Ramzey28
New member
First, thanks to Mike G. Yesterday I had my Seat and headlights replaced under warranty. I had 4 Firestone Dest. AT LT 275/70/17 installed and 2 front 5100's at .85. I was expecting a bigger change in handling but really didnt get that. It does seem to help alittle for nose dive, cornering and feel the road more. Just not a huge change. They put my casters to around 3, they could or (maybe didnt try hard enough) to get close to 4. The hard part of comparing was I left a tacoma off road version they gave me for 2 days which was alot stiffer. The tacoma steering, braking, cornering was sooooo much better. The tacoma ride was harsh compared to the 4 runner but its odd that they could not get the same handling for the 4 runner. 4 Runner steering is so loose, I was getting used to it but then coming from the Tacoma....I realized.....uggg (same with brakes).
I think if you looking for a bigger change, you will need different springs.
The 4 runner sits level prior to install, I have read (and pics) a ton on leveling on this forum.....when you measure from a flat surface from the rocker panels, its sits level, I knew if I went to .85 it would be alittle nose high...I was ok with that because I will probably put in a 1" cornfed spacer later this summer. The pic below is on a slopped driveway. Once you get a full tank of gas, any weight, you can see it nose higher but even without that....is alittle higher.
They scratched all 4 rims with the roadforce balancer..wtf. They are going to have a professional try to fix it, if it doesnt work then we must have a good conversation on replacement or $$$$. It seems the plastic lifter part that goes around the rim when putting the tire on scratches the TE flat rim piece that runs around the tire. You think when the first rim did it, they could think of a way to fix that (protection), they tried another Roadforce, did the same thing. Im willing to let them try to fix it but the more I think about it, the more pissed I get. Seems like only one person on this forum has had such an issue, so to me, the installer did something wrong or the machine needs new parts...who knows.. :uzi:
The tires look alot better, more aggressive but not over kill. They are quiet, pretty close to the Bridgestones. I can hear them just alittle bit more. I think as the 13/32 tread goes down, they will because quieter. I can feel them, aggressive tread--milder then others, but no real vibration or such. They do carry the Mud and Snow symbol and look forward to NH winter and how they do. I think the LT has reduced the floaty type bounce. I was worried about how 6 ply and LT's would be over the P. I think I made the correct choice. I had them do them at 40 psi (got home and they were around 38..ugg but put them back to 40psi). I might tow a camper later on, so glad to have the extra ply's and carrying load (at 50psi).
The seat seems fixed. He thinks the headlights are made by a different manufacturer (part number might have changed ??)....not sure I buy that. They are SOO much clearer, mine were only 1.3 yrs old. Got the drive shaft lubed due to "clunck" issue (probably will replace down the road).
I got the tires for $204 a piece (prices in other places were up to 268), that included all mounting, balancing, etc....so 816 total. Bought the shocks fro Downsouth motorsports for 199.00 (free shipping)...fast service. Install was higher at 235.00 but didnt need to pay for an alignment because of the tire install. I should have done the space prior, bad planning on my part.
Any questions, ask....I can post other pics if anyone wants them. I will update MPG and if ride impression changes since I have not driven a good amount of miles. I need to hit the highway at higher speeds and hit a curvy (sp?) road, also a windy day would help on the highway to see how that is.
I think if you looking for a bigger change, you will need different springs.
The 4 runner sits level prior to install, I have read (and pics) a ton on leveling on this forum.....when you measure from a flat surface from the rocker panels, its sits level, I knew if I went to .85 it would be alittle nose high...I was ok with that because I will probably put in a 1" cornfed spacer later this summer. The pic below is on a slopped driveway. Once you get a full tank of gas, any weight, you can see it nose higher but even without that....is alittle higher.
They scratched all 4 rims with the roadforce balancer..wtf. They are going to have a professional try to fix it, if it doesnt work then we must have a good conversation on replacement or $$$$. It seems the plastic lifter part that goes around the rim when putting the tire on scratches the TE flat rim piece that runs around the tire. You think when the first rim did it, they could think of a way to fix that (protection), they tried another Roadforce, did the same thing. Im willing to let them try to fix it but the more I think about it, the more pissed I get. Seems like only one person on this forum has had such an issue, so to me, the installer did something wrong or the machine needs new parts...who knows.. :uzi:
The tires look alot better, more aggressive but not over kill. They are quiet, pretty close to the Bridgestones. I can hear them just alittle bit more. I think as the 13/32 tread goes down, they will because quieter. I can feel them, aggressive tread--milder then others, but no real vibration or such. They do carry the Mud and Snow symbol and look forward to NH winter and how they do. I think the LT has reduced the floaty type bounce. I was worried about how 6 ply and LT's would be over the P. I think I made the correct choice. I had them do them at 40 psi (got home and they were around 38..ugg but put them back to 40psi). I might tow a camper later on, so glad to have the extra ply's and carrying load (at 50psi).
The seat seems fixed. He thinks the headlights are made by a different manufacturer (part number might have changed ??)....not sure I buy that. They are SOO much clearer, mine were only 1.3 yrs old. Got the drive shaft lubed due to "clunck" issue (probably will replace down the road).
I got the tires for $204 a piece (prices in other places were up to 268), that included all mounting, balancing, etc....so 816 total. Bought the shocks fro Downsouth motorsports for 199.00 (free shipping)...fast service. Install was higher at 235.00 but didnt need to pay for an alignment because of the tire install. I should have done the space prior, bad planning on my part.
Any questions, ask....I can post other pics if anyone wants them. I will update MPG and if ride impression changes since I have not driven a good amount of miles. I need to hit the highway at higher speeds and hit a curvy (sp?) road, also a windy day would help on the highway to see how that is.
