Rising Sun, Rowdy Truck: Chris Bennett’s 2014 Toyota Tacoma

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We would be lying if we told you that summer in Southern California is fun in the sun all the time. Unless you live near the beach, it’s just plain hot with minimal breezes, buckets of sunblock, and lots of sweat.

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There wasn’t one angle where this Tacoma didn’t look incredibly cool.

Shelter was definitely a precious resource when we were out at the Ultra4 Glen Helen Grand Prix in July. While staying cool was a difficult task, finding cool was not. Case in point: this 2014 Toyota Tacoma TRD Off Road, owned by Chris Bennett out of Corona, California.

Chris was no stranger to the Ultra4 races, much less the off-road world in general. Having owned several 4x4s over the course of his life, this latest unit was designed to be a steel desert warrior, but with the manners and comfort of a tamed horse. We got the full scoop on this Toyota and learned all about its beginnings, Chris’ thoughts on the off-road world, and why you just can’t worry about the warranty.

Tacoma Meets California

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How did it start? What drew you to the Tacoma in the first place?

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Chris installed a Total Chaos front long-travel suspension kit, giving him access to high-performance, triple-bypass King coilover shocks with remote reservoirs.

Chris Bennett: I knew I was going to do a lot of expeditions on smaller trails, so I wanted something that was a pickup style. I had a 1997 4Runner before that, fixed it up, did a bunch of stuff to it, and sold it to my son. Something with a little more power and creature comfort was what I was looking for, as well as something that could go fast through the desert. It’s evolved to a Total Chaos long-travel suspension with as much lift as I can get on it.

What was the first thing you did to enhance its performance?

CB: The first thing I did was a “cheap-o” lift just to fit the 33-inch tires on it. I knew I was eventually going to go up from there. Then, I got a good deal on an ICON suspension kit with upper control arms. It was great, but I still wanted to go with longer travel. Total Chaos Fabrication was just down the street from me, so I went over to see what they made. I wound up buying their Travel-King coil-over kit with King triple bypass shocks on the front, and on the rear I bought the spring-under-axle kit with Deaver HD springs and FOX eight-way adjustable shocks with remote reservoirs.

It’s become a bit of project, to be sure. It all takes money and time, the latter of which I have plenty of. I’ll probably put a cage in the middle of it, just because –

So much for the warranty, right?

CB: Haha, yep, I take it to the dealership and they ask, “You’ve off-roaded this? We’re not warrantying it.” I say to them, “It says ‘Off-Road’ on the side of it!” They look at it and say “What have you done to this thing?!” And I tell them, “Don’t worry about it, it’s better than the crap you had on it.” I just can’t get enough off-roading in my life, so it is what it is. I used to be into rock-crawling, but these days I’m more about expeditions and overlanding.

Shots of the undercarriage, looking toward the front (left) and rear (right).

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What other 4x4s have you built over the years?

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The front APEX bumper from All-Pro Off Road houses a Factor 55 fairlead and a WARN 9000 winch.

CB: I had a ’66 GMC truck at one point. I used to drive it every day from Torrance to Chino. I’d put 10 dollars of gas a day in it, back when gas was 70 cents a gallon. I eventually started cutting parts off of it, tubed it, put a custom four-link in the back, put a crate motor in it. I did a Dana 60 front with all the upgrades, and a GM 14-bolt in the back with all the upgrades. You could call it “overkill.” That thing did everything I wanted it to do, and it would never break.

Where do you stand on brand loyalty?

CB: I was born a Chevy guy. You can’t beat Chevy horsepower. Nowadays though, not so much. I hang out with Toyota guys, and you can’t fit a big truck on the trails they go on. That’s why the Tacoma is my choice, and partly why I bought it.

IMG_9725Getting back to the Tacoma, what do you want to do to it in the future?

CB: I’m going to put triple bypasses in the back and tie them to the cage. I’ll probably regear it to run a 4.88:1 gear ratio on front and rear, maybe get an ARB air locker for the front. I might run 34 or 35-inch tires. The only problem with bigger tires is you can drive them into the wheelwell, and I don’t do a lot of rock-crawling. I want to be nice to the front end because the IFS is not as strong as the solid rear axle. I watch what I do when I’m wheeling.

A View From All Angles

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Circling around the Tacoma, we could easily grasp just what a massive makeover Chris had done to his truck. A rack sitting in the bed was definitely one of the things that drew us to the truck in the first place, and Chris was more than happy to explain its purpose and architecture.

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The back of the Tacoma is where we saw Chris’ ingenuity. He used his own custom-made rack and bumper/tire carrier to hold all kinds of essentials, from lights to fuel to fire safety equipment.

“I built the rack just because I knew I could,” he said. “I put the Hi-Lift on there because you can’t ever leave home without one. I like to joke that mine is the most popular model when I go off-road because it’s so accessible.”

Other essentials tied to the rack include spare Rotopax fuel cans, a fire extinguisher, and lighting elements – both for braking and general illumination during long-distance excursions. Everything is locked down and bolted in to prevent escape during those spirited driving sessions through the desert. Chris claimed to be a shadetree fabricator for several years, and built the Tacoma up using his own two hands and an inspired take on a proven design.

This is one of three CREE light bars that Chris has control of from inside the cabin. This is the 40-inch one that sits over the windshield.

This is one of three CREE light bars that Chris has control of from inside the cabin. This is the 40-inch bar that sits over the windshield.

While driving, anything Chris wants to control electronically is at his fingertips. He has a HAM radio to call in support or just shoot the breeze with fellow faraway travelers. He also has an sPOD switch panel controlling all of the lights on one circuit, connecting to a set of four-inch CREE driving lights, three light bars ranging from 20 to 40 inches, two four-inch CREE rear-mounted lights, and a WARN 9000 remote control winch.

The use and abuse the Tacoma goes through naturally calls for protection. To that end, Chris went with an All-Pro Off Road front APEX bumper and rock sliders. He made a custom rear bumper (with tire carrier) on his own, too. Protection also comes in the form of an Ironman 4×4 7×9-foot awning, which he can assemble and disassemble to provide some shade on the trail.

There's a lot of stuff in the way, but Chris can still see thanks to this cleverly mounted camera inside the spare tire mount.

There’s a lot of stuff in the way, but Chris can still see what’s coming up behind him thanks to this cleverly mounted camera inside the spare tire mount.

All of this steel, composite, and glass rolls around on a set of 16-inch FN Konig Countersteer wheels with 33-inch Hankook DynaPro MTs. “I’ve been really happy with these tires,” Chris commented. “I will probably go with the BFG KO2s or Falken Wildpeak M/Ts next. I like the aggressive tread on both of those tires and I don’t drive the truck on the street very much, so it makes sense to try and get some more grip out of them.”

We had a blast covering the race at Glen Helen, and learning more about Chris and his truck reinforced what we love about the off-road culture – take whatever you have and make it not just cool, but totally capable, too.

You’ll find our gallery below has more Toyota goodness to enjoy. We hope Chris and his truck continue to bomb around in the desert, and as Daylight Savings Time and cooler temperatures have set in, who knows – maybe we’ll find ourselves in Barstow, see a silver glint zoom by and think, “Was that Chris and his Tacoma?”

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Photo gallery

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About the author

David Chick

David Chick comes to us ready for adventure. With passions that span clean and fast Corvettes all the way to down and dirty off-road vehicles (just ask him about his dream Jurassic Park Explorer), David's eclectic tastes lend well to his multiple automotive writing passions.
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