MAIDEN

First of all I did a search; but I know someone will still probably say " hey NOOB you should have searched more" and then they'll have a link. But anyways i was wondering>> Whats the downside to crankin up you torsion bar? Just a stiffer ride? Anything major? thanks homies

bob200587

harsh ride, extreme CV angles, leading to premature CV failure. Elimination of any possible down travel in the suspension.

ChickenLover

The increased angle of the cv axles will increase wear.

Elton

you should see what my freinds truck looks like with a 3'' body lifted and the t-bars cranked the cv angles are crazy

CoedNaked

Also increased stress on the tbars which could cause them to sag or fatigue.
If you crank them up too much you might as well not have any suspension up front.

When I bought my truck 2 years ago, the t-bars were cranked up quite a ways. I have since had them cranked down about a 1 1/4-1 1/2" on each side and it rides WAY better. In fact the first time I had them cranked down like 3/4", it was like night and day.

The other downside to cranking your t-bars, or adjusting them, period, is you need to pay to have an alignment done.

MAIDEN

what would happen at....lets say 2 inches? and what would you recommend as a good height to crank her up to? (in other words how high can i go without causing damage)

P.S.- im getting new tires soon so im getting an alignment anyways

CoedNaked

I would say if your vehicle is at stock ride height and the torsion bars haven't been touched, I would do no more than a 1" t-bar crank. 2" and you'll jar your teeth out.

Just get a set of ball joint spacers.

MudHippy

I'm a ground clearence fiend, so I will put up with pretty much whatever allows more of it. T-bars cranked is a must, so are 35's, for me. I'm not trying to say there's no drawbacks by doing so. Here's a thread that answered some questions I had, and is in general a quality read. Good tips from reputable sources. Torsion bars are covered, the other information is related, I recommend reading it all. Enjoy.https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f116/cvs-good-bad-ect-110486/

MAIDEN

ok now for the fun part..... how? where? how much? how long?
How do i crank the t bar? Where is it located (pics)? How much do i crank for a 1.5" height? How long with this take? and ANY OTHER ADVICE? thank you thank you thank you thank you

MudHippy

I'm not sure for 1.5", but mine all the way up, makes the 2" lift springs in the back look even with the front of my truck. So it's probably about 2" (I have the stock bumpstops). The most you should crank them is just untill the upper control arm makes slight contact with the bumpstop underneath it. You can get shorter bumpstops, or hack down the stock rubber ones to get an extra 1" or so. This link shows what to do. http://toyota.off-road.com/toyota/ar....jsp?id=398514
These guys have the bumpstops, shorter ones. Click where it says polyurethane.http://downeyoff-road.com/Suspension...ents/index.htm

MAIDEN

Iam a bit confused, on that first link is he saying that only the middle bolt should turn and nothing else?

MudHippy

I don't know for sure the purpose in even checking to see if that's possible. If the bolts are shot get new ones I geuss? Anyway, I think yours should be the earlier type. You just need to loosen the upper, smaller, lock-nut before adjusting on that style. Then hold the main adjusting nut, the bigger one, with a wrench and turn the bolt. It's pretty easy, not the wrenching of course, that'll be stiff if it's like the ones I've messed with.

Rcross

In the 88 models they started moving away from using the locknuts on the adjustment bolt. Some of the 88's have a locknut some don't. If yours does not have a locknut you only have to adjust the bottom bolt. Ideally the upper nut shouldn't turn, but you will probably have to hold it with a wrench. Now if you can't get it to turn easily then you might need to replace both the bolt and nut, about 20-25 bucks at a dealer.

Some of the cons that I dealt with with the bars cranked (the prev owner had them maxed out then plus some) no suspension travel, very harsh ride, blew out many an idler arm, and didn't perform well offroad (for me). When I would drop a tire in a hole the whole truck would pitch in that direction and spooked me a few times. I never blew a CV due to the increased angle but after installed the BJ spacers and relieving alot of the tension out of the bars the truck performs great, I'm saving the idler arms, and overall it just performs better offroad.

Personally I wouldn't crank the bars till you touched the stop, but thats just my opinion. Right now my suspension is working like a champ with the spacers and the bars are set at a stock height, not counting for the spacers.

ovrrdrive

I put about a 1-1.5" crank into mine about 12 years ago and never had a problem with them. As a matter of fact I just tore my first CV boot but that was more due to a dry rotted boot than anything.

Of course I don't lock the hubs in that often either...

Just do what you want to them and if the CV's break replace them with remanned ones from Autozone with the lifetime warranty. They're only $69.

MAIDEN

does any one have a picture of the bolts i need to twist?

MudHippy

These are for an 86-88, from the link above.


These are what new ones look like.

AxleIke

This is false.

The link here has the information, thank you for linking it mudhippy.

The only downside to cranking t-bars is decreased ride quality. It is explained in that link.

CV wear is a downside with ANY lift, the only way to minimize CV wear is to leave it stock.

JEBSR5

I know everyone likes to crank them up and why they do it, but has anyone ever went the other way. I mean let them down some in the front. Mine is almost level and not sagging in the rear, but would like to let them down maybe 1/2 to 1 inch. Not sure if that would be a good thing or not, cons/pros?
sorry, not trying to hijack.

AxleIke

The only con would be that you'd start to bottom out over minor bumps, so you'd hit the lower bumpstops on the up travel from just driving around on the street.

Many people put in BJ spacers, and then relax the t-bars back so the lower arms are stock. Decresases the angle of the upper a-arm thus putting less shock into the frame, and provides a less harsh ride.

norcalsvx

i run the BJ spacers with my OME torsions cranked down, good flex and a good ride and it still fit 33x10.50's with no rubbing