first4runner

Okay I have asked a couple a little questions about building up my IFS to fit 38's. Down here in South Texas we just like to have a really big lifted truck.

But I have come up with a unique opportunity, I went into an Off-road shop yesterday and was talking to them about some parts I needed but long story short they offered me a job (application) but after talking to the manager I am almost a shoo-in.

So my opportunity is that I will now have free access to a full range of tools including pipe benders, welding machines, and etc. And on top of that he kinda told me a secret, that they get FAT discounts on their parts. So I am probably going to go to the dark side and SAS. But that is no what my question is about. My question is...

Coilover and custom 4 link or just leaf springs and shackles? I need 14" of lift? This again is going to be a head turner more than a competitive performer. I want a clean looking suspension. I also want it to be a relatively smooth ride. So which would be better for my specific needs? I dont have any experience with coil overs and really dont know how they perform against leafs.

dijlop

i dont either. however, id have to say if ur just tryin to look cool, ive always thought the coils look a lot better than leaves. cleaner and more precise. get some color down there too. if u can paint ur junk blue or something id say do it. lol.

SteveO

Go with Coil-overs. You'll get a better ride than leafs, especially leafs that are stiff to get a high-lift.

4Crawler

iTrader: (3)

A well designed coil suspension would be nice, but it is hard to do right the first time. Probably 10x easier to put leaf springs on, but otherwise, read all you can about suspension design and have at it.

first4runner

yeah I really want a good ride quality, I know coilovers would probably be more expensive for sure but hopefully I can get those discounted to. Does anyone know of a build page that I can pull ideas from? I have a few ideas from looking at some guys truck on cardomain but Id like an in depth build page that is more specific than looking at a pic.

SteveO

Give me about an hour. I'm uploading a whole bunch of pics to my website. Then you can check out my build. I wiped everything from my site, and I'm working on uploading it all; new and fresh.

big johnson

coil overs are better but they require some one with the knowledge to do so. i'm not sure if u have or not but it's a task in it's self.

first4runner

Well of course I have never done a coilover conversion or I would not be asking for build sites but... I am mechanically inclined and decent at math, from viewing other peoples systems it looks like a lot of trigonometry

I can figure out link lengths with a calculator I found on another site, and those should be fairly easy, my only real concern is finding the right angle to mount the coilovers so that they wont bind, and place them to where my runner is level as well.

Im am looking for alot of lift. I want it to meet the 54" ground to headlight requirement to keep it street legal in Texas but I also want to make it fit 42's or 44's.

SteveO

Yikes, 42" or 44" tires, just to cruise around the street.
You're outta my league.

first4runner

I will also be taking it up and down the beach. But mostly it will be a street rig. I am just not into tons of articulation and rock crawling. I just want a really big truck. And I am hoping 14" of lift will help me shoehorn those suckers in there. And look really good while doing it. SteveO I got a question for ya.

For the rear I plan on going straight back underneath the frame down to the axle. And then for the other two I plan on coming off of a bracket over the diff cover at a real shallow angle outward to a welded brace on the inside of the frame. What is a good angle for these two? And in the front I plan on doing pretty much the same thing but with a few adjustments.

And as for the coil overs what is the proper angle / \ to weld the clips to?
The front I plan on using some cut down shock hoops for a little extra lift so those are taken care of but the back will have to be completely custom and I am a little perplexed at the moment.

Dude you are the only one that seems to have actually done this conversion so I may get annoying lol just kidding. It is the same principle I will just have a higher driveline

texsurfer

where in South Texas are you?

Jay351

how do you plan on turning 42" tires even with 5.79 gears it will be a dog..

tc

ride quality is critical but you want to run >38" tires? RRRRRRIIIIIIIGGGGGGHHHHHHHTTTTTT

(you DO realize that all the tires in those sizes are not even remotely designed to run on the street, right?)

Twin stick and drive around in 2LOW (seriously)

first4runner

Texsurfer I am in George West around the Corpus Christi area. As a matter of fact if you are in the same area you may have been to Truckers World in CC. I am pretty confident that I will be working there pretty soon. *fingers crossed*

Engine Swap jay351 :p like I said the 3.0 will only be temp. and hopefully this wont be my daily driver anymore.

Well Tc yes I do want a good ride quality and steering. Your sarcasm is noted but in South Texas lifted trucks have become a fine art. And believe it or not you can come up with a good system. I know several people with extremely lifted trucks, some with as much as 20" of lift. For instance one guy has a jimmy running on 42's and another guy with a f150 running I think 39.5's Im not sure all 4 got slashed but they were bigger. But anyways he will let anyone drive his truck, and there is no tracking, you can take your hand off of the steering wheel on the highway and it will stay straight. But yes you are correct they are not DESIGNED to work on the road, but it can be done nonetheless. If I can actually make this become a reality relatively soon then I will be sure and include a build up documentation. And hey if your ever in Texas I would even let you drive it I do want to thank you for your vote of confidence though, there can never be too much of that. lol

Elvota

Check this site out:

Click Me:

There are all kinds of good tips to get your truck sky high without that bothersome performance thing getting in the way.

Should be able to easily run 42" tires or bigger with the ideas you'll find there. Plus, zero math.

Here is a preview:


Betting with your deep discount you could probably get blocks like that for next to nothing.

yotasavg

that's such a funny site. i couldn't stop laughing!!!

first4runner

Lmao that is already one of my bookmarks elvota, I had quite a laugh the other day reading through there, the things some people will do right lol. Thanks for the um "help" but I am not doing a leaf conversion. I am going to do a coilover conversion and I probably wont be running 42's or 44's. Like I said I want to keep it street legal, and to run those tires I need way too much lift and I would be over the headlight limit. So I punched in some numbers and 39.5's are the highest tires I will be able to fit, maybe 42's with major body surgery. But I am gonna go with the 39's and 11" of lift(+3 in body lift) but I might even lift higher and take the body lift out.