1990 4Runner recommended modifications

[gus898]

Hello everyone,
I just purchased a 1990 4Runner. I would like to change the rims and tires, make it a little faster and update or modify the suspension.

I will drive it daily. Do not plan to use it off-road very much and plan to pull my pop-up camper to go camping.

The rims it came with are not toyota originals. I like toyota rims and would like to know what year 4runner rims will fit.

I am considering adding a cold air intake. Is it worth it? What modifications can I make to make the 4runner a little faster?

I am going to replace the shocks and bushings. What brands or kits are good and affordable options?

Thanks to anyone who offers advice. I'm not new to 4runners. I have owned 2 in the past but never modified anything on them.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated!

Thank you,
Gus

 

[Jonny]

Hello everyone,
I just purchased a 1990 4Runner. I would like to change the rims and tires, make it a little faster and update or modify the suspension.

I will drive it daily. Do not plan to use it off-road very much and plan to pull my pop-up camper to go camping.

The rims it came with are not toyota originals. I like toyota rims and would like to know what year 4runner rims will fit.

I am considering adding a cold air intake. Is it worth it? What modifications can I make to make the 4runner a little faster?

I am going to replace the shocks and bushings. What brands or kits are good and affordable options?

Thanks to anyone who offers advice. I'm not new to 4runners. I have owned 2 in the past but never modified anything on them.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated!

Thank you,
Gus

Hey Gus
Welcome. I too am new to the 2nd gen 4runner. (came from a 2010 fj cruiser )
I am going to ASSUME you have the 3.0 v6? Engine is a tvrd. Many on here will argue that it is an awesome engine, but...the head gasket issue and being under powered leaves a bad taste in my mouth for some reason. I will admit, they do go till' Eleven though. plenty of people out there with 200k + miles on theirs, and lets face it.. We didn't buy the 4runners to race at the track. lol
Check your door tag to decipher what gear/axle ratio you have from the factory. that will definately determine what size tires you will want to run (unless you want to regear, then by all means... go 5.29's and 35's!) haha
here's a link to determine what gears you have from the factory
Gearratiosanddiffs

As far as affordable/lift goes. I went with a 1.5" ball joint spacer for the front and I threw in a rear coil spacer for the rear.- will be removing the rear coil spacer and replacing with a set of FJC coils soon & adding the panhard drop bracket and and brake load sensor bracket.I am also running the skyjacker shocks front + rear and they are a decent shock for the $$. there are body lifts, drop bracket lifts, solid axle swaps, and even long travel kits out there, just need to look into what suits your needs/wants
here's a link to a "lift guide" plenty of info there
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/classic-t4rs/122911-official-classics-lift-tire-thread.html

FWIW here's a pic of my 4runner with a 1.5" balljoint spacer and the rear coil spacer
285/75/16 km2's with 16x8 kmc enduros. 4.5 back spacing 0 offset. no rubbing. factory 4.56 gears and a 5speed. Wish I had the 4.88's though :/



As far as what other year 4runner wheels will fit...
as long as they are 6x5.5 lug pattern, they should fit. FWIW the wheels I had on my 2010 FJ are currently on my 1990 4runner :trophy:

 

[77'911]

Congrats on the purchase and welcome to the forum. I went with the following on our 1990 4runner:
1) complete urethane bushing kit(sways, control arms(front/rear), etc..)
*sourced from: Suspension Restoration Parts Co.
2) sway-a-way 25mm torsion bars
*be warned, these will firm up the ride but not like the race 26mm versions though
3) MOOG 255 coil springs
4) factory shocks
*probably should have gone Bilstein, but the truck is pretty tight as is
5) you can always drill out the factory air box for more intake(see pic)

The truck never sees off road use, other then the occasional logging road. With the upgraded, or newer suspension it handles weight in the back really well. No rear sag in the body either. If it is not done, you might consider repacking the front wheel bearings with Mobil 1 synthetic grease which handles the cold a lot better then standard. It's also worth checking over the cooling system on the truck, these engines do not like to be over heated, at all. Best of luck with it.
regards

 

[1990skyblueSR5V6]

1990 with needed work

got myself a 1990 3.0 v6 as well. its been my daily driver for 12 years.

not until recently have a bunch of repairs piled up on me:

new brakes needed, new belts needed, new shocks needed, new tires needed.

oh and i bottomed out on a big drop off of a road onto a driveway, which somehow led to breaking the pipe between the muffler and the catalytic converter.

If anyone has suggestions on great affordable choices for all of these fixes, I would be extremely grateful. While it might be easier to just sell the thing, this truck is family and I dont want to get rid of it.

 

[dbd6604]

new brakes needed, new belts needed, new shocks needed, new tires needed.

These are all maintenance items. None of these really qualify as being repairs. That being said, here are my recommendations:

Brakes - OEM equipment on the rear, Stoptech rotors and Hawk LTS pads in the front.

Belts - Gates is good. I've always gone with Gates and never been let down.

Shocks - You get what you pay for here. I went Bilstein all the way around (4600 HD Front, 5100 Rear). They're amazing, but also more expensive than most other options. Do a little research and figure out what will work out best for your application.

Tires - Depends on what you use your truck for. I like Cooper Discoverer AT/3's and Firestone Destination AT's. They are both very good overall tires.

 

[The13kidd]

I know if your thinking about a motor swap a lot of people say 3.4 has a good jump up in power from the 3.0. I have a 94 3.0 5-speed 4x4 which we've went through 3 motors 2 blown head gaskets, and 1 extreme terrible valve knock which is the cause of my current motor swap just stuck between staying Toyota with a 3.4 or chevy 4.3. But there are a ton of motor swap options if that's a road your thinking about taking, I've found tons of threads on here that we're really helpful. Good luck with your build hope to see pictures of it

 

[CentCalKid]

Input on the Cold Air Intake?

This mod seems like the ideal mod for somebody who is just itchin' to do SOME kind of modification just to scratch the itch...a three dimensional modification; beyond a bunch of "cool" stickers. Is it worth the trouble and expense? If all I get is 5 hp at the top end of the revs (which I never operate at anyway) it seems like I'd rather leave the air filter stock.

It seems the biggest benefit to this mod is you can show your 4runner buddies what you did while blathering on about saving up for a winch or some other mod you might actually benefit from?

Hopefully ,they come chromed and you can shine it up and put some "cool" stickers on it.

Also, because I don't really know, can we get some opinion on the modification itself; is it really a cold air intake if it's 105 degrees F in the desert? Adriatic chilling aside; does the CAI actually chill the air? Isn't it still sucking air from the engine compartment; which tends to heat up any air within? Is the stock filter a hot air intake?

Thanks for any technical input.

 

[junkyardbiker]

Why does it feel like this thread sums up the new generation of 4runner owners asking the same questions that have been answered for 20+ years on these trucks? You're not going to hotrod any 22RE or 3.Slow motor. As awesome as a vehicle Toyota gods bestowed upon us, they still need regular maintenance and upkeep. Tires and lift depend on where you drive your truck. While most of us here are pretty friendly, Search is your friend.

 

[Minimex88]

Throw a snorkel on it!