1st time for pm notification to show @ login don't know why.

Yes it worth the extra over 5100's if you got it not a night/day difference it a good setup before jumping into King Icon price.
Added 3/8" top hat spacer 3/4" lift to eliminate a every now and then tire scrub. Spring perch setting 4 & 3 preload sweet spot for my bumper and winch.
Rear OME 890 & 5160's sweet spot is 100 lb +- extra weight if factory bumper. 880 lb of Sakrete 2-3" tire-flair clearance road fine.
Swaybars limit the travel available - Swaybar Q/D's.

im looking to haul a small trailer and some other gear via a roof rack and the cargo hold. but i dont want to lift my truck. been looking at this kit...

Bilstein/OME Stage 2 Lift Kit - 3rd Gen 4Runner (1996-02) - YotaMafia

but its saying it will lift the truck by 3 inches, which i do not want.

I'm currently sitting on the factory suspension, 265\75r16 coopers.

1997 sr5 4x4 automatic 3.4L

How much extra weight are you lookin to haul exactly and how often? If I recall we're good for 5000lbs max, basically the weight of another 4Runner on a trailer with a little wiggle room. Though on a 20 year old, naturally aspirated V6 it might be a little slow going these days

I would say at max 6000 pounds. I plan on using my T4R to haul light cars on occasion.

Im planning a full motor rebuild to help with the speed while hauling. But as of now im working on the suspension.

Currently if i put 300lbs in the back it sits fully compressed. So im not sure what its supposed to be really.

Towing rating for our 4Runner's is 5000lbs. The majority of the trailer hitch receivers (the part attached to the vehicle frame) will be rated for 5000lbs gross trailer weight and 500 lbs tongue weight. You would probably benefit greatly from adding some rear spring helper air bags that you can inflate under load. Otherwise you will need a very stiff or very tall rear spring in order to not be on the rear bump stops when you're loaded down. If you have an automatic I would also highly recommend adding a transmission fluid cooler either inline or bypassing the transmission cooler in the radiator.

Ok cool. Ill add that to the list. I guess ill go with the kit I found then. Thanks for y'alls help.

Pulling 6000# is one thing. Stopping is another, and certainly more important. Go through your brakes 100% and maybe consider the Tundra brake upgrade.

Also, these:Airlift 1000 air bags

I would go the full nine and look into replacing the master/booster as well while you're at it.
Fully floating the axles would probably be smart too, with a regearing to match.
Air bags will definitely be your friend but in terms of coils I'm thinking you'll left with having to chop some heavy duty linear-rate ones to size as I'm not aware of anyone that makes HD, zero lift springs - nor would I exactly expect anyone to. But I've been wrong more than once on here.
Keeping it at stock height is really gonna be a challenge for you here so I would think about giving a little wiggle room. Another idea would be to swap over a 2-link axle, presumably from another Toyota. You may or may not get some helpful trackwidth doing this too.
Really your better bet would be investing in a toy hauler or even just a basic full sized truck but I assume that's not entirely an option, otherwise you'd do it and save the time and effort. Unless this is all just a cool project

I would HIGHLY advise anyone wanting to mod and enjoy their 4runner to DO ALL THE MAINTENANCE FIRST before lifting it or wheeling it. These trucks are awesome, look awesome and can do great things, but not when they break.
Keep them maintained and serviced and they will go to 500K

@mstud, is this not a sticky anymore?

Tow 6k…….. with a 3rd gen….wat?……..

Trigger warning, This is going to sound super preachy. I’m late to the thread party, but Just hear me out. I’ve done a lot of towing for my own business, for play, and as a professional truck driver in my past life.

Sounds like you need the right tool for the job. An in town putt putt is one thing, but if your actually doing a real tow, I think your setting yourself up for failure, in a bad way.

The top tow rating is what 5k lbs? Your going to have a tandem trailer with forward position axles to keep the tongue weight in check. Boats fit in that category too from the rear bias. But a transporter? Your going to have a real challenge not blowing past the 500lb mark on tongue weight. Timbrens or air bags can solve your ride height issue, but I doubt the wheel bearings live very long. You may even need an anti sway hitch to tame how unstable it might get. As light at 3rd gens are it’s going to feel like a rodeo with any real speed.

RVs aren’t the same as a flat deck car hauler, not even close, but for my 8-9k lb rv setup i run a 1 ton pickup, air bags, the biggest equalizer hitch you can buy without getting weird about it, and a Hellwig sway bar. Maybe it’s over kill, but it’s comfortable to drive, and extremely in control. I don’t have to play super trucker anymore. Did plenty of that in the past.

I say this as an unrestricted CDL holder and a guy who used to run a 129k permit, I t’s not the moving it that’s the problem. The 4runner isn’t heavy enough for that job, nor is the suspension calibration even in the kinda sorta category for stability. It’s just the wrong tool. 4Runners are awesome, but they have limits.

Keep the 4runner for whatever. Get an appropriate sized vehicle for the towing task. You don’t even have to spend a lot of money. Old 90s and early 2000 suburbans are a dime a dozen for cheap and would do the job your wanting so much better. That’s not even getting into transmissions and if that rear axle can live. Plus the right vehicle will do it safely. The ratings honestly are there for a reason.

@Romeo1 is 100% right. Preach, brother.

Just because the manual says 5K towing capacity I would not expect it unless it were driver alone, no mountains and no one else on the road. Stopping is half the battle.

Tow at 75-80% or less and know your and your vehicle's limits.

I totally agree with your position. All I was suggesting was that if he were to attempt towing three tons, stopping the load is more important than pulling. I draw the line with 3500-4000# with my rig.

I just bought a one owner 3rd gen and getting 3 inch lift and running 17x7 285/70s do you think I’ll have any issues with weight/body roll etc?

Long as you run the sway bars, 4Runners tend to oversteer and are very flat cornering. Way more than most.

That said, any real use outside of just regular road driving and you’ll break the links. Haven’t had anymore issues since I went to stronger longer links.

@dwilmoth

Agree with Romeo1

Assuming it's a 3" suspension lift, I'll add a few things:
- your CV boots will likely tear immediately after the lift, so budget accordingly.
- if you have 3" of lift in the front, you might consider a diff drop and/or extended articulation CVs.
- if you have 3" in the rear, consider a panhard correction kit Panhard Correction Kits – eimkeith.com

Lots of people run 33s with no real issues. You'll still get some rubbing at full stuff/lock, so be prepared to do some minor trimming/hammering. Oh and you won't be able to fit a fully inflated full size spare in the stock location at this size.


Best of luck!