Help me spend $4k on my 4Runner

[Superhero]

What kind of thoughts do you guys have about the ToyTec lift? It's about $1100, but they are a local company to me and I do try to support that when I can. How are the OME lifts in comparison, based on quality and price? Any other kits I should be considering?

Any recommendations on a good site to buy OEM parts like the LCAs from? Definitely don't want to pay dealer prices there but do want Toyota parts, or the equivalent.

 

[81runner]

What kind of thoughts do you guys have about the ToyTec lift? It's about $1100, but they are a local company to me and I do try to support that when I can. How are the OME lifts in comparison, based on quality and price? Any other kits I should be considering?

Any recommendations on a good site to buy OEM parts like the LCAs from? Definitely don't want to pay dealer prices there but do want Toyota parts, or the equivalent.

I use Olathe Toyota for most of my OEM parts, best wholesale prices I have found on the web.
Toytec is decent, I know a few people with their setups, though if you were trying to save money, they use Bilstein to build their coilovers.
You could easily get a set of Bilsteins and Moog FJ springs for under $600, and if you have jack stands and a decent floor jack, you could do the whole thing yourself. I'm currently running Bilsteins on mine, slowly converting to ome as I'm going to be adding bumpers and a winch here pretty soon. I think I'll do springs first and see how the 5100s ride with the new setup. If I don't like it, I'll throw some ome nitrochargers on in their place

 

[eleven14]

Oh sweet!

Is this the site/person you are referring to?

+1 for CVJ and they're local to you

 

[montijo505]

I got a coastal front bumper, having never even turned a welder on in my life. After a few days of doing some practice welds on scraps, I went for it. Turned out great, just took about a week a couple hours at a time.

I got my welder used off craigslist for cheap. I had no tools and bought a husky generic like 160 piece set from Home Depot that has served me well. I’ve purchased other bits and pieces for specific jobs as needed.

I also run CVJ axles with no problems, just pay for the “OEM boots” as the regular neoprene boots tear easily.

Good luck!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Superhero]

This is my first lift ever so now that I've gained a bit of knowledge I'm kinda rethinking my whole setup. Might pass on any armor and put all my money into the lift and TLC. I have kept up with oil for the most part but a lot of other things I have been less diligent about.

Looking at a Bilstein 6112/5160 set up now. This kit doesn't come with rear springs though - what would be recommended? Or would I be better off buying the shocks and springs separately?

I'm deciding between UCAs as well. SPC, Camburg and Light Racing seem to be the most common recommendations. What's the difference between them other than hundreds of dollars?

If I put off armor now, and want to add it later, will I have to swap out my shocks and coils to handle the added weight? The reason I originally wanted to do that and the suspension at the same time is so I wouldn't have to redo the lift again later when I get bumpers etc. I don't want to have to buy my lift twice...

I don't plan on going larger than 285s, MAYBE 305s this summer when my 265 Duratracs wear out. Do I need a body lift? Does a body lift serve any other purpose? 285s, 305s are about the max the stock open diffs can handle right? I eventually plan to regear and lock the rear end but that is probably a year or two away due to the cost... would that change the max tires size? Reliability is more important to me than anything else.

Also, as far as TLC goes, I am going to invest in a ton of preventative maintenance - what should I go ahead and replace? I have 180k miles on my 2007 V8 4x4 and I want to make sure anything that is likely to go out in the next 30k-40k miles I go ahead and take care of now. So far I'm planning:

New front axles from CVJ (I drive right by their shop on my way to work most mornings)
New (rebuilt??) OEM front hubs
New front axle seal thingies
New OEM LCAs
Transfer Case Drop Kit - is this needed for the center Torsen diff on the 4x4 V8s?
Extended stainless steel brake lines
All fluids (still very nervous about tackling the transmission...)
Timing belt only has about 65k miles on it so think I'll leave it unless some pulley bearings or something need replacement and I have to pull it anyway
Air/cabin air/fuel filters
New bushings all around
V Belt
Spark Plugs

I have a new AutoZone alternator already installed and a brand new set of the best brakes and rotors Brakes Plus installs, so should be good to go there for a bit.

With all this work I might need to take a few days off of my job to make sure I can get everything done, either that or pay someone else to do it. lol It's cold and I don't think I have enough room in my garage anyway.

Anyone in the Denver area have experience with this kinda thing and wanna help out?

 

[bebop]

This is my first lift ever so now that I've gained a bit of knowledge I'm kinda rethinking my whole setup. Might pass on any armor and put all my money into the lift and TLC. I have kept up with oil for the most part but a lot of other things I have been less diligent about.

Looking at a Bilstein 6112/5160 set up now. This kit doesn't come with rear springs though - what would be recommended? Or would I be better off buying the shocks and springs separately?

I'm deciding between UCAs as well. SPC, Camburg and Light Racing seem to be the most common recommendations. What's the difference between them other than hundreds of dollars?

If I put off armor now, and want to add it later, will I have to swap out my shocks and coils to handle the added weight? The reason I originally wanted to do that and the suspension at the same time is so I wouldn't have to redo the lift again later when I get bumpers etc. I don't want to have to buy my lift twice...

I don't plan on going larger than 285s, MAYBE 305s this summer when my 265 Duratracs wear out. Do I need a body lift? Does a body lift serve any other purpose? 285s, 305s are about the max the stock open diffs can handle right? I eventually plan to regear and lock the rear end but that is probably a year or two away due to the cost... would that change the max tires size? Reliability is more important to me than anything else.

Also, as far as TLC goes, I am going to invest in a ton of preventative maintenance - what should I go ahead and replace? I have 180k miles on my 2007 V8 4x4 and I want to make sure anything that is likely to go out in the next 30k-40k miles I go ahead and take care of now. So far I'm planning:

New front axles from CVJ (I drive right by their shop on my way to work most mornings)
New (rebuilt??) OEM front hubs
New front axle seal thingies
New OEM LCAs
Transfer Case Drop Kit - is this needed for the center Torsen diff on the 4x4 V8s?
Extended stainless steel brake lines
All fluids (still very nervous about tackling the transmission...)
Timing belt only has about 65k miles on it so think I'll leave it unless some pulley bearings or something need replacement and I have to pull it anyway
Air/cabin air/fuel filters
New bushings all around
V Belt
Spark Plugs

I have a new AutoZone alternator already installed and a brand new set of the best brakes and rotors Brakes Plus installs, so should be good to go there for a bit.

With all this work I might need to take a few days off of my job to make sure I can get everything done, either that or pay someone else to do it. lol It's cold and I don't think I have enough room in my garage anyway.

Anyone in the Denver area have experience with this kinda thing and wanna help out?

Hey OP, might want to look into buying a used Tacoma OR suspension, I have an 06 V8 4Runner with the Tacoma front and rear shocks with FJ coils. Spent about 150 for the set up, gives about 1” in the front and under an “ in the rear. They are tuned softer for the Tacoma rear but still decent for $150. You can find them for sale by tons of people at Tacomaworld. Just fft

 

[Superhero]

Thanks! Am looking for a bit more lift than that though. :yo:

Hey OP, might want to look into buying a used Tacoma OR suspension, I have an 06 V8 4Runner with the Tacoma front and rear shocks with FJ coils. Spent about 150 for the set up, gives about 1” in the front and under an “ in the rear. They are tuned softer for the Tacoma rear but still decent for $150. You can find them for sale by tons of people at Tacomaworld. Just fft

 

[81runner]

Check out OME for springs in the rear. They make lift springs that handle stock weight, or you could get heavier springs if you're planning to do a bumper. Reasonable, I think I paid 180 for a set of springs for the rear. As far as the front, if you are going 6112, use the springs that come with them. If you were looking at 5100 series struts, you could do some Moog FJ springs for the front. You can still lift with these, and they feel pretty decent without breaking the bank.

 

[Superhero]

Looks like I will be doing all the work except the drain and fill on my transmission. I tried to fit labor into the budget but that's just too much. New tools and parts all fit nicely and leave me a bit of cash leftover. I was able to get 4 days of access to my friend's heated garage so whoooo on that! He lives a long way from me but that's what Uber is for right?

This is where I'm at now:

Bilstein 6112/5160 lift
Sway Bar relocate
Diff drop
ARB Rear spring, 1.5" lift standard load
Either SPC or JBA UCAs (SPC is a Colorado company so that's a big plus for me, but JBA would save me $160)
New OEM LCAs
New SPC cam bolts
NAPA New axles (will have my OEMs rebuilt by CVJ)

Any specific tools I should get to make this job easier? Have ratcheting wrenches on the list as well as a cordless impact driver. Any odd socket sizes I'll need? Specialty tools?

Was advised that unless I am having problems from the hubs to just leave them be.

Am thinking about going ahead and getting some new rear links to throw on. Haven't decided yet. SPC makes a nice set for about $280 though.

I can get all this locally for around $2600, $2800 with tax. $100 for an alignment, $200 for the transmission. That leaves me money leftover for any surprise problems and beer and pizza and weed.

After I lift this, how far is safe to drive to get the alignment done?

Hopefully it doesn't take 4 days to get all this installed.

 

[81runner]

Drain and fill on the trans is actually quite easy if you go thru the cooling line on the radiator. There is a how to thread on this forum for that. I did it a few months back, cake.

 

[81runner]

Looks like I will be doing all the work except the drain and fill on my transmission. I tried to fit labor into the budget but that's just too much. New tools and parts all fit nicely and leave me a bit of cash leftover. I was able to get 4 days of access to my friend's heated garage so whoooo on that! He lives a long way from me but that's what Uber is for right?

This is where I'm at now:

Bilstein 6112/5160 lift
Sway Bar relocate
Diff drop
ARB Rear spring, 1.5" lift standard load
Either SPC or JBA UCAs (SPC is a Colorado company so that's a big plus for me, but JBA would save me $160)
New OEM LCAs
New SPC cam bolts
NAPA New axles (will have my OEMs rebuilt by CVJ)

Any specific tools I should get to make this job easier? Have ratcheting wrenches on the list as well as a cordless impact driver. Any odd socket sizes I'll need? Specialty tools?

Was advised that unless I am having problems from the hubs to just leave them be.

Am thinking about going ahead and getting some new rear links to throw on. Haven't decided yet. SPC makes a nice set for about $280 though.

I can get all this locally for around $2600, $2800 with tax. $100 for an alignment, $200 for the transmission. That leaves me money leftover for any surprise problems and beer and pizza and weed.

After I lift this, how far is safe to drive to get the alignment done?

Hopefully it doesn't take 4 days to get all this installed.

At least you have money for weed and pizza, that's what makes the world go round lol.

Bilstein top nut is 18mm. Look up the axle popper on Amazon, makes pulling axles out a breeze, not too expensive. A decent jack, 2 ton or better, BIG jack stands, probably a 4x4 block of wood for the jack. I say BIG stands, because you are lifting, so you need to go to max height so you can still get rims back on when you're done.

There is a thread on this forum for custom extended rear links, uses an energy suspension link and bushing kit from the auto parts store and some hardware from home Depot, super cheap but worth it.

You should try to get an alignment done immediately after you are done, tires will wear badly and handling will be an issue otherwise.