2010 4Runner SR5 lift question

[WillysManVan]

I found a guy selling a TRD Pro suspension off one with 7,500 miles and includes an upper control arm for $800 bucks. That'll only give me 1" lift in the front. I was thinking of doing a 2" spacer lift all around for the lift.

Pros:
High quality shocks tuned specifically for the 4Runner.
Inexpensive lift (anyone know a mechanic who can put this on?)
I can run bigger tires.

Cons:
Not a true lift

I don't see myself spending $5k on a lift anytime soon, I've got a lot of other equipment to buy.

I'd like to hear your opinions about it.

 

[Burt88]

I install lift kits in Montrose and usually source my range of products for 4Runners from Toytec.

My recommendation is to stay away from spacer lifts on the front whenever possible. The geometry is compromised and the ride becomes very harsh. Adding spacers to the TRD suspension will begin to reduce their engineered performance. A 1 inch lift will provide enough room for the max tire fitment of 33inches so I'd just leave it at that. Rear coils aren't really cost prohibitive so I try to stick with those. At most I'll use a 1/2 inch spacer to achieve proper rake.

Also, 3 inches is the absolute max and most Tacomas and 4Runners are lifted in the range of 2 inches. Even when a kit advertises 3 inches, it's usually less. Alignment becomes harder to achieve when the front is over 2 inches as well.

 

[On the RX]

Burt speaks wisdom. I would rather lose the height and not run spacers. The lose of ride quality and wear in expensive parts is not worth the juice.

 

[fjc man]

You could put the adjustable Bilstein 5100s on the front for up to 2in of lift (half inch increments). I’ve been running those for years and like them.

 

[WillysManVan]

Thank you all for your input. I don't know why I didn't think of this earlier, but Eibach makes lift springs for them. It'll lift it a total of 2.5" in the front and 1" in the rear. Works with the stock suspension so I'll get that factory tuned ride but also clearance.

Is this also a bas idea? Everywhere I look people are very happy with this kit.

 

[rushthezeppelin]

Really there's no reason to go beyond 2" with IFS. It doesn't actually help with fitting bigger tires as you are still limited when the suspension cycles. For slow offroad you also want more down travel than up travel so that you don't top out your shocks. Mild lifts are also MUCH better for all the components in the front, extreme lifts wear stuff out much much quicker and can lead to snapped CVs on trail.

 

[Burt88]

Thank you all for your input. I don't know why I didn't think of this earlier, but Eibach makes lift springs for them. It'll lift it a total of 2.5" in the front and 1" in the rear. Works with the stock suspension so I'll get that factory tuned ride but also clearance.

Is this also a bas idea? Everywhere I look people are very happy with this kit.

Just a guess here, but if you put coils on the front that gain an extra 2.5 inch over the stock shock assembly it has a higher preload, because the spacing doesn't change, and won't perform optimally. Stiff ride. The stock shock is also tuned for the stock spring rate. The full extension of the shock stroke will also "top out", which I had happen and it's no fun at all. I've used the Eibach springs on a set of Bilstiens for a budget lift and the results were so-so. Definitely not the fault of the Eibach coils.

I'd get the TRD kit and install it and see how it looks and performs. The price seems right and you're getting the upgraded UCA. At most you can replace the rear coils with a slightly heavier spring to add the necessary lift and achieve proper rake. For the front, wait till you see what the results are, save a little bit, and upgrade with a proper setup later. If you go to 2 inches there are additional components to consider as well. Spacers and whatnot. Lift kits are rarely a 1 time setup and are usually adjusted depending on the use of the truck.

An improper setup to simply gain lift is not always the best. There's a lot of ways to obtain lift that compromise performance and cause major wear on your other components that can result in more costly repairs or catastrophic failure.

Also, for reference, a Toytec 2.0 full kit for about a 2 inch lift is still less than $2k. https://www.toyteclifts.com/ttboss-...r-10-4runner-with-aluma-series-coilovers.html The front coilovers are adjustable as well. I've had great results with their products and my customers are very happy with the performance. It's also a pretty easy install.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Thank you all for your input. I don't know why I didn't think of this earlier, but Eibach makes lift springs for them. It'll lift it a total of 2.5" in the front and 1" in the rear. Works with the stock suspension so I'll get that factory tuned ride but also clearance.

Is this also a bas idea? Everywhere I look people are very happy with this kit.

Can you post a link to the Eibach lift spings you're seeing? If I was to speculate the springs are probably right for a 2" lift but with the expectation that you're using a particular shock such as a Bilstein 5100 or 6112 or one from FOX, Toytec, Radflo, etc. It likely will not work on a stock shock and probably wouldn't even fit.

The advice you're gotten is all sound. I'll mention that i run mid travel FOX 2.5" diameter front shocks and so-called 2" lift King coil springs. I have them set to get about 1.5" of lift but since the shocks are 1" longer travel than stock this actually works out to be fairly close to staying in the middle of the travel range so that I in effect extended the up travel and down travel each by about 1/2" of an inch.

But by lifting I pushed the window down slightly so I still have more down than up. But being longer travel the impact isn't quite as bad about bottoming and a general harsh ride. I'm slightly over sprung (meaning too high of a spring rate for the weight and how much I compress the spring) so my ride is a bit stiffer than I'd like.

Should be mentioned that if you do use a front coil spring/shock that has any travel different than stock then you are required to run control arms to accommodate it. At minimum with mid travel you have to run upper arms that can take more travel. I still run stock lower arms, though. If you try to use more travel than the stock coil-overs you risk breaking the upper ball joint and that is *very* bad.

If anyone ever asks my suggestion is always to just get Old Man Emu. They work well, aren't too expensive and take most of the guess work out. You do need to know how much weight you're adding but they don't make suspension that will usually break anything on your truck. When you go down the Eibach/FOX/Toytec/Icon path you need to understand a little more about suspension to get what you want or really trust the shop making the suggestion. There are combinations of 5100 + coils that a lot of people use but unless you follow their set up exactly (like where you put the coil collar for lift) you risk a completely different outcome.