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Transforming the Tacoma! Wrap, Bumper, and Performance Upgrades

Devan Ence . January 31, 2025 . Cadillac
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Big Progress and a Killer Wrap!

We are making more progress on the TREAD Edition Tacoma! Last time, you saw us finish up by installing the new Body Armor 4X4 topper. Since then, we have made a few more changes.

I was sick of just having a plain white Tacoma, so it was finally time to get with Jaden Andersen of Andersen Printing. Jaden took a few measurements and had the layout finished in no time. He got it printed, and it was time to pull the truck in to de-badge it and get the wrap installed. All I can say is WOW! Jaden really knocked it out of the park with this one. This topo style design really brought the truck to life and lets you see where we are headed with the final vision of the build.

The top support bars came in for the rooftop tent. Shane and I got those installed in no time flat and moved on to tackling the larger task of the front bumper. I have to say the thought of cutting up the front plastics on a brand-new truck was a little daunting. So we unboxed the new HiLine front bumper from Body Armor 4×4 and realized the company made the process super simple.

We pulled the front plastics off with a few bolts, pulled the plastic crash bar, and bolted the new bumper in place—it fit like a dream! While the front was all open and we had good access to the top of the new bumper, we installed the Warn Zeon 10-S winch. This was unbelievably easy to put in, wire up, and Bluetooth to my phone with the Warn app. I am looking forward to putting it to the test this summer!

With the new Body Armor 4×4 bumper and winch installed, it was time to cut the front plastics and make sure everything fit the way it should around the bumper. Everything went super smooth and the cover slid back into place and it fit like a dream.

Justin and Stephanie Herbert from Overland Tailor Tuning made a trip up to the shop to work their magic and unlock the full potential of the engine in the Tacoma. I have to say it WORKED! The truck now has more power, and the shift points pulling hills are way better. I will be doing a deep dive into this after I get more seat time. I want to give the folks at Overland Tailor Tuning a big thank you for working with me on this project.

Now, we still had the high clearance wings from Body Armor 4X4 to add to the front bumper, and I’m not going to lie—I was dragging my feet on this a little. We were only a week out from SEMA and I wasn’t sure I could get replacement plastics if we messed up the cuts for some reason. I have to say, if it was metal, I wouldn’t have thought twice about cutting it up. So, I called my buddies up at Straight Edge Auto Restorations to see what they thought, and Jason said we could get it done! We pulled it into the shop, and in no time, the wings were in place and fit fantastic. I didn’t realize how much of a face lift they would give the Tacoma.

After all that, we got the Tuff Stuff rooftop tent and the NYTOP carbon fender flares installed. I stepped back to take it in—what a dream! The vision of the build really is coming to life. We still have a few things to knock out before it’s ready to hit the road but it’s getting there.

I can’t wait to share the rest of the journey with you all!

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