SLAYfriknBODIES

Hey guys I just spent the weekend installing a lift on my 1993 Pickup

I used 4Crawler BJ spacers and a torsion bar drop kit on the IFS and a pair of OME Dakar CS020R lift springs for a goal of a 2.25" lift.

Well, problems arose- so I turn to Yota Tech once more.

1) OME's U-bolts were wide enough to clear just the leaf spring packs, but not the spring perches. Furthermore, the holes on the bottom plate/shock mount are too wide to fit the OME bolts even if the perches weren't in the way.

my temporary solution was to use some U-bolts from O'Reilly's. They were still too narrow, but a BFH got them seated around the bump stop plate after a bit of trimming with an angle grinder. A ratchet strap around the protruding threads pulled them in a tad so the plate could get mounted and some systematic tightening with a ratchet got the leaf and axle mated.

HOWEVER: What U-Bolts should I get to clear my perches? No auto shop around here seems to carry wide enough ones and stock Toyota U bolts are too short. has anyone else had this problem?

2) Drive Shaft vibration

The Dakar spings I bought were supposed to raise the truck by 2.25" however I think it came out much higher (at least until the springs start to settle a tad)

When starting off in 1st gear, the truck shudders a little bit, then as the gear change to 2nd happens, the shuddering gets worse. Once youre at a decent cruising speed in 3rd gear it evens out pretty well and fourth gear isnt bad. 4th to 5th gear change there is a small racket going on somewhere in the drive shaft. I know it has to do with the new angle everything is sitting at with the lift, but there is never any mention of this happening with other mild lifts I have read about. Has anyone else encountered this issue?

3) Lastly- shock absorbers.

I had anticipated the lift to come out much less agressive than it did. I had figured that my Skyjacker and KYB shocks would still have enough stretch in them to work on the truck, however the KYBs in the rear do not reach. I am assuming from the "ass up" stance of my truck that the front shocks are limiting the torsion bars ability to jack the front end up level.

Long story short, I need new shocks. I looked up the OME N98/N95 shocks that are supposed to work with my truck- but at $98.24 each, thats pretty steep. Id gladly go for other brands but with the cockeyed nature of this lift, Id like some suggestions from people who know what they are talking about. (after the dimension issues with the U-bolts from OME Im not exactly excited about getting more stuff from them only to have a dimension or two off and waste more time with my truck barely driveable.


So, if you can make any sense of this mess....I'd appreciate some help.

highonpottery

iTrader: (1)

I do recall reading about someone installing OME leafs and having the same issue with the ubolts, but it's not common - something about some oddball size of perch being too wide like you're describing. whatever it is, it's not common with most of the toyotas, which is why the ubolts don't fit the universal pattern they have. if you search here, you may find the thread and the solution. you can also find many shops that will make you a set of custom ubolts if you choose to do so. your other option is to do a u-bolt flip kit, but requires use of a welder for installing new lower shock mounts and possibly uppers depending on setup wanted.

as for the vibrations - it's not uncommon for a lifted rig to display this problem after lifting. my guess is ujoints on the driveline since they are now operating at a different angle than what they've been used to for XXX,XXX miles if they're the originals and have never been serviced. if your rig is an xcab, then you've also got the issue of a 2-piece driveline with a center carrier bearing that likes to go out as well and causes all sorts of noises. you could also try a shim to see if the angle just needs to be corrected, may or may not work - my guess is still ujoint related.

as for the shocks, i cannot comment - i replaced my shocks at the same time with OME shocks and they work great. it was hard for me to justify the price of them, but since everyone claimed they are meant to be paired together with the Dakar leafs, i just bit the bullet - and $100/ea isn't really that expensive when talking about quality shocks. i believe front OEM Toyota shocks are something like 9.375" compressed and 13.375" extended. When you install BJ spacers and don't lower it back down, you need shocks travelling somewhere in the 10-15" range. OME N98 fronts are 9.8" and 15.32". OME N904 rear shocks are 14.1" and 23.1". look up the specs of what you have currently and compare the two.
another thing to consider regarding rear shocks is the angle of the lower shock mounting plate. if it's cockeyed, you can either gain or lose distance between the shocks mounts depending on which direction it's favoring by one side's ubolts being tighter/higher up on the threads. hopefully that made sense

also, don't forget to adjust your LSPV for the rear brakes. i would suggest you ride around with some weight in the back of your truck to help break the leafs in faster if you can. i went and got a few loads of compost and rocks, then got it wet and drove a bumpy and curvy road to help them settle quicker.

Stetson_md

My dad had the ubolt problem after a axle swap (90s axle into 80s truck) we went to a trailer company called ameri-trail to get the right size u bolts

SLAYfriknBODIES

thanks for the help guys!