the right forum to ask this, if not please direct me.

i'll start off with a little introduction. my name is Patrick, i am from the United States and i've got some questions about the rear hatch and tire carrier from the Hilux Surf. i drive a '98 4runner, which is just a renamed Hilux Surf as i'm sure you know, and i'm trying to find some information on how the Surfs are set up for the rear tire carrier.

this is a mix of one of those "grass is greener on the other side of the pond" things where all US enthusiasts want stuff that the Brits, Aussies, and Japanese models have; and sometimes you guys want what we in the US have. but, this is also a matter of function for me. i hate that my tire is tucked under the rear of the vehicle and they stopped making the swing out rear tire carrier after the 2nd generation 4runners here. i've been drooling over the Hilux Surfs that have that feature in the 3rd generation body style, and i may have found a source for the parts i need to do a conversion.

ok, enough background. my question(s) is on if this would just be a swap of the hatch and adding the carrier too? i've noticed that the license plate is on the left side of the hatch, is there a handle that pops (opens) the hatch under there or where is it? also, does the hatch attach and lock in the same spot (bottom center of bumper) as the US 4runners? and, does anyone know how the tire carrier is attached on the side of the vehicle? i would assume that there is some kind of reinforcement on the inside and possibly attaches to the frame?

what it comes down to is, i want this to all line up with very minor modification if i'm going to do this. i know i will probably have to fabricate some kind of bracket for the tire carrier that mounts to the frame, but if the hatch works the same as the US model this would be great.

if any of you have any info on how the hatch releases and closes, where the release handle is located, and any info on reinforcement and attachment of the tire carrier i would be very greatful if you could help me out with this project. if some one happens to be back there doing some work and wouldn't mind snapping some pics for reference for me, you would be a lifesaver.

thanks everyone.
patrick

ps - if you need some pics for reference from me about how the US hatch is attached please post on here and i'll put some up. i appreciate you all checking on this for me, since i am not able to see for myself here in the US how this stuff works.

[pattycakes77]

just to add a little viewable information...

i want my 4runner to go from this:


to this:


thanks again.

[Surf_ltd]

speak to Popeye on here he done it to his surf

http://www.hiluxsurf.co.uk/forums/sh...ad.php?t=41558

[Hawaii]

Hi PAtrick & welcome from the UK

Pops is a top job but not quite the same as you have a 3rd gen. There is a bit of good news tho, depending on the size of your wallet.

I rang my local toyota dealer who said that they could supply the carrier, receiver, number plate light/handle etc. but were a bit cagey on quoting prices when i told them they were for shipping to the US.

Surely, if they are available to us in the UK (the 3rd gen surf is not an official import in the UK) then Toyota US shoudl have access t othe same databases.

I didn't even quote a chassis/VIN number just that I wasnted a spare tyre carriier & associated bits to convert an underslung spare toa rear mounted one.

hope this helps

Hawaii

[RodLeach]

Hello Pattycakes!

Your best bet is to look into shipping from the UK to the USA - you could probably contact a toyota dealership

the telephone number for Kings Toyota in southampton is +442380 707700

They may be able to help you find the parts and as they are seconds from a dock may be able to organise shipping.

[pattycakes77]

hey thanks everyone!

my source here in the states has access to all the parts i need to do this so that is not a problem. but i will keep those numbers in my pocket should i need something in a pinch or if something gets misplaced during shipping. the guy with the parts gave me a shipping quote from his warehouse here in the US to my address and it was REALLY high. i thought he was giving me a quote from overseas to my address, but it was just the domestic shipping quote! so, we're working out a deal and i'm confident that we can whittle that down to about half of the original quote.

i've been posting about this on a very popular US toyota site that i've been a member of for a few years and got a little bit of information. the site is www.yotatech.com
i think there are a few people on there from overseas but not many. there really isn't a lot of information there for Hilux owners so i didn't get much response about this project swap. although one member from the Philippines told me that there is a sub frame behind the body panels on the side that the tire carrier mounts to, but he only had outside pics and none of the sub frame itself. i also noticed that the exterior body panels may be indented a little from the factory just around where the lower part of the tire carrier mounts, can anyone confirm this?
i checked out ebay UK, and found a picture of a Hilux Surf with the hatch open and it showed that the latch part of the hatch does appear to be in the same spot as the US 4runner version. my question now is, where on the back of the hatch is the lever that opens the hatch? on the US version and some i've seen from overseas without the tire carrier, it is right above the license plate in the plate surround. is this just moved to the left but still above the license plate on the hatches with the tire carrier?

sorry for all the questions, i'm just trying to get a full picture of what i'm about to do and get all answers before taking the plunge and trying this swap. i really wish there was a Surf here for me too look at and study, but no luck

thanks again everyone, you are all great people.

ps - that 2nd gen swap looks really good, great work on that but a little more fabrication than i can do for now. it's good to know that anything is possible

[KERRSURF]

Hello mate, I can't shed any light on your questions as I have a 2nd gen Surf but I'd like to welcome you to the UK forum.

[RodLeach]

ahhh - i think i got the wrong end of the stick




Well, id would but money on the fact that the bodys are the same an not suited for a carrier etc. (seriously if im wrong i will paypal you $5!!)

i would get the carrier an the plate it latches onto - drill your holes an then take a look inside on how best to take the strain. Ive never looked at mine but i know they are reinforced.

a local welder would probably sort you out cheap right??

[pattycakes77]

thanks for the welcomes and general cheerful attitudes toward a newbie

i'm about ready to officially call my 4runner "the Franken-Runner" since i'm swapping so many parts from other models, it's really not just a 4runner anymore!

RodLeach - you just brought up a good point... perhaps i should just buy the tire carrier and try to fit that piece first to see if it would work before enduring the expense of buying the hatch and shipping that as well. i hope it works, but that would be a good first step to see if it's possible without dropping all the money on the full swap since i have questions about it fitting in the first place.

i'm actually taking some welding classes right now, and i hope to have my own welder in the next 6 months or so for various projects like this, so even if there is some fabrication or welding involved my hope is that i can tackle that on my own. however, i do hope that this would be a simple bolt on with slight modification instead of a full on custom fab job.

thanks again for the replies, keep them coming oh, and you guys have way better smilies than we do on yotatech! and if anyone is interested in following this project, i'll be posting both here on this forum and in the thread i started on yotatech:
http://www.yotatech.com/f2/s-about-h...arrier-136569/

thanks again.