Rollover?

2000runr

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In my research on lifts, Im finding lots of links to the fact that toyota went back to shorter springs on the 2000 versus the 99 due to the rollover hype at that time. Anyone have any good research on what a 3" lift can potentially do to your risk of a rollover?
 
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In my research on lifts, Im finding lots of links to the fact that toyota went back to shorter springs on the 2000 versus the 99 due to the rollover hype at that time. Anyone have any good research on what a 3" lift can potentially do to your risk of a rollover?

when you lift a car it has a higher center of gravity, that means the higher you lift it the easier it is to roll. you can offset it a little by having a wide stance. It boils down to cornering slower, and you should be fine.
 
thats about what i figured, its a common sense thing. i was just wondering if there was any real hard evidence about the effect the lift really has.
 
thats about what i figured, its a common sense thing. i was just wondering if there was any real hard evidence about the effect the lift really has.

There's little doubt that lifting a rig makes it more prone to rollover. I would seriously question the credibility of whoever tells you otherwise.

Here's some raw numbers:

A stock 1992 Ford F-150 has an overall width of 79 inches and 28 inch tires. (hahaha 28" inch tires. Those are so puny)
- On the stock suspension the odds of being in an accident that is a rollover type is around 15%.
- Add on 32 inch tires, a 3" body lift, and 4" suspension lift and the odds go up to 25% risk of a rollover related accident.
The F-150 increases it's chances of a rollover type accident by 66% by adding the lift and tires.


Based on the numbers above it's not hard to extrapolate that my 4runner running 33" tires, with a 1.5 inch body lift and a 3" suspension lift has a roughly twice greater chance of being in a rollover related accident compared to a stock rig.

That said I think it's fair to ask yourself what your driving skills really are with your rig. Things such as:
Have you taken your rig out and practiced abrupt braking, turning, and S curves under ice, snow, rain, dry, sloped roads etc? Lifted or not that will make a huge difference on how the driver reacts in an emergency situation. The biggest prevention of an accident is to leave 3-5 seconds of space in front of you. Most people drive at high speeds with 0.5 - 1.5 seconds of space. The average reaction time is 1 second. The math just don't work. lol The busier it gets the tighter we pack in on the highways even though it's more dangerous. We're dumb! IMHO greater than 3-5 seconds in front of you will give you better odds of avoiding an accident, even if you are lifted.

Here's the study where these numbers came from
 
Amazing the wealth of knowledge on this site. I am very big about practicing the space cushion...1 car length for every 10mph.
 
Amazing the wealth of knowledge on this site. I am very big about practicing the space cushion...1 car length for every 10mph.

Umm you might want to tweak your numbers a bit for the 1 car length for every 10mph formula. Most cars are about the same length or shorter than our 4Runners and we are 15'4" long. So at 60 mph and 6 car lengths that leaves roughly 91 feet of stopping distance. With stock tires it takes 136 feet to stop a 3rd gen from 60 mph. Add in the 1 second reaction & movement delay and well um you're shopping for a new custom front bumper lol. I recommend Armorology. Those bumpers are sick! (shameless plug)

If you feel like it compare the time vs car length sometime. It's a huge difference. With three seconds it will feel ridiculous the amount of space in front of you but I promise, it will save your ass someday.
 
you bring up a good point. also, i OVE the armorology fornt bumpers but read that they make them custom to each vehicle and therefore dont do shipping. the 1 length for every 10mph is from the old driving guide when i took the test 20 yrs ago, i leave all that and then some. with a newborn my driving style has gotten that much more cautious. so, we are back to the question, leave the runner as it is and wait until i need to go to a sequoia, or lift that puppy.
 
Are you going to keep the 4runner? If so I say lift it! If you want to clear 285/75/16 then you will need a 3 inch suspension and a 1" body. If you want to clock your T-case later then you will need a 1.5" body. For that matter I say forget about the Sequioa and just build up the 4Runner lol.
 
Glen, the reality of it is with only 1 child, and another one at least 10 months away due to the laws of human nature, i would have ZERO reason for a 3rd row until the 3rd kid comes along. And even then the 3rd row is still an overrated item. I narrowed it down to 2 systems over the weekend: the SS 7.2 with 265/75/16 NTGs, or a comparable system from Toytec which Im waiting on a reply from Darrick over there...prob is they are all on backorder with their coilovers. The SS system comes with everything needed including diff drop and extended brake line. Even if I wanted a 5th gen, I wouldnt buy it brand new or until at least the 2nd-3rd yr out once the major bugs are worked out. Continued opinions welcome.
 
Glen, the reality of it is with only 1 child, and another one at least 10 months away due to the laws of human nature, i would have ZERO reason for a 3rd row until the 3rd kid comes along. And even then the 3rd row is still an overrated item. I narrowed it down to 2 systems over the weekend: the SS 7.2 with 265/75/16 NTGs, or a comparable system from Toytec which Im waiting on a reply from Darrick over there...prob is they are all on backorder with their coilovers. The SS system comes with everything needed including diff drop and extended brake line. Even if I wanted a 5th gen, I wouldnt buy it brand new or until at least the 2nd-3rd yr out once the major bugs are worked out. Continued opinions welcome.

I smell a new lift. It sure sounds like there isn't much of a reason to wait other than the obvious of we are in a ridiculously expensive hobby. I say just keep bringing up how useful that diamond ring on her finger is and how it doesn't even roll. lol

I sure wouldn't let a back order decide which lift for me, even if you have to wait a couple of months. You will have the lift for a loooong time. Waiting is a small price to pay so you can save your self the sound of broken record " I was going to get a XZY lift but it was back ordered. I should have waited."

Then again if the Sonoran is the better fit then all is well. You get it now so we get to compare notes and receipts. I really am curious to see how they stack up. Oh, I went to the loading docks today to get an RTI. I'll post that in the other thread of What Lift Are You Running and Why
 
there is 1 other option, and that is the '99 suspension available from SS, lifts the vehicle only 1"...

That's the SS 3.0 lift for $152? I wonder if the difference will be noticeable once it's in?

What is it that you are looking for in the lift? To clear bigger tires, smoother ride, more flex, appearance..?
 
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