Had a little too much fun...some damage

[bobbyavidity]

I may have had a little bit too much fun this weekend haha. My steering wheel was slightly crooked so I took it in for an alignment where they showed me some damage underneath that needs to be fixed before I can re-align it.

On the photo you can see what the "good one" looks like with the two black vertical pieces holding that center piece in place. On the other one you can see the whole thing moved and therefore no black piece. The alignment place suggested I contact an auto body repair shop who can weld something to hold that in place. Does anyone know what these pieces are called? I need to replace 3 out of 4 of them. It seems relatively easy as it's just a metal piece so I'm hoping it's not too pricey. Anyone have any experience with this?

IMG-7187 — ImgBB
IMG-7186 — ImgBB

 

[MyanRagahis]

Yikes lol.

I got a shop to pry off the old ones and weld up some new ones by Total Chaos. 10x better and don't have anymore issues losing my alignment during a trip.


This guy's write up has a great explanation.
Total Chaos Weld-On LCA Cam Tab Gussets: Install For 5th Gen 4Runner

 

[SpeedyKevin]

I went with the Marlin Crawler LCA frame braces/Gussets. Similar in cost to the Total Chaos but also offers a skid plate it.

 

[Longv]

HD LCA Frame Brace, 2010+ 4Runner | Marlin Crawler, Inc.

 

[seatia]

If it were mine I would just tig each side if the piece is still there to contain the cam once centered or even just tig a piece of 1/4x1/4 square bar to each side of the cam to mimic the original.

It just has to keep the camber bolt from shifting once torqued, that's all.

 

[rdruss]

If you have to weld I'd go with the Marlin Crawler setup, much better and the cost is very reasonable. I'd also consider the Cam elimination kit from Poly Performance if I was an avid off-roader.

 

[EddieV4runnin]

Yikes lol.

I got a shop to pry off the old ones and weld up some new ones by Total Chaos. 10x better and don't have anymore issues losing my alignment during a trip.


This guy's write up has a great explanation.
Total Chaos Weld-On LCA Cam Tab Gussets: Install For 5th Gen 4Runner

You can still knock the alignment off, the tabs just won’t bend. I knocked mine off wheeling two weeks ago here in SoCal. I aligned it the next day and now drives as straight as an arrow. After the hard hit I took on OEM LCA I’m convinced the OEM arms are bulletproof.

 

[bobbyavidity]

Thank you all for the feedback! Very helpful. It seems like the Marlin Crawler ones are a better deal considering you get some extra protection as well. It's in the shop right now getting looked at so hopefully it's nothing more than the cam gussets!

I guess I forgot that while my Kings can take a bit of a beating a lot of the other mechanics simply cannot. Lesson learned lol