t-bars down not up.....
10-11-2005, 03:05 PM
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t-bars down not up.....
can i actually lower my torsion bars? i had 30 inch wheels on my truck then got the sequioa 31's and now i have had some positive camber to the front wheels. Can i lower my t-bars and level my truck out instead of getting a camber kit? I wanted to do this for the next set of tires cause the ones on there look a lil skimpy on the shoulders..
10-12-2005, 08:35 AM
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Interesting.
Simple answer is certainly, you can lower just as easily as raise. Play with it and see how it goes.
But more important - 1) changing one tire size (or any tire size for that matter) does not change your alignment. 2) Adjusting the tbars will not change camber (not enough to matter anyway.) 3) What's a camber kit?
Simple answer is certainly, you can lower just as easily as raise. Play with it and see how it goes.
But more important - 1) changing one tire size (or any tire size for that matter) does not change your alignment. 2) Adjusting the tbars will not change camber (not enough to matter anyway.) 3) What's a camber kit?
10-12-2005, 09:03 AM
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here is my thought....before this truck i owned a jetta for about 2 years that i tuned to no end. With fromt wheel drive cars when you would lower them you increase the negative camber in the wheels so they look like this /----\. You have probably seen these ricers running around town. This gives good grip in fast corners but the insides of your tires wear very quickly. I customized my jetta with a rally suspension and in the process the front end looked like a 4 wheeler. When i took it to my local speed shop, my buddy got me a camber kit(specalized bolts that line the front wheels straight up and down). they look like this....http://www.drivewire.com/performance...gnmentkit.html
After taking to to a tire shop i had 3 degress of negative camber on my little jetta. That is enough that i noticed reduced body roll in turns. It was lots of fun but killed the tires.
Now on to my problem. The front wheels of my truck look like this when you look at them head on \-----/. Not that bad, but enough to notice. Now i am just using what i knew from VW and other small cars. I was going to try to "lower" my front end to increase negative camber. This will also help level the truck out since the rear sits a little lower. It is noticable that my front tires are wearing unevenly on the shoulders. Granted i drive a little vigerously but not to this degree. When I put the sequoia rims on it was a noticeable difference in ride hight compaired to the stock steelies that were on the truck. I will post some pics as soon as i get home tonight...but for now
this pic shows some of the wheel gap in the front compaired to the rear(when the rear is loaded down it does not bottom out or even sag that much, this truck has been used most of its life as a commuter).
And some of that vigorous driving......
After taking to to a tire shop i had 3 degress of negative camber on my little jetta. That is enough that i noticed reduced body roll in turns. It was lots of fun but killed the tires.
Now on to my problem. The front wheels of my truck look like this when you look at them head on \-----/. Not that bad, but enough to notice. Now i am just using what i knew from VW and other small cars. I was going to try to "lower" my front end to increase negative camber. This will also help level the truck out since the rear sits a little lower. It is noticable that my front tires are wearing unevenly on the shoulders. Granted i drive a little vigerously but not to this degree. When I put the sequoia rims on it was a noticeable difference in ride hight compaired to the stock steelies that were on the truck. I will post some pics as soon as i get home tonight...but for now
this pic shows some of the wheel gap in the front compaired to the rear(when the rear is loaded down it does not bottom out or even sag that much, this truck has been used most of its life as a commuter).
And some of that vigorous driving......
Last edited by brandontrek; 10-12-2005 at 09:09 AM.
10-12-2005, 01:41 PM
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Okay, I see what you're thinking. Just remember it's NOT a car, and it doesn't work the same way.
First thing you should notice is there is no "camber kit" available for it. Never was, never will be.
Various points:
The suspension on the truck is designed for everyday travel (as in up and down) greater than a typical car suspension has at extremes. Therefore it will usually go through less camber change during normal travel. Adjusting the t-bars up or down will change the camber a little, but an inch high or low isn't gonna make a huge difference. But, re-alignment is possible and quite easy - look at the adjustment cams on the control arms - lotsa room to play.
IF you look at the alignment specs for the Toyota, you will see that \----/ is proper. It will be visually slight but clearly noticeable if you are looking for it. I am sure you can get it aligned to |----| but I doubt it will improve ride, handling, or tire wear. It's a truck.
When you put the Sequoia rims on it, what size tires came off and what went on? Unless you get Really radical with different offsets or huge widths, rim 'style' can not change anything about alignment, nor will rim size. 31x10.50 on 7 inch rims are not changing anything from stock. Is your wear pattern related to alignment, or inflation pressure, or just the normal "fronts wear on the shoulders much more than rears" thing, and you need to rotate them? The fronts will always wear the shoulders off quicker than the rears unless you only drive on straight freeways. Rotate often. It's a truck.
The "wheel gap" from front to rear? Do you mean the gap between the top of the tire and the top of the fenderwell opening? The front fenders have a LOT more gap than the rears. Measure from the bottom of the body or the frame to the floor (on a level floor) front and rear, and then take another look at those fender openings... Without going and measuring I'd guess the front fender is 2" taller at the opening than the rears. They design most trucks that way so when you are turning while compressed the tires don't hit the fenderwell. Rears don't need the extra room, usually....
Just my take, other opinions may vary.
First thing you should notice is there is no "camber kit" available for it. Never was, never will be.
Various points:
The suspension on the truck is designed for everyday travel (as in up and down) greater than a typical car suspension has at extremes. Therefore it will usually go through less camber change during normal travel. Adjusting the t-bars up or down will change the camber a little, but an inch high or low isn't gonna make a huge difference. But, re-alignment is possible and quite easy - look at the adjustment cams on the control arms - lotsa room to play.
IF you look at the alignment specs for the Toyota, you will see that \----/ is proper. It will be visually slight but clearly noticeable if you are looking for it. I am sure you can get it aligned to |----| but I doubt it will improve ride, handling, or tire wear. It's a truck.
When you put the Sequoia rims on it, what size tires came off and what went on? Unless you get Really radical with different offsets or huge widths, rim 'style' can not change anything about alignment, nor will rim size. 31x10.50 on 7 inch rims are not changing anything from stock. Is your wear pattern related to alignment, or inflation pressure, or just the normal "fronts wear on the shoulders much more than rears" thing, and you need to rotate them? The fronts will always wear the shoulders off quicker than the rears unless you only drive on straight freeways. Rotate often. It's a truck.
The "wheel gap" from front to rear? Do you mean the gap between the top of the tire and the top of the fenderwell opening? The front fenders have a LOT more gap than the rears. Measure from the bottom of the body or the frame to the floor (on a level floor) front and rear, and then take another look at those fender openings... Without going and measuring I'd guess the front fender is 2" taller at the opening than the rears. They design most trucks that way so when you are turning while compressed the tires don't hit the fenderwell. Rears don't need the extra room, usually....
Just my take, other opinions may vary.
Last edited by Flamedx4; 10-12-2005 at 01:46 PM.
10-12-2005, 02:28 PM
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[QUOTE=brandontrek] i had 30 inch wheels on my truck then got the sequioa 31's QUOTE]
30 inch wheels!!!!!!!!
wow, I'd like to see those, they must be HUGE.
30 inch wheels!!!!!!!!
wow, I'd like to see those, they must be HUGE.
10-12-2005, 02:45 PM
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Your truck looks great just as it is...I would not adjust your ride height for looks, only performance...
For thought...Ford Ranger A-Arms use camber kits for some of their lift kits...
I'm jealous...my truck sits stink, but that is the only way to keep uptravel in the rear which I need....
For thought...Ford Ranger A-Arms use camber kits for some of their lift kits...
I'm jealous...my truck sits stink, but that is the only way to keep uptravel in the rear which I need....
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10-12-2005, 03:01 PM
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I laughed at that too. I thought I saw some bigger than these once, but they certainly make 26 inch rims now! Can you imagine a $12,000 tire and wheel package? http://www.discountedwheelwarehouse...._inch_Rims.cfm
10-12-2005, 03:38 PM
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sorry for my "typing before i think" on the 30" wheels...bw they were 48" tires on those...lol...thanks for all the info...flamed you had a good point that i didn't think of...it is a night and day difference from a car suspension to a pickup...i will throw a new set of rubber on it am have it aligned and we will see how the next set come out....
bob here is one for you....
...lol
bob here is one for you....
...lol
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