??? Totally Confused about Strut/Shock/Spring Upgrade

[Trekerjohn]

Brian, I looked at your link and got the answers to my earlier ?s

You did a great job of explaining why you chose the 5100/FJ coil combination, and the photos are excellent. This is kind of like pizza. Everyone has his own favorites. Thanks again.

 

[Millerad1651]

I took this picture today so that you can see the height of the truck and how even it is front to back. After staying up again late last night reading and linking to various Google searches, and looking at online parts stores, I pulled the trigger and ordered Bilstein 4600s front and back from Shockwarehouse for $309.88. I am now thinking about buying 99 fronts and OME 906 rears to go with those pretty new Bils. What do you think those combinations would do to the height of the front and back???

Those new springs will give you around 1"-1.5" of lift. IMO it will look good.

 

[Brian757]

Thanks Brian. I would rather pay more $ and go with Bilsteins. But you are absolutely right about the coils. I only go offroad for occasional fun, or if I find something worth going offroad for on my long trips. The great majority is on paved roads. I see that you have 5100s front and back and FJ coils. Why did you choose that setup?

I chose the setup because it is a much more comfortable ride and doesnt knock me around offroad or on the sand. I love the ride now.

 

[Trekerjohn]

After much more reading, I have (pretty much) settled on OME 881s and 890s to go with my new Bil 4600s.
Now the question is: what else do I need for this installation? new strut mounts, spacers, ?trim packers?, ?strut stem cushion and washer kit?, ?coil insulators?, extended rear brake lines??? I don't even know what the ?ones? are. I don't want to have to hunt down the parts I will need to complete the installations right in the middle of the job.
Are the new strut mounts fitted for the specific strut and/or spring, or are they universal? Should I get them from Toyota, or are there acceptable aftermarket versions?

 

[Millerad1651]

Those 890s will be too much for 4600s. You can use the 906s with them, but the 890s give you 3" of lift, and that will overextend the shock. If you go 890s, you'll need longer shocks.

You can reuse the tophats from your stock setup when installing the 881s on the 4600s. Or you can buy a new set if you don't want to take apart your old setup.That is all you should need on the front.

If you go with 906s out back, it wouldn't hurt to get a set of 10mm trim packers just in case there isn't enough rake for you. You don't need extended brake lines.

 

[Trekerjohn]

Thanks Millerad. Am I ok matching 881s in front with 906s in back?

 

[Trekerjohn]

Just read this on the Yota Tech forum about left side lean for the 3rd gen:

95taco4x4
"To adjust for lean on the 3rd gen 4Runner OME offers three parts. The 95PF5, front trim packer. This goes under the coil seat on their (OME) driver side front strut. They also offer the 80PF05 and 80PF10 rear trim spacers (5 and 10 mm) Assuming good springs you can usually get pretty close with these adjustments."

Wonder if I need to anticipate left side lean, and order some trim packers for the front and rear. Your earlier advice to go for the 880/906 setup is still an option. But, whichever choice I make, is "lean" a real concern? Have you experienced this issue at all???

 

[Trekerjohn]

Got the front done - almost

I installed Bils 4600s with OME 881 in the front today. Couldn't believe how easy it was. I took some good advice and had a machine shop install the coils on the struts. That was $60 for both. Everything went well, although the UBJ seems to be really cocked over now, and the axle has quite a bend in it also. But the end link is the most obvious problem. It is now about 2" too short to come up through the sway bar. I pulled the sway bar down so it would meet the end link, but it will not work. I went over to a 4x4 shop in Sacramento and asked about extended end links or maybe an extension to the frame where the end link ball joint hooks up. They said that I should bring it in and maybe they can fab something to make it work. I'm a little puzzled that no one mentioned this as a problem with installing longer than stock setups, but not real "lifts". Other than that, I also installed (almost) my B&M trans cooler. I'm having a heck of a time getting the spring hose clip off of one of the trans lines. There is not much room in there to work. I am really impressed with the photos that some of the members took of that exact part of the install. I went out and bought a short handle vice grip and I'm hoping that will work tomorrow morning when I get to it again. If anyone has any thoughts on lengthening the end links up front, I'd be much obliged. I have a feeling that the same thing is going to happen when I get to installing the rears tomorrow also. Also, after looking at the photos, if you see any bright red flags (especially about the geometry of the UBJ and the axle) please let me know what you think. More photos in the next post. Thanks.

 

[Trekerjohn]

here are some more photos of the after and the tranny cooler

 

[1bad4r]

Hmm that upper ball joint angle looks really bad but I'm thinking you need to jack up on the lower control arm to get the endlink to line up and also everything should look better once you have the tire back on and the weight of the truck

 

[1bad4r]

Also in one the picture with old struts compared to new that new strut looks WAY longer I don't know if that's normal to be that much longer

 

[Trekerjohn]

It's still up off the ground. I will take it down tomorrow as soon as I can get the hoses from the cooler back on the steel trans lines. I hope it lines up. I will report when I get it back down. Then I can begin on the rears. Oh boy! Thanks for your input.

 

[87YOTA]

It's still up off the ground. I will take it down tomorrow as soon as I can get the hoses from the cooler back on the steel trans lines. I hope it lines up. I will report when I get it back down. Then I can begin on the rears. Oh boy! Thanks for your input.

Which springs did you decide on for the back? I've been starting to think about new suspension

 

[Trekerjohn]

Done!

I got it finished today (with one small wrinkle). I got the front Bils 4600s with OME 881s and the rear Bils 4600s with OME 890s installed. The wrinkle is that I forgot about the "strut bushing". I installed the fronts without the bushings. Then I realized that they are missing. I couldn't find any locally, so I ordered them from the dealer. They are supposed to be here on Tuesday. It won't require me to take the wheels off, or the struts. Just undo the top nut and put the bushing, washer, and nut on both front sides. Please let me know if I am missing something in this analysis. The rears were much easier than I thought they would be. The driver side came right off by hand after I got a wrench on the top nut. The passenger side was stubborn. I tried a pipe wrench, but no go. So I draped a towel over the exhaust to shield the shock from the gas tank, and I used my 3" Harbor Freight cutting wheel to cut the top of the shock off. That worked just fine. Before I started the cut, I sprayed the whole back area with a Windex spray bottle filled with water. No problem. Got it all buttoned up, and it looks great. I am not going to drive it until I get the strut bushings installed, and then I will take it to the dealer for a 4 wheel alignment. I also got the trans cooler done. Installing the fronts and removing and installing the rears took about 4 hours total. When I put the front wheels back on and let it down, the front and back end links lined up just fine. I had no issues with brake lines being too short, or anything else. Millerad opined that the 890s in the back might be too much for the 4600s. I researched this issue further. I finally was comfortable that it would be close to the extreme end of spec, but not really problematic. Millerad, I hope I made the right choice. They are on now. And they look really cool. Form + Function always turns me on. After measuring through the center line on the wheels, I got a solid 2" lift in the front and a 3+" lift in the rear. It has a front leaning rake, and I like it. The measurements below are in inches. I can not say how much I appreciate the motivation, advice, opinions, and help on this forum. Thank you for all of the help you have offered. This forum rocks. The two photos are before and after. When I look at it, the difference is dramatic. It's even more so from the rear. The last photo is the rear install, but it's upside down (sorry for that). John

My 4Runner - Before
LF - 34 ½ / 5 ¾ RF - 34 ¾ / 6
LR - 34 ½ / 5 ¾ RR - 34 ¾ / 6
After installing Bils 4600s and OME 881s up front and 890s in back
LF – 37 / 8 ½ RF – 36 ¾ / 8 + 2 – 2 1/2
LR – 38 / 9 RR – 38 / 9 ¼ + 3 ¼ - 3 1/2

 

[PCF4runner]

I got it finished today (with one small wrinkle). I got the front Bils 4600s with OME 881s and the rear Bils 4600s with OME 890s installed. The wrinkle is that I forgot about the "strut bushing". I installed the fronts without the bushings. Then I realized that they are missing. I couldn't find any locally, so I ordered them from the dealer. They are supposed to be here on Tuesday. It won't require me to take the wheels off, or the struts. Just undo the top nut and put the bushing, washer, and nut on both front sides. Please let me know if I am missing something in this analysis. The rears were much easier than I thought they would be. The driver side came right off by hand after I got a wrench on the top nut. The passenger side was stubborn. I tried a pipe wrench, but no go. So I draped a towel over the exhaust to shield the shock from the gas tank, and I used my 3" Harbor Freight cutting wheel to cut the top of the shock off. That worked just fine. Before I started the cut, I sprayed the whole back area with a Windex spray bottle filled with water. No problem. Got it all buttoned up, and it looks great. I am not going to drive it until I get the strut bushings installed, and then I will take it to the dealer for a 4 wheel alignment. I also got the trans cooler done. Installing the fronts and removing and installing the rears took about 4 hours total. When I put the front wheels back on and let it down, the front and back end links lined up just fine. I had no issues with brake lines being too short, or anything else. Millerad opined that the 890s in the back might be too much for the 4600s. I researched this issue further. I finally was comfortable that it would be close to the extreme end of spec, but not really problematic. Millerad, I hope I made the right choice. They are on now. And they look really cool. Form + Function always turns me on. After measuring through the center line on the wheels, I got a solid 2" lift in the front and a 3+" lift in the rear. It has a front leaning rake, and I like it. The measurements below are in inches. I can not say how much I appreciate the motivation, advice, opinions, and help on this forum. Thank you for all of the help you have offered. This forum rocks. The two photos are before and after. When I look at it, the difference is dramatic. It's even more so from the rear. The last photo is the rear install, but it's upside down (sorry for that). John

My 4Runner - Before
LF - 34 ½ / 5 ¾ RF - 34 ¾ / 6
LR - 34 ½ / 5 ¾ RR - 34 ¾ / 6
After installing Bils 4600s and OME 881s up front and 890s in back
LF – 37 / 8 ½ RF – 36 ¾ / 8 + 2 – 2 1/2
LR – 38 / 9 RR – 38 / 9 ¼ + 3 ¼ - 3 1/2

How's the ride? I know it's been a while since you posted that but i'm curious as i'm considering OME 880 front and 906 rear on BS 4600s. Your input will be much appreciated.

 

[AZBub]

My 4Runner - Before

LF - 34 ½ / 5 ¾RF - 34 ¾ / 6

LR - 34 ½ / 5 ¾RR - 34 ¾ / 6

After installing Bils 4600s and OME 881s up front and 890s in back

LF – 37 / 8 ½RF – 36 ¾ / 8+ 2 – 2 1/2

LR – 38 / 9 RR – 38 / 9 ¼+ 3 ¼ - 3 1/2

I have 4600s in the front and I got no where near that much lift up front. I have TRD Tacoma springs up front. Are you using a front spacer?