RevNL

Once upon a time, I had an '86 Toyota pickup. 4" IFS lift, 3" body lift, 35" BFG's, 22R, and might have had the torsion bars cranked up a bit. Nice truck. Wish I'd kept it.

The total overall height was *exactly* what I want out of my new truck. It must have been 7" over stock, plus tires. It cleared my garage door by about an inch.

New truck, so far:

- '93 xtra cab
- Chevy V8 (iron heads), auto
- No body lift!
- Solid Axles
- Datin-Fab front hanger

It is time to order front and rear springs but I can't figure out what to order, or from who. Aftermarket springs have lift specifications for pre '86 trucks and I don't understand how the IFS frame, front drop hanger, or relocated rear hangers affect those numbers. Then there's the extra weight of the V8.

Lift springs are too pricey for trial-and-error. Anyone have any advice?

I will post a write-up with pics and measurements when everything is done. For now it's still a garage full of chaos.

swapped89

My truck is a 89 w/v6. before i straight axled it i had 4" ifs lift and 2'' body lift. after straight axling it with trail-gear front and rear 5'' springs(HEAVY DUTY) not the 4banger springs. there is a big difference in weight carrying ability of the HD springs.trail-gear gave me the 4cyl springs on accedient i had to run them because my truck is my daily driver they bottomed out on parking lot speed bumps. it now has the heavy duty springs. my truck sits 3-4 inches taller than it did with the ifs. i clear my garage door by 2'' maybe. just right. look into the trail-gear HD 5'' springs and shackles.

RevNL

With 5" front and 5" rear, does the truck sit level? I'd read somewhere that the weld-on front spring hanger adds some lift on its own.

Sounds like without a body lift, those springs would be about the same overall lift as my old truck. And the website says the HD model will handle a V8.

$550 worth of springs, though. Ouch.

RevNL

There has to be a more scientific way to figure this out. Everything else is cake, but getting the ride height right seems like expensive guesswork.

Pretend the cardboard box is a 35" tire (not very scientific , but measured and centered very carefully):



I'm guessing at the shackle length. I need springs with this kind of arch at static load, V8 drivetrain included, after settling.



Datin Fab sent me this front hanger. Not sure how this adds or subtracts from lift springs:


Will the Trail Gear HD 5" do this? I'm worried about ordering the set and having way too much lift, which seems to have happened to a few people on their forum.

???

When this is done, I will post a writeup with photos and part numbers to help the next idiot like me...

4rnr

I wouldnt worry about that bc most people (including me) consider 7" way too much lift. So we may be complaining about what you are looking for.

4Crawler

iTrader: (3)

Stock hangers (on an '85 and older frame) sit right up to the frame crossmember:


So however thick your added crossmember is is how far the front hangers and lower than what would have been stock height. Add 1/2 of that in terms of lift. Same on the shackle, stock is 3.5" center-center so every inch over that adds 1/2" of lift.

RevNL

Understood, but when I need something that scoots nice and low across the asphalt, I've got a car. I'm hoping for some suspension travel with this truck.

Thanks for the photo! I've been wondering how Toyota springs mounted.

I happened across a set of Wagoneer springs tonight. Revising the previous mockup:





That's with full chassis weight jacked up on the axle and a 2x4 block between the rear spring eye and the frame.

That could do. There's another 3.5" up it could go before it exceeds the design parameters (won't fit in the garage). The Wagoneer springs will surely be firm, which I'm okay with, but I'd like more suspension travel. There's only ~6 inches of flex before I'll need to bump-stop the differential from whacking the passenger side frame rail.

Please don't flame me for the yellow garage walls. Fixing that is on the to-do list.

4rnr

Lift doesnt equal flex, it exaggerates it with unstable body roll.

23" frame height with 37's...

RevNL

http://baltimore.craigslist.org/pts/946295277.html

RevNL

I just saw your photos (photobucket is blocked at work ) and read your build thread. Thanks!

That's pretty much what I'm looking for. I was worried about axle/diff-to-frame contact, but that doesn't seem to be an issue for you.

So far:

TrailPro 5" HD: Too tall.

Anything else: Too soft (with V8)

Wagoneer: Right height, probably too stiff.

4rnr

Due to the weight of the 5.7 You may have to get a bit creative. All of the toyota springs (MC, AP, TG...) are designed for 4 cylinder pickups. Maybe 4" marlins front and rear, matbe even a 4" rear and a 5" front. I would call marlin on that. I would go with marlins springs because the USA brand (Betts) springs they use are known to last many more years than the chinese brand springs used by trail gear, and with that heavier motor you are going to have to worry about excessive settling.

As far as axles hitting the frame yes they do but thats what bumpstops are for.

After 3 years of hard wheeling and many road miles this is the height im at now





I love it and am looking forward to it getting lower. For every inch lower it goes its gets 10x better to wheel!

4rnr

just read post 2....I didnt know that, that might be an option.

wait did I just recommend Trail-Mart, man im getting soft.