Just Bought it!!

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Hey all!!

I just bought my first 4-Runner on ebay and im picking it up on saturday!! My hunt for a 4x4 vehicle started a few months ago and i started in all the typical places with a jeep and bronco... but i ran into the 1st gen on the internet and started doing research here! this forum helped me out with my decision to find a 1st gen 4-runner... after alot of searching i found a canadian spec 89 with a 3.0 and a 5spd. The guy is throwing in a 3" performance accessories lift kit... after doing some research i have realized that this is a body lift... do you guys have any experience with a body lift? is it worth my time? if not what kind of suspension lifts do you ya'll have? and what is the cost associated with each aswell as how difficult they are to install?

-and before people start saying this post is worthless without pics just wait untill i pick it up on saturday!! i was just too excited and wanted to post something!!

Thanks for your input im just excited to get the keys in my hand!!

 

[s2kpuddydad]

Congrats and good luck with the new ride I'm sure someone will post about the lift, I know nothing about lifting a truck...

 

[austintaco]

Welcome!
I had an 89 with a 3.0, and it was a great truck. I never lifted it, but you need to first decide what you want to do with the truck. Personally, I wouldn't put on a 3" body lift. I would look around for some bigger torsion bars and crank them for about an 1" of lift(you can crank the stock ones too), do a ball joint spacer for another 1.5" of lift, and a small body lift, but this all depends on how big of a tire you need to use and if you plan to regear.

It's either that or save up $ome money for solid axle swap, but that is pricey.

 

[DuckieAZ]

If you're going to be crawling, save up from the get go and do the solid axle swap. 3" body lift is about 3" more body lift than I would ever do personally, but a small 1" is great for a little clearence to stuff some 33s underneath, and also makes working underneath the truck easier. I currently have a 4" pr0-comp lift, but its uneeded. It came on my truck so I wasn't complaining, but I would go with the Ball Joint spacer route. If you have the ever common butt sag that plauges 1st and second gen runners, check out Toyota Gear Installs. Scroll down to the bottom, master zuk has some awesome write ups and links to help with that, without spending a bunch on new leaf packs. Hope this helps.

 

[turboSR5]

I would also avoid a 3" body lift and go with ball joint spacer/beefier torsion bars and Old Man Emu rear springs. They don't cost a fortune (around$100 each) and they perform very well so far for the mild off roading that I have done with them. You would be replacing the hanger pins and shackles as well I assume so it won't be a straight $200, but you get alot for what you pay for in that regard.

 

[JLC84cam350]

i have a 2" body lift on mine and think its perfect, more place to wash the underneath with the presure washer, looks nice and alowes for bigger tires, i dono about 3" but if its coming with the truck, i'd definetly put it on its free!!!!! But body lift won;t get you more flex and it doesn't handle better on the open road since it is higher center of gravity and tends to body roll a bit more but i didn't feel any mega changes with mine. The only thing i find that actually sucks on a toyota using a body lift (welll these models) is the body is already sitting above the frame quiet a bit and with the body lift on the frame is pretty much completely exposed wich is a bit ugly if your frame has lots of rust spots on it but nothing a bit of black paint cant fix

 

[ad1315]

well it was a bit of an adventure driving all the way down to the rio grande valley but i finally found the 4-runner in the mid afternoon. Ofcourse it looked worse in person than it did in the pictures but i didnt care one bit i was so excited. i heard you all talk about how this v6 is under-powered and its a gas sucking machine and now after driving 341 miles in the past 2 days i feel the pain.

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