FJ Springs and 5100's Done-Pics!

[12guns]

Picked up my 05' Sport 4x4 V8 from the shop Friday and man do I love the new suspension! Smooth as silk, yet firmer ride as the shocks compress more. I failed to measure the front ground/fender distance before, but looks like the drivers side is right at 35" and the passengers side is 35 and 1/4". I used the .85 setting on the Bilstein's. Not sure how much lift I got in the rear as I've had the FJ springs on there for a while. I can tell you it got rid of 90% of the sag when I was loaded down and I would guess 1/5" total w/ FJ springs.

Total install cost was $235 with alignment, plus $390 for the shocks shipped from Wheelers.com. Total of 3 hours labor to install.

Not sure why the color looks off white rather than "natural white"? But pics turned out ok for an amature w/ a crappy camera.

 

[jacob_wood]

Looks good! In the first picture it looks like the front sits higher than the rear give you a bit of lean. Maybe it's just the picture.

-Jacob

 

[12guns]

Yeah, it's just the pic. The rear is a solid 1-1.5" higher than the rear, just how I wanted it. I like the raked look, just not as much as I used to have!

 

[jacob_wood]

Yeah a little is okay. Now looking over the 2nd picture it seems that the rear is higher. Hah good looking runner.

 

[CJ3Flyr]

Congrats!:bigok:

Picked up my 05' Sport 4x4 V8 from the shop Friday and man do I love the new suspension! Smooth as silk, yet firmer ride as the shocks compress more. I failed to measure the front ground/fender distance before, but looks like the drivers side is right at 35" and the passengers side is 35 and 1/4". I used the .85 setting on the Bilstein's. Not sure how much lift I got in the rear as I've had the FJ springs on there for a while. I can tell you it got rid of 90% of the sag when I was loaded down and I would guess 1/5" total w/ FJ springs. Great news, it certainly looks good. The Bilst/FJC combo sounds great. I have 86k on my SR5 now and I am beginning to think about shocks, I may go this route. I have my springs/spacers as I want them so perhaps save some money and go non-adjustable... Hmmmmm...

Total install cost was $235 with alignment, plus $390 for the shocks shipped from Wheelers.com. Total of 3 hours labor to install. That's tough to beat that bang-for-the-buck quotient.

Not sure why the color looks off white rather than "natural white"? But pics turned out ok for an amateur w/ a crappy camera.

Looks good! In the first picture it looks like the front sits higher than the rear give you a bit of lean. Maybe it's just the picture.

-Jacob

True but the steering wheel is off-center. It'll lift up on whichever side is turned out, especially with the swaybar still hooked up. Try it on yours

 

[12guns]

Not sure what's next. I really liked having mud tires on my old Tacoma, but not sure I'm willing to put up with the noise and such of the more aggressive tire.
Last year the shop had access to the old style BFG M/T's in 255x75/17 for $550 out the door...now they are all gone and the new price is sky high!!

Thanks for the replies, I'm real happy w/ the new springs/shocks.

 

[jacob_wood]

Congrats!:bigok:





True but the steering wheel is off-center. It'll lift up on whichever side is turned out, especially with the swaybar still hooked up. Try it on yours

I didn't realize that it would lift that much. I might just have to try it out.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Looks great! Also look into the Goodyear Duratracs, they've been getting ready reviews from what I've seen.

 

[12guns]

Tires will have to wait until these wear out, but I will be going with a taller tire when the time comes. One thing I will be doing soon is getting rid of that ugly painted pin stripe! I tried to remove w/ laquer thinner and such, but it didn't work. Looks like I'll leave that to a body shop. I'm worried about sanding too far into the clear if I do it myself.

 

[FIRETAIL-AR]

what shop did you use? Thanks.

no msg

 

[12guns]

no msg

Newton Tire in Russellville. Great Mechanic, and 60 bucks an hour is great for this area. I explained very briefly what I wanted, and that the front shocks were set where I wanted them. I labled the front coils "L" and "R" just to help. No problems with the install. If my back wasn't hurt and I had more time I would have done it myself. For me, it was well worth the money spent. The shop even asked where I got the shocks and commented on how good it looked after they were mounted! Alignment and all for less than $250 is not bad at all!!

 

[jtanner]

For me, it was well worth the money spent. The shop even asked where I got the shocks and commented on how good it looked after they were mounted! Alignment and all for less than $250 is not bad at all!!

Heck no it's not! You got a deal on that! 4R looks awesome man! Now I just gotta find me a set of rear FJ coils & I will be set on mine too.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Lol, I would figure tires would be further down the road as you've not had those very long at all. Did they remove all the xreas lines, or just disconnect the shocks and leave the lines?

 

[12guns]

You're right, tires will have to wait a while...although I've put almost 20k on these, I should get close to 45-50k out of them, they are wearing pretty good.
I asked the mechanic to rip, cut, pull, burn, or whatever to get the xreas lines down if it wasn't much more time. He said he got most of them cut off, but left a few parts bolted to the frame. Good enough for me. I didn't even bother keeping the old xreas shocks or my springs for that matter. I'll never be going back that's for sure!

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Do you have the part number of your 5100's? I just passed up a pretty good deal on a set of fronts, wasn't sure if they were the right ones and couldn't find a part number online. For some reason Bilstein's web site doesn't list the 5100's for the 4runner. I've got 140k miles on my XREAS, so I'm sure it'd be a good upgrade for me as well, especially after seeing how happy you are with them.

Also, do you have any idea how hard it would be to adjust the 5100's to a different setting after they're installed?

 

[12guns]

Do you have the part number of your 5100's? I just passed up a pretty good deal on a set of fronts, wasn't sure if they were the right ones and couldn't find a part number online. For some reason Bilstein's web site doesn't list the 5100's for the 4runner. I've got 140k miles on my XREAS, so I'm sure it'd be a good upgrade for me as well, especially after seeing how happy you are with them.

Also, do you have any idea how hard it would be to adjust the 5100's to a different setting after they're installed?

Here's the link to wheelers website. The adjustment is mearly a large c-clip that makes the coil set higher/lower up the shaft of the shock. I called wheelers when I placed my order, they said the 5100 is made for the Toyota 120 platform, which includes 4runner, FJ Cruiser, and Tacoma. You're right, Bilstein's website doesn't list them for some reason.

Bilstein 5100 Front and Rear Shocks from Wheeler's Off-Road, Inc

To adjust to a taller or lower setting, you would pretty much have to take the coil off to release the pressure of the c-clip. It might could be done w/ a spring compressor w/o removing them, but not sure. The c-clip can be removed easily almost by hand, but you want to be careful not to stretch it as that's all the weight of your vehicle is riding on! It's not a typical c-clip, I think it's higher quality and more springy. And it comes almost all the way around the shock rather than a typical 3/4 c-clip.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Alright, thanks for the info!

 

[JD914]

You mentioned that you went with the .85 setting. Is that the lowest setting? What are the other settings?
I have 265/70/17's which are pretty worn. I'd like to do this same mod soon, and possibly go up to a larger tire, but not for at least a few months. I want a slightly higher lift, with room for taller tires later, without looking goofy with my current tires.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER]

Settings are 0, .85, 1.?, & 2.5. He used fj springs which gave more lift than just shocks and oem shocks. Biggest advantage is they are adjustable, so adjust small for now and readjust once time comes for tires.

 

[Ridger]

Looks very nice, indeed!!

... and I like the look of no running boards also.

Quick question/clarification.... you mentioned you had FJ springs on the rear already. Did you also already have the FJ springs on the front? I didn't see any spring prices quoted in your current costs (just the 4 shocks, install labour and alignment cost).