4.5" lift on 03 Limited with factory air

[toyoboy1820]

When I bought my 03 Limited with factory air and xreas I was unaware that you "cant lift" them. So I did some research, and ended up tearing the xreas out and replaced them with bilstein 5100's with the front adjustable spring perch. I raised the rear bag adjusters all the way up for a 2.5"/1.5" lift. recently I decided I wasn't happy with it and I wanted to go higher. so was looking into options and contemplated going to springs in the rear, what I ended up doing was getting OME 2" lift springs for the front (on top of the 2.5" perch lift) and building a custom bracket for the rear bags to raise it more. I played with the bags quite a bit and they go WAY high. as of now im sitting at a little more then half inflated. So there ya go, 4.5" lift, with factory air and NO issues.

Tires are 33" Nitto Terra Grapplers

 

[Casper421]

Hows the ride with the 5100's at that level and OME...rough? Do you have 884's?

 

[Coles05t4r]

Looks sick man! Nice work! I just had my 3/1 lift installed and 33" Procomps put on. I like the extra space you have though :thumb3:

 

[toyoboy1820]

I have the OME 885's. it is pretty stiff and a little ruff, but its not too bad.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

More details on the brackets please, pics would be nice. Depending on how they work, id be willing to buy a set from you if interested. Looks great btw.

 

[toyoboy1820]

I lost the card to my camera with pics on it. ill take some more tomorrow when its light out.

 

[04rnr]

Is this a 4wheel drive ? if so Id love to see the CV angles

 

[toyoboy1820]

yes it is 4wd. i will take lots of pictures tomorrow

 

[H1_VLTG]

yes it is 4wd. i will take lots of pictures tomorrow

I can hardly wait to see the pics! BTW, looks AWESOME!

 

[krupnation]

Looks sick man! Subscribed

 

[CrimsonCountry]

Looks great. Sounds like your in the same boat im in. I did the exact same thing a few weeks ago by ripping out the XREAS and using the OME/Bilsteins. Im right at 4.5" lift on my 4WD too. I'm suprised you're only at 4.5" though with the 885s and that high of a setting on the 5100s. I was under the impression that the 885 normally lift 2.5+ on the V8 (higher on the V6) by themselves. I'm at the same height with the shorter 884s and have mine set on the lowest lift setting, .85". What is your hub to fender measurement?

I would be very interested in your CV angles as well. IMO (and based on advice from others with more experience), 4.5" forces the CVs to operate at or near their upper limits most of the time (vs only occasionally at 3.5" lift and below). I am expecting significantly less life out my CV joints as well as the upper and lower ball joints If I dont lower the lift down. They will last longer if you don't do much offroading as they will be cycling much less. If (ie. when) my joints go, I will be using modified OE boots and aftermarket ball joints that will hopefully be an improvement over stock.

Do you have any leaks from your boots yet? I finally got my passenger inboard boot to stop leaking a couple days ago. This high of a lift has already caused some headaches and I still may have to lower it....but it sure does look good :cheers:

 

[toyoboy1820]

I have the V8 so I think the extra weight is a factory there... I haven't had any leaks yet.

what problems have you had with it? the Only problem I have had was I messed up one of the end links on my sway bar, which was my fault and had nothing to do with the lift.

 

[toyoboy1820]

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Ok, makes sense now. I was thinking you made a bracket that went on the bag itself. I know several guys have had their rear air system get stuck in the high position and said the ride was horrible. I know you mentioned the ride in the front was a little rough, how's the rear with the bags filled that much? Thanks for the pics.

 

[toyoboy1820]

the bags don't ride any different. Im sure if you went up much more the ride would start getting pretty bad. The bags can go REALLY high. As I said before, im probably sitting at about 65% inflated on the bag

 

[CrimsonCountry]

Thanks for the pictures. Your angles do look a little more severe than mine. I notice the outside clamp of your inboard passenger boot looks like it has grease around the edge. Its normal for some to work itself out due to the increased operating angle but I would clean up so you can check for more leaking. That clamp is not that tight from the factory and is normally the first to start leaking grease after a lift. Its the one I had to reclamp.

The headaches I was referring to were more of a "worry" and possible/likely future wear and tear. As I mentioned in the previous post, mainly the cv axles/boots and upper/lower ball joints. My driver side ball joint seems to have more grease on the outside. I'm planning on checking all my joints/rods for play in the wheel this weekend and will replace as needed. My truck has nearly 100k on the clock anyway so some things that were on there way out anyway may be getting a nudge in the wrong direction from the lift.

Also, did you get a chance to not your hub to fender measurement? For reference, i'm ~23.75" in the front.

 

[DC runner]

I think toyota lowered the angle in the 4th gen from that it had in the 2nd and 3rd due in part to CV boot/Axle wear, and of course the whole stability issue.

My 90' runner ate boots, and it had a much more aggressive stance by default than the 4th gen. If you are willing to accept that, then it isn't that big of a deal. With the wider frame and stability control, the higher stance is safe. I will admit, there were a few times when my 90' runner, stock with 31's would get a bit harry around some tight corners. That was a high centered truck and if you didn't know how to handle it, it could bite you.

Anyway. I would imagine that at those angles you will see some premature cv failure, but luckily, CV's are not that expensive. Boots, less so. If you are willing to do the work to keep them in good shape, I don't see it as a huge issue.


I for one, eventually, want to put a nice lift on and expect to need to do more maintenance on the CV joints as a result. All part of the game.

 

[CrimsonCountry]

I think toyota lowered the angle in the 4th gen from that it had in the 2nd and 3rd due in part to CV boot/Axle wear, and of course the whole stability issue.

CV's are not that expensive. Boots, less so. If you are willing to do the work to keep them in good shape, I don't see it as a huge issue.

I for one, eventually, want to put a nice lift on and expect to need to do more maintenance on the CV joints as a result. All part of the game.

Exactly, I agree with everything you said. If you notice the 4th gen cv angles from the factory, they are actually negative and remain perfectly normal (just opposite) up to around 3"+. I for one love the look of my lift and am willing to pay to play. That is the main reason I haven't lowered mine yet.

The reason for mentioning those issues as "big" deals is that your average joe would probably end up taking it in to the stealership for repair, and we all know how those stories end...$$$. As you pointed out, axles aren't that expensive and the job could easily by done by anyone who installed their own lift.

 

[toyoboy1820]

Thanks for the pictures. Your angles do look a little more severe than mine. I notice the outside clamp of your inboard passenger boot looks like it has grease around the edge. Its normal for some to work itself out due to the increased operating angle but I would clean up so you can check for more leaking. That clamp is not that tight from the factory and is normally the first to start leaking grease after a lift. Its the one I had to reclamp.

Also, did you get a chance to not your hub to fender measurement? For reference, i'm ~23.75" in the front.

the grease has been there since before I bought my runner.. just been lazy and haven't cleaned it. at the moment its not leaking. But yes I need to clean it so i can keep watch.

Im sitting at about 24.5-25"

 

[toyoboy1820]

I think toyota lowered the angle in the 4th gen from that it had in the 2nd and 3rd due in part to CV boot/Axle wear, and of course the whole stability issue.

My 90' runner ate boots, and it had a much more aggressive stance by default than the 4th gen. If you are willing to accept that, then it isn't that big of a deal. With the wider frame and stability control, the higher stance is safe. I will admit, there were a few times when my 90' runner, stock with 31's would get a bit harry around some tight corners. That was a high centered truck and if you didn't know how to handle it, it could bite you.

Anyway. I would imagine that at those angles you will see some premature cv failure, but luckily, CV's are not that expensive. Boots, less so. If you are willing to do the work to keep them in good shape, I don't see it as a huge issue.


I for one, eventually, want to put a nice lift on and expect to need to do more maintenance on the CV joints as a result. All part of the game.

The CV is really not that big of deal for me. Anyone should know that once you start modding a car, truck, anything for performance (especially if you use it) that you will be sacrificing longevity. If you do the work yourself the cost is really a non issue.