Hi guys, first post,
just gotta say, great site, lots of help...and lots of pics to inspire me. right now i am driving a 2006 4runner SE 4x4 V8 (its sweet, hauls, but eats too much gas, plus its my dad, not old enough to have my own car) but i am planning on buying my very own 1999 4runner 4x4. i am been pretty much been raised around yotas, especially my dads old FJ60 and my uncles have had FJ40, troopies and now FZJ80s....but i like 4runners better. i am mecahnically oriented due to being around cars for so long, but by no means a mechnic....and i was wondering about a little porject for my first personally owned 1999-ish 4runner.
i have always thought that the 4Runner was underrated for its off-road prowess, especially amongst land cruiser owners....and it is mainly due to it not being able to be lifted more than 2-2.5" and un-aggresive appearnce.
so i was wondering, is there any way to do a 2" differential drop??? so that the CV joints angles' wont be so extreme when lifting....i thought about this, but it might drop the diff too much and it will get caught up on rocks. also something else i thought about was mounting manual locking hubs like on the old yota pick ups and land cruisers...so my question is, are 2" diff. drop or manual locking hubs a do-able adaptation??? i could do one or the other (preferably the manual locking hubs,) since they serve the same purpose. i want to lift my runner with 4 inches of suspension without at the most 1" spacers and no body lift, and that extra height would angle the CV in a very extreme angle, which would be no prob. if the runner had manual hubs.
for now, (since i will get my 4runner by the end of this year,) i will install a 3'' strut spacer lift and some bigger more aggresive tires, along with billet grille, clear corner lights and steel wheels....i only plan to do mudding and some rock climbing, but mostly just muddy running and bashing....that is why i want to keep it simple......for now. later i will do my posible project 4" lift kit (when i get more experience, and my dad lets me...LOL.)
i know i posted a lot and not much, but i just wanted to get a heads up and some advice from people who have more experience, and have probably thought about doing this too....

-Kino