Is it safe to cut bottom end of front fender, next to door?

[toy4runr85]

Absolutely you can (should) cut the lower part of the firewall to clear those sexy big tires.

On my 85, I have a 3" or so old Downey Off-Road spring lift. When I ran 35s they rubbed a LOT. Adjusted the turn stops out a few turns which means you lose a little in turning radius.

I had a reputable body shop cut a piece out of the bottom outside of the firewall right at the floor to about 8" or so up. Welded in a new piece of steel and applied new undercoating. We stopped just shy of the body mount and where the fender attaches. I know pics would be better I can get some pics and post later. Also trimmed the bottom of the fender to match.

Keep in mind there are "things" mounted to the firewall at the floor, see those grey plastic panels? The one on the passenger side hides the ECU. Somewhat important. I moved the ECU from the floor to behind the glove box, which meant I had to trim the glovebox to make it fit. The wires and connector reach just fine and I even used the existing mounting brackets for the ECU just bent them in a different direction to make them work.

Double bonus regarding this, now the ECU is up off the floor so in case of deep water crossings it's in a much better location.

Again, pics to follow later.

I did this about 10 years ago. Still works fine. I wouldn't suggest just start whacking the sheetmetal to clear it. You CAN however pound the body seam flat.

 

[TheManOutside]

That makes more sense, and matches what you're observing with the DS tire closer to the body.

You said you've got relatively new OME springs on, yes? How long have they been on? And when you installed them did you put the A spring on the drivers side?

Just below 15" is close to stock ride height, which helps to better understand the rubbing issue under flex. Something isn't right, that is a huge difference between passenger and drivers side.

I think OEM solid axle height is in the realm of 13.5" to 14" between the top of the rim and fender opening.

Do you have the springs installed on the wrong sides of the truck? One pack is for the drivers side and the other is for passenger, they are not the same because the spring perch distance on the axle is not the same (I believe). So if they were on the wrong side, the lift would be off, and maybe (and this is just a made up example) they are supposed to be 16" and 16", understand?

I put these springs on around September of last year ish, so they are fairly new. As far as I know, both the front springs were identical... is there any way to tell which one is for the drivers side, and which is for the passenger side? I bought them from rocky road if that helps (from what I've heard (after I bought the leafs of course) they kinda suck. maybe they just send 2 of the same idk)

 

[TheManOutside]

Absolutely you can (should) cut the lower part of the firewall to clear those sexy big tires.

On my 85, I have a 3" or so old Downey Off-Road spring lift. When I ran 35s they rubbed a LOT. Adjusted the turn stops out a few turns which means you lose a little in turning radius.

I had a reputable body shop cut a piece out of the bottom outside of the firewall right at the floor to about 8" or so up. Welded in a new piece of steel and applied new undercoating. We stopped just shy of the body mount and where the fender attaches. I know pics would be better I can get some pics and post later. Also trimmed the bottom of the fender to match.

Keep in mind there are "things" mounted to the firewall at the floor, see those grey plastic panels? The one on the passenger side hides the ECU. Somewhat important. I moved the ECU from the floor to behind the glove box, which meant I had to trim the glovebox to make it fit. The wires and connector reach just fine and I even used the existing mounting brackets for the ECU just bent them in a different direction to make them work.

Double bonus regarding this, now the ECU is up off the floor so in case of deep water crossings it's in a much better location.

Again, pics to follow later.

I did this about 10 years ago. Still works fine. I wouldn't suggest just start whacking the sheetmetal to clear it. You CAN however pound the body seam flat.

That's crazy. Pics would be cool, but I still think that's a little extreme for my case haha. I've pounded the body seam down a little bit, it's not completely flat but still flatter than before

 

[KidVermicious]

I put these springs on around September of last year ish, so they are fairly new. As far as I know, both the front springs were identical... is there any way to tell which one is for the drivers side, and which is for the passenger side? I bought them from rocky road if that helps (from what I've heard (after I bought the leafs of course) they kinda suck. maybe they just send 2 of the same idk)

Yup, OME/Dakar springs are different between passenger and driver's side - they have to be, because the stock spring packs are different and the OME springs use the stock hangers. The A spring should go on the driver's side, and the B spring should go on the passenger side. If Rocky Road sent you two of the same spring or you mixed them up, that could easily be causing your lean.

Cruiser Outfitters

 

[toy4runr85]

Finally, pics:

Gratuitous glovebox and Hammers plaque just well because:

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Behind the glovebox door showing where I mounted the ECU and how much I had to trim from the glovebox:

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Firewall and fender trimming:

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Closeup of firewall. I know it's kind of hard to see the actual seam:

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[PlanetExpress]

I like the ECU relocation idea!

 

[TheManOutside]

Finally, pics:

Gratuitous glovebox and Hammers plaque just well because:

[/URL]~original[/IMG]

Behind the glovebox door showing where I mounted the ECU and how much I had to trim from the glovebox:

[/URL]~original[/IMG]

Firewall and fender trimming:

[/URL]~original[/IMG]

Closeup of firewall. I know it's kind of hard to see the actual seam:

[/URL]~original[/IMG]

Wow...! That's awesome. It looks really clean! I wish I could do that.

As far as I can tell, my front springs are identical. I have no idea how to identify which is for the driver, or which is for the passenger side. They both look the same :/ Would drilling another hole an inch back (or so) on the spring perch (on the drivers side only) to move that side of the axle work/do anything? If I don't have to swap out my springs that'd be nice, since they both seem the same

 

[TheManOutside]

I think i found the issue and it suuuuucks

Well, I think I have found the problem, and it's much much much worse than I thought! Wooo!

It turns out the front leaf spring hanger is FURTHER BACK on the driver side, which is screwing up my whole axle. I think the previous owner hit a rock or something, and broke the hanger off, then welded it back on. The only problem is he welded it back on different than stock/the other side, which is why the axle is being pulled back. Here are some pics to show what I mean.

This above is the driver side hanger. as you can clearly see some welding was obviously done.

This is the passenger side, which I don't have any issues with. There is no welding evidence on this side...

Now here's how I know (probably) it's the problem.

This is the passenger side hanger. Notice how much it sticks out towards the front of the truck...

Now here's the driver side. Notice how it doesn't stick out AT ALL towards the front of the truck.

The only real question now is how the hell do I fix this haha

 

[KidVermicious]

The only real question now is how the hell do I fix this haha

This is a good excuse for an upgrade. Cut both hangers off and replace them with stronger set. Low Range makes one, but it'll end up lifting the truck probably higher than you want. This one from Sky's is probably the one on the market with the least amount of built in lift: www.sky-manufacturing.com - NEWToyotaUltraClearanceFrontSASHanger

 

[TheManOutside]

This is a good excuse for an upgrade. Cut both hangers off and replace them with stronger set. Low Range makes one, but it'll end up lifting the truck probably higher than you want. This one from Sky's is probably the one on the market with the least amount of built in lift: www.sky-manufacturing.com - NEWToyotaUltraClearanceFrontSASHanger

I think you're right.

 

[KidVermicious]

I think you're right. So, how exactly does this swap work? I just cut the old ones off, put this piece thing in their place, weld and done? Seems too easy

That really is about all there is to it. The hanger from TrailGear or Skys or wherever you buy one has already been put together on a jig so theoretically the individual hangers are already lined up. You just make sure it's straight and square on the crossmember and have somebody burn it in.

It'd be cheaper to cut the existing hanger free and line it up and weld it back on, but you're still left with stock hangers and they're known to be a weak spot. If you wheel, upgrading the front hangers wouldn't have been a terrible idea anyway so I say go for it. It'll add a little lift, but from the front instead of the back of the spring so that'll probably help bring your pinion angle and steering caster back towards stock anyway.

 

[TheManOutside]

That really is about all there is to it. The hanger from TrailGear or Skys or wherever you buy one has already been put together on a jig so theoretically the individual hangers are already lined up. You just make sure it's straight and square on the crossmember and have somebody burn it in.

It'd be cheaper to cut the existing hanger free and line it up and weld it back on, but you're still left with stock hangers and they're known to be a weak spot. If you wheel, upgrading the front hangers wouldn't have been a terrible idea anyway so I say go for it. It'll add a little lift, but from the front instead of the back of the spring so that'll probably help bring your pinion angle and steering caster back towards stock anyway.

Alright, good to know! I think I'm going to try and move the leaf spring on the perch on one side to see what that does (since there are other holes might as well try). If that doesn't do anything I guess I'll be getting some new hangers!

 

[Dropzone]

This is a good excuse for an upgrade. Cut both hangers off and replace them with stronger set. Low Range makes one, but it'll end up lifting the truck probably higher than you want. This one from Sky's is probably the one on the market with the least amount of built in lift: www.sky-manufacturing.com - NEWToyotaUltraClearanceFrontSASHanger

Actually Low Range makes a low profile hanger too. I have it in my pile of parts for the SAS of my 94. I went with it because it seemed lower than the Sky's mount
Low Profile Front Toyota Leaf Spring Hanger w/Bolts and Bushings by Low Range Off Road (TSP-FSH-LR)

 

[TheManOutside]

Well, I went ahead and ordered the sky hangers! I have a tiny bit of rake, so the small amount of lift should help level it out I would assume. Now I just have to wait!

 

[reelamin]

Don't cut it, pound it flat. Take the wheel off, get a four pound sledge and go to town.

I am looking at doing the same thing....but for snow chain clearance. Why pound the fender instead of cutting it. Cutting it allows the outside to still look straight, less paint flakes off, only need to seal an edge. Sure pound the pinch weld over but why the fender?

 

[KidVermicious]

Don't cut it, pound it flat. Take the wheel off, get a four pound sledge and go to town.

I am looking at doing the same thing....but for snow chain clearance. Why pound the fender instead of cutting it. Cutting it allows the outside to still look straight, less paint flakes off, only need to seal an edge. Sure pound the pinch weld over but why the fender?

I'm not scrolling back but if I said pound the fender I was drunk. Pound the pinch seam instead of cutting because it leaves more strength, but definitely cut the fender.

 

[reelamin]

I'm not scrolling back but if I said pound the fender I was drunk. Pound the pinch seam instead of cutting because it leaves more strength, but definitely cut the fender.

Now that makes total sense...thanks...could not understand why anyone would cut or grind off the pinch weld (basically remove the attachment) compared to folding it over. Thanks for the help.