Hi everyone,
Long time lurker, first time poster. This forum has been a great resource to get to know these vehicles!
My situation is as follows:
I have a 98 4Runner Limted 3.4 4wd 257k miles with the notorious driver's side lean, and I've been trying to get rid of it. I really only started to notice the issue several months ago after replacing the shocks with Bilstein 4600 (that isn't to say that's when the lean began but perhaps the time when I began to pay more attention). In fact when I purchased the vehicle I was surprised at how high the rear end sat considering the mileage (248k at the time). As more back story, I installed rear airbags months ago, not to compensate for any sag, but to aid when hauling. They typically sit with 5psi, not enough to influence the ride height day to day and I would prefer to not rely on them to get level ride height.
From my research, I determined the obvious first step was to replace the rear springs, as with so many miles, they're probably tired and sagging a bit. I ordered a new pair of 99' springs from Camelback Toyota and installed them last week. The color code was the same as what I removed and only about 0.5" taller. After a week of driving with the new set in, the lean is the same.
Today I jacked up the vehicle to take a look underneath and investigate. My first thought was something to have to do with the shocks, so I unbolted the bottom shock bolts, and measured their extended length to see if there was any discrepancy, (maybe one was sticking and not extended) but they equaled one another. I also felt around at the top of the shock, there were an equal number of threads extending beyond the upper shock nut on each side.
With the rear axle hanging (and swaybar endlinks loose) I measured the distance from the axle to the frame, right behind the bump stops and found that the driver side sits about 0.75" closer than the passenger side. Additionally, and intuitively, the spring on the driver's side is much more difficult to wiggle around (with the axle hanging) as compared to the passenger side. I could also see that the driver side bump stop hits the axle more than the passenger side based upon rub marks on the axle.
I've searched a bunch to find someone that still had the sag issues even after replacing the springs but haven't found someone to say so. So I'm curious, why would the axle not be level? Is it something to do with the lateral rod?
I'd appreciate any input and advice! Thanks!
Long time lurker, first time poster. This forum has been a great resource to get to know these vehicles!
My situation is as follows:
I have a 98 4Runner Limted 3.4 4wd 257k miles with the notorious driver's side lean, and I've been trying to get rid of it. I really only started to notice the issue several months ago after replacing the shocks with Bilstein 4600 (that isn't to say that's when the lean began but perhaps the time when I began to pay more attention). In fact when I purchased the vehicle I was surprised at how high the rear end sat considering the mileage (248k at the time). As more back story, I installed rear airbags months ago, not to compensate for any sag, but to aid when hauling. They typically sit with 5psi, not enough to influence the ride height day to day and I would prefer to not rely on them to get level ride height.
From my research, I determined the obvious first step was to replace the rear springs, as with so many miles, they're probably tired and sagging a bit. I ordered a new pair of 99' springs from Camelback Toyota and installed them last week. The color code was the same as what I removed and only about 0.5" taller. After a week of driving with the new set in, the lean is the same.
Today I jacked up the vehicle to take a look underneath and investigate. My first thought was something to have to do with the shocks, so I unbolted the bottom shock bolts, and measured their extended length to see if there was any discrepancy, (maybe one was sticking and not extended) but they equaled one another. I also felt around at the top of the shock, there were an equal number of threads extending beyond the upper shock nut on each side.
With the rear axle hanging (and swaybar endlinks loose) I measured the distance from the axle to the frame, right behind the bump stops and found that the driver side sits about 0.75" closer than the passenger side. Additionally, and intuitively, the spring on the driver's side is much more difficult to wiggle around (with the axle hanging) as compared to the passenger side. I could also see that the driver side bump stop hits the axle more than the passenger side based upon rub marks on the axle.
I've searched a bunch to find someone that still had the sag issues even after replacing the springs but haven't found someone to say so. So I'm curious, why would the axle not be level? Is it something to do with the lateral rod?
I'd appreciate any input and advice! Thanks!
