I just bought this 4Runner that has been sitting for a couple years. Put a new battery in and she fired right up. Can't wait to start this project! Plans for now are to stick with the ifs for a while but do a ball joint spacer lift, Chevy 63s in the rear, a U bolt flip kit, bumpers, rock sliders and possibly an Aussie locker, and of course some cosmetic work. Would love to hear ideas and opinions! definately open to any ideas concerning getting as much out of my ifs that I can while giving me some more clearance.

 

If you would consider a stock style bumper. I got mine on amazon for less that $40. As far as the budget lift goes, I have 2.5" ball joint spacers up front and 1.5" add a leafs plus 6" shackles in the rear. Here is a pic to give you an idea of what that might look like. I'm running 32/11.50s. Plenty of room for 33/12.50s.

 

How does the add a leaf/ shackles do as far as travel/flex? I like how high your rig sits. I'm hoping to weld up a bumper when I get a chance.

 

My combination of add-a-leaf and shackles seems to work very well. You will have several options here. I used a standard duty add-a-leaf. They make heavy duty ones that are designed for extra weight but I wasn't planning on hauling or towing anything heavy. The shackles can be bought as greasable or with like Teflon bushings. Mine are the bushing type and haven't squeaked or anything up to this point. I have not put the suspension in any kind of rock climbing bind so I don't know their full potential but I have been very satisfied so far. If you start raising the back suspension pretty high, they make some wedges that go between the axle and springs. These allow the axle to be rotated a few degrees to reduce the angle at the rear u-joint. May want to look into this option. Also, if your spring packs are sitting pretty flat, you can buy complete replacement spring packs. These trucks are known to have worn out back springs due to the added weight of the cap that the trucks don't have. Check out Toytec for options there.

On the front end, the ball joint spacers are going to put your CV axles in a pretty good bind. They make a differential drop kit that is pretty simple and will reduce this binding stress. Even my 2.5" spacers were putting mine in a bind and I had to be careful when installing them not to leave them in a binded position. Also, the spacers are going to bring your wheel rim in closer to the upper control arm. Mine barely clears with the same wheels as yours and 11.5" wide tires. You may hit your control arms with 33-12.50s. If it does, you'll either need to grind a little off your arms or get you some 1/4" wheel spacers. Do a little research on that end if you're planning on running tires that size.

Check out Toytec first to get an idea of what you want to try. Even if you don't buy your stuff from them, you'll be able to see what will work and what you might want to avoid. They have a good reputation for selling products that work well and not selling ones that will get you in trouble. They also have installation instructions posted on their site. I have done business with them several times and highly recommend them.

 

Thanks for the feedback. I think I will probably look more into the route of the add-a-leaf/shackle combo. Im planning on trying to fit 33s. I may even do a bit of a body lift but I'm not sure yet. Im also looking into the possibility of swapping a 3.4 in place of the 3.0. Found a good deal and its very tempting...

 

I looked into the body lift as well. Do some reading about what you're going to have to do with the radiator and steering shaft before you pull that trigger. Lots of people do them but from what I read, but I was a little hesitant and felt like the suspension job would go more smoothly.

I'm seriously considering the 3.4 swap as well. I found a wrecked 98 4Runner that was running good the other day for $1000 but it sold before I could get to it. Make you a shopping list for that project before you go find a doner engine. You are going to need more parts than that. There are some good websites out there that detail the parts you're going to need. I'm having a hard time pulling the trigger on the swap because I also have a 2002 4Runner and there are things about both engines that I like and I find it hard to replace an engine that runs as well as my 3slo does.

 

I built mine in stages. Tried Downey 2" rear springs, didn't care for them. Stock length springs with more arch are rougher with little gains in flex. Put Allpro 4" springs that are longer and require new hangars, not bad. Now in hind site wish I'd just done Chevy 63s.

33s with IFS is very doable. I just cranked torsion bars. So having more flex in rear was great. I wheeled it pretty hard back then. Bent idler arms but no biggie to swap them out. Also pressed studs on dif axle output flanges out and replaced with high grade bolts to make changing CV axles a quick job. Never broke a CV but tore boots.

Also your t-case is chain driven so if not changed can cause problems.

Look for the IFS spindle lube trick on here. You'll want it when temps drop. Have fun.

 

Ya I think I'm leaning toward the Chevy 63s... It's seems like the most bang for the buck.

Only able to work on the runner on the weekend so I was able to finish up these manzanita shift knobs my neighbor turned on his lathe for me.

 

The knob on the left is beautiful. It looks like it would cost a lot of money. You could probably sell those.


I'd get all the mechanicals and body work up to speed before spending a lot on the lift. It doesn't hurt to plan though.

 

Thank you, I really liked how it turned out. I'm almost thinking of redoing the darker one but I'm not sure yet.
Right now my main concentration is to get it reliable. It runs great I just need to get it smogged and do a couple minor things before putting it on the road. As far as the suspension I plan on slowly accumulating the parts I need through craigslist/eBay. As of now I have a commuter car to drive until I build the 4Runner up.

 

So this weekend was a successful weekend I got hooked up with a set of km2 33s that will get me by for a while. My buddy also gave me some BJ spacers. Im pretty stokes to get the spacers in but i dont have the diff drop kit or the sway bar drop kit... I have been searching around and can't find somewhere who sells the drop kits separately from the bj spacers. Any ideas on where I should go?

Today I sprayed some bedliner in the rear so its not so slick for my dog as well as doing some more maintenance. Cant wait to get to the fun stuff that is worth taking pictures of! Although I did take it for a quick run up the road... Ill post pics of the bedliner in the daylight tomorrow depending on how well it turns out lol

 

Here is to hopefully the beginnings of a sweet sound system thanks to my awesome girlfriend<br/>

 

Finally found the right ignition cylinder lock! Time to smog and get her on the road!

 

Hey for your diff drop kit check out http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/ForSale/ProductLine.shtml they have lots of cool stuff and great info

 

Nice looking runner you found. Welcome to Yotatech.

 

That thing looks good, doesn't look like much rust.

 

Thanks guys! I'm pretty happy with it. Only rust i have found is on one of the door jambs.

 

Started making a template for a plate bumper! Can't wait to start building it! Buying the metal today!