5th Gen 4Runner Lift Buyers Guide

[TotalAutomotiveLV]

ARB/OME BP-51 IBP Coilover. This is like an adjustable version of what comes on the raptors, a 2.5" internal bypass shock. Not even remotely similar to the current OME suspension offerings, these look like a real performer. They offer independent adjustment of compression and rebound similar to the FOX DSC equipped shocks. Pricing is in line with the other options currently available.

Pricing on the BP-51 is as follows - FJ kits now available, 4runner to follow shortly.

OME BP-51 Coilover Set "BP5190002R/L" (FJ)
MSRP: 1600 a set

ARB OME BP51 "60002" Rear Shock (FJ)
MSRP: 1120 a set

Requires Front VM80010008 Vehicle Mount Kit
MSRP: 84

Requires Rear VM80010010 Vehicle Mount Kit
MSRP: 56

Obviously Total Automotive Performance offers a fat discount on ARB, but those are the going rate prices above :whoo:

 

[cjacob316]

Today was the first day I've seen them for sale for the 5th gen. The Tacoma version has been out. Rear springs seem to be the same as always.

 

[TotalAutomotiveLV]

Today was the first day I've seen them for sale for the 5th gen. The Tacoma version has been out. Rear springs seem to be the same as always.

Out, but not in stock at ARB. As soon as ARB USA gets stocked up we will put up a special on them for you all.

 

[John-West]

Toytec BOSS at SEMA

Toytec is showing their new remote reservoir on the BOSS 2.5. This one installed on a Taco. Available "soon".

 

[007Tacoma]

Bilstein 5100...

So, correct me if I am wrong, based on what I have read here: I should get the bilstein 5100s for my 15' TEP for the best road manners, elimination of the brake dive, and still handling off road situations similar to stock?

(puts on Nomex suit)

I am not a heavy off-roader as I spend 95% of my seat time going down the highway all over the country. I am not needing a lift, but I find myself in situations where it wouldn't hurt when I go home to Colorado.

I run Michelin M+S2's most of the time, but I am getting a second set of rims to run Duratracs (stock size) during the winter and off roading events. I need to keep my fuel economy as high as possible since I have already put 25,000 miles on my 4R in the first 9 months - hence the want to not do too much of a lift.

I want suspension with better than stock road manners, and I want to keep as level as possible... Bilstein 5100s?

 

[jwkilgore]

Replacing the rear shocks with 5100's should improve ride quality, but the height will remain unchanged. Rear ride height is determined solely by the spring rate, spring length, and weight. If you want to raise the rear you have to either lengthen the spring column (with a spacer or longer spring) or else get a stiffer spring.

Front ride height is determined by the coilover length. The front 5100 coilover sets have adjustable spring seats so you can adjust the length of the shock that sticks out of the spring. Put it at the lowest setting with factory spring for factory ride height.

Because the 5100 can extend more than stock shocks you should get slightly more articulation front and rear for improved off-road performance. The front will be limited by your upper control arm.

 

[007Tacoma]

Gracias

Replacing the rear shocks with 5100's should improve ride quality, but the height will remain unchanged. Rear ride height is determined solely by the spring rate, spring length, and weight. If you want to raise the rear you have to either lengthen the spring column (with a spacer or longer spring) or else get a stiffer spring.

Front ride height is determined by the coilover length. The front 5100 coilover sets have adjustable spring seats so you can adjust the length of the shock that sticks out of the spring. Put it at the lowest setting with factory spring for factory ride height.

Because the 5100 can extend more than stock shocks you should get slightly more articulation front and rear for improved off-road performance. The front will be limited by your upper control arm.

That answers my questions perfectly. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

 

[jmswts]

New OME lift to add to the list.

defiantly interested in hearing some first hand experiences with this kit.

 

[Lava rocks]

I have been trying to get feedback on these ARB/OME BP51's . So far those with fj' sand L/C 200 love how they handle both road and offroad . Seems as tho u will need to remove them from vehicle and use VM80020001 coil spring compression tool with bench top spring compressor to adjust ride height/preload. Some say the ten/compress adjusters are easy to adjust and all four corners can be done while on vehicle and in less than 10 min. I'm realy leaning towards getting them .
But the thing that is holding me back is the preload adjustments. They appear to look like every threaded body adjustable coilover and none of the others require compressing the springs to make adjustments to ride height. Don't know if it's due to the aluminum body and potential of striping threads! Realy does kinda defeat the purpose of threaded adjustability . Guess if only fine tuning ride height with minimum turns they can b adjusted like the other coilovers by jacking up vehicle and drooping suspension to make small adjustments

 

[TotalAutomotiveLV]

Just spoke with ARB.

The FJ kits are out and now shipping. We just bought a few of them for inventory. These will fit the 5th gen 4runner, but there will be a specific kit coming for the 4runner in 1-2 months. The difference being the pre-set settings on the dampening control.

 

[buffalojay]

Just spoke with ARB.

The FJ kits are out and now shipping. We just bought a few of them for inventory. These will fit the 5th gen 4runner, but there will be a specific kit coming for the 4runner in 1-2 months. The difference being the pre-set settings on the dampening control.

Do you happen to know what the presets should be for a 5th gen 4Runner? Might be pulling the trigger on these bad boys.

 

[Thelonius]

My head is spinning from all of the lift options. Good heavens.

Anybody here have a lifted 4runner in panama city FLA I can ride in?

 

[TotalAutomotiveLV]

Do you happen to know what the presets should be for a 5th gen 4Runner? Might be pulling the trigger on these bad boys.

Its going to have the spring preload slightly higher, and the dampening control will be adjusted. This is stuff you can dial in yourself with a little testing & tuning.

 

[jjdbike]

Help a 4Runner newbie lift please

Hey folks. Brand spanking new here & my first post. Just pulled the trigger on my 1st Toyota. It's a 2011 4Runner SR5 w/ 50k. It's replacing an 04 Xterra w/ 161k on it before it died. I that I had a ton of fun in and treated me well. I have even higher hopes for this 4Runner. It'll commute, be the family road tripper, my surf fishing beach buggy & do some light duty off-roading. I'd like to beef up the suspension a tad, put on slightly larger than stock tire (higher profile & a tad wider if possible - to be driven aired down, if I can do that on my stock alloy wheels), and get roughly between 1 1/2" - 2" of extra ground clearance. I want it to be ride drive well & safely, last and not cost any more than absolutely nessicary. How do you recommend it do this for these purposes? By the way, I don't do any of my own work & am pretty mechanically niaeve.
Thanks in advance for your advice! PMs welcome if that's even possible for a brand new member.
JD

 

[Jhalko]

Hey folks. Brand spanking new here & my first post. Just pulled the trigger on my 1st Toyota. It's a 2011 4Runner SR5 w/ 50k. It's replacing an 04 Xterra w/ 161k on it before it died. I that I had a ton of fun in and treated me well. I have even higher hopes for this 4Runner. It'll commute, be the family road tripper, my surf fishing beach buggy & do some light duty off-roading. I'd like to beef up the suspension a tad, put on slightly larger than stock tire (higher profile & a tad wider if possible - to be driven aired down, if I can do that on my stock alloy wheels), and get roughly between 1 1/2" - 2" of extra ground clearance. I want it to be ride drive well & safely, last and not cost any more than absolutely nessicary. How do you recommend it do this for these purposes? By the way, I don't do any of my own work & am pretty mechanically niaeve.
Thanks in advance for your advice! PMs welcome if that's even possible for a brand new member.
JD

Need a bit more info, I'd suggest looking through the build and picture threads and find exactly what you want as I'm sure you'll find what you want. You could just get 275's and bilsteins leveled to get most of what you want. The next option is the full lift (3/2), a Toytec or OME setup likely would be next in line and you could run 285's but cost will go up quite a bit especially with installation. Look around more and read and think about your budget and that might drive you to one or two options to decide from.

 

[jjdbike]

Thanks a lot Jhalko!
Can you or someone else please elaborate on that reply? Yes I don't NEED all I mentioned and budget is limited. What I NEED is a little more ground clearance, to be very sure-footed on deeply rutted sugar sand, firm suspension on dirt, rock & muddy camp trails while not losing too much ability & MPG on the highway.... But I can't afford to spend too much. Can you folks guide me to the right choice for me please? I trust you guys way more that my local mechanics that may or may not know as much about these type mods as they think or claim they do.
Thanks again & I greatly appreciate any and all input & advice!
JD

 

[Jhalko]

Thanks a lot Jhalko!
Can you or someone else please elaborate on that reply?
Thanks again & I greatly appreciate any and all input & advice!
JD

The ideal thing would be to get new tires and drive it in different conditions and figure out exactly what is best for your use, then buy the other stuff.

Starting with tires you basically have three choices, stock 265 size, 275's or 285's. Gas mileage suffers each size up and you may have to trim mud flaps and fenders for those 285's. With my 265's I've gone through a lot and while I may go to 285's eventually I didn't want to take any more of an mpg hit given the miles i drive, the Duratracs look bigger than they are anyway if that matters to you. Check out the tire thread sticky for more detailed info.

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-g...r-5th-gen-tire-fitment-guide.html#post1550444

On the lift, adjustable bilsteins with a daystar spacer in the rear can get you 2.5" up front and 1.5" in the rear while giving a very stock like ride , maybe better (very subjective) it would be durable and could be expanded down the road. It's reasonably priced and you'll find many examples if you search around, will even find different tire sizes used in that and seeing it might help you decide. For your stated use you can spend more but it likely isn't worth it suspension wise.

Find a good shop as well, if you are paying for it, you want it done right...

Oh and look at your gas tank skid, pretty sure you have only half covered, I'd invest in a full skid there, worth every penny.

Spend some time in the lifted picture thread, you'll see different combos, then PM the owner their opinion. I'm throwing out my thoughts but it may or may not be good for you, others will give differing opinions.

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/65893-post-your-lifted-pix-here-234.html

 

[Sundog7121]

I have the "inexpensive" lift referred to by [MENTION=91899]Jhalko[/MENTION], but with Toytec 1.5" rear spacers. The combo of Bilsteins and the spacers gives me exactly what I want -- good handling on the Interstate (about 80% of my driving is Durango to SoCal and back, but also leveling and a slight lift. I was able to make it over nearly all the trails of Southern Colorado with my rig as stock - the lift will help me clear areas where I scraped before.

I also run 265's for gas mileage with a steady 19 mpg average since I got the rig three years ago. Have about 78K miles so far.

I agree on full skids. I have RCI full length skids and if I get stuck I just drag myself off.

The ideal thing would be to get new tires and drive it in different conditions and figure out exactly what is best for your use, then buy the other stuff.

Starting with tires you basically have three choices, stock 265 size, 275's or 285's. Gas mileage suffers each size up and you may have to trim mud flaps and fenders for those 285's. With my 265's I've gone through a lot and while I may go to 285's eventually I didn't want to take any more of an mpg hit given the miles i drive, the Duratracs look bigger than they are anyway if that matters to you. Check out the tire thread sticky for more detailed info.

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-g...r-5th-gen-tire-fitment-guide.html#post1550444

On the lift, adjustable bilsteins with a daystar spacer in the rear can get you 2.5" up front and 1.5" in the rear while giving a very stock like ride , maybe better (very subjective) it would be durable and could be expanded down the road. It's reasonably priced and you'll find many examples if you search around, will even find different tire sizes used in that and seeing it might help you decide. For your stated use you can spend more but it likely isn't worth it suspension wise.

Find a good shop as well, if you are paying for it, you want it done right...

Oh and look at your gas tank skid, pretty sure you have only half covered, I'd invest in a full skid there, worth every penny.

Spend some time in the lifted picture thread, you'll see different combos, then PM the owner their opinion. I'm throwing out my thoughts but it may or may not be good for you, others will give differing opinions.

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/65893-post-your-lifted-pix-here-234.html

 

[jjdbike]

Awesome info here. Thanks ash dog & thanks again J.

I've had others warn me that I'll "ruin" my vehicle lifting it. I find that hard to believe seeing how many people do it and Toyota offers a couple lifted trim lines.

The biggie that I've been warned about is prematurely wearing out ball joints, CV joints, rocker arms etc. because of the more extreme angle.

That's why I asked about durability. Is this really a genuine concern even offing 1 1/12-2"? If so, is there a way to minimize these concerns?

Also, Sundog, you put "inexpensive" in quotations. W/out tires, roughly how much might I need to pay to do this 2" front 1 1/2" rear lift?

Thanks again folks, you guys are awesome! So glad I found this site!
JD

 

[Sundog7121]

By "inexpensive" i mean about $400 for the Bilsteins and about $80 for the spacer (as I recall) both ordered from Toytec. Set the front Bilsteins to 2.5" and you're almost level with a 1.5" lift on the rear.

Awesome info here. Thanks ash dog & thanks again J.

I've had others warn me that I'll "ruin" my vehicle lifting it. I find that hard to believe seeing how many people do it and Toyota offers a couple lifted trim lines.

The biggie that I've been warned about is prematurely wearing out ball joints, CV joints, rocker arms etc. because of the more extreme angle.

That's why I asked about durability. Is this really a genuine concern even offing 1 1/12-2"? If so, is there a way to minimize these concerns?

Also, Sundog, you put "inexpensive" in quotations. W/out tires, roughly how much might I need to pay to do this 2" front 1 1/2" rear lift?

Thanks again folks, you guys are awesome! So glad I found this site!
JD