Tamiya Hilux Pickup Build
Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2023 2:24 pm
Going to throw together a little build thread for my Hilux. I went looking through my emails, and I purchased this rig around July 2006. I ended up buying two Hiluxes, and putting the better parts into one build, and selling it off for close to what I had in the pair. From that point on, the rig (in a couple of parts), has just sat around for 17 years. So, it called to me a couple of months ago and it was time to build this thing.
Thought that in that time period, they had rere'd the Bruiser so parts must be out there, and since then I have learned that the Hilux and Bruiser have about 3-5% of parts in common, so wrong here. I also figured that I had 80-90% of the vehicle, and it should be easy and cheap to finish it up, and I was wrong about that also.
This is what I started with. This is the mechanicals broken down. Ignore the Bruiser axle and bagged parts. This is when it kinda hit me that not only is what I got not near a complete vehicle, what I have is not all that great. This was going to be a bigger challenge than I thought. Decided to tackle the "3 speed" transmission first. If you are unfamiliar, it really isn't a 3 speed, it is selectable H and L 2wd, and L 4wd. This is how it started. It is the one on the left; right is Bruiser. For reference, I believe the two center sections of the casings (which are factory sealed together), are the same on both transmissions. I think those are the only interchangeable parts on these units, but I am no expert of course. Breakdown and clean up: Reassembly. I did have to print what I would call the spur gear. Mine was stripped and individual trans parts are very hard to find. I also didn't have the 10t press-on pinion gear that is required, as there is no room for a set screw. I ended up soldering a deep 11t I had sitting around on there, so I reduced the number of spur cogs by a few. It works well enough. I did install bearings throughout most of it. I didn't slather silicone all over it, like a six year old, like everyone seemed to do back in the day. This thing isn't going to see water while I own it, so no need to be watertight. If you are unfamiliar, these transmissions came complete in the box, and you just added the sealant. The speed controller box was the same way.
Thought that in that time period, they had rere'd the Bruiser so parts must be out there, and since then I have learned that the Hilux and Bruiser have about 3-5% of parts in common, so wrong here. I also figured that I had 80-90% of the vehicle, and it should be easy and cheap to finish it up, and I was wrong about that also.
This is what I started with. This is the mechanicals broken down. Ignore the Bruiser axle and bagged parts. This is when it kinda hit me that not only is what I got not near a complete vehicle, what I have is not all that great. This was going to be a bigger challenge than I thought. Decided to tackle the "3 speed" transmission first. If you are unfamiliar, it really isn't a 3 speed, it is selectable H and L 2wd, and L 4wd. This is how it started. It is the one on the left; right is Bruiser. For reference, I believe the two center sections of the casings (which are factory sealed together), are the same on both transmissions. I think those are the only interchangeable parts on these units, but I am no expert of course. Breakdown and clean up: Reassembly. I did have to print what I would call the spur gear. Mine was stripped and individual trans parts are very hard to find. I also didn't have the 10t press-on pinion gear that is required, as there is no room for a set screw. I ended up soldering a deep 11t I had sitting around on there, so I reduced the number of spur cogs by a few. It works well enough. I did install bearings throughout most of it. I didn't slather silicone all over it, like a six year old, like everyone seemed to do back in the day. This thing isn't going to see water while I own it, so no need to be watertight. If you are unfamiliar, these transmissions came complete in the box, and you just added the sealant. The speed controller box was the same way.