I have read many discussions on here about removing the sway bar on the ifs Toyotas giving more wheel travel or flex so I removed mine but had very little , close to no difference than with it on . why would that be? are there any other tips to get more travel, thanks

 

Removing it doesn't provide more travel, really. It allows more independent articulation of each side.

 

Toyota IFS doesn't have much travel in general, it's only around 7" or something like that.

if it's the truck in your avatar, my guess is t-bars are maxed out to fit those huge tires on IFS. cranked t-bars make the front end stiffer and require more force to get the suspension to move. same goes for aftermarket thicker t-bars = stiffer. extra weight up front will help, like winch + bumper, but seems you already have that.

on the opposite side of this, if you have your t-bars set really soft, then it will be easy to flex the suspension arms because you're not working against the t-bars force.

what size tire are you running on this rig? do you also have a bracket lift?

if you truly want to make the front end flex easier, you kinda need to reduce the preload on the t-bars - but this will lower the front end and likely make you're tires rub. if you're concerned with tire lifting on the trail and not having any traction due to open differentials, then traction devices are what you need - IFS tire lifting and open differentials is possibly the worst setup if you plan to not be stuck. a truck with stock street tires and F/R lockers will make it further down a trail than a truck with 37 mud terrains and open diffs.

good luck

 

thanks everything you said makes sense to me. i have aftermarket shackles in the rear that are a half inch longer than stock so I do have have the t bars turned up enough to level it out. i also have the front locked so i don't have any trouble in the mud , they are 36x12.50. last Saturday i road a creek trail with a buddy with a jeep. there were6 entrances and exits and the jeep was flexin out like crazy on the banks and i had no trouble at all just had to maneuver the right way. i have also put on a 2 inch body lift since the picture on here so i may consider returning the bars to stock. im not extremely concerned with it cause i do a lot of mud and trails no rock crawlin or i wouldn't have bought the ifs any way, would it need aligning again after goin back down with the t-bars

 

Exactly. Lockers are often pretty far down on the list of modifications because of cost, installation difficulty, plus you don't get the instant gratification that you do when you do a modification you can see.

Changing gear ratio is important while you are in there too, it helps bring back power lost when going to a larger tire and also can reduce the loss of MPG.

 

After I SAS'd mine 4rnr. I was wheeling with a group. One of the guys was sure his IFS would keep up in flexing. He flopped over on the driver side. Not a bragging point but illustrates the importance of checking ego and knowing your vehicle.

If your rear lift is stock springs with longer shackles then going to a longer springs will give the rear more articulation thus better traction and help keep more wheels on the ground as the IFS is doing it's thing. When I was IFS it got really hairy when I got in situations where I was teetering on one front and one rear wheel. In teetering the last thing you want is momentum and off chamber obstacles. If they are original springs they are prolly about flat now.

The down side to building in stages is trying to piece the improvements together so the truck works in the meantime and don't have to buy parts twice.

Just my $0.02

 

Lockers are down on the list of mods???
Most people's first mod is tires, then a locker or two. Or the locker first. The locker for my truck was under 300 dollars, only took a few hours to install. And the instant gratification was very good when I was able to walk right up obstacles that once stopped me in my tracks.

 

I dunno, I'm gonna agree with JT as he described it perfectly, and say lockers/gears are still pretty far down the line for most 4x4 owners - unless the person knows about wheeling or has done their homework. Typically I see people doing the flashy stuff first - like tires, lift and front winch bumper before anything else. When you add a traction device, you kinda NEED to start adding armor like rock sliders, since you can now make it further down the trail and deeper into trouble if you're not prepared.

Heck, I'd even buy a rear offroad bumper before a front winch bumper (I did actually) - you can somewhat control what you hit in front of you (because you can see where you're going) and approach angles are good, but from the rear you can't control what hits you from behind or dragging the rear with poor departure angle -- also, having a rear recovery point when there is none stock is a pretty significant upgrade IMO vs a front winch that can't really help you get pulled backwards.

 

I have 5.29s a posi front end and a trail creeper t-case so iv done pretty much all that's been mentioned also lift tires and bumpers . I don't rock crawl I mostly stay in the mud but every creek bank rock log or mud hole iv ever come to I got through or over without any trouble. only time I had the truck not on all 4 it was on its cab on the road haha I was just wonderin if the sway bar removal helped for others running ifs trucks. thanks for all the other advice though

 

Yeah, removing the sway bar helps. Some don't like not having one. I've not run one for 7 - 8 yrs. But I don't drive truck fast nor like a sports car.

[IMG][/IMG]

Is important to know your rigs capabilities.

 

I too haven't been running the swaybar for a few years. Doesn't increase travel at all, but does reduce the resistance thus flexes easier.