njomba

Hey there world of Yotatech!

Well, this is my first post here, and I want to start this off by stating that I'm (1) a new-ish owner of a 1995 4Runner with the infamously lackluster 3.slo, (2) new to Toyota trucks in general, as this is my first rig at all and I've only owned it for about 6 months and (3) I'm also new to the world of mechanics in general, so I don't claim to know all there is to know about anything, I'm here to learn, and feel free to correct me if there's something I'm missing.

Now, to what I came here for...

I bought my 4Runner back in January after much research, as I knew I wanted a 4x4 SUV and the options are many. I picked it up for $2000, put into it probably close to $1500 over the last 6 months with a set of A/Ts, an oil change, air filter change, brake fluid replacement and some serious suspension and steering work.

I've recently replaced the shocks myself, as that's an easy job and I couldn't justify paying someone else to do it when I have enough confidence in my capabilities to do it myself at this point in time. However my mechanic replaced a cv axle, and the pitman and idler arms, and the suspension and steering just don't feel "the same" as when I first bought it. Should I just take it for what it is, or should I take another look at it. The steering in general is pretty tight, and straight, but on the freeway my 4Runner feels really floaty. Any suggestions? Thanks for any and all positive feedback!

RJR

Not sure what you mean by "floaty". You might have a toe-in/toe-out problem if you didn't have a wheel alignment after the mechanic replaced the pitman arm. Too much toe out will negatively affect stability on the highway - it will drift back and forth rather than track straight down the road. Is that what you are noticing?

If it's floating more up and down, like a suspension problem, it could be that whichever shocks you installed aren't really tuned for your vehicle. Are both ends of each shock solidly bolted down with the little rubber donuts properly compressed?

njomba

Not sure what you mean by "floaty". You might have a toe-in/toe-out problem if you didn't have a wheel alignment after the mechanic replaced the pitman arm. Too much toe out will negatively affect stability on the highway - it will drift back and forth rather than track straight down the road. Is that what you are noticing?

If it's floating more up and down, like a suspension problem, it could be that whichever shocks you installed aren't really tuned for your vehicle. Are both ends of each shock solidly bolted down with the little rubber donuts properly compressed?

I made sure to have it aligned after my mechanic replaced the steering. So it shouldn't be that unless the alignment place just did a terrible job. But it's not really drifting, it's more of the ups and downs, especially on out crappy CA highways that have all sorts of divets and poorly repaired potholes and things. It just doesn't feel like it did before I got it. When I replaced the shocks I made sure to take the time and make sure both ends of the shocks were tightened, well, tightly against the little rubber donuts. It feels like the shocks are doing there job, as it evens out the bumps when I hit them on the freeway, it's just the initial hit that feels a lot harsher than when I first bought it. I took it to Midas before I took it to the mechanic that I have now (Midas is a ripoff) they said my struts need to be replaced, but to my knowledge, and when I look under the car, there are no struts in the 2nd gen suspension. Or am I misinformed?

RJR

You are correct, there are no "struts" on a 2nd gen 4runner. You have torsion bars in the front and coil springs in the rear, as I'm sure you've seen. Wonderfully simple and easy to work on. I wonder if the Midas guys actually looked under there. They may have been thinking about a 3rd gen, which is more of a strut design in front.

My guess is your new shocks are quite a bit stiffer than the old ones. Maybe too stiff, or maybe just correct instead of being loose and floppy.

njomba

You are correct, there are no "struts" on a 2nd gen 4runner. You have torsion bars in the front and coil springs in the rear, as I'm sure you've seen. Wonderfully simple and easy to work on. I wonder if the Midas guys actually looked under there. They may have been thinking about a 3rd gen, which is more of a strut design in front.

My guess is your new shocks are quite a bit stiffer than the old ones. Maybe too stiff, or maybe just correct instead of being loose and floppy.

That's what I thought, and it seems to me a pretty easy setup to work with should I want to work on it myself when I have a bit more experience in that sort of thing. Sounds like the Midas guy didn't even look, as they were about to quote me on struts that wouldn't even fit! Haha. That was the first and last week time I'll ever be going to Midas, those money suckers. Anyway, enough ranting...

Yeah, that's very possible. I got the cheaper Monroe gas shocks from O'Reilly's, and perhaps they're just stiffer than the stock ones were. Any suggestions for better shocks? Obviously Bilsteins are supposed to be good. Are Rancho's any good?

Janos01

KYBs are good shocks and standard replacement for our Toyota's. You can those at O'Reilly's as well. Also worn idler arm and tie rod ends can contribute to bad steering as well. I have to turn my wheel a bit to the left & right when im on the highway from worn steering. If possible get Moog or Beck/Arnley for your steering stuff. Rock Auto is a good site for car parts as well.

njomba

That's good to know about the KYBs. I may take out the Monroe's and swap in a set of KYBs instead. It could be the tie rod ends I suppose, although when I was talking with my mechanic about it he said those didn't need replacing. But maybe they do now? Also, would the problem have anything to do with the control arms?