I was trying to replace all the shocks on my wife's 97 4runner ltd. Well, the rears were easy. I used Gabriel Ultra all around. The front posed a big problem for me. The shock was about 1-1/2 to 2 inches longer than the original. I was able to seat the spring correctly after a bit of hard work but I couldn't mount the shock on the tabs of the lower control arm. Is there a trick that I missed? I ended up putting the factory tokico shock back on. It has almost 200k miles so I was looking forward to the new ride all around. Should I just order the factory Tokico and send the Gabriel Ultra's back?

 

title edited to help members identify your problems faster.

good luck

 

First verify that you did in fact get the correct part number shocks for your 4runner. If they are, there are a few tricks to get them in. The first is to use the stock 4runner jack and use it upside down pushing down on the upper control arm (this will help you max out the suspension travel). If that is still not enough, then you can undo the lower ball joint (there are 4 bolts to undo it) and then force the shock in by hand. To get the ball joint back together just use a floor jack to raise it into place while you install the bolts.

There are tons of writeups on here like this:
http://www.sonoransteel.com/front.html

 

you can also check out bamachem's site:

http://4rnr.net/suspension

 

Yes, there is a trick with getting them back on.

The easiest way that I have done is by using the stock bottle jack found underneath the rear seats.

If you flip it upsidedown, putting the smaller side down onto the upper ball joint/A-arm and the larger side up against the inside of the wheel well, you can actually use it to jack "down" the a-arm/spindle assembly.

With this lowering, the area where inserting the new shock/spring combo will increase, and make it easier to re-install.

 

Technically, these shocks shouldn't be any longer than stock. So, I think Id make sure that they are the right P/N before trying again.

Yes, the front is a PIA because you have to deal with the damn coil assembly. heh.