2015 Limited Ride Improvement

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Buffaloe

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Looking to improve the ride 2015 Limited 4Runner aside from lowering tire pressure. My wife loves the vehicle but will be driving 90% of time on pavement and we'll take for trips on highway. How best can I mimmic more of a SUV feel without buying Highlander or Sequioa?

I'm considering installation of Bilstien 5100 shocks as I'm told by friends 'for sure' will make an improvement. Ideas?
 
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Buffaloe said:
Looking to improve the ride 2015 Limited 4Runner aside from lowering tire pressure. My wife loves the vehicle but will be driving 90% of time on pavement and we'll take for trips on highway. How best can I mimmic more of a SUV feel without buying Highlander or Sequioa?

I'm considering installation of Bilstien 5100 shocks as I'm told by friends 'for sure' will make an improvement. Ideas?
Click to expand...

I have a hybrid lift with 5100s.

They "improved" the ride by making the truck more stable, eliminated nose dive on braking and lean on turning... but the ride is a bit firmer if anything.
 
Something else to consider... your 4R Limited has the X-REAS suspension system... you can do a search on that on your own, but basically your existing shocks are connected via hydraulic lines. Yes, you can remove them and the related hoses and hardware, but if you ever want it go back to stock... well, you'll need your platinum card to do that.

I'm not suggesting that the shock conversion you're considering isn't worth it... just that with the Limited it's a bit more involved - and going back is not easy, at least based on what I've seen here. YMMV.

Good luck.
 
No matter what you do you won't get a live rear axle to handle like a CUV. You have XREAS suspension on your LE right now. That is a very good suspension for on road. 5100's won't give you a better ride on the highway. If you feel the ride is too harsh then get 17" wheels and tires. You should research your current suspension and think twice before throwing away a $2K system for a $400 one and expecting it to be better.
 
Start with new tires. Possibly tires and rims. The OE tires are meant for fuel economy. But read [MENTION=66316]1engineer[/MENTION] 's fitment guide first.
Will save you a boatload of scorn.
 
The Limited xreas suspension is very harsh riding compared to the others. It can be annoying at times but I prefer it to the nose dive and more sway on the SR5 suspension. The 20" tires do not help either. In the past on other vehicles I typically ran slightly more psi than stock but I do not with the 20s as this makes the ride even harsher. My 17" load range E tires ride about the same as the stock 20s. Load range C or P rated 17" tires would make it a little smoother. I can see the day when I convert to something like the Pro edition 4runner suspension as I have read that they ride softer and still handle good.
 
Definitely go for 17" rims and tires. I currently have the 17" trail edition rims with winter tires on my 2014 limited and it rides very nice and smooth. A lot smoother than my 2012 pathfinder with 17" rims.
 
x3 on the 17s. I actually like the XREAS ride for pavement cornering, I find the 17s are a good compromise.
 
What [MENTION=66316]1engineer[/MENTION] said... Xreas on road is great, consider 17" wheels with p metric tire, if you want softer without more body roll an LT may not be right for you.
 
Might I recommend a GX460 sir and/or madam? It's soggy Lexus road feel is perfect for those most discerning of tastes. :)

Joking aside, what qualities are you trying to improve? "SUV Ride" is not a very descriptive term. Do you want performance On-Road SUV? Performance Off-road SUV? Streetable SUV? Ridiculously soggy riding Cadilliac/Lexus/Ford I think this thing is going to tip over at 20mph turns SUV?

Everything is going to be give and take, but you need to narrow down what you want. "Highlander or Sequoia" is very vague... do you want the soggier feeling of the Highlander that bounces about and bottoms out over speed bumps or did you want the more truck like feel of the 1st Gen Sequoia? Or do you want the more balanced on-road feel of the 2nd Gen Sequoia afforded by the fact it is an Independent Rear Suspension vehicle now?
 
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Buffaloe said:
Looking to improve the ride 2015 Limited 4Runner aside from lowering tire pressure. My wife loves the vehicle but will be driving 90% of time on pavement and we'll take for trips on highway. How best can I mimmic more of a SUV feel without buying Highlander or Sequioa?

I'm considering installation of Bilstien 5100 shocks as I'm told by friends 'for sure' will make an improvement. Ideas?
Click to expand...

1. Please better define "SUV feel".
2. Get better qualified friends.
3. If I had an LE, this is what I'd do:

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/153173-5th-gen-wheel-tire-thread-3.html#post1527890
 
BlackWorksInc said:
Might I recommend a GX460 sir and/or madam? It's soggy Lexus road feel is perfect for those most discerning of tastes. :)

Joking aside, what qualities are you trying to improve? "SUV Ride" is not a very descriptive term. Do you want performance On-Road SUV? Performance Off-road SUV? Streetable SUV? Ridiculously soggy riding Cadilliac/Lexus/Ford I think this thing is going to tip over at 20mph turns SUV?

Everything is going to be give and take, but you need to narrow down what you want. "Highlander or Sequoia" is very vague... do you want the soggier feeling of the Highlander that bounces about and bottoms out over speed bumps or did you want the more truck like feel of the 1st Gen Sequoia? Or do you want the more balanced on-road feel of the 2nd Gen Sequoia afforded by the fact it is an Independent Rear Suspension vehicle now?
Click to expand...
HAHA "soggy" ride! "How's your 4Runner ride sir?" "Soggy."
 
Actually the replies have been a lot more civil than I'd thought.:rockthrow:

You still need to define what you mean by "improved". As several people have pointed out a few replies back, that mean different things to different people.

Do you want it Softer? Better handling? Less bounce? Less nose dive in braking? Able to climb big boulders?
 
+1 to 1engineer

You've already got a top-of-the-line suspension system.

Then you are asking for a ride more like a: ''highlander'' or ''sequoia'', which are 2 completely different beasts, I ---really--- doubt those two rides the same. soooo... which one you want?

I think you should go drive a F-150, then get back to your truck, you will unquestionably appreciate your ride. Heck, people driving my truck says its asking to be driven like a car.

The limited definitely corners and zig-zag very well for a truck, while keeping a smooth ride. Would try going to the 17'' rims if you want a smoother truck ride as others have said.
 
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Buffaloe said:
Looking to improve the ride 2015 Limited 4Runner aside from lowering tire pressure. My wife loves the vehicle but will be driving 90% of time on pavement and we'll take for trips on highway. How best can I mimmic more of a SUV feel without buying Highlander or Sequioa?

I'm considering installation of Bilstien 5100 shocks as I'm told by friends 'for sure' will make an improvement. Ideas?
Click to expand...
For me Terra Grapplers were the way to go on the 20" rims. The ride feels much more planted and the steering more weighted. There was a drop in MGP say 10-15% - but well worth it.

If you fly up to Denver, you can drive mine.
 
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