Restore ride to stock-like conditions?
#61
...New: upper and lower balljoints, inner/outer tie rod ends, shocks, CV axles, idler arm, and upper and lower POLYURETHANE bushings. For the rear I went with OME leaf springs.
After installing all of those new parts, the 4runner rode way worse than when it was stock. I would never recommend poly bushings for a daily driver on stock suspension, you feel every bump in the road. Also the OME rear leafs are way too stiff from the factory and the bottom overload should be removed, unless you plan to haul 1000lbs of gear like Australians do lol.
In hindsight I should have done BJs, ....
After installing all of those new parts, the 4runner rode way worse than when it was stock. I would never recommend poly bushings for a daily driver on stock suspension, you feel every bump in the road. Also the OME rear leafs are way too stiff from the factory and the bottom overload should be removed, unless you plan to haul 1000lbs of gear like Australians do lol.
In hindsight I should have done BJs, ....
Then for the rear buy OME leafs and remove the bottom overload...
Last edited by RAD4Runner; 01-22-2020 at 07:12 PM.
#62
I did originally install OME torsion bars but they were stiff and after some reading about other experiences with them, they are stiff for a stock rig without a front bumper. So I removed them and put the stock ones back in. Even when the OME torsion bars were installed, I did not crank the torsion bars. Rather than a saggy butt I had a dragster rake
My goal is to get it level.
For the rear, I removed the 3rd leaf from the top, as I read that was recommended from ARB. But after some more reading, I plan to reinstall the 3rd leaf from the top and remove the bottom overload.
My goal is to get it level.
For the rear, I removed the 3rd leaf from the top, as I read that was recommended from ARB. But after some more reading, I plan to reinstall the 3rd leaf from the top and remove the bottom overload.
The following users liked this post:
RAD4Runner (01-23-2020)
#63
YT Community Team
I opted for the Bilstein 4600 front and rear. I was looking for comfortable ride, too. The ride quality of the Bilsteins is much nicer than the Monroes that were on there when I bought it. I had tried Tokico before Bilsteins and they were just too stiff. Inexpensive though.
When I got this 4Runner the previous owner had put aluminum spacers at the rear axle to compensate for the spring sag. Not a great fix, as it caused the parking brake cable going to each drum to rub on the springs. So I ordered the mildest O.M.E. spring packs I could get. That said...
I'm now probably the only person who doesn't like OME springs. It made for a horrible ride. Stiff as ****. I carted around 400 lbs of weight trying to break them in, but no go. Plus, I had to crank the front torsion bars up to try and level it, which made the front way too stiff and was definitely going to beat up my upper ball joints.
So I dragged the factory springs out of the garage and took them apart. I then jacked up the 4Runner and pulled the Emu's off. I removed a spring out of the factory pack and put in one from the Emu and reassembled. I put new oem bushings in(i'm not a huge poly fan) and reinstalled the factory springs with the modification. This brought the height very close to the original, (within a inch), and the ride was vastly improved over the Emu pack. I reset the front height to spec. and that made the front comfortable again.
So I ended up with kind of a add-a-leaf fix, except I still had the same number of springs in the pack, and the one Emu spring I used was longer than a add-a-leaf spring, which I hope spreads the weight load over the spring pack better.(basically, trying to make myself feel better for wasting money on the OME 's)
When I got this 4Runner the previous owner had put aluminum spacers at the rear axle to compensate for the spring sag. Not a great fix, as it caused the parking brake cable going to each drum to rub on the springs. So I ordered the mildest O.M.E. spring packs I could get. That said...
I'm now probably the only person who doesn't like OME springs. It made for a horrible ride. Stiff as ****. I carted around 400 lbs of weight trying to break them in, but no go. Plus, I had to crank the front torsion bars up to try and level it, which made the front way too stiff and was definitely going to beat up my upper ball joints.
So I dragged the factory springs out of the garage and took them apart. I then jacked up the 4Runner and pulled the Emu's off. I removed a spring out of the factory pack and put in one from the Emu and reassembled. I put new oem bushings in(i'm not a huge poly fan) and reinstalled the factory springs with the modification. This brought the height very close to the original, (within a inch), and the ride was vastly improved over the Emu pack. I reset the front height to spec. and that made the front comfortable again.
So I ended up with kind of a add-a-leaf fix, except I still had the same number of springs in the pack, and the one Emu spring I used was longer than a add-a-leaf spring, which I hope spreads the weight load over the spring pack better.(basically, trying to make myself feel better for wasting money on the OME 's)
Last edited by Jimkola; 01-23-2020 at 10:49 PM.
The following 2 users liked this post by Jimkola:
86 TOY (05-27-2024),
RAD4Runner (01-24-2020)
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