bamachem

UPDATED 02.16.07

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DO NOT USE OME N91S STRUTS UP FRONT IN COMBINATION WITH AN ARB LOCKER. The locked front and excessive droop is a CV killer. I know because I broke two on Slickrock at Tellico about 30-minutes apart. If you have a front locker, or plan on running one, then you either need front limiting straps or you need to use the BLUE Tacoma TRD shocks or another Tokico alternative.

For use with a Front ARB Locker (ARB RD90):
2004 Toyota Tundra TRD 4WD Front Coil: 48131-AF090 - right - Blue + Yellow goes on the passenger side
2004 Toyota Tundra TRD 4WD Front Coil: 48131-AF100 - left - Yellow + Yellow goes on driver side
2004 Toyota TRD Tacoma Double Cab stock front shocks: 48510-A9160 - Tokico TRD Blue (TWO)
Sonoran Steel Fabrication L.L.C. Front differential drop spacers (TWO)
Sonoran Steel Fabrication L.L.C. 38mm Japanese made extended studs (SIX)
Bamachem 3/8" thick: 1/2" Lift HDPE Top Spacer (TWO)

Without a Front Locker:
OME N91S Struts are fine, but should be used with limiting straps if you plan on wheeling hard where possible overextension of the outer CV joint can be present while the drooped front wheel is under extreme torque.

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Steve at Sonoran Steel LLC has a complete kit using this information and the correct parts along with a diff drop and panhard drop for a great price!
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I've had a ton of different setups for the front and rear. Over the last ~70k miles I've had...

front:
OEM
OEM + spacers
TUNDRA 2WD NON TRD + spacers
OME/OME
TUNDRA 2WD NON TRD + spacers (went back b/c I HATED the OME setup)
TUNDRA 2WD TRD + red billies
TUNDRA 2WD TRD + OME struts
and now: TUNDRA 4WD TRD + tokico blue struts

rear:
OEM
OEM + spacers
DOWNEY COILS + stock shocks
OME/OME
DOWNEY COILS + stock shocks (went back b/c I HATED the OME setup)
DOWNEY COILS + OME shocks
DOWNEY COILS + spacer + OME
DOWNEY COILS + spacers + OME
and now: CRUISER coils and shocks

Overall, this basic front/rear setup KILLS all of them in ride comfort and flex ability. It gives approximately 2.0" up front (with my extra weight of a front bumper and winch) and (2.25" in the rear with downey coils) 3.5" in the rear with the Cruiser Coils.

Here's what I originally used...

Front:

Tundra TRD 2WD Front Coils

I used 2WD TRD Tundra front coils but everyone else have used 4WD TRD Tundra Coils. All use Extended Studs w/ some HDPE 3/8" Top Plate Spacers and the lift amounts are almost IDENTICAL. The added weight on my rig is about 100# MORE when compared to a stock runner, yeilding about a 0.20" drop in my ride height overall. The conclusion is that the 2WD TRD and 4WD TRD Tundra Coils are essentially the same when installed on a 3rd Gen 4runner.

Left Coil Part Number: 48131-AF100
Right Coil Part Number: 48131-AF090

OME N91S struts. Originally, I used Toyota Tundra 2WD Red TRD Bilstein Struts. Instead of the 4x2 Tundra TRD Bilsteins, a set of Old Man Emu N91s Struts can AND SHOULD be substituted. The old TRD part number (00602-48500-101) is now PT901-48500-01. They currently retail for $394 for a set of 4, but are available through http://trdparts4u.com for only $315. (This strut is RED - NOT the same as Bilstein Heavy Duty Yellow Struts or Regular Bilstein Yellow TRD Struts or even the RED TRD Bilsteain 4WD struts - the 2WD versions are supposedly LOW PRESSURE and NOT HIGH PRESSURE) ~$350/set of 4 list price - but you can only use the fronts - therefore, get OME and NOT the red billies unless you find a good deal on some used ones. (got mine used) They can also get you the Red 2WD TRD Bilsteins if you insist on using them. My OME N91s struts are super smooth on and off road. However, at this point, I'd STRONGLY suggest using the Blue Tacoma TRD Tokico struts up front.[/COLOR]

OEM 4Runner Top Plate

Extended Studs for OEM Top Plate are available from both Daystar and/or Revtek.[/b]

HDPE 3/8" thick Top Plate Spacer (Similar to a Revtek 3/8" Top Out Spacer)

This is pretty much a TRD bolt-on front lift for 4Runners and Tacomas

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Note: There are 3 different Bilstein Shocks that can be easily confused on this setup.

1. OEM Toyota/Bilsteins - color yellow/blue , labeled with both the Toyota and Bilstein brand names - comes as part of the "TRD" or OFF ROAD option package. Toyota part # 4851009350 (front) & 4853109141 (rear). Toyota price about $150 new (set of 4), often about $125 on eBay (set of 4) YOU DO NOT WANT THESE.

2. TRD Bilsteins for 4x4's - color red/blue, labeled with both the Toyota and Bilstein brand names. TRD part number 00602-48500-100. Available from Toyota Dealers as a TRD Sport Part. These shocks are 40% stiffer on bump and about 25% stiffer on rebound than #1. about $285 (set of 4) YOU DO NOT WANT THESE.

3. TRD Bilsteins for 4x2's - color red/blue, labeled with both the Toyota and Bilstein brand names. TRD part number 00602-48500-101 (order 2). Available from Toyota Dealers as a TRD Sport Part. These shocks are slightly softer at low velocities, but stiffer at high velocities than #1. about $175 (set of 2) THESE ARE THE ONES YOU WANT.

I have verified that I have #3 4x2 Tundra TRD Red/Blue Bilsteins. They are softer than regular Bilsteins on low speed articulation and are stiffer than regular Bilsteins on high speed articulation. This allows for super soft and smooth on-road manners along with superb flex while crawling.

Instead of the 4x2 Tundra TRD Bilsteins, a set of Old Man Emu N91s Struts can AND SHOULD be substituted. They work in a similar manner as the 4x2 TRD Billies in that the valving allows for soft feel at slow articulation speeds. You DO NOT want the "comfort" (N91c). These are VERY soft - softer than the OEM Toyota struts that came on 4Runners from Japan.
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Rear:

Downey 2.5"/3.5" Rear Lift Coils

Old Man Emu N86 Rear Shocks

OEM Conical Bumpstops
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Other Stuff worth mentioning:

1" Roger Brown Body Lift

1" Differential Drop Spacers (cheap insurance)

Front Sway Bar Quick Disconnects (tons more flex)

ARB Sahara Bar (no difference in weight of OEM bumper and crush bar compared to the ARB)

Warn M8000 Winch w/ Amsteel Syn Line and Roller Fairlead (for weight considerations)

Airlift Outback 1000 Air Bag System (to help w/ the rear bumper weight)
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Now for the juicy stuff...

At some point when I have the time and a place to do it, I'm going to take one of my assemblies out and take detailed pics, but until then, I'll have to rely on verbage and borrowed pics.

The top plate spacer goes on top of the strut plate after everything else is assembled and just before you re-install it on the truck. You build the coilpack like OEM, but w/ longer studs and the tundra springs instead of the OEM springs. Then you put the spacer on top (kinda like a washer of sorts) then push the studs up through the holes in the upper mounting plate on the truck, then get all three nuts started, then get the lower shock eye lined up and then thread the lower bolt through it.



A good writeup on how to install them with pics is HERE:

http://4rnr.net/suspension

It goes the same place as the Revtek Top-Out Spacer (Part Number TOE-2)...

By running the longer Tundra Coils, you eliminate the thick Revtek PRELOAD SPACER (this is what they call it in the directions) that goes INSIDE the coil pack. You still follow the directions and refer to the pics for the rest of the steps to remove the OEM top plate, removing and replacing the studs, reassembling the coilpack, and placement of the top plate (part number TOE-2)

Here's the Revtek Instructions in PDF format.

http://www.revtek.com/docs/pn430.pdf

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Flex info:

(from center of hub vertically to bottom of limited flare)

Note: As you can see in the last two pics, the front didn't bottom out on the bumpstop and the upper A Arm did not touch the spring. If I were to put a rock under the driver rear tire, then I could probally squeeze 8" of travel out of the front and maybe, just maybe a touch over. This is with a 1" Roger Brown Body Lift installed also.

Front normal height: 22.75" (TRD) 23.0" (OME)
Front compressed height: 18.25"
Front extended height: 25.75"
Front overall travel: 7.50"
% of suspension travel is compression: 60%
% of suspenstion travel is extension: 40%
(normal position is almost perfectly in the middle of potential suspension travel)

Rear normal height: 23.00" (New) 22.25" (Used)
Rear compressed height: 14.75"
Rear extended height: 32.50"
Rear overall travel: 17.75"
% of suspension travel is compression: 46%
% of suspenstion travel is extension: 54%
(normal position is almost perfectly in the middle of potential suspension travel)

Pics of position during measurement:






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New pics w/ 305/70-16's!






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update:

swapped to blue tokicos, tundra 4wd coils, and rear LC coils. also added some sonoran steel lower suspension links for more rear axle articulation. 1/4" wall DOM with rubicon express joints... no more bent lower links!

pics:

coils & links................OME & Tokico............OME on the runner


tokico's on.................downey's on..............LC coils on


new stance................new stance...............new stance


rear w/ bags...............how to turn the lower eye on the fronts

gumbo

Right on

AUJWE

Wow. Great write up. I am going to have to read this a couple times to make sure I didn't miss anything.

sschaefer3

Who's your daddy ???

bamachem

Sorry it's so long. You'll need to read it about 3 or 4 times to absorb the info before asking Q's. I pretty much covered every aspect that could be questioned.

COYOTA $x$

In validating the Coil Spring Part numbers...

Is there a specific vehicle year/model/configuration associated to those spring numbers then as well ? (beyond just Tundra TRD 4x4, v8) like Access Cab etc?

SCENARIO: if some come up on eBay from take-offs where the guy wont know the part numbers per se, folks can still have good faith that theyre getting the right springs (depending on the honesty/knowledge of the seller naturally)

Bob_98SR5

Andy,

Great writeup/documentation and results! Now you can get snippy with a noob if he asks how to do this!

Bob

User 051420

Andy, your TRD PN for the struts seems to pull up a complete kit, front and rear. Are you sure the front struts are available individualy?

RTdawgs

your part numbers show 3 different things:

48131AF100 Front suspension - Suspension components - Coil spring COIL SPRING, Tundra, 4WD, Left, Access Cab, w/Off Road Pkg. 2000 - 2002

48131AF100 Front suspension - Suspension components - Spring - 2wd Access cab Left 2003 - 2004

48131AF100 Front suspension - Suspension components - Spring - 4wd Access cab Left 2003 - 2004

so the 00-02 TRD coils are the same as 03-04 access cab 2WD & 4WD coils?

bamachem

Hmmm... they're supposed to be available as individual units. One number for the rear and one number for the front. I'll have to do some more checking on that one to see if there's a different number for the individual units. Wheeler's also sells the 4WD TRD set, but it looks like only in sets of 4 also, so maybe they can answer that question for us.


I don't know what to tell you on that one. What I do know is that the guy I bough these from has a 2003 NON TRD Tundra. He went in to his parts guy and said " I want to order some TRD Tundra 4WD front coils" and the guy looked them up and ordered the numbers listed above. They sat in his garage for 6 months because it's been too much for him to handle since he doesn't want to deal with the coil spring compressor, so he sold them. Also, the Red/Yellow and Purple/Yellow designation matches other sources of info on the TRD coil springs.

Also, since early August, about a dozen or so people on Tundra Solutions have ordered new TRD springs using these part numbers and have seen 1.5-1.75" of lift on their NON-TRD 2WD Tundras. This is expected since I saw about 1.75" of lift when swapping from 2WD NON-TRD Tundra Coils to 4WD TRD Tundra Coils (when you subtract out the 2.5" Cornfed Spacers and using my measurements of before and after).

The part numbers I listed are right. I confirmed them with the original buyer, AFTER doing a gut check by checking Tundra Solutions AND verifying the paint code on the coils.

sschaefer3

Well, any word on this?

sschaefer3

Your not getting as much droop as I do. Either the upper arms are giving it or the OME shock is longer.

Just an FYI.

On mine the back of the ball joint just barely hits the coil.

bamachem

Read it again. That's NOT at full FRONT flex. I couldn't flex all the way cause the driver rear flare was about to get ripped off by the tread on the MTR from the full REAR stuff. I now have a 1" BL to take care of that and will get new measureemnts and pics as soon as I get a chance - maybe this afternoon...

sschaefer3

Ok, I'll "Read It Again". But I'm willing to bet you might not get as far without the custom upper arms.

Reguardless I have to run them to fit the 35's even if they don't add more down travel. They should though.

Anything else I should read again?

bamachem

LOL... I'm sure the upper arms are giving you some advantage. However, just an FYI, the measurements above are not at full FRONT stuff.

jacksonpt

Good stuff!

I've long wondered if TRD tundra gear would work on our rigs. You seemt to be getting better compression than I do with my OME gear as well.

User 051420

Wheeler's also says the Yellow Blue Bilstein HD is THE SAME as the Red Blue TRD kit....Either way I'm going with tried and true OME shocks.

Andy, Steve: Thank's for all of your incredible legwork on this!! Now when are all of my parts comin??!

bamachem

Yeah, i saw that, and if I were starting from scratch, that's what I would use. Who knows, maybe that's what I'll do next to try a different setup.

User 051420

Well. I do have a set of those in the garage, and I'd rather not wait for the OME stuff to come in. So I'm gonna go ahead and try them. I'll see how that works and let y'all know the best I can.

xjtoy

Does anybody know the weight difference between the 4Runner and Tacoma DoubleCab? I'm wondering if there will be any lift difference between the two, as I'd like to use this assembly on my Tacoma.

Let me clarify...the front strut assembly on my Tacoma!