LC 1958 Initial Upgrade Suggestions

[grandsons]

[*]Tires – Leaning toward KO3s. Still deciding between 265/70R18 and 275/70R18 (or others if any suggestions). I'd like to maintain a lower noise profile and solid fuel economy, but wouldn't mind a slightly more aggressive stance if the tradeoffs are worth it. Curious what size others have settled on and whether they'd do it again.

I kept the OEM tire, if things goes wild, I mount snow chains. I use off road tires when my journey is mainly off road, I have three sets of tires: summer road tires, winter road tires, and off-road tires.

[*]Roof Rack – So far I've been looking at Sherpa, Prinsu, and Victory 4x4. The truck will primarily be a daily driver with some camping, road trips, and light overlanding. Any firsthand experience with those options (or others I should be considering) would be appreciated.

Roof bars do the job. Cheaper, quieter, and versatile enough to replace a full rack without the price tag.

[*]Rock Sliders – I'm currently leaning toward the OEM Toyota sliders, mostly because those seem to be pretty common. That said, if there are aftermarket options that offer better protection and still function reasonably well as a step for passengers, I'm all ears. I don't necessarily need a dedicated step, but having something that helps people get in and out would be a plus.

I'll be spending a lot of money on rock sliders, mainly because I slid into a tree stump with a previous car and it caused significant damage. The sliders will also double as jack points. There don't seem to be any European options available, so I'm leaning toward an Australian brand.


I will add lights on the sides and at the rear when moving backward.

 

[Patt710]

Looks like you’ve got the main categories covered. As for the smaller upgrades:

1) Remove the silly air dams (addition by subtraction)
2) Use your lady’s hair dryer, floss, and goo gone to remove the silver iforcemax badge (more addition by subtraction)
3) StickerFab and others have some cool window overlays if you’re into that type of thing
4) I got a center console tray on Amazon to help organize things that I like a lot.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DN96BWSH?tag=landcruiserforum-20

Thanks and great call on the air dams - looks much better without. For internal storage I went with this from Amazon Amazon.com though the center console tray seems great. Just use it more as my junk drawer lol so need the full depth.

 

[ultane]

You can (and I have) install 1.5" spacer blocks to allow them to preform as more of a step.

I had totally forgotten about this hack.. I need to do this.. The only reason I put predator steps on Miss Daisy was because of the poor function of the OEM sliders as 'steps'!

 

[RoundRock_Cruiser]

Quick, easy and cheap upgrades you can find on Amazon or stickerfab.

1. Horn
2. Hood Struts
3. Phone mount

 

[racer01]

I bought a 1958 and had very similar idea. $3k budget and wanted a little more personalized setup than stock.

What I did and why:

• 1.5" front Rough Country spacer lift (goes between top of shock and shock tower) with ~1/2 inch taller Dobinson rear springs to keep a smidge of rake and add some load carrying headroom with progressive springs. (<$1k installed)
• Factory 18" wheels from LC or FE with 275/70-18 Nitto Terra Grappler G3 (about $2k....got wheels brand new)
• remove rear iforce max badge, remove hitch "diaper" and slapped a recovery hook in the oem hitch (nearly free)
• remove front airdam (free)
• Infinity dash speakers and 10" powered Rockford Fosgate subwoofer (~$500 installed)

The level kit and tires really make it look proper on the road to me but still get almost same MPG as stock. G3's are light and 33"-ish tires don't mess up speedometer. Average 20 mpg on wife's daily 135 mi commute and recently got 26 mpg on 300 mile round trip to the beach.

Didn't go with roof rack even though initially wanted one. Self admit it was just for looks and all reviews seem to either have noise, loss of mpg or both.

Want rock sliders still but just haven't wanted them bad enough after a year to get them. Wife is 5'4" and can get in just fine and I don't rock crawl with the LC (yet). Skipping the roof rack and sliders gives it a clean look that I have grown to appreciate.

I really didn't like the offset and look of stock 1958 wheels and very happy to stick with OEM look. We had Ridge Grapplers on the stock OEM wheels and it never looked quite right to me.

After a year I really enjoy the stereo upgrade every time I drive and really like the tire size and small level that to me really make it look proper and still drives like stock. Can't tell a bit of difference with tires and lift unlike most vehicles I have had where it makes the ride much more firm or other geometry issues, etc.

 

[EOD Guy]

I had totally forgotten about this hack.. I need to do this.. The only reason I put predator steps on Miss Daisy was because of the poor function of the OEM sliders as 'steps'!

Careful measuring and all you need is a saw and a drill.

 

[Matthew@LC250Mods]

Welcome and congrats! I'd love to see some pics of the new rig.

Ok here would be my top recommendations if you're still looking!

KO3's are excellent, but they are LT-metric only in the sizes you're looking at, so I would probably pass on them for that reason. A P-metric tire will ride significantly better with less tradeoffs if it's primarily a street driven rig. For roof racks, it's almost hard to go wrong. Each has a slightly different focus and aesthetic but almost any of them will get the job done and look good doing it. Here's a guide I've been working on that hopefully does a decent job of comparing them.

Tires
Nitto Terra Grappler G3 - P275/70R18 - outstanding ride quality and will fill the wells nicely in that size

Roof Rack
Sherpa The Atlas Roof Rack - Nice and low profile; proven and well tested
Prinsu Pro Roof Rack - Very similar in design; a bit more modular and less low profile
ARB Base Rack - This is one of my top choices for those not running a light bar; different in design but super clean and high quality

Rock Sliders
CBI Standard Overland Rock Sliders - This is my top pick if you don't go OEM. The Toyota ones are honestly great too and priced well

Phew, sorry for writing an entire book there. Hopefully it's helpful!

Also, for cheaper items that improve quality of life:
Redline Tuning hood struts
Integrated Dash Cam
Rear Hatch light (if not equipped)
Front tint
Beat-sonic amplifier
Diode Dynamics P&P Fogs
WeatherTech or 3DMats Kagu Floor Liners

 

[TimHerald]

Just got my Ice Cap '25 LC 1958 and am excited to finally join the club. It is completely stock other than a leather interior installed by the previous owner.

I'm trying to decide how I should prioritize upgrades and would appreciate any feedback from those who have already been down this road. Right now, my tentative list is:

1. Tires – Leaning toward KO3s. Still deciding between 265/70R18 and 275/70R18 (or others if any suggestions). I'd like to maintain a lower noise profile and solid fuel economy, but wouldn't mind a slightly more aggressive stance if the tradeoffs are worth it. Curious what size others have settled on and whether they'd do it again.
2. Roof Rack – So far I've been looking at Sherpa, Prinsu, and Victory 4x4. The truck will primarily be a daily driver with some camping, road trips, and light overlanding. Any firsthand experience with those options (or others I should be considering) would be appreciated.
3. Rock Sliders – I'm currently leaning toward the OEM Toyota sliders, mostly because those seem to be pretty common. That said, if there are aftermarket options that offer better protection and still function reasonably well as a step for passengers, I'm all ears. I don't necessarily need a dedicated step, but having something that helps people get in and out would be a plus.

I'm trying to keep the total spend for all three upgrades somewhere around the $3,000 range, although I realize that may be optimistic depending on the rack and slider choices.

Also, for those of you who have owned your LC250s for a while, what are some of the smaller upgrades you've found worthwhile? Things like blackout badging, interior accessories, storage solutions, phone mounts, lighting upgrades, etc. Let's say roughly $200 or less per item.

Looking forward to hearing what everyone would do if they were starting from a mostly stock 1958 today.

Thanks!

There are OEM sliders for sale on Mud forum for $600