Yeah, I've seen this system, thought about it, and for the type of wheeling I do, low gears won't do me any good, really. IT's way too wet here in the east to enjoy the benefits of low gearing. Once I get all this stuff done, I'll regear to 5.29's and lock the front with ARB, probably. I actually never like body lifts in the past, but now, I think it's a good way to go on our vehicles, and it keeps our COG low too.

Chris

 

Yeah, if he had 16" wheels I'd try them for sure. I'm pretty sure their 15" wheels, but I could be wrong. I'll ask him,

Chris

 

I run the alcans. There nice. Contact Budbuilt.com. He's already clocked the tacoma case. If you've seen pics of my truck clocking the x-fer case becomes a waste at that point. I run a 3" bl ( yeah yeah sux balls) but with the belly up I run from bud my factory tacoma case hangs just barely below the skid. If your knelt down next to the truck you can't even see it below the frame rials hence why it becomes pointless to clock the case in that situation.

 

Can you clock the case without going to a dual case setup?

Chris

 

the only way to clock the case without duals is to use a 2wd transmission and a divorced t-case setup. either that or have someone make some sort of clocking adapter between the t-case and transmission,but i doubt thats possible without losing spline engagement.

scott at rockstomper clocked his entire drivetrain to gain a flat belly. he raised one side of his engine 2" and left the other side stock height, and then made a custom t-case mount. thus clocking the entire drivetrain ~10*.

 

It is possible, first you'll need a longer coupler between the trans and T-case. Marlin's coupler are longer and may work To fabricate an adapter from aluminum plate, simply trace the outline of the mating surface the drill holes to mount it. Determine how far you need to clock the T-case then trace where the new holes need to be, drilled and tapped. The shifter will need to be corrected as well.

 

Like I said contact Bud at Budbuilt.com he has clocked a tacoma case

 

The simplest way, I think, would be to raise one side of the engine. I've heard of this being done before, but the question is just how flexible the motor mounts are to handle a 2-3" difference between one side or the other.

Chris

 

if the 3.4 mounts are the same as the 3.0 mounts, then get a set of the rockstomper mounts, they now have them for the 3.0 and they can handle the height difference because of their design. a pair of those and one of 4crawler's engine mount lifts.......

personally, before i did that, i would cut the floorboards and push the t-case up, then rebuild the floor accordingly.

 

The 3.0L and 3.4L mounts are not the same, thats why I had to use the 3.0L mounts when I did my engine swap. I think the mounting holes are the same but at a different angle, so the rockstomper mounts may work?

 

What problems did you run into with a 3"BL? Did you have to lengthen the clutch lines, waht about the shifters did they clear? One last thing I think 4Crawler talks about this very setup on his site. Bryan

 

I haven't done it yet, but the problems are lessened with an automatic tranny. It comes with a steering extension, and if you do a drivetrain lift at the same time, you don't need the radiator brackets. If you don't do a DL, then you'll also need the radiator brackets. Since I'm doing thedrivetrain lift, I don't have to worry about the linkages for the shifter, etc.

Chris

 

I'm going to find out today what exact height I need to do to clear the transfer case. It may not need to be as high as 3". On the other hand, it may need to be higher, and if that's the case I'm going to clock the engine by using a 3" and on side and a 2" on the other side, but I doubt I'll need to do that. I'll let you guys know either today or tomorrow.

Chris

 

Ok guys, on my 1997 here's what I found out.

1) Raising the stock tank in the same location is nearly impossible
2) 3" will raise the transfer case up higher than the bottom of the frame rails. 2.5" inches may work, but I'm going to go 3" to make sure that I have enough room for a good 1/4" skid plate.

So, I'm sticking with my original plan of a 3" body lift & drivetrain lift. The end result, initially, will be a flat underbelly all the way back to the second crossmember where the gas tank is connected. The next step will be to remove the tank, and build my tank for the spare tire area, as planned. From there, I'll remove the second crossmember, and design an integrated crossmember/lower control arm connection point.

The end result will be a completely flat underbelly all the way back till the lower control arms begin to angle down towards the axle. No more hanging on the gas tank or the stock lower control arm mounting points, because they will be gone.

So, overall, without having to clock the transfer case, you need a 3" body lift & drivetrain lift to make it work.

Chris

 

You still need the bodylift to clock the t-case due to the parking brake setup and for clearance issues unless you want to custom modify your body. here's my tacoma with a flatbelly courtesy of budbuilt.com with dual cases and the 3"bl

 

If anyone's ever interested in doing what I'm doing(probably not), here's what I just purchased from Roger Brown:

1) Kit F - Ultimate Blocks, Hardware, & Front Bumper Bracket $83.00 + $28.00 for additional 2" lift
2) Kit SE - 3" Steering extension $40.00
3) Kit HD - Grade 8 hardware
4) 3" Motor Mount Spacer $75.00

Total w/ shipping = $263.00

What's cool about all this is that Roger is going to take back my existing 1" Body Lift and my 1" motor mount spacer, so my final cost will only be $143.00

Chris

 

Well, today I prepped the front end. I removed the front bumper, valence, grill, and my old tranny cooler. I replaced the old tranny cooler with one that I got from John at IPT. It fits perfectly! I'm noy going to run my old one for my power steering cooler. They're both going to fit very well. I should have my kit before the weekend, and I'm hoping to have my power steering cooler on first. I'll post some pics soon!

Chris

 

Well, I got home today, and to my surprise, I've already received the body lift and motor mount spacer. Roger is by far the best person in this business for customer service and quality products, by far. What a great guy! At any rate, If he tells me that I can install the 3" body lift without the motor mount spacers, I'll be doing that this week, because I've got a trip this Friday. I'd like to get it installed first, then the next round will be my motor mount spacers and drivetrain lift. It's going to be so sweet to have a flat underbelly!

Chris

 

I'm going to install the body lift today, and then after our ride tomorrow, Saturday I'm going to install the motor mount spacer. Stay tuned for the pictures!

Chris

 

And run 35"+ tires on a drivetrain as strong or weaker than a Dana 30! Stay tuned for the pictures of broken parts!