Thanks! It's taking some time to get used to how it sets, after how low the last 4Runner sat. Every time I jump into it I think "Holy crap this thing is tall!", then I think "No it's not, the last 4Runner was a freaking low rider! "

I had to trim the body mounts the same way on the last truck, so I figured I'd do it right away and make it look nice. I'm glad I did, with it setting on the lift the shackle goes past where the mount used to be. I'll post up some pictures of the shackle angle in a little bit.

 

Thanks!

Thanks, I think it's going to be a while before I do another SAS. I still have a lot of details to wrap up too. At least I'm done with most the grinding, that takes a lot of time.

Thanks! I'm glad people are enjoying the build and are getting idea's for thier own projects.

Having access to a shop with a lift is a huge benefit, it's a real time (and back) saver. The only down side is that come Sunday night it HAS to be done and out of the way, it takes some planning to make sure you are going to have everything you need.

 

Not a problem, I'm pretty sure that I'm going to go with the 12" shock hoops that do not require cutting the inner fender. Thanks for the info!

 

And finally some decent pictures

 

How far forward I moved the front axle



The tires were rubbing the front bumper going around turns, so I had to trim the edges a bit. I plan on building a new front bumper before spring.



Front shackle angle. I'm hoping the springs will settle a bit and relax the angle some more.



Rear shackle angle. I still need to clean up the frame where the old shackle mounts were. I moved the rear shackle mount back 2 1/2", the angle is good but the rear is setting lower than the front so I might have to step up to a 6" shackle to level it out a bit (these are 5").

 

I really need to move the steering box forward (I knew that I would), that will be this weekends project. At that time I will also get the hydro ast. hooked back up.

 

beautiful.

 

I would get that chrome trim around the wheel wells out of there ASAP. That is what makes the wheel wells rust so damn bad. The mag-chloride sits up in there and everytime it gets wet, it just eats at the sheet metal under it. Its also what allows stuff to get into the black wheel well guards and eat that area too.

I ditch the inner fender guards and that chrome stuff as soon as I buy a new rig.

BTW, that shackle will settle up front with a bumper and winch, but I would definitley go with a 6" shackle in the back. Or, cut that bracket off and move it back another inch. I usually go 3" back of stock in the rear, and 7" forward in front instead of the 6" listed in the instructions. It allows the 35" tire to stuff up into the wheel well without rubbing the back edge(or front edge either), and keeps you from having to trim that area out. Overall, I think the springs will settle at least an inch, but those TG front 3" springs actually sit higher than the 4's do and take FOREVER to settle in if at all. They have on all of the rigs I have built. Even the 6" shackle won't even it out, but it will get it closer.

I wish all of the vendors would update their instructions to make the changes to them. They were all written by Chris Geiger when he was at All-Pro like 8 years ago, and the spring lengths have changed since then from each vendor.

 

WOW!! I can see why the larger wheels rubbed on the front bumper. You REALLY Moved the axle forward when you installed it!! I need to move mine forward too. But I'm not sure I'm going as far as you have.

Your Rig looks Great!! And SUPER Clean!! Nice work!

 

Nice Job !!!!!

 

Thanks!

 

There's already some rust behind the chrome trim, I would take them off but I know that one day I'm going to have to do some body work to that area. I might as well hide it until I start that project. As for removing the front inner fender gaurds, I HIGHLY recomend that you don't remove them(if you have the clearance). I used to feel the same way you did and would get rid of them as soon as I could. They use a bunch of mag-chloride where I live and I found out (along with a couple of friends) that the mag-chloride loves to eat the insulation off of wiring. The old green 4Runner was my daily driver for quite a few years after two or three winter along came a slushy spring day. I was driving round and noticed that quite a few of my electrical items were acting up, I didn't think much of it and parked the truck. When I got out I noticed that there was smoke coming from the passenger front fender, the entire wiring harness was smoking and melting right in front of me. I was able to disconnect the battery before the entire truck caught fire, but it was close. When i tore apart the harness to fix it I found that the mag-chloride had eaten the insulation off the wires and a couple of 12 volt wires had crossed a couple of grounds. The same thing happened to a good friend of mine (except it took out his EFI wires and was stranded )

I'm hoping once I get a winch and bumper on the front it will come down a bit, we'll just have to see. I do plan on stepping up to the 6" shackle in the back and I've been planning on moving the rear axle forward 1" when I rotate the rear axle perches (with the triple drilled perches). I've heard that you move the front spring hanger an inch more forward, but I prefer a bit more shackle angle.

Thanks for the input!

 

Thanks! The front axle is about where it was on the old green 4Runner (with rear springs up front). I really liked the aproach angle and I don't want to tub the firewall, I should have enough room with the 35's.

 

Thank you!

 

I was AMAZED at how much my front springs "Settled" with a winch and bumper on the front of my truck. So much so that I had to get leveling shackles to bring it back up. But I also have a SUPER Heavy Winch and Bumper on my truck. Or atleast they are for a Toyota. But Man do I like THEM!!!! lol

What kind of Winch are you planning on? You never had a winch on Your old Runner did you? Probably didn't need it! : )

 

What kind of springs do you have? I really hope my front springs settle at least an inch or two. I plan on building a front bumper almost the same as the last one, although this one will have a winch. I also plan on running syn. rope so there won't be a lot of extra weight on the springs. I'm guessing 100 pounds (at most) between the two.

I'm planning on getting a Warn M8000 (unless I come across a great deal on something else), they are fairly inexpensive, reliable and get the job done.

I did not have a winch on the last 4Runner and like you said I really didn't need one . I could make it through just about any obsticle, BUT I didn't care about body damage and the last truck got destroyed because of it. I really feel that if you care about keeping your truck nice and straight, you have to have a winch (and know when to use it)!

 

Beautiful Work!!!

 

I have SuperLift Heavy Duty 4.5" Springs all the way around. The fronts sagged A LOT and the backs have really yet to settle. Go Figure. As for weight on the front end. I have an old Warn 8274, with 150' wire rope.

I believe this is before I leveled the front.


And this is after.


This should give a pretty good idea how much steel and weight I have on the front. : )

But I like how it came out. You Rarely see an older Toyota with that much Bumper.

VERY TRUE!!!! That is one reason that the Winch was one of the 1st Mods I did to my truck! : ) But looking back, I should have gone for the synthetic rope. I was afraid that it would rot in the sun, then be useless. Then again, on my application, it would. I tried running a winch cover, but it blocked so much of my grill that it started to heat up and couldn't get the air flow it needed!

 

Thanks!

That is a lot of weight (nice set up though), my bumper/winch combo should be quite a bit lighter.

Here's a picture of the basic design, but it will have a winch solid mounted somehow.

 

man, it looks great! make me miss mine. down in colorado do they give you much grief for tires sticking out past the fenders and no mud flaps? up in idaho/washington they are sticklers. i like how it looks and the added stability with the spaced out wheels, but i just couldnt get away with it. had to go back to stock width to keep 'em inside the fenders. again, nice work.

oh yeah, i waited and waited on my marlin 4" springs to settle. they did end up settling about 3/4" overall, but i had to go to a 6" shackle in the rear as well. i like the angle too much to move the shackle mount further back. my 37's tucked perfect with just an ounce of trimming.