To say Travis
Allen "likes to go fast" is like saying rockcrawlers "like to go
slow", extremes of speed that just don't fully register until
you're sitting in the passenger seat adding finger grooves to the
panic handle. Using San Diego California as his home base and
launch pad, Travis has spent the last several years picking the
brains and experiences of local race shops and desert gurus in his
quest to create the ultimate daily driver. A vehicle just as
comfortable and capable cruising at 75 MPH on the freeway as it is
blasting across the open desert at the same or even greater speeds,
where the presence of a radar gun only spurs on the lightly
massaged Toyota V6. 
Travis first modified his
just-cause-for-divorce 1990 4-Runner with a full-on race suspension
job from Advanced Toyota Suspension. 3" longer than stock
a-arms were fabricated, as well as a slew of other modifications to
allow for approximately 13.5" of front suspension travel. (With the
CV halfshafts and limiting straps removed travel can be increased
to approximately 16.5".) Travis quickly discovered the
stock torsion bar suspension was not adequate for such outrageous
movement and high speed abuse, and turned to Ricardo (Roach) at
"Pro-Fab Racing" and to "John Holmes Racing" to design and change
out the t-bar arrangement in favor of 12" Sway-A-Way coil-overs,
60mm "cans", 500 over 600 Eibach coils, and Bilstein airbumps to
cushion the impact of touchdown, all contained within a
bumper-integrated engine cage. 
The front end taken care
of, Travis turned his attention to the rear to balance out the
obsession. Cutting several holes through the floor of the
cargo area for coil-over rear suspension is not typically something
most 2nd generation 4-Runner owners are willing to do due to
excessive noise and dust, however Travis solved these problems and
still retained his posh interior environment by removing the rear
door and adding a partition wall just behind the back seat.
Once the sheetmetal was cut and the necessary framework fabricated,
14" Bilstein coilovers, 300 over 300 Eibach coils, and Bilstein
airbumps were added to the mix. The spare tire was then moved
inside, and the battery relocated to the rear for better weight
distribution.
Other modifications and upgrades
include:
-
33x12.50x15
BFG Mud Terrain tires
-
4.88 factory
Toyota gears, open differentials
-
T-100 CV
halfshafts
-
3" body
lift
-
P.O.R.S.
Extreme-Duty Idler Arm
-
K&N
intake and filter
-
Downey V6
header
-
Custom
exhaust
-
Earls
stainless steel brake and oil lines to Amsoil secondary
filter
-
All
lubricants replaced with Amsoil
synthetics
-
Optima gel
cell battery
-
(2) Hella
4000's
-
(2) Hella
1000's
-
Hella
airhorns
-
PIAA
Hyperwhite bulbs
-
Fiberglass
hood and fenders
-
Stainless,
aluminum, and plexiglass partition wall (legal for SCORE racing
with an auxiliary fuel cell in the rear)
-
Alpine
stereo, Boston Rally and Eclipse speakers
Future plans include reworking the rear
suspension with five foot trailing arms for better than two feet of
usable rear travel, as well as the addition of five-point racing
harnesses for occupants, a rear Detroit locker, and possibly a
limited slip differential for the front.
As you can imagine this 4-Runner attracts
plenty of attention anywhere it's parked, and it's rumored that
Travis first met the legendary Ivan Stewart when he found Ivan
under the front of his 4-Runner checking out the suspension.
With a compliment like that it's hard not to dive headfirst into
the racing circuit, where we're sure to see more of Travis and his
4-Runner for years to come.
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