Light Off-Road, High-Speed Desert, Dune Running Build Questions

Ok, I'm new to the whole truck thing, and I'm hooked. I come from track cars - BMWs, VWs, Toyotas, etc. The barrier to entry is so high for any semi-pro track event - or even an HPDE - from a regulation, time, and expense perspective, it has kind of put me off the sport. Since I bought a Tacoma ('21 TRD Off-Road) I've had a blast with it in bad winter weather, messing around in construction sites (ssssshhhhhhh!), and doing a bit of non-technical off-roading.

My truck is a daily driver, so I can't turn it into a dedicated off-road rig. I would like to turn it into something I can take the kid to school in (and another home from the hospital in April!) and hit the trails with it on the weekend. I don't want to do technical rock crawling. I don't want to do three week overlanding trips. I would like to do some light non-technical off-roading, blast through mud pits, some higher speed desert driving, and dune running (planning a trip to Silver Lake, MI in late-July).

I need help with my build. So far I've done a good bit to the truck:

• Quality of life stuff (center console tray, interior LED lights, etc.)
• Basic recovery gear (traction boards, shovel, ropes, etc.)
• Injen intake
• Borla exhaust
• KDMax-Pro tune
• Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac tires (stock size)
• TRD skid plate
• TRD Pro grill w/ Raptor Lights

I have the following on order:

• J&L air/oil separator
• Body Armor 4x4 HiLine Series front bumper
• Rough Country 20in Black Series dual row LED flood/spot combo (fits in the bumper)
• Some red D-rings to hang on things and look cool
• RCI rock sliders (no top tread, powder coated, 20 degree)
• RCI ditch light mounts

My question is, based on what I want to do with my truck, what's next? I need ditch lights to go with those brackets, but don't really know where to start (I've searched on here and there are a lot of opinions). I'd like to replace the factory "driving lights" and make them actual "fog lights" as they are intended to be. They are useless as-is. I'd like to mount some lights on the grill guard portion of the Body Armor bumper (again, amber) but don't really know how to spec out the correct mounts or what are some good options in terms of lights. I should probably get a winch, but there are a ton of options most made for hard core off-roaders and I'm not sure I need all that. I'd like to level the truck, but I can only find arguments about what the "right" way to do this is. I want the "best" (i.e., not cheapest) way to do it, even if it means replacing suspension components.

...and the big question: Will I be able to do what I want to do with no lift and stock size tires? I'm willing to change them out, but I don't really like the big tire lifted truck look or the way they drive on the street.

Sorry for the book of a post - I appreciate any input folks are willing to provide.

 

The advice I give to new guys is....
Drive the truck... stock... in every situation you want to do. Take it in the desert... stock. Take it in the dunes... stock... and take your family out... stock.
After about six months, you will know exactly what you need.
Leave it alone. I know it's hard but it is the best way

 

Lucky for you, you got an Off Road out of the box, so yes you can do a lot with those Duratracs. Mind you, an upsized 265/75/16 Duratrac will give you an extra 1/2" clearance under your diffs, so you can do a little more.

Congrats & good luck

 

That's sound advice, and I should do it, but I have more money than brains... and modifying vehicles and motorsport is half the fun of this for me.

I knew I should have gotten the larger tire size, dang it. I almost did, but since I drive it on a daily basis I didn't want it to mess with my speedometer reading or hurt acceleration. In reality, it's probably imperceptible with such a small increase in diameter like that. Thanks for the feedback - I do appreciate it. In all honesty, it wouldn't be hard for me to buy the larger size now and sell the slightly used tires that are currently on the truck. Do you think it's worth it for the extra 1/2" inch?

 

Actually this is solid advice. I went all in up front and spent a fortune without really knowing what I actually needed vs what I thought I needed.