1993 4x4 Pickup Leaf Springs or Zuk Mod?
 

I have a daily driver 93 4wd Ext Cab Pickup that sees occasional off road duty during hunting season. I just noticed some uneven sag on the right side on both the front and rear, so started looking into what I should do. The easiest thing to do right away is replace all 4 shocks, as they are due. Already ordered some more Bilstein HD (what was put on the truck 15 yrs ago) and hope to put them on this weekend.

However, as I started taking measurements and looking around, I notice that the rear has some sag to it (about 2" lower than the front when measured from hub to wheel well). The right side in particular is about 1" lower than the left. The leaf springs do not look broken and are not completely flat, but that right side is visibly compressed more than left (about 2.25" between the stops versus 3" on the left side).

Questions:
1. Could the shock on that right rear be causing some of the sag or is most/all of that sag coming from the leaf springs? I suppose time will tell when I replace the shocks.
2. I want to return it to stock height, so if shock replacement doesn't do that, should I look at the Zuk mod or just replace the leaf springs? No cut Zuk mod will be cheaper and way easier for me to do, just not sure what if any drawbacks there would be?
3. If I try the Zuk mod and want factory height, any recommended springs? Seems like most say 100# for pickup and for stock height maybe a 12" for a no-cut fit?
4. Are there other things you guys would suggest "while I am in there"?

I appreciate all of your help in advance! I have learned a ton here already. Great forum.

I did the Zuk coils on my 87' 4Runner with 96' 4Runner rear coils cut down 1 1/2 coils. No cutting. Took me back to stock height, but gives a rough ride and lots of axle wrap. Think about it, you're adding considerably to the spring rate, and the axle is now more free to rotate. It's a band aid. Get some new springs, they're not THAT expensive.

Shock absorbers do not support weight; they absorb shocks. So they will not solve the sag. Agree with inferno^^ leafs may be bad.
I zuk'd my 1986, too. Very happy with 125 lb/inch, 12-inch springs. Not sure what would work for your 1993.

Appreciate those replies, fellas.
I don't think I understand the axle wrap concern. Why would the axle be more free to rotate?
I agree springs are bad in rear. But I thought that was why people did the Zulu mod in the first place, because it was quicker and cheaper than replacing the leaf packs. Is that wrong? I don't do any crawling but I can be rough on it at times during hunt season. If all I want is return to stock height and get some more life out of her, would it be best to just replace leaf springs?

Thanks again, guys.

While I have never done the ZUK mod, I have done alot of AAL (add a leaf) to the rear of these toyotas. The problem with this is that it is also just a band aid repair. As the rear springs will eventually sag again.

I say get some new springs. Even if you want to go with OEM height. There are plenty of companies out there that sell them. Lowrange has some OEM listed for just over 100$

I think you have sold me...I'll replace the leaf springs in rear.
Now for the front...
If I were to make small adjustments to the torsion bars to level out the ride height up front, would that affect alignment? I hear people say if you "crank on them" you need to check alignment, but I don't know if that means ANY cranking on them or just if you are doing it to the extreme for lift or something.
Is it normal for one side to sag an inch or so after 21 years of service, or does it mean it has seen some abuse and I may be looking at replacement soon?

IIRC it took seven turns for me to get mine back to stock height. I did have the alignment checked, but no adjustements were necessary.

It's a good idea to get the alignment checked, many places will do the check for free and only charge you if adjustments are necessary. I went to Les Schwab.

Appreciate that advice and that's the route I'm going to go. But there are a TON of places selling these things and I don't want to buy some dollar store brand. You mentioned Lowrange. Any other recommendations on seller or brand for just the stock ride height on some rear leafs? I hear great things about OME springs, but I don't want the 2" lift. If they sold a stock height I would probably go with theirs.

Sorry for the noob questions, just don't want to buy the bargain basement quality but don't want to spend $700 for the Toyota springs either! If all of the aftermarket OEM stuff is about the same, it looks like I can find something there in the range of $300 for both sides including Ubolts.

I used the OME springs, but removed the overload leaf. It got me just a tiny bit above stock. When they eventually sag, I'll just reinstall the overload leaf and be on my way.

Interesting idea there, skjos. Thanks for that. Were your springs the HD or the Medium Duty springs they sell? Just making sure that removing the overload leaf on a Medium Duty would not have some awful consequence.

I installed the OME CS019R leaf springs, I believe these are the medium springs for the extra-cab.

Thanks for that reply. You are correct, those are the mediums. I may have to give that a whirl!

And for what it is worth to those reading this thread, the rear leaf springs are the culprit on my "lean." I jacked the right rear up so that both rear fender wells were equal and the front straightened up. So I don't expect to have to do much levelling out of the torsion bars up front once I get these rear springs replaced. Amazing how I never really noticed how low the rear sat until I saw the lean to the right, but now I notice it on every truck I pass :) I suppose I mostly see my truck from the steering wheel perspective!

skjos, exactly which leaf did you remove? I have tried contacting ARB and they haven't responded, and info on the forums is mixed. I guess I can just tinker with it, but I would like to remove whichever leaf gets me the closest to stock. I could deal with a little bit of rake, but would rather not have to crank too much on those torsion bars to bring the front up.

I thought about just going with some stock springs, but I can't find any at a decent price. The OME CS019R springs I can get for the same price or cheaper than stock, so I like the idea of going with those if I can get them close to stock height.

Just wanted to give a quick update...
ARB finally responded and very strongly discouraged me from removing even one leaf from the CS019R pack because it wasn't designed for that. I know that probably shouldn't be cause for concern or anything, but it made my decision a little tougher. I had found a really good deal on the OME but now think I may just go with a stock spring (same price) so I don't have to deal with the leaf removal, raise the front, or anything like that. I'm still looking for a good place to buy these, but it seems that after you factor in the shipping for these things, you are probably around $160 per side. Seems high to me but I haven't found a better alternative.

Sorry for the delay, here are the pictures of the OME's installed and the removed leaf. I have had no issues except for an annoying noise that I attribute to the OME bushings.

http://home.centurytel.net/stevenjac...S019R-leaf.jpg


http://home.centurytel.net/stevenjac...0host/leaf.jpg

I imagine that with as many inquiries about removing a leaf to achieve stock height, that OME would have added a 1" lift spring or stock height that people wouldn't need to mess with. I spent a lot of time researching and ended up getting the CS019R's and removing the lowest overload. I have yet to install, so time will tell.
After doing the zuk mod for about a year, they will do you just find if you simply can't afford new springs, but nothing is going to be as good leaf springs paired with some good shocks.

What did the OP end up doing?

I ended up doing none of the above! Once I adjusted my front end torsion bars to even out the front, the back evened out as well it still has a very slight sag to the back but I decided not to spend $500 addressing it when there were more pressing issues like timing belt, injectors, and the like. But when that time comes I think I will go with OME and enjoy the added 2" of lift.

Before you get OME, check out Ironman 4x4 springs. I have them on my truck and they're good. I'll be upgrading to Ironman's greaseable pins and shackles soon to be able to stop the occasional squeaking from the poly bushings.

I have OME leafs on my 93 xcab, with stock shackles. My truck pretty much sits at 22.5" from center of the axle to bottom of the fender if you want to get an idea of what the final result will be.