Toytec lift/ handling ?'s

[KCcarguy]

I've had it with the boat-like handling. I had to slam the brakes on and avoid hitting another car on the highway yesterday. The 4runner felt like in did an endo and I had very little control. Not cool......especially with my baby boy in the back.

I've already been bothered by the bob-and-weave routine on back-roads, and this was the last straw.

So, I want to know: does a Toytec lift, with it's stiffer springs/ shocks resolve this? I want feed-back from people who have the lift and how their trucks handle.

I've had enough and I'm either going to fix this with a lift/ wider wheels or dump the 4runner (for another Toyota of course :thumb3

BTW. My family and I have owned the following: Jeep Wrangler/ 1st gen. Jeep GC/ 1st gen Ford Explorer/ Ford Ranger 4x4/ 4th gen. 4runner/ 2nd gen Tacoma Prerunner.....so I know how a truck handles and the 5th gen is the only one that's ever made me feel uneasy.

Help me out with some info here because I love my 4runner otherwise and would rather put $2k towards wheels and a lift than take the financial hit of trading a 7 month old vehicle.

 

[hamiltonj2w1]

I did OME 884's and toytec superflex springs I canno't speak of the bad body roll since and nose dive since I had a Trail but it rode better after the lift personally

 

[KCcarguy]

I did OME 884's and toytec superflex springs I canno't speak of the bad body roll since and nose dive since I had a Trail but it rode better after the lift personally

What is the % increase in stiffness on the 884's? What did you have for Shocks/ Struts?

 

[hamiltonj2w1]

Not sure what the stiffness over stock is but they are supposed to be stock ride springs I actually had stock struts and the OME shocks but got the rear shocks about a month after I put the lift on. But it still could be it rode nice because of the kdss there are a few other people running these springs on SR5's as well I would think the new struts would help to.

 

[offroadingatc]

I have the toytec ultimate lift on mine, I think the ride is a ton better. I also hated the massive nose dive that it took in hard braking situations, and the corner lean to a lesser extent. I'm considering an E rated tire to stiffen the ride even more, but not sure if that's really necessary. I dont know what else to say, if you have any other specific questions I would be happy to answer them

I cant speak for the other combo's people have, but toytec has stated that the spring rate is about 10% greater with this particular lift.

 

[bluebullet]

Along with the OP I too would like to hear from those that have tried a lift/shock upgrade or whatever to deal with the nose dive issue. I have a 2011 TE that definitely has the nose dive problem. Not sure that KDSS deals with that as much as it does side to side and roll action. I asked my dealer about it the other day when I had leather seats put in my TE. Service advisor looked for a TSB and found nothiing. She offered to have the techs look at it, but seat installation took all day.

Now that I know the nose dive is there I just drive a bit more cautiously because it is unnerving especially at night when a strong application of brakes causes headlights to dip so you cannot see beyond 50 feet. I too would like to get mine fixed. If it means a stiffer ride that's fine. My 99 SR5 rides a lot stiffer than my TE and it is fine with me.

Do the Bilstein 5100's help solve the nose dive problem? Have searched the forum and no one seems to directly answer the question.

I have what might be considered a stupid question. How do you measure lift differences between front and rear? Is it the distance from the ground to the mudguard on say the left front differenced with the distance from the ground to the mudguard on the left rear?

 

[KCcarguy]

Along with the OP I too would like to hear from those that have tried a lift/shock upgrade or whatever to deal with the nose dive issue. I have a 2011 TE that definitely has the nose dive problem. Not sure that KDSS deals with that as much as it does side to side and roll action. I asked my dealer about it the other day when I had leather seats put in my TE. Service advisor looked for a TSB and found nothiing. She offered to have the techs look at it, but seat installation took all day.

Now that I know the nose dive is there I just drive a bit more cautiously because it is unnerving especially at night when a strong application of brakes causes headlights to dip so you cannot see beyond 50 feet. I too would like to get mine fixed. If it means a stiffer ride that's fine. My 99 SR5 rides a lot stiffer than my TE and it is fine with me.

Do the Bilstein 5100's help solve the nose dive problem? Have searched the forum and no one seems to directly answer the question.

I have what might be considered a stupid question. How do you measure lift differences between front and rear? Is it the distance from the ground to the mudguard on say the left front differenced with the difference from the ground to the mudguard on the left rear?

Nosedive alone is a much easier problem to deal with. I've heard nothing but good things about 5100's. There is also the option of adding toytec front springs either to stock shocks or 5100's. Toytec springs are 10% stiffer and give a 1.6" lift on stock shocks/ 5100's @ the bottom position. Most guys recommend adding rear 5100's as well (non height-adjustable) to improve the ride.

There are two schools-of-thought on front/ rear height differences: Most measure the center of the hub to the top of each wheel arch. You can also measure the distance from the frame to the ground behind the front tire and in front of the rear. Frame-level and Wheel-arch level are not the same and it's really just a matter of opinion.

 

[DEKA3]

Ive been thinking about the same thing and your post answered most of my questions.
Thanks!

Nosedive alone is a much easier problem to deal with. I've heard nothing but good things about 5100's. There is also the option of adding toytec front springs either to stock shocks or 5100's. Toytec springs are 10% stiffer and give a 1.6" lift on stock shocks/ 5100's @ the bottom position. Most guys recommend adding rear 5100's as well (non height-adjustable) to improve the ride.

There are two schools-of-thought on front/ rear height differences: Most measure the center of the hub to the top of each wheel arch. You can also measure the distance from the frame to the ground behind the front tire and in front of the rear. Frame-level and Wheel-arch level are not the same and it's really just a matter of opinion.

 

[Co4runnin]

I'm running the Toytec Ultimate kit on my 2011 TE. The ride is significantly improved over stock. It is stiffer and the nose dive is much reduced.

The first time I had to slam on the brakes I was shocked by the nose dive. After putting on the Ultimate kit, it is definitely better.

 

[offroadingatc]

Did my first 'real' emergency stop post lift 2 days ago. I was really impressed by how much better the nose dive was. Takes it from feeling out of control to seeming normal... I was able to focus on steering instead of feeling like I was on a roller coaster.

Only disadvantage so far - wife doesn't like the ride as much - then again, she IS a soccer mom

 

[ladywolf]

Heres another question but are you still running those crapy stock dunflops that came on some of them? If so, dump em. My ride quality improved a lot after switching to nitto terra grapplers, then again more after my toytec lift and KM2's.

 

[KCcarguy]

Heres another question but are you still running those crapy stock dunflops that came on some of them? If so, dump em. My ride quality improved a lot after switching to nitto terra grapplers, then again more after my toytec lift and KM2's.

No, I'm running Destination A/T 275/70s. I had them installed the first week I had it. They are great tires and they did make a difference. Cornering is much better, but there's still a lot of room for improvement. Glad to hear you like your Toytec lift.