Modding 5th Gen FJ Shocks to Fit 4th Gen 4Runner - EASY!

[Fletch888]

Hey folks. New to 4Runners and this forum has been very useful to me. Did my first real mod today and snapped some pictures to help other folks.

I saw this thread where the poster was talking about machining the shocks and making the mod sound FAR more complicatedthan it needs to be.

Attached PDF shows how to quickly and cheaply make the shocks fit.


Thanks for the forum. :rockon:

 

[ARunner]

Nice writeup!

 

[Fletch888]

Thanks. I hope it convinces someone to take the plunge. The brake-dive and corner entry are MUCH better. I'll be picking up the rear suspension soon and will take pictures of that as well.

I forgot to include the calipers on the parts list.

Harbor Freight sells digital calipers for $10-20 that will do the job, but the batteries don't last long and the quality on the $10 units is really bad. The digitals are nice for comparing sizes, because you can easily zero it anywhere on the scale and then check the second part. Also convenient if you're not comfortable converting from inches to millimeters. I don't like them, because they've let me down too many times with spent batteries. If this mod is at the edge of you're abilities and you're afraid you might screw up a measurement, then go with the digital caliper for ease of use.

They also sell a "fractional caliper." Avoid this.

The one I'm using in the pictures is a $20 6" dial caliper that measures to the one thousandth of an inch. They're very easy to read and it never decides not to work.

Whichever one you choose, open about five of them in the store to check the bodies for straightness and open & close each one a few times. Pick the one with the smoothest operation.

Once you have the caliper you can also measure your front and rear sway bar thickness and order the correct bushings for cheap.

 

[MN4RNR]

Nicely done. Great walk through.

 

[paperchasin]

Great job! Sticky worthy

 

[Bama_Runner]

Nice write up. As a side note, I recently bought springs and shocks off of a 2013 FJ Off-Road (Seller said it was "Off-Road", it may have been Trail Team) and it has the same springs and shocks as the ones in your pictures. Same color marks, number of coils and all. I modded mine the same way as you. I had seen the other post you referred to where the guy machined the inner steel bushing and thought...why not just grind them down. Worked like a charm. I'm running these shocks/springs along with a Hyrbid Daystar 1 1/2" front spacer lift and a fat bobs 2" rear.

 

[JSeligman2828]

Nice write up. As a side note, I recently bought springs and shocks off of a 2013 FJ Off-Road (Seller said it was "Off-Road", it may have been Trail Team) and it has the same springs and shocks as the ones in your pictures. Same color marks, number of coils and all. I modded mine the same way as you. I had seen the other post you referred to where the guy machined the inner steel bushing and thought...why not just grind them down. Worked like a charm. I'm running these shocks/springs along with a Hyrbid Daystar 1 1/2" front spacer lift and a fat bobs 2" rear.

rmft

 

[nhaniger]

Great writeup looks easy with pictures! Do you happen to have a writeup for the rear? Got 2014 FJ suspension with disassembled struts and no hardware. Know if I need to buy any hardware or can I use my old hardware?

 

[randomtask16]

This is the same method I used for the TRD Pro suspension retrofit. Trim fronts, widen rear upper hole by 1/8" and you're done.

 

[nicheel8]

This is the same method I used for the TRD Pro suspension retrofit. Trim fronts, widen rear upper hole by 1/8" and you're done.

How do you like the ride on your V8? There's a guy locally who is selling his 2016 Tacoma TRD Sport Struts/Springs (All 4) with 1000 miles for $150.

 

[randomtask16]

How do you like the ride on your V8? There's a guy locally who is selling his 2016 Tacoma TRD Sport Struts/Springs (All 4) with 1000 miles for $150.

I dont think the Taco TRD Sport is the same setup. The 4Runner TRD Pro uses the 2.5" piston Bilstien 6100 series.

It rides pretty good in my opinion, it's stiff yet plush when it needs to be. Bumps that use to bottom out the stock suspension are a breeze now

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk

 

[NinjaOne]

Great write-up

If OME doesn't release a 4th gen specific OME BP-51, I may try and make the FJ ones work eventually...

 

[Angry_shoe]

Does anyone see why this would not work for a the newer BP-51 setup?

Does the amount of lift or spring rate change when installing FJ shocks on a 4th Gen 4runner?

 

[Ballaholic]

What bout 5th gen 4Runner shock to a 4th gen

New to the forum. I know you guys are talking about dis but I have a 04 sports edition v8 4Runner. And I’m looking at a set of front and rear spring and shocks for a 2018 4Runner. Will that fit my 04 following your guid? Thnks