toyquad

Hey guys, need some advise / input for my new to me 97 limited 4 runner.

The rear springs are worn, or very soft. The ride height is good. It isnt sagged like my other 97 4 runner with 500,000km on it lol.

The problem is, with one foot on the trailer hitch i can bottom out the suspension. It bottoms out all the time just driving down the road. really annoying.

It is a daily driver, stock tires and susp height. It is also used for towing, nothing to heavy, just my tent trailer and utility trailer with quad on it.


So I am thinking of doing 1 of 3 things,

1) replace the springs. This would help with DD, but not when towing

2) leave the springs and add air bags. This should help with both DD and towing.

3) Some of you may have seen or heard about the "zuk" mod. usually done on 1st gen 4 runners with sagged rear ends. What I would do is remove the bump stops and add a second set of coils where the bump stops are. This is probably the cheapest considering i already have a pair of coils i could use for this. but is kinda hack.....


What option have you done and what brand parts / kits did you use?

fierohink

New springs will help both your DD and towing. If the springs have lost their tension they need to be replaced, whether you improve your load bearing with airbags or not.

How much max weight do you think you will be towing? With brand new stock springs and shocks you may be able to comfortably tow what you want.

The Zuk mod worked on leaf-spring equipped 4Runners. You threaded a coil spring onto the bump-stop and effectively added more spring tension to the rear. You could accomplish the same thing with heavier more appropriate springs for the weight you are trying to load.

The Zuk mod was a cheap alternative to a proper solution.

Scout around for prices on new stock springs and shocks. Or you could upgrade to an OME (old man emu) set-up and get something matching your load requirements. You can do the same with bilstein or any of the big name manufacturers.