2019 is officially in the rear view and what a year it was in review. We played a part in a couple of new builds, expanded our list of valued partners, and attended a handful of excellent off-road and automotive shows. The most important part - we had a blast while doing it!
In February we sold our staple Jeep build, the 50ShadesJK, and picked up our new project, the 'Triton JL'. While we were busy planning the phase 1 build of our new Jeep, we were drumming a build on a 2018 Toyota Tacoma TRD Off Road dubbed the 'FishTaco'.
In March, we teamed up with Toytec 4x4, SPC Performance, Icon Alloys, and Rhino-Rack USA to bring the 'Fish Taco' to life. It featured Toytec's Boss Performance Suspension System with SPC Performance Control Arms, 17" Icon Alloy Wheels wrapped with 33" BFGoodrich A/Ts, and a Rhino Rack Pioneer Platform with the Tacoma Backbone Mounting System. We put together a video of the build with our friends at Sweet Spot Media and are really stoked with how the truck came together. If you haven't seen the video yet, check it out below!
In April, we executed phase 1 of the 'Triton JL' just in time for the annual Easter Jeep Safari in Moab, Utah. The Jeep came together thanks to our friends at 3D Off Road and featured a Teraflex ST3 Short Arm Suspension System with 3.3 Series Falcon Shocks, 17" KMC Wheels XD232 Beadlock Wheels, 37" Nitto Tire Trail Grapplers, a JCR Off Road Spare Tire Delete Kit, and the new Rhino-Rack Pioneer Platform and JL Backbone Mounting System. We also added a Warn Zeon 10-S Winch and Factor 55 Recovery Gear in case we needed any assistance on the trails. While a simple build on paper, the end result was a clean and functional off road machine. The Jeep drove as if it was stock but had the capability to handle some of the toughest trails Moab has to offer. This year was our third consecutive year attending the event and it was a blast as always! A special thanks to Rhino-Rack USA for hosting the Jeep in their booth during the vendor show and letting us show off the completed build.
In July, the Triton JL was on display with Magnaflow at the annual 4-Wheel Parts Truck & Jeep Fest held in Denver, CO. We had just added a Magnaflow Rock-Crawler Series Exhaust System and Bestop Premium Trektop Soft Top and were excited to show them off to the public. While we were not physically in attendance for the event, we did receive some excellent feedback and were told that the show was a complete success! Thank you, Magnaflow, for inviting us to be a part of your booth!
August was also a busy month as the Jeep went on a quick tour with Rhino Rack USA to attend Colorado's All4Fun event and the inaugural Rocky Mountain Overland Rally. These were great events as they allowed us to generate some additional exposure for our build partners and also included some wheeling, which we never complain about! Shortly after, parts started to pile up for the second phase of the Triton JL Build.
In September we began tear down of the Triton JL to make way for new components and to allow us to begin Phase 2 of the project. We ditched our bumpers, rock-rails, wheels & tires, suspension, and axles in favor of some serious upgrades! The Phase two build would take almost 6 weeks to complete, but came together just in time for the 2019 SEMA Show in November. Rhino-Rack presented us with an opportunity to display the Triton JL in their booth for the show and we knew we had to go all out!
We turned to 3D Off Road, who took care of all the heavy lifting and helped to bring phase 2 of the Triton JL build to life for SEMA. The SEMA Build included a fresh set of KMC Wheels XD232 Beadlock wheels, 40" Nitto Tires, Currie Enterprises Extreme 60 Axles with 5.38 Motive Gears & ARB Air Lockers, Rock Jock 4x4 Long Arm system with Antirock Sway Bars, Rebel Off Road Recon Coilover Conversion Kit & Bumpers, a Warn Winch, Baja Designs Accessory Lighting, Casey Currie Motorsports Rock Rails, Custom Powder Coat by Mod Finishes, and a slew of other accessories. We also incorporated PSC Motorsports Hydraulic Assist steering and RPM Steering components into the front end to beef it all up and handle the 40" Tires. We cut absolutely no corners and utilized some of the best components the industry has to offer. There will be a follow up post to detail the entire build and break down the list of components, so stay tuned for that.
We couldn't be more stoked with how the build came together and the response we received at the SEMA Show was overwhelming. We received a lot of approval nods from our build partners and had an absolute blast at the show. It has always been a goal of ours to attend SEMA, so having our build on display was truly a dream come true and a testament to all of the hard work and support that went into the Jeep.
Following SEMA we were invited to participate in a photo shoot with Driving Line & Nitto Tire for a build feature to be released at the beginning of 2020. We had a blast out in the desert of Las Vegas with a couple of Driving Line's talented photographers and can't wait to share the end result with all of you.
Following our photo shoot with Driving Line & Nitto Tire, we hit the road for Moab, UT to get the jeep out on the Red Rock and perform a shake down run to prove to the world that the 'Triton JL' was built for adventure. The Jeep exceeded our expectations and we had a blast putting it through its paces. Following Moab we performed some shock tuning and will be making some fine adjustments through the beginning of the year as we prepare to take it to Johnson Valley for the 2020 King of Hammers.
As we head into the New Year, we want to simply thank all of our industry partners for making 2019 such an amazing year. We could not have achieved any of this without them and are very thankful for their support. We have some exciting plans in store for 2020 and can't wait for another EPIC year!
- Collin, Chief Adventurer