I have the RAS with Bilstein 6112s/5150s and while it is firm, I'm not sure I'm hitting bump stops. Maybe I should investigate and see if they're actually making contact.

Alot more than I planned:

$230USD for the kit, shipping for that and exchange and brokerage fees (was too lazy to go down and get it myself)
$100CAD for the moog springs

All totalled up I figure it was a $500CAD job to convert. I did do the work myself for the RAS conversion. I got a bit of sticker shock when I added up all the expenses and decided I needed to save a few bucks... and it was something I could do in a weekend.


You'd know if you were... the rear end stops dead in its upward articulation when it runs out of uptravel for a big bump. The remaining upward energy is absorbed by the passengers' spines.

No one else I could find has reported the characteristic I found with the RAS without XREAS. Either my truck is different or my expectations are different. I would bank on the latter because the former is just a machine.

So how do you like your ride now? Do you think your ride is better now or it was good with the Xreas?
I want a little bit of lift too but not a lot so that the passengers sitting in the back seat suffer. If I keep RAS and adjust their height the rear suspension will become stiffer. I have not had a chance to ride in a lifted 4runner so I dont know for sure how the ride feels with a stiffer suspension.

So, I guess you may be interested in the whole story then:

It rides very nicely now on-road. I would say it inspires more real confidence the driver can count on under any road conditions. The shocks and springs handle uneven roads at high speeds competently and the Addco sway bars keep the truck flat and planted under virtually any conditions. Certainly my limit of traction is in the tires, being fat all-terrain tires. The truck, delightfully, approaches the limit of adhesion and lets you know you're approaching the limit with some squealing and feedback in the steering wheel. The Addco sways put more weight into the inside tires under cornering, so I'm confident to say that it'll corner harder/faster than it did on the stock 32/24mm bars.

My ex has a 3rd gen that rides on 5100s and OME springs and many maneuvers and rough roads that are dramatic in her truck are smooth as butter in mine.

I would assume though that my off-road capability via articulation will be diminished because of the sway bars. The XREAS could move weight to the inside wheels using hydraulic force... my truck does it with the steel sway bars... thus, the XREAS would provide on-road benefit without sacrifice of offroad articulation.

It's been said that the heavier sway bars will cause a see-saw effect through bumps/holes/surface changes, however I have found the opposite when negotiating large embankments and approaches to parking lots and such. Before the Addco bars, the truck would bounce back and forth after being upset going through the approach, where the two axles have to articulate in opposite directions. Now the truck blasts through it without hesitation.

Note I drove for a year on the 6110/5160/Moog springs without the Addcos, using the stock sway bars and all new poly bushings through the entire sway control system. I had to replace the sway bar system bushings because the truck felt very tedious, nervous, and generally inspired zero confidence once the XREAS was out and 6110/5160s were in. The ancient bushings had so much slop that the sway control system wasn't even being activated. (note this is probably a testimony to effectiveness of the XREAS and sway control... never noticed it before they were gone).

I upgraded to the Addco bars because I was told by passengers that the rear seat was like riding a rollercoaster through turns. I deduced that the XREAS would provide significant sway control (making up for the tiny sway bar in the back) and removing it would certainly have the effect passengers described. Anyway, the Addcos are a vast improvement and riding in the back is normal now.

No two lift kits will be identical, and some will handle on-road better than others. It really depends on who designed the kit and what they wanted out of it. Hopefully someone designed it and didn't just slap-bang something together for valve setup and call it good.

Just keep in mind that you're replacing an engineered system: The RAS and XREAS were designed to work with each other to get a specific result. Hence why I experienced so many trials and tribulations to get back to amicable handling. Throwing any old shocks and whatever springs into the truck will make it handle... just might not handle that "great". Great is a subjective term, as well.

Confident & competent handling is +120km/hr across broken and undulating pavement in a short passing zone under wide open throttle, and thinking you could have probably gone faster but wanted to "take it easy". Negotiating speed bumps and driving over traffic control equipment aren't live and die moments... yet seem to be used often to relate how the "ride feels".

Anyway, hope that helps.

Oh, I know. My original XREAS had around 290k km on it before I removed it. It was shot. Speed bumps were eye wateringly painful.

I detailed some of my adventures on here. I think I called the article "My Bilstein Adventures" or something like that.

The wheelers superbumps will give you a cushy soft landing for those times you get a little over exuberant over big bumps.

I can't say enough good things about them because they really made the truck versatile and comfortable at stock ride height. There's been a couple of times I've been hammering down the highway and hit a big bump or a dip big enough to touch the superbumps.

They may have been intended for hitting sweet jumps... and maybe one day. For now though, they're a nice cushion against my crazy right foot.

Thanks Keros and RobD for sharing your experience.
The reason I am looking to swap my Xreas is -
I had to park my 4runner for 3-4 months for this winter, which for this year was extremely long..So, as soon as I started driving it again about couple of weeks ago I felt the ride was harsh. The front seems to work fine but the rear shocks I think were not compressing enough. At slow speed it seems fine but around 55-60 kmph in city I could feel the bumps.
So when I checked the rear suspension it seemed that it has sagged a bit. I seem to remember that it was higher than it is right now. Cause I bought the Daystar leveling kit for the front to level it out, But now it looks that the front spacer will make it nose high.
I took the measurements of my stock ride height from fender to hub is 19 '' front and 20'' rear. It has definitely sagged an inch or so. Can this happen when you park your car for a long time?
Is this my only option - to swap the suspension? Or is there still any other option I can try before swapping the suspension?

From my understanding, assuming everything is working properly, the ride height sensors and air bags should prevent any sag from happening in the back.

You could try adjusting the ride height sensors to get the right height back into spec. Someone linked the how-two from the manual on the first page of this thread.

If your results from the adjustment are hay-wire, chances are your sensors are toast. Which would explain why they've let the truck sag. Or a part is bent or otherwise out of adjustment.

In any case, the RAS is intended to prevent saggy-butt 4Runner. And if it's working normally it will. I've pulled some seriously heavy trailers when my truck was young and the bags didn't let the butt sag a micron. But all good things come to an end...

Ride height and the XREAS are independent from each other, of course.

thank you for posting your conversion results

Did you keep the 5160's in the rear or use the 4600?

I'm in the same situation with XREAS failure at 146,000 miles and I'm doing 6112's and springs in the front but still figuring out the back.

My other option is 5160's and springs with Air Lift 1000 in the rear.

I did a cycle of deflating and inflating the airbags, seems to be working fine. I will check on how to adjust the ride height sensors and see if it makes any difference.

I used Bilstein 5160's and MOOG springs out back at stock ride height.