ryans86yota

Are the torsion bars out of a 87 4 runner the same length as my 86 pickup?My dad and i pulled the heavy duty torsion bars out of my moms 87 4 runner.We installed them in my 86 pickup and got 2 1/2 inches of lift.I was driving down the road and the passenger side front of the truck dropped down.When I got home,we pulled it apart because the bolt was loose.We pulled the torsion bar out and reset the end that the adjusting bolt goes through.Tightend everything back down measureing that both were the same height.I was driving to school and the torsion bar bolt came loose again.I took it to a friends house and it did the same thing again,drove away and the torsion bar dropped again.Any help would be appriciated.
Thanks,Ryan

drew303

yea theyre all the same length, not really sure what problem your speaking off? im having a hard time imagining it

drew303

there should be two nuts (locking each other) keeping the bolt from adjusting itself..fyi

abecedarian

engaged the keyways too?
And the bars are specific "left" and "right" and mixing those up could be a problem.

But if you installed the bars properly, you shouldn't have got any "lift" out of them.

ryans86yota

Thanks for the help guy's, we found the problem, the yoke (a-arm side) was cracked and the splines were stripped, got another yoke out of a wrecking yard, replaced it and she's fixed.

19864runnerHawaii

hey quick question.. how much more heavy duty were those torsion bars? because i never heard of them giving any lift..

ryans86yota

my mom bought them ( a long time ago) at a place called NW Offroad in Bellingham Wa. You can go to their web site to check them out at northwestoffroad.com, they specialize in toyota's

BMcEL

Beware of NWOR...do your research first. Just sayin.

abecedarian

HD t-bars can give a "perceived" lift if the stock bars were fatigued and sagging a bit. Other than that, you should see no overall lift from HD bars but could see a stiffer or more bouncy ride. That's what the HD bars do: increase the spring rate up front, make the front "stiffer", or more less likely to compress.

There are really only two reasons for HD t-bars: carrying extra weight up front like a plow or something, or high-speeds across rough terrain. Either of those could cause the suspension to bottom out rather easily, and a stronger bar would help... but either needs paired with an appropriate shock.

Arguably, the plow up front adds weight to the front of the truck, so a heavier "spring" or "t-bar" is a good idea. That would suffice okay with a stock shock, preferably (though not necessarily) nitrogen charged, but strong jounce and relaxed rebound would be suffice: you want the suspension to resist compression and allow extension so the plow can remain in contact with the roadbed.

High speed over rough terrain tends to put the full weight of the vehicle on the fron suspension whenever a "bump" or "whoop" is encounted so a HD bar would add tension, resisting the impact but would need something with somewhat relaxed jounce and a strong rebound dampening: you want the suspension to allow compression- lets the t-bar take the load- and resist rapid extension, and the HD bar presses down harder than the stock t-bar, so the tire is on or near the ground when you hit the next bump.

If I'm wrong, I'm sure someone will correct me.