Firestik K1A/K4A/K8A

After purchasing the Boztec mount I decided to purchase all the other firestik components that were listed on the Boztec site. This made installation much easier than using the old coax cable that was somewhat short. With the 18' cable I was able to pass it from the back along the side of the rear seat and run it through the channel along the door. I then passed it underneath the front seat and out through the hole where the air bag sensor connector goes through. I was able to place the extra 3' of coax into the center console where I had the CB.  The other side of the coax went into the firestik k1a connector which was easy enough to mount and tighten to the boztec mount. The spring then went on top.  After installing, I thought about buying a quick release so that I could easily take off the antenna whenever I wanted to. It added about 3 more inches to the stack of connector and spring. Once everything was connected, I hooked up the SWR and saw that there was no reflection whatsoever for ALL channels. The power output of the CB was also a full 4 Watts. I think using the quick disconnect raised the antenna enough above the roofline to optimize transmission without any reflections. I was impressed with this setup.  Next, I might buy an SSB/CB combo unit. I've seen quite a few nice ones out there with some having built-in SWR.

Update - After 3 years of keeping the antenna on the FJ, it looks like the quick release does not work anymore since the internals had rusted.  I could tell from the rust coming out of the small circular pin on the outside.  I have read that others have had the same problem and that they use dielectric grease after purchasing in order to keep it from rusting.  I think if Firestik had used stainless steel internals it would still be working.  So now it's just an extender to the antenna and I have to use a wrench to take it off, which is pointless for a quick release.  Everything else seems to be aging well without rusting and the FJ is kept outside all the time.  I didn't even have to tune the CB after a couple of years that it was unused and disconnected.

CB antenna stack - Boztec mount, connector, spring, quick disconnect, 5' antenna. 

Boztec CB mount

My handmade mount was not standing up to the weight if the antenna and spring. I decided to buy a Boztec mount after reading up on it. I also gave Boztec a call to discuss the difference between the HAM and CB mounts. Apparently the owner gave me a call back!  After discussing the differences I went with the CB mount. I also ordered a new cable and connector. I was impressed at the thickness and quality of the mount.

Once it was all hooked up it looked like this -

                         Boztec mount with logo.

It was a very easy install. I mounted the cable and connector prior to placing on the FJ.  In order to get a good ground connection I sanded the back side of the mount and connected a wire that I grounded to the chassis where the jack is located.  I didn't want to sand the paint off the FJ, so grounding with the wire prevented this. 

Next was tuning. I hooked up the SWR meter and looked at the results. It was a little high at 2.5 but I had forgotten that I screwed in the tip all the way when I took it off. So after tuning the tip I obtained the same SWR as I had with my original setup - 1.5 on ch 1 and almost no reflection on ch. 40.

Driver's seat falling apart!

After noticing a small hole in the back of the driver's seat, I didn't pay much attention to it. When a bag snagged a "wire" and ripped through the vinyl, I noticed!  I went to the local Toyota dealership and they looked at it and said it wouldn't be covered under my extended warranty since its considered damage!  They also stated that I would have to take it to an upholstery shop to get it fixed.  It seems that I wasn't going to get anywhere with them.  I decided to investigate and took the cover off by first unhooking the straps under the seat, taking off the three yellow rings at the bottom and then the two holding the zippers.  This is what I found - 

               Rip through vinyl. 

      Rip again without spring sticking out. 

                  Broken spring!

Broken spring hooked to white plastic piece that didn't keep it in place since there was no tension anymore. 

      Yellow metal rings holding zipper.

            Zipper on right side.

I couldn't believe that a spring had failed. No bend or anything. Seeing that it was dangerous to have a loose spring that someone in the back seat could hurt themselves on, I tried to take the spring off. This wire was extremely hard to bend  and I tried to cut it with no success so I bent it into one of the holes on the side of the seat so that it wouldn't jiggle around. This certainly is a case of metal fatigue!  It makes me worry what other things might happen at a later date. 

So once I bent it back, I decided to look at another issue I had since I bought it - a hole in the foam on the left side where you rub up against entering and exiting. I was able to put my hand through and feel around. All I felt was metal. I had to go and buy some upholstery filler and fill the hole. This made it so that the fabric was no longer in a situation where a hole might tear through it after continuous use of the seat. I've read that a lot of FJs have this problem.

I also had a creaking noise when I bought it but I didn't investigate this issue since I assumed it's probably due to the chair being used for 6 years. 

I decided to repair the slit myself. It didn't turn out very well, but at least the rip won't become larger.  I also contemplated seat covers but it was too expensive for the ones I liked. I did see a few people selling their OEM covers but that was even more expensive since they included all the seats.  I might reconsider at a later time but, for now, it will have to do. 

Overall, I'm not impressed with Toyota quality.  I've hade much cheaper cars for much longer without these kind of issues on the seat.   

OEM Hitch

The hitch that came with the FJ, when I bought it, was somehow slanted to the right. I looked everywhere to see if there was any damage but nothing was visible.  I found one weld that was further back on the left side which made the slant.

                         Hitch rack leaning to the right.

This was a Reese hitch that was held on by six lag bolts. I took off the tow hook on the driver's side and tried to take off the third screw. This was one that was passed through the frame. It was very rusted and I had to get the PB blaster.  I left the hitch on for a couple of days with only the two rusted bolts and periodically sprayed them. This did the trick and I was able to take those off with the wrench. Then it was just a matter of putting on the Toyota hitch. Instructions on how to install it on is in my previous post when I had the silver FJ.  The only difference is that the valance I ordered was a TT part that was already painted black.

The results:

             

The Reese hitch went to recycling.

I also installed the wiring for the hitch which only took about 10 mins since I had already performed this installation once before. The hard part is going to be taking out the Reese wiring. It is very involved and the cables run to the right and left rear lights with another cable going all the way to the battery. For now this wiring is just tucked underneath.

OEM Cargo Cover

I was tired of draping over a tarp on top of everything in the trunk. I finally found a good deal on an OEM used cargo cover and placed it over the subwoofer. I had to take off the sub (the hard part) and using the two top screws I attached the two straps that button to the top of the cargo cover. These go over the subwoofer and the other side uses the existing hooks to attach. So now I don't have to lift a tarp and I can access all my gear immediately.