Background: I’ve got a 2001 4Runner with 180,000 miles on it. Over the years I’ve driven this off-road over numerous mountain passes in Colorado. Being the stock set-up, I never took on anything too extreme, but some of the passes were pushing the limits of the vehicle with a few light hits to the skid plates.

I’ve been away from Colorado for a few years, but there is a high probability that I will be heading back. While driving into work this morning I was next to a ‘99 or ‘00 4Runner that looked more like mine did back in 2001. It just appeared to have much greater ground clearance, yet didn’t appear to be modified.



So my questions are:

• How much ground clearance can be lost over the years due to normal and off-road driving?
• Where on the vehicle is the ground clearance usually measured? I believe mine was originally claimed at 11.2 inches. I’d like to compare now.
• Will replacing the shocks alone be enough to get it back to original clearance? How about springs?

I'm not a very mechanical person so anything I do will most likely be done by a paid mechanic ($$$). I have the expectation that someday, when this is not my everyday vehicle, I will make major modifications such as lift kits, bumper w/ winch, etc. But for now I just want to get it to its original stock state and functionality.

Thanks for your help.


Ken

 

I know a Ken Keister that was in CO for awhile.....from St. Louis area.

If you're going to lift it and are going to replace the springs and shocks anyway then consider lifting it now since that's the main part of what you'd be replacing. Just a thought. Slightly bigger tires when it's time to replace them will give you a little extra clearance without making the truck look very modified. If you are the Ken I'm thinking of and in the area you can check out my 99 w/32" tires vs. the stock 31". Know that the 99 4Runners are a little taller to begin with, though.

Where are you measuring to get 11.2" clearance?

 

A '99 equipped with the 1" taller coils was actually almost 2" taller than the '01-'02s since those were the years Toyota was reacting to the Ford Exploder rollovers and lowered the 4Runner down another inch from the traditional coils. Throw on 32" tires and it becomes even more noticeable.

 

So this may just be an error of terms, but your suspension won't affect your ground clearance, it will just give you more wheel travel.

The ground clearance is only affected by the size of your tires. It is the distance from the ground to the lowest point on your undercarriage. Not sure exactly which point is the lowest, but I would guess it is one of the front skid plates.

According to the original brochure (http://www.top4runners.com/runhist/3...01_4runner.pdf) the clearance is either 10.2 or 11 depending on the tires.

Like X-AWDriver said, the difference you noticed is likely just the taller suspension of the 99.

I think you are talking about 2 different things right now. You won't lose ground clearance over time, but your coils will settle.

 

I belive taller springs do provide greater ground clearance in the front of IFS trucks. The spring lifts the front diff on IFS. In the rear, where you have a solid axle, taller spings raise everything except the axle. The key to ground clearance is taller spings that allow the use of bigger tires. And yes, as AWDriver stated the 99 4runners are actually taller because of the springs.

So taller spings equal more clearance in the front but not in the back. I think you want 1999 springs and 31" or 32" (265/75/16) inch tires.

http://www.sonoransteel.com/index.ph...&products_id=5

 

Ah, I stand corrected. You will get some increased clearance in the middle with IFS.

 

Ah, I stand corrected. You will get some increased clearance in the middle with IFS.

Well, you're totally correct for a front and rear solid axle truck

 

Yes, I was using the wrong terminology. I realize that the lowest point can only be effected by the tire size, which are currently bigger than stock but still smaller than I used to run in Colorado.

And after I posted my questions I realized the only the springs (not the shocks) can have an effect to the overall vehicle clearance (not to be confused with minimum ground clearance).

What I might do is look into something like this next summer: http://eastsidecustomtruck.com/i-171...ge-toytec.html

I may not go up to 3" if it prohibits the 4Runner from fitting into my garage with bike racks on roof. I've got a lower garage height.

Thanks for the responses and added information.

Ken

 

Adjustable struts like the Bilsteins and all the different coil overs out there will provide lift, but normal shocks/struts won't.