A_S_R's Build Thread

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Still in the process of moving and haven't had much time plus it's been raining. Will work on getting this updated soon.

As for the Rola, I got it from Etrailer for roughly $200 with the extension. I googled it and found the rack cheaper elsewhere and Etrailer beat their price.

 

[paquitox]

Sorry to Jack Ark !Look on amazon or ebay seem to have lowest prices or right here in classifieds ! :doh:

Really......!! I have seen them on etrailer for $180 + plus price of extention, just thought he might got it from someplace else for an even better price......Thanks though.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Really......!! I have seen them on etrailer for $180 + plus price of extention, just thought he might got it from someplace else for an even better price......Thanks though.

It takes some effort, but you can get the rack + extension for under $200. Place your order through Etrailer for the rack + extension, and use coupon RMN07A. Once the order is placed, Etrailer will refund you 110% of the difference in cost if you find it cheaper. A quick search shows Hitch Anything lists the rack for $139.42. Submit this to Etrailer and they will refund you $39.91 according to my calculations ($184.95 for the rack - 5% since you used the coupon - 139.42 = $36.28, then take $36.28 * 110%). Final price, $197.49. I chose this route because I knew Etrailer was legit and they have great customer service. They also had the cheapest price I could find on the extension.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Also, update regarding the rear suspension. I installed the MT long travel kit on the rear with a 3/4" spacer on the driver side to help with the lean. With the bump stop drops installed, the bump stops are sitting less than 1" above the axle. Going over medium sized bumps is causing it to bottom out. Also, loaded up a couple hundred pounds of kitchen stuff during the move, and I was riding on the bump stops the whole time. I've spoke with a few others running this kit and they haven't had any issues with this, so not sure what's going on, all I can figure is something is different about mine with since I had the rear air suspension. I'm waiting until tomorrow to call MT and discuss my options. I absolutely love the kit, but there's no way it's gonna work out for me like this.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Just realized I never updated this with my light installs, so we'll start there. I put a 30" Hanma BC Series LED bar in the front bumper using some custom mounts/brackets. I also mounted two of their 2x6 single row lights in the rear for use as reverse lights. See this thread for more details.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

A few weeks ago I purchased Icon extended travel front coil overs and the Metal Tech long travel rear kit. Also got a Cornfed 3/4" rear spacer to correct driver side lean, extended front brake lines (extended rear lines come in the MT kit), MT lower links, and parts to build extended rear end links for the sway bar. I've installed everything except the rear lower links and front brake lines.

Parts (most of them):

MT's Icon shocks compared to standard Radflo's from OW:

MT coils compared to OW's:

End links, still waiting on new bushings/washers to come in (built based on medic83's design):

Stock vs extended rear brake linkes:

Front's installed:

Rear shocks and coils installed:

Rear at full drooop:

All installed:

 

[Casper421]

Alright, I'm sold!! I was looking at the rear long travel kit earlier today(ironic), now I'm definitely gonna get it!! Looks great Ark!!

How much lift did you get in the rear? It looks like more than before, granted it will settle some.

 

[Casper421]

Is this kit new or used?

 

[CrimsonCountry]

Rear at full drooop:

...must resist the urge to upgrade. Seriously, that looks great and definitely some good travel gained on stock geometry. Have you had the chance to flex out on the trails yet? Nice choice on the upgrades though. Like most others on here, you are several steps ahead of mine and your build only adds to my "to-do" list.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Alright, I'm sold!! I was looking at the rear long travel kit earlier today(ironic), now I'm definitely gonna get it!! Looks great Ark!!

How much lift did you get in the rear? It looks like more than before, granted it will settle some.

Is this kit new or used?

I don't know exactly how much lift I have, it's roughly 1/2" lower than before. It is suppose to give 2", same as the standard OW or Icon kit. I was running a 1.5" Daystar on the driver rear and 10mm (~.4") on the passenger rear on top of the OW coils, now I'm only running a 3/4" spacer on the drivers side.

Everything was purchased new through Metal Tech.

...must resist the urge to upgrade. Seriously, that looks great and definitely some good travel gained on stock geometry. Have you had the chance to flex out on the trails yet? Nice choice on the upgrades though. Like most others on here, you are several steps ahead of mine and your build only adds to my "to-do" list.

My time has been very short lately, I've not even had time to finish installing everything I have, much less get on the trails. I'm also waiting on new rear bump stops to come in, right now I'm sitting at 1" between the bump stop and axle, makes for a very rough ride on road, can't imagine off road. I discovered the RAS 4runners have different bump stops, they are 2" longer than the normal ones.

Comparing to my OW setup with swaybar and stock links, I gained over 4" of down travel in the rear without the rear swaybar. With my extended links (1.25" longer than stock), I gained ~3" over the OW setup. I'm waiting until I get my MT lower links put on to see if I can go longer on the end links without making contact.

Thanks guys, hopefully I can have some time to get off road with this new setup soon.

 

[aviator31]

Very nice. Let me know if you are ever near NWA and we can get out and wheel that thing.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Very nice. Let me know if you are ever near NWA and we can get out and wheel that thing.

Thanks, and will do! We will hopefully be getting a group together to go to Superlift soon, would be great if you could join us. We're making plans in the Ozarks section, Ozarks - Toyota 4Runner Forum.

 

[Mike07SE]

Just a thought, but have you given any consideration if you can run the OEM rear bump stop without the Metal Tech spacer? That factory bump stop for the RAS setup looks huge compared to a regular one. Obviously you don't want to bottom out the shock, but I wonder if it's worth trying...

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Just a thought, but have you given any consideration if you can run the OEM rear bump stop without the Metal Tech spacer? That factory bump stop for the RAS setup looks huge compared to a regular one. Obviously you don't want to bottom out the shock, but I wonder if it's worth trying...

Yea, I've thought about that, but won't quite work. The bump stop is 2" longer than normal. With the 3" extension and normal bump stops, there's only 1/4" compression left on the shock. If I were to run just the bump stops I have, the shock would be the limiting factor and not the bump stop. I have new bump stops on order already, just waiting for them to come in.

 

[Nashvillerunner]

Looks great man! I remember when you first posted and you installed the FJC suspension on your 4runner. How do you like the Duratracs? I believe those will be my next tires.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Looks great man! I remember when you first posted and you installed the FJC suspension on your 4runner. How do you like the Duratracs? I believe those will be my next tires.

Thanks! Seems like that's been forever ago, but really hasn't been too long. I love the Duratracs, very pleased with them both on and off road. I spend 75% of the time on road. Main off road use is during hunting seasons and isn't really "wheeling". I will hit some trails a few times a year though. Duratracs have been great for this. They are very well mannered on the road and have done everything I've asked off road. If I were on more actual "wheeling" trips, I might look into something more aggressive and with thicker sidewalls, but they've been great for what I use them for. I'd buy them again in a heart beat.

 

[Nashvillerunner]

Great! Like you I will be using mine mainly for a daily driver but every once in a while I will do some trails and light offroading!

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Got my new bump stops (OEM for 4runner with rear coils) in today and got them on, along with my MT lower links. For whatever reason MT sent the links with the stickers upside down, gonna e-mail them to verify I've got them installed right (although it isn't rocket science) then rip them off.

Old vs new bump stops (RAS vs coil spring rear suspension):

Clearance with RAS bump stops:

Clearance with new coil spring bump stops:

MT lower links:

 

[Rigliner]

Looks good with the rear lower control arms and appropriate bump stops on.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Looks good with the rear lower control arms and appropriate bump stops on.

Thanks man! Rides a heck of a lot better too!