First time doing a lift on any vehicle. My family camps a lot so I’d like a little more clearance and I might add bigger tires down the road. I just replaced the stock tires to falken wildpeaks in stock size.

I’m getting Bilstein 5100’s front and back. I’m getting 2 inch lift coils for the back since those shocks aren’t adjustable like the fronts.

My question is what is the advantage/ disadvantage if I stick with stock coils and set the bilsteins to the 2.5 perch or set the shocks at the lowest perch and get lift coils? Do I just lose travel ? I only want to add 2.5 inches to the front.

I’m not going to add any extra weight to the front of the car or the back. Other than our camping gear when we are on trips.

Thanks

Anyone else ever go through this question ?

Why wouldn't you go ahead and change the front springs as well since you are changing the shock?

Did a search on Bilstein 5100 and some say it rides ok. I personally would change the spring since you would be under there already.

Save your $ and use the OEM springs. If you don't like it, you can always swap them later. If you do like it, you kept your money in your pocket which is the best place for it.

I’m not opposed to swapping out to new springs. What I’m trying to understand is if there will be a significant or functional difference to the performance or ride by having the shocks set at different heights depending on the coils.

I know the bilsteins give better performance than the stock shocks. Will after market front springs add anything since I’m not adding any weight to the front of the 4runner. I’ve only got 4000 miles on it so far.

Thanks

I've never been a fan of spacer lifts or compressing a spring more to start. I previously had a tundra with a spacer lift and it was stiff as hell.

Can't speak how it feels on the 4runner but that was my first and last time without swapping everything.

Stock suspension is far better than reputed on this forum. The 5100 is a meh shock. The higher the lift the way you propose, the higher the likelihood your ride gets stiffer. Forget pavement. Ride quality MATTERS A GREAT DEAL offroad. All the folks who claim otherwise are either solo cowboys or drive on the internet or offroad parks. Most unpaved miles are spent on mildly to not so mildly bumpy dirt roads and easy trails. If your family hates the ride on those, you will never get to the moderate or difficult trail you want. Ride quality rules and the stock suspension delivers on that. How often will you go out if every time it feels like your kidneys will fall off?

Second, you will always hit. You will hit more on moderate trails where attention lapses and difficulty is often low with gotchas laying in ambush. You will hit because you are tired, because kids argue and you are dealing with them, because the dog wants out, because a relative you took for a ride suddenly wants something inexplicable, or because you are letting a Jeep pass while some of the above is going on and you end up backing into a sharp rock you had no time to notice. I have a Moab friend who has driven half a dozen difficult trails in a stock GX 470. For a while he argued he can do without hitting. But he always has a spotter (mine is 12 yo) and yet his stock skids are now mangled as he started going out more and more and more often solo (like I am almost always). I also have 6 difficult trails in my 10 month old 4R but I have hit far more on moderate trails. So, lift or skids?

A 5100 lift may seem a cheap alternative to armoring up, but I do not think it will save you from some bad hits. A lift will give you more confidence, potentially increasing speeds and thus risks, expose the rear LCAs and even the driveshaft more, and will also make the rear diff more vulnerable once it becomes the single lowest point after a 2" lift.

Ultimately, it is true that a DIY install 5100 with rear springs will run you sub-600 with self-install vs 2000+ for proper armor, including sliders. So I cannot endlessly argue the virtues of staying stock till the stock springs and struts show wear.

But maybe consider a higher quality setup, maybe the Dobinsons twin tubes and springs. The 5100s are okay for older rigs or for rigs where looks matter more than function but if you are doing it for actual trips, it seems like a meh option to me.

Just trying to say that for serious family use, armoring up or a quality lift are better than a half baked lift.

Ultimately, you may want both. As for larger tire, a 33" gives you negligible offroad advantage over 32" while hurting you on road. We are not talking a JKU going from 32 to 35 or a JLU from 33 to 35 or 37. I understand people want to increase wheel/tire size with lift for aesthetic reasons, which is fine, but let's not confuse looks with function.

I am no expert but hope this helps.

Thank you for taking the time to write this, that was a lot of very real examples of things that go on during a family trip. I appreciate the insight. I will check out the dobs.

Knowing your 4Runner's year would help. For example, my recommendation would be different for a 4th Gen (definitely replace them, probably worn out) vs. say a 2015 (keep and try the ride as another poster suggested).

Brand new SR5 according to his new member post.

Thanks.

Take a look at our (Eibach) frontal springs. IMO, it's one of those "while you are in there" type of deals.