Too many options

I’m a proud new owner of a 21 venture (no Kdss) and I’ve gotten 5 different answers from 4 different shops about a 3” lift. Not exaggerating. I know this question is asked daily but maybe someone can help me process the information or at least point me in the right direction.

1. Rough country spacer lift, parts $250. This guy does a lot of lifts and says it would be insane to take out the brand new factory hardware.
2. Rough country lift with suspension $549, a different guy from the same store says this is the way to go.
3. Revtek, same ballpark price. This guy says rough country sucks and I also need drop diff.
4. Ready lift 3/2–similar price. This guy says readylifts are the best fit for 4 runners and does the lifts for the local dealership.
5. Toytec—the dealership was going to do this for significantly more and I backed out bc I just didn’t know enough.

Im a middle-aged commuter , not an offroader, but I still want a quality product that will last. Not looking for the cheapest option, I’m prepared to pay a little more for a superior product. Is it ridiculous to take out the factory hardware? Is it stupid to just use spacers? Does the rear need additional shocks? Do I really need a diff drop for a 3/2?
Thank you for your help

 

I’m gonna answer my own question. I think the most fundamental decision is spacer vs. suspension. Understanding this question appears to be the basis for everything else.

If adding weight, going offroad or if dissatisfied with the splashy ride of stock suspension (nosedive with braking, the wheelie on takeoff, the generous sway on curves and overall non-truck like ride of 4runner stock suspension), consider replacing the suspension with something stiffer. Bilstein appears to be entry level in this regard, then Eibach, Icon, Elka, Fox, and King in increasing order of cost.

If you’re a commuter/mall crawler/disco driver and not prone to seasickness, then go with spacers and be prepared to defend your vanity and to ignore the disdain of snootier, deeper-pocketed purists who geek out over the innumerable intricacies and combinations of suspension lifts.

Oddly (and unforgivably so), many kits are incomplete, lacking diff drops or rear coils or what have you, and even more infuriating there seems to be wide variability in required “mods,” which is code for taking a metal grinder and hacking off mudflaps and parts of the frame—this after paying upwards of 40k for your new truck.

Correct me ifI’m wrong.

 

Well since you mentioned quality I'd go with none of the options listed in your first post.

Bilstein, OME sound to be more something you would want. I wouldn't call guys that put in a whole new suspension snootier we just like to do things the right way. And yes there is a right way.

Shouldn't need a diff drop but honestly its so cheap for peace of mind you can slap it in if you want.

I don't know what kits you are looking at but Eibach, Iconm Elka, Fox, King etc all come with everything necessary all depends on how much you want to spend. I would recommend a kit with UCAs which is usually 1 step up from the bare bones kit. It might not be needed but you won't know until you can't get alignment in spec then need to install it after the fact.

 

Lifting a vehicle will always yield some potential unwanted results. You’re altering the dynamics of the vehicle in a way it wasn’t intended to operate under, so further mods can be needed to get it back to spec. If that’s not something you can live with then I’d give up the idea of lifting. Grinding metal away is only needed when you want to add bigger tires, if you stick to stock size and lift you won’t have to do a thing.

Sounds like your dealer installs aftermarket suspension lifts, which is good considering very few do it. I’d source your own parts, shop at Headstrong Off-Road, they have great prices and can help if needed. Once you have your parts, take them to your dealer. Toytec also makes good stuff, their aluma series coilovers seems to get a lot of good reviews. Personally, I’d avoid spacers. If you’re looking for a good ride, you just can’t beat an actual suspension lift/change. Sounds like you’re on the right track in your research, shouldn’t be difficult to narrow down something that fits your needs.

 

Thought that might get a response. I really appreciate your input!
I think your way is the right way as long as you don’t care about throwing away a few thou on upgrades you won’t get reimbursed for if/when you trade-in.

 

The best way to look at it, is your vehicle is never an investment. You will never get back what you put into your vehicle as soon as you drive it off the lot.

 

Very true. And I shouldn’t have used snootier; trying to funny but shot wide.

 

Personally, I would do a 2" lift in the front, with a 1" in the rear. If you go 2inch, it will still be a noticeable boost in height, however you won't have to deal with potential alignment problems and you will be spared the expense of replacing the upper control arms, which you will be almost guaranteed to need at 3" of lift.

Also, you can't really fit a bigger tire on a 3-inch lift versus a 2 inch lift. The suspension height is not the main limiting factor on these in regards to max tire size.

Also, if you're a commuter, I'm sure mileage and driveability mean something to you. So with a shorter lift, the stock size tire will still look okay. Most of the popular bigger tires are much heavier than stock, and the increased rolling resistance and weight will really take a bite out of your mileage, if that's a concern to you. It will also impact your acceleration.

For mine, I am interested in a slightly tougher look along with a improved on road ride. I'm not rock crawling with mine, if I were going to do that I would buy an old Jeep. I want something that's comfortable on the highway and soaks up bumps well on bumpy dirt roads and just the generally lousy roads in my area. I would look into the Bilstein 6112 shocks for the front, those are a little more upmarket than the regular Bilstein 5100 and seem to get good reviews by the people that have them. You can buy them fully assembled with new coil springs for about eight hundred bucks, and you can set them from stock height to 2.5 inch of lift.

And the other thing I don't like about 3 in of lift, is that the 4Runner has a finite amount of up-and-down travel. To get that 3 in of front lift, you are basically forcing your suspension arms down to almost full droop. Say the 4Runner has eight inches of travel, four up, and four down. If you lift it 3", you basically only leave one inch of down travel remaining.

Suspension experts, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but this is my interpretation of these lFS lifts.

And honestly, if you're only doing it for appearance sake and you're fine with the stock ride and don't want to get rid of the brand new stock stuff, I don't see anything wrong with throwing a 1in spacer on the front which will get you 2" front lift. I wouldn't go higher than that with spacers, but I don't think a 2-inch lift via spacer is necessarily a bad thing if you don't need maximum off-road performance. At that point throw a 1 inch spacer in the rear for 1 inch of lift, and you're done.

Just my .02.

Oh, and one last thing. I've been looking at lift kits on and off for months now, and literally none of the ones you mentioned in your initial post are on my list for consideration.

 

@Banjovol you must have done a lot of reading in 4 hours and 22 minutes!

I can't add much to what's been said so far. I'm lifted 2.3" in front with Bilstein 6112's. These have a firm ride compared to stock, but that's what I wanted. They have been holding up well so far after 15K miles of abuse with a lot of off-roading. I didn't do a diff drop and the CV angles look fine to me.

In the rear, I have 5100's and 1.5" lift coils. This has been sufficient fir my use as well.

This setup is in the middle to lower end of tge price spectrum. In the same range, the Eibach kit is very popular here as well.

If you just want some lift, but as cheap as possible, Bilstein 5100's are pretty inexpensive, and can improve handling while offering multiple lift height options.

 

I'm actually looking into those 6112's for mine. How much firmer are they? Do they jostle you around on broken pavement? I was also thinking of the 5160's for the back, but they'd prob be overkill.

And if they're firm on small stuff, do they take bigger hits well? (like a speedbump at 30mph, haha)

I keep going back and forth between Dobinsons and Ironman, than the other day I remembered the 6112's. I want to take advantage of the black friday deals, but I'm going fricking nuts trying to read all the reviews of all these kits. It doesn't help that everyone thinks whatever they bought is the best, or are clearly sponsored by whichever company the happen to be running.

 

They are firm, but not generally harsh. They can be brutal on washboards, but I've noticed that washboards are actually less harsh if you go a little faster.

I looked at these also. I figured my level of off-roading didn't necessitate reservoirs. I've heard of them leaking as well, but I'm not sure how common it is.

Strangely, yes. Which is part if the reason I went for them. That's pretty much how I understand digressive valved shocks to operate, and it's what I wanted. For example; I have access to some land up in the sticks on a river, and the access is a gravel road with potholes. At a lower speed you really feel the potholes, but with a little more speed, you barely feel them at all.

 

@Thatbassguy has a really nice truck and takes his stuff everywhere Wisconsin allows. I trust his opinions on the equipment he has.

You mentioned Dobinsons, which is what I have, so I thought I’d pop in and give the thumbs up for that setup as well. Build info in my sig below, but the ride quality is tops compared to stock IMO. I changed mine out with <10K on the clock and it feels spectacular in comparison. There are more price-conscious options from them, but you could go nuts in a hurry. I have about $1700 in my suspension (not including my labor). Hard to go wrong with one of the brands that the Aussies trust. Those guys know how to wheel!

I’ve barely scratched the surface of my vehicle’s capabilities. My daughter scratched the surface of the door in the driveway, but that’s a different story.

 

Thanks so much for the info! Between your info, and CrikeyMike's response on my other post, looks like I have my answer! And it's nice that it's the lower cost one, haha. Sounds like exactly what I'm looking for. I checked out your build thread, great writeup on the install and the end result looked fantastic.

I think I'm going to skip the UCA's though. I'm not sure there's a benefit at the lower lift height I want, and honestly, I just don't want to mess with the stockers. They've been there going on 8 years on a New England vehicle, at this point I'm sure nothing short of dynamite is getting them out of there. I'm already afraid the 3 nuts holding the struts in will take me longer than the rest of the install, haha.

Actually though, the first thing I'm doing before ordering is to check my radiator support for rust, like someone else posted on their 2014 earlier today. Might be a good time to start looking at Cargurus instant cash offers, haha.

 

Yeah man. Salt is the enemy. I just hit a year with mine and I’m dreading what’s hiding between the LCAs and their bolts.