(this is the non-welding version) My 1987 4runner has had saggy rear leafs since I bought it in 2002 with 200,000 miles on it. Now, over 60,000 miles later, and after a 4” Pro Comp lift kit in 2004 that added 4” blocks to my saggy rear springs, I wanted to remedy the sag, and the awful spine jarring ride that I’d been putting up with for years. I bought the springs on eBay from the seller that ZUK recommended on his site – the link is here (I went for the 14” 125# version). I don’t have welding tools and don’t know how to, so I was going to have to get creative on the install. I also don’t have a torch, so I had to REALLY get the creative juices flowing when spreading the cut bumpstops apart (more on that later). The steps are pretty simple (I’m writing this for a non-lifted 4runner): 1) Get the truck up on jack stands in the back and take of the rear wheels (chock the front wheels) 2) Cut the OEM frame mounted bump stops (it’s a “U” shape, and you cut the bottom of the “U” out with an angle grinder (I used a 4.5” cutting wheel) 3) Move the front part of the remaining cut “U” shaped bump stop forward to accommodate the Black Magic springs (I believe a width of 3.5” was the magic number for me). 4) Cram the springs into the cut “U” shaped bumpstops you’ve just cut, and the rubber “pyramid” on top of the OEM leaf (also a bumpstop). You may need a bottle jack to spread the leaf wider, or use spring compressors). 5) Reassemble and enjoy. Note: I already had a 4” block lift in the back, so I had extended SS brake lines and a bracket for the LSPV; if running stock suspension, you may need to disconnect brake lines, buy longer ones, or even buy longer shocks. Below are some before and after measurements of the rear suspension: Before (with 4” blocks on stock leafs): Top of fender to top of wheel rim: 13.0” (driver), 12.5” (passenger) Frame to top of axle: 13.0” (driver), 12.75” (passenger) Frame to ground: 29.0” (driver), 28.5” (passenger) After (no blocks, stock leads, coil springs): Top of fender to top of wheel rim: 13.5” (driver), 13.5” (passenger) Frame to top of axle: 14.0” (driver), 14.5” (passenger) Frame to ground: 29.5” (driver), 29.5” (passenger) If the 4” blocks are taken into account with these numbers, the truck gained about 4.5” to 5” of lift with the coil springs added on (so, assume this for an OEM setup with no previous lift). The ride height is roughly the same after this, but with over 5” of space between the leaf and the bump stop now, where before I had about an inch, and was bottoming out on speed bumps in parking lots. MUCH BETTER! Here are the steps I took with the mod: Tip: It’s a good idea to use Liquid wrench or WD40 to loosen up all the components you’ll be working on beforehand. Spray liberally a week before, 3 days before and the day before your project to get it adequately primed. Then, before you get everything going, break the nuts on the U bolts before you raise the truck, as well as the rear lug nuts. Get the truck up on jack stands (with a 4” block lift this was challenging, as I had to account for the extra space; I used stacked 4x4s, and 2 ½” boards under jack stands to get the truck’s rear high enough in the air). Make sure you chock the front wheels well first. Put the jack stands on the frame, just forward of the front rear leaf hanger. Remove the rear wheels ( I put them in front of the front wheels, which were already chocked, as an extra precaution). Using an angle grinder/cutoff tool, cut the very bottom of the OEM bumptops attached to the frame. I used painter’s tape to mark an even line across the bottom. I wanted to keep as much of the vertical parts of the “U” bumpstop as possible to support the new coil springs. Spread the remaining vertical portions of the OEM bumpstops (I needed about 3.5” of distance between). If you have a torch, heat it up and then use a hammer to tap the front part forward to better align with the rear vertical bumpstop portion. If you DON’T have a torch, bending it will be tough. I ended up using the old 4” block U bolts and nuts to make an expander tool (I cut it t a length just wide enough to fit between the 2 vertical walls of the OEM bumpstop, and fitted the old nuts onto it (4 of them); I then used wrenches to *expand* the segment while between the OEM bumpstop vertical walls, and expanded the walls to make them wide enough to accommodate the new coil springs. Support the differential with a floor jack before moving on. It's also a good idea to unbolt the LSPV from the rear axle - two 12mm bolts; suspend it out of the way with a bungee tied to the exhuast or something similar. With the differential supported with a floor jack, now it’s time to loosen up the U bolts. Loosen the Ubolts enough that you can slide in/out the rubber triangle bump stop. If you have a bottle jack, place it on top of the rear leaf and expand it toward the frame to move the leaf farther away from the frame; this will allow you to better cram the new coil spring into place. If you don’t have a bottle jack, you may be able to use either spring compressors or a shim of some sort to leverage the new spring in between the bump stop rubber triangle and the old “U” shaped bump stop that you just cut. Note: Since I had the 4” blocks installed, I need to get back to factory U Bolts for this mod since I wasn’t using the blocks anymore. I got lucky a few weeks ago when shopping for generic U bolts at AutoZone….a guy who worked there had a newer model Tacoma and had just installed some aftermarket springs, so he sold me his OEM U bolts and nuts for $10 – score! Remove the rubber triangle bump stop and place it into the bottom of the new coil spring; cram the other end of the coil spring into the recently cut “U” shaped bumpstop. With the new spring planted into the upper, cut bumpstop, leverage the bottom part (with rubber triangle installed) back onto the rear leaf spring perch where it was before (this is where the bottle jack expansion trick comes in handy). Once situated, slip the U Bolts back over the sides of the rubber triangle bumpstop and tighten the 4 nuts on the bottom. Jack the truck up by the differential and install wheels. Lower to ground and torque wheel lugs to spec (76 ft/lbs I think). Tighten U bolt nuts to factory spec (I don’t know – that’s on the list for tomorrow…) Enjoy your new cushy ride!!

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Nice write up!

Got any "after" pics? I know you said it's close to the same height. I used the 14inch 125 lb springs. But I just have ball joint spacers up front not a lift, and mine ended up with a nice little rake on it. Interested to see the final product.

Can you relax the torsion bars a little for a little more leveling action?

Good work, dude!

awesome writeup! submit it to ZUK and he'll put it up on his website

Thanks Jason!
I finished when it was dark and my "after" shots didn't come out well. Will try to grab some today when I road test it.

Phil

come on manneeee lets see them pics LOL

Sweet! Looks like I know what im doing soon. Quick question though. Will any kind of springs work, that are the proper size? I know Zuk recommends that ebay seller's products but will any springs work? Aslong as they are 12"-14"?

need to be like 100lb-125lb spring rate..it's just that those are really cheap (~$30)

and they're about 30 miles away from me lmao

Nice job Philbert! I really think the weldless option you chose is the best all around quicky lift that can be had Your spreader was very creative. Great pics....I'll link this to my site. Please be sure to "lock" the pictures so they don't accidentally get erased...I'll probably save those pics in a folder just to be sure.
I bet the ride is sooo much better than before.

ps-- Get 3" longer shackles if you want an extra 1.5" lift

ps again....I see you have Procomps on the rear. Those are among the stiffest gas shock around but they are known to be very heavy duty and 'beefy'. If you ever replace those think about Bilsteins...they have digressive valving and ride the smoothest.

I still like the TJ 4" springs I used that fit around the top bump stop without cutting, and the fact that the smaller end fits the bottom bump stop perfectly also. If I wanted to, I could remove them and the truck would be back to where it was before the mod. They were around $40 for a used pair. They came 14", but I cut them down to 12".

So would a spring rate that was lower then that make the ride more bouncy? And higher mike it a more firm ride? Or viceversa?

DJ99----I almost forgot about your set-up option....and I agree that it doesn't get any easier than shoving the TJ coil(TJ rears I believe) between the rubber and un-altered steel stopper above. That is a set-up that I would also like to see more folks try out.
On some with fat tires there is the minor issue of the extra wide TJ coils rubbing the sidewall so that has to be considered sometimes...and that can be addressed with wheel spacers probably.

and ohyeahcrx....the higher rate coils may be a more firm ride...with added better payload capacity. Most everyone will be using 100 pounds and maybe 125....unless you like to haul the occasional cord of wood.
Bouncy happens when shocks don't do their job. Worn out leaky shocks bring out the bouncy in the ride. Now, here's the interesting thing....with a stock saggy Runner with 25 year old factory crappy worn out piece of shocks, the bouncy factor is not very noticeable when the leafs are sagged and resting on the overloads....but as soon as the coils lift the leafs off the overloads then the bounce is there (with bad shocks). With most of the weight off the leafs(using coils for lift and support) the leaf to leaf resistance goes way down....the whole package behaves like a coil sprung axle and absorbs bumps much better.

have you posted pics of these? very interested...

The springs are the front springs off a '97-'06 Jeep TJ.

http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...ingsBefore.jpg
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...0_03210026.jpg
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...0_03210027.jpg
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...0_03210028.jpg
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...0_03210029.jpg
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...0_03210031.jpg

Enjoy!

no before pics DJ99...it's nice to see it..but it doesn't show how much you gained over "stock"

Only the avatar picture. It was a good 3 inches. I could have left the springs at original 14" and got more lift. The rear does appears to be a bit higher than the front, unlike what it was. The ride is also very nice.

thanks DJ...That looks pretty clean and easy. I just added your pics to the link I'm working on
Your pick-up frame is higher than the Runners....so if the same thing was done to a Runner then lift would be 1 or 2" higher than your 3" pick-up lift.
Here's my link so far...... http://gearinstalls.com/coilphilbert.htm

nice job phil! any after pictures of your rig?

nice! plus you got rid of the blocks..

Agreed...getting rid of the blocks is worth it alone....they can aggravate axle shudder and make leafpacks s-shaped.
Finished the link ... http://gearinstalls.com/coilphilbert.htm

Thanks everyone for the great comments! I just drive the truck about 80 miles today - mostly highway - and the ride was SMOOTH. There are several spots on the freeway that are potholed and usually give the truck a good shake/rattle that I feel in my spine - today I just cruised over those spots at speed and felt just a light bump as my suspension did what it was supposed to. It's night and day. There were some moments of "settling" where I could hear the new coils "pop" as they flexed a bit and wedged more into place.

Also noticable to me today was the braking. I'd been noticing that it felt like my truck was being stopped by mostly its rear brakes and not so much the fronts (I installed new F/R brakes last year). Turns out that because the LSPV is attached to the axle, and the axle was so close to the frame (my 4" blocks provided the only lift I had), my truck was assigning a very disproportionate amount of power to the rear brakes instead of the fronts. Today, I had full braking, especially up front, and it was fantastic. I'm surprised, because I really only gained maybe and inch of distance that the valve would have traveled - is this all it takes to make such a hug difference in braking distribution?

As promised here are some photos from today's daylight, showing the before and after (it's not SO much, but consider that I took out 4" blocks, so I'm getting about 5" of lift out of my new coils).

Before:



After:


For fun, I backed onto a curb today (in my previous setup, the entire truck would have flexed with the rear axle; today it remains level while the springs do the work and flex!):


For fun, here's what my suspension USED to look like:




And how it sits now (you can actually SEE the overload leafs now!):

Holy Crap!! No wonder you felt every bump in the road. Glad to hear the ride was way better. When I first picked up my 4Runner, the wife hated riding in it since the ride was so rough, it hurt her already messed up back. After Ball joint spacers and a zuk mod, she likes it, now the only problem is she has a little harder time climbing into it. It took her a year for her to LIKE the 4Runner. When I pulled into the garage with it the first time I got, "this is what you want to drive, huh?" She still doesn't understand it, but eh, I never expected her too.

Good work again, Phil.


edit* When you gonna pick up them 3" shackles that Zuk recommends to raise up the rear ? Bet that levels it out real nice and makes you happy as can be!

philbert- You must have more than 4" of front lift...that's a solid axle conversion I see I think?
Did you catch my comment about trying longer shackles to level it more?

I see your sig says IFS....that front lift looks way up there.. Did you see the last 10 pics of this link? http://gearinstalls.com/dc.htm

You could still use some more lift in the back, it still looks way to low in the back to me.