Thoughts on My Lift Plan?

[DanTh3Man]

I'm looking to add a 3" lift to my '15 SR5P and am hoping for some feedback before hitting the order button...

My 4Runner is mostly stock but I do use it to tow a travel trailer (4000ish LBS) so I've added air bags to the rear to help with the load. They work but are a PITA and have to be repaired every spring so I'm looking to move away from the airbags and just go with a heavier rear spring.

My initial plan was to go with a Toytec Boss kit but after seeing the shipping/duty (I'm in Canada) and reading about some quality issues I decided to go a DIY route.

The Parts
My plan is to go with the following parts:

• SPC UCAs (p/n 25480)
• Bilstein 6112 front coilovers
• DuroBumps rear bumpstops
• Bilstein 5100 rear shocks
• Icon 2" rear springs (p/n 52700)

As far as I can tell a diff drop kit is not required but this seem contentious. I'm going to go without it and accept the fact that I may need to replace CVs more frequently.

Anything I've overlooked? Any other comments also appreciated.

 

[Pedro367]

My 4Runner is mostly stock but I do use it to tow a travel trailer (4000ish LBS) so I've added air bags to the rear to help with the load. They work but are a PITA and have to be repaired every spring so I'm looking to move away from the airbags and just go with a heavier rear spring.

.

The lift looks fine to me, but what happens to your airbags? I'm keeping my rear springs because of them, so curious to know. I have Air Lift 1000, FWIW.

 

[DanTh3Man]

The lift looks fine to me, but what happens to your airbags? I'm keeping my rear springs because of them, so curious to know. I have Air Lift 1000, FWIW.

I'm just not going to put them back in. I have the same AirLift but the disc on the bottom keeps shifting around and cutting the airline on the bottom. It's usually OK if I fix it in the spring and then make sure to keep the bags inflated but I'm hoping the heavier springs + DuroBumps will work for me.

With the longer springs the air bags will be too short (I think). It does look like there is a firestone kit (p/n 4108) that should work with a lift though if you're looking for one.

 

[T4R_Canuck]

I'm looking to add a 3" lift to my '15 SR5P and am hoping for some feedback before hitting the order button...

My 4Runner is mostly stock but I do use it to tow a travel trailer (4000ish LBS) so I've added air bags to the rear to help with the load. They work but are a PITA and have to be repaired every spring so I'm looking to move away from the airbags and just go with a heavier rear spring.

My initial plan was to go with a Toytec Boss kit but after seeing the shipping/duty (I'm in Canada) and reading about some quality issues I decided to go a DIY route.

The Parts
My plan is to go with the following parts:

• SPC UCAs (p/n 25480)
• Bilstein 6112 front coilovers
• DuroBumps rear bumpstops
• Bilstein 5100 rear shocks
• Icon 2" rear springs (p/n 52700)

As far as I can tell a diff drop kit is not required but this seem contentious. I'm going to go without it and accept the fact that I may need to replace CVs more frequently.

Anything I've overlooked? Any other comments also appreciated.

Seems like a solid plan to me, very similar to my setup minus the bump stops.
I did the diff drop kit myself, but it wasn't a requirement. I just did it because it was inexpensive, super simple and gives me a bit more peace of mind when i'm miles away from anyone in the back country.

Just curious, as you were considering a Toytec Kit originally, have you considered Elka front and rear shocks? Canadian made and very good quality. The aluminum bodies hold up much better in our Canadian weather than some and they have several options, 2.0 Internal Piston, 2.5 Internal Piston, 2.5 remote reservoir and 2.5 dual compression remote reservoir. If I had my time back, i'd be going Elka instead of OME.

If you're going with a bigger wheel/tire combo you'll likely need to remove the front mud flaps, trim some plastics and theres an outside chance of rubbing on your body mounts with some wheel/tire size combos. The SPC arms give enough adjustment that a good alignment shop can push your wheels forward enough to not touch the body mount.

 

[Jared_B]

I think that's a pretty good plan, I would however change the rear 5100's to the 5112's and I personally wouldn't recommend going with Icon 52700's (springs), I have them in mine and they simply don't provide enough spring rate.

I have 3" OME 885's in the front and the Icon 52700's in the rear, so it's "level" but as soon as I throw my off road gear in the back, it starts to sag, throw my camping gear in the back and it looks like a moron drives it.

Literally looking at the best price for some OME 889's to replace the Icons with, lol.

The OME 889's will give 2.5-3" of lift and have a 40% over stock weight spring rate. So it won't be TOO bad unloaded and should be perfect for all of my gear.

I'm in Canada too. I would love to get Elka's, they make fantastic high end suspension parts, but high end = $$$. Bilstein or OME are a great entry/midrange option with solid, long reputations.

But you can also spend a ton with either of those brands too. But expect to be paying about $3000 to $4000 for Elka's most basic full suspension setup, lol.

 

[DanTh3Man]

Seems like a solid plan to me, very similar to my setup minus the bump stops.
I did the diff drop kit myself, but it wasn't a requirement. I just did it because it was inexpensive, super simple and gives me a bit more peace of mind when i'm miles away from anyone in the back country.

Just curious, as you were considering a Toytec Kit originally, have you considered Elka front and rear shocks? Canadian made and very good quality. The aluminum bodies hold up much better in our Canadian weather than some and they have several options, 2.0 Internal Piston, 2.5 Internal Piston, 2.5 remote reservoir and 2.5 dual compression remote reservoir. If I had my time back, i'd be going Elka instead of OME.

If you're going with a bigger wheel/tire combo you'll likely need to remove the front mud flaps, trim some plastics and theres an outside chance of rubbing on your body mounts with some wheel/tire size combos. The SPC arms give enough adjustment that a good alignment shop can push your wheels forward enough to not touch the body mount.

No plans to go to a much bigger tire (currently running 275/75/17) so I'm not too concerned about that. This is my daily/only driver so I don't want to hurt on-road performance too much by upsizing the tires.

I hadn't heard of Elka but I'll check them out. Thanks! this is exactly why I posted before pulling the trigger.

I think that's a pretty good plan, I would however change the rear 5100's to the 5112's and I personally wouldn't recommend going with Icon 52700's (springs), I have them in mine and they simply don't provide enough spring rate.

I have 3" OME 885's in the front and the Icon 52700's in the rear, so it's "level" but as soon as I throw my off road gear in the back, it starts to sag, throw my camping gear in the back and it looks like a moron drives it.

Literally looking at the best price for some OME 889's to replace the Icons with, lol.

The OME 889's will give 2.5-3" of lift and have a 40% over stock weight spring rate. So it won't be TOO bad unloaded and should be perfect for all of my gear.

I'm in Canada too. I would love to get Elka's, they make fantastic high end suspension parts, but high end = $$$. Bilstein or OME are a great entry/midrange option with solid, long reputations.

But you can also spend a ton with either of those brands too. But expect to be paying about $3000 to $4000 for Elka's most basic full suspension setup, lol.

Thanks for the tip on the rear springs. I've got my dog, a bunch of gear and the hitch weight of my trailer to think about so I'll definitely be looking into the OME springs.

 

[DanTh3Man]

The Elka shocks look awesome (link for anyone curious) but at $4k I think they're overkill for my situation. Probably...

 

[honda250xtitan]

what about timbren bump stops. seems to be a good compromise instead of air bags. I dont think youre gonna want to run heavy duty springs all the time, itll ride like crap. Or swap springs for your trips towing. (sounds crappy buts its doable)

 

[DanTh3Man]

Update:

I ended up going with:

• Bilstein UCAs (51-304690)
• Icon 52700 rear springs
• Firestone rear airbags
• Elka 2.0 IFP front coilovers + rear shocks (Elka 2.0 IFP)

It's going to be 8 - 12 weeks before everything shows up but I'm looking forward to it!

 

[El Dusty]

Update:

I ended up going with:

• Bilstein UCAs (51-304690)
• Icon 52700 rear springs
• Firestone rear airbags
• Elka 2.0 IFP front coilovers + rear shocks (Elka 2.0 IFP)

It's going to be 8 - 12 weeks before everything shows up but I'm looking forward to it!

A couple of notes on your setup.

If you do the install or have a shop do it. Make sure the coilover collar is rotated so that you can access the allen head bolt in the collar. Otherwise setting pre-load will be a PITA.

I have toytec 2.5s coilovers (essentially the same front setup) and both of the lower bushings failed at a little over 40k. They are pretty heavy duty metal bushings but still got sloppy and squeaky. These shocks need service and bushings replaced on a regular basis.

Lastly, I would look at the spring rate on your coilovers. The 700 lbs springs that came on mine are waaay too stiff. Even with a front bumper and other weight up front I would have moved down to at least 650s if I had known ahead of time.

BOL

 

[DanTh3Man]

Thanks for the tips Dusty, definitely some food for thought.