Greetings all! I planned on installing my cornfed 1" leveling front some time this week. With the limited amount of time I have, I doubt I'll have time to knock out a alignment soon after. How far (distance wise) can I go till its absolutely necessary to get an alignment done (if it's even completely needed)?

From your house to the alignment shop


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I mean, how much do you value accurate steering and non-abnormally worn tires?

No one can really give you a specific mileage or prediction of exactly what will wear out and how fast.

You're changing the suspension setup, so you need an alignment, that's not a question. Will it result in a horribly off center wheel, resulting in maybe the steering angle sensor not being happy and setting a code? Maybe? Maybe Not? Will it result in heavy feathering and/or abnormal wear on your tires as well as annoying handling? Probably? Will driving it 100miles or 1000miles ruin said tires? Maybe?

There's a ton of variables there that no one can really account for, not including how much you fiddle with the LCA cams, and tie-rods installing the spacers and trying to "eyeball" the toe-in.

Only way you'll know is after you install it and drive it, if it's something you can live with for a bit until you get your alignment, cool; otherwise you may just want to wait until you can get an alignment done after the install?

Check your "toe" and "camber" before and after, both are easy to check. You can readjust your toe if necessary. Camber and caster can also be adjusted but thats where the alignment shop comes in for accuracy.

tape measure and you can get it close to where you wont wreck the tires. i dont think 1" will be drastic enough to matter though. Just make sure you do it if you care about the tires.

1. Put jack underneath front end
2. Measure wheel well height
3. Raise jack 1" after contact
4. Measure whatever you want on the wheels
5. Video dropping the vehicle that 1" to see what happens to the wheels.

My OEM front springs sagged 0.75 inches after 114K miles and still no abnormal tire wear. I did not loosen lower control arm cam bolts while installing Dobinson's 1-inch lift springs and Bilstein shocks. Checked toe-in with a tool and scheduled a wheel alignment when it was convenient which was the first alignment ever on this 4Runner. I would not recommend driving 11 years without an alignment unless one is proficient at inspecting suspension components, observing and measuring tire wear. If vehicle handling was less than ideal after the install, I would have scheduled a wheel alignment immediately.

Do it yourself with a string and a square. Then go in for a free alignment check and finish dialing in. Probably just need to adjust toe.

Tires can go quick so do it ASAP if you like your tires.

Eh... I'mma err on the side of caution, I have seen too many "oh I got it close for you" guys after they lift it and bring it in to get it aligned. Once it's on the machine you're scratching your head wondering why the hell they messed with the cams and toe so much and how the hell they got it so far out for a spacer lift or installing some shocks. Like I said earlier, there's a ton of variables even before we account for the guy holding the wrench; so it'd be just easier and more efficient to just plan to do the spacer lift and get an alignment shortly after. It's not a critical repair that needs to be done at this moment and can easily be delayed until you can do it all properly.

As I've gotten older I'm less and less surprised by people's ability to take simple instructions and somehow make problems; also generally when someone needs to ask "how long can I not do the entire job correctly and get away with it" it doesn't instill any confidence that they will end up doing it right.

Yeah go with this if you're not knowledgeable. In my case the free check was just to verify my own work. Perfect as usual.

I'm not implying that I'm going to wait +200 or so miles to get the alignment done. I'm getting my work install by a shop thats at least 50 miles away one way and by the time it gets done, all other shops with be closed for the day.

To be clear, my comment wasn't specifically directed at you. I've just gotten in the habit these days of not assuming people often lack the required aptitude, tools/equipment, and/or mechanical sympathy required to work on their vehicle as a starting point.

I'm not saying everyone is an idiot/backyard hack, just that most people who come to these forums or are asking technical questions are doing so because they aren't technicians/mechanics and/or are inexperienced in that way of thinking. It's just been my experience over the years on the forum and in the industry that if assume that a customer, friend, and/or other technician knows what they're doing; it'll end up biting me in the ass later. So I just start at the lowest common denominator and work up based on what I'm working with. Apologies in advance if that comes across condescending or offensive; I try to do my best to help and educate and I know sometimes I can come across a bit harsh/dismissive of people.

50miles will probably be okay as long as you get it in the ballpark. You'll know if it's not as it'll feel like it's not driving right or something is dragging.

Welding paint marker all 8 of your adjusting tabs and your tie rod jambo nuts. Then the alignment shop can't f_ck you around. You'll also see what was done by them. I do this to all my suspension components nuts and bolts. If you off road hard all the time like me it makes for an easy eyeball check of suspension and alignment after going hard. 👌

In my experience with a 1" spacer lift I could not notice any significant change in the toe in between my before and after measurements. The 4runner seems to be very stable with respect to bump steer within the range of normal ride height. That being said, i would still schedule an alignment when it is convenient. I need to do the same soon.