Bilstein 5100/Cornfed Spacer Suspension Upgrade

I started with 19.5-20" front. With my lift(eibachs at lowest perch and 1.8" dobinson coils set me just under 22". Every 4runner is a little different some measurements with vary slightly.

As long as the coil seat/perches are set the right way, and your happy with the amount of lift and ride. I wouldn't worry much.

If your rears sitting low, you could always add eibach rear coils or cornfed spacers to get the ride height right.

 

The shocks themselves are not going to add any additional lift. Coils, spacers, and spring perch location are responsible for the lifting. The shocks are just controlling your suspension movement.

Did you add UCA's as well?

Do you have KDSS?

 

Good point, I agree. The fact that 285/70r17 did not rub at stock height was a pleasant surprise. And I know a lot of folks aren't that lucky due to dimensional variation of their particular truck. Really, As long as it aligns ok I'll be happy.

It does have the cornfed 3/4" kit installed in the back. Thankfully the rear also ended up 5/8" taller, or I'd be way nose-high.

I put airlift 1000 bags in the coils while doing all of this so it doesn't squat when loaded and towing. BTW, all of my measurements are taken at 0 psi to be sure the bags are not a factor.

 

Stock UCAs no KDSS.

Man i get it. I understand how this stuff works. (Hate to play this card...) I'm a mechanical engineer. So I know full well how ridiculous it sounds to even mention getting this extra lift as a result of the shocks.

But when I put 3/4" spacers on a REAR axle and somehow net 1-3/8" lift? And the only two things to change were spacers and shocks? Idk what else to suspect.

 

Hey @kmeeg . You see this?

 

Have you driven it a bit and re-checked the lift height?

Is it still the same?

 

Yeah mine did not rub until I turn the wheel

 

So you're saying @mac1279 didn't turn the wheel?

 

Just drove it around the neighborhood to make sure everything was ok. Yep, measured the same.
I just remembered that I did get under it with a tape to see how much clearance I'd gained. Tape said 10.25" under engine skid. Unfortunately, of all the dimensions I recorded before I got started, this was not one of them. Having searched the forums today, I gather the TRD ORP should have originally had around 8.5" under the engine skid... by this measure I'd have the 1.75". Makes me feel a little better.

Yep, I drove it 5-10 miles running errands before I dug into the shocks. While parked there was a minimum 1/4" clearance front and rear throughout the steering range. I say no rubbing because I had to very intentionally apply hard brakes with the wheel turned at just the right angle to get a really light mudflap rub. Backing up and braking while turning, the shoulder lugs would barely catch the lip of the front bumper. Obviously not practical long term or under any articulation -- but it could be driven on flat ground without any embarassing noises long enough for my lift parts to ship.

 

Only other thing I can think of is if you take some pics maybe someone can catch something. Spring perch, cams, spacers, ect.....

But if you're fine with the results, no need to put that effort in.

 

Sure, here's a couple of quick ones I took before I left home in case I needed a sanity check ‍

I might get up early on Friday and pull the driver side apart just to confirm everything before I take it to the shop. I can probably do it in 30 minutes at this point.

 

Installed the Bilstein 5100s all around a couple weeks ago, had it aligned the next day and drove 1200 miles north to Tennessee the following day. No rear spacers and second grove on the front, I believe the 1.75 lift. Leveled the truck off which is what we were after. 23 year old daughter wanted to go higher but convinced her not to since it spends most of the time on the road.
Very happy with the way the shocks handle.

 

Just to wrap this up for anyone that may be interested:
I decided to just go get it aligned without revising the clip ring settings. The toe was way in which I assume was effectively driving the front tires together and creating 3/8" to 1/2" of "false lift".
Following alignment, the front end wound up going from stock 28-7/8" (avg) to about 31". And pretty much equal on both sides.
The rear remains a mystery. Went from stock 31-1/8" (avg) to about 32-3/8". Guys at the shop said everything was installed well, so they could offer no insight on why I got 1-1/4" of lift out of a 3/4" coil spacer.
Also -- I was going from memory on that 10-1/4" skidplate clearance -- I was wrong. I now have 11" of clearance which adds up considering the larger tires added 1/2" to my 2"ish suspension lift. The rear diff does now have 10-1/4" under it, which is nice.
As far as rake goes: Rear fenders originally measured 2-1/4" higher than the front, now they are just about 1-1/4" higher which looks good. And a box level on the frame rail shows it is now nearly perfect level.
Caster numbers were not so hot, they were only able to get me +2.5 degrees. The first time I crawled under the truck, I noticed my passenger rear LCA cam came from the factory already turned out 45 degrees, so it had less movement to give and this might cause an issue. The other three cams were in the center, so it's just an unlucky combination of frame component tolerance stackups.
I like the idea of using JBA control arms to give more camber, and I seem to have plenty of rear fender clearance, but the backspacing on my TRDOR wheels will cause major interference and I'm not buying new wheels.
The alignment resulted in hard rub on the front fender liner, so I drilled new holes, trimmed bumper, etc. and it's all good.
Down the road I'll probably get new wheels with less backspace, install UCAs, and make additional rub clearance adjustments.
But at this point, I'm very pleased with how it looks, and it actually drives much better than I expected with caster 0.3 below min spec.

 

So mac1279. I’m in this boat. Are you part time 4WD on your ORP? Mine is (ie not a round selector switch…. ). Im curious if that’s my mine looks so wonky.

Similar measurements in terms of front to back ….a bit less than 2 inch rake….on my stock 23 ORP premium. But the front visually looks so much droopier. I have the 5100’s front here. Back set here tomorrow. New 265/70/17 wildpeaks are at the shop. Not LT just the 4 ply. But they look big. Compared to the OEM BS tires….

I debated about b12 coils for the rear but they can run 0.9-1.6 inch range of lift. The bsck already looking crazy high….I thought ok. .75 inch cornfed. 1.75 front on the 5100’s. But now if you got such a large lift rear….ugh.

I feel like .85 and nothing rear - just the 5100’s with no new coils or a corn fed… won’t be enough.

 

My 4R is part time HI/LO with the manual TC shifter.

The wheel arches of the 4R are cut 1.25" higher in the rear than in the front, as measured from a line parallel with the frame rails. So even a 1" frame rake makes it look extreme if the wheel arches are what your eyes are using for reference. Compared to the way mine sits now, the stock one has such tiny front tire gap.

I avoided coils specifically because the lift was unpredictable. Ended up with a good looking stance by pure luck. If the rear end hadn't gotten an unexplainable bonus 0.75" of lift, I'd have been lowering the front back down because I got more than advertised up there. After a couple thousand miles the front is 2.25" over stock and the rear is 1.25" over stock. Level frame, looks awesome.

A couple of months ago, I swapped out the rear passenger side 0.7" spacer for a 0.5" spacer because I still had excessive lean. Now it sits level side to side and front to back.

I'm considering putting on a set Factory Style TRD Pro 17's with 0 offset. I have a fair amount of space in the wheel well for turning clearance, and my modest lift makes stock TRD wheels look like they're WAY up inside the fenders. I suspect that effectively widening the track will change my control arm motion ratio and the front will settle a bit -- maybe 1/4"?. At that point I might ditch the 1/2" front driver side tophat spacer and move the clip on that one shock up to the 2.25" position. If my logic is correct, the truck should end up 1/4" higher on driver side and settle out with my weight in the seat? Plus those wheels create the backspace needed to clear JBA UCAs at some point in the future. Still thinking about it...

 

TommyBross -- Here's a better picture of the lift results. Since this photo was taken, I've installed black badge overlays and replaced the chrome lugs with a set of OEM black PVD.

Notice the tires are lined up with the paint stripe to aid in visual reference to the ground. Camera sightline is perpendicular to the stripe. I stood at the center of the truck and laid my camera's horizontal guidelines across the center of the hubs, so there's minimal tilt, parallax, or distortion.

Again, a box level on the frame rail shows center bubble. (FYI the middle of the roof rails are also pretty much parallel to the frame -- helpful if you don't want to crawl in the floor and hold a flashlight to check)

Viewing the truck in real life situations, parked, in motion, at angles, etc., it looks SUPER level, almost nose high sometimes. So this very carefully taken picture is interesting, because my eyes still catch the arches and I see a lot of rake.

Hope this helps you choose the right components.

 

Awesome looking ride!! Thx. I’m with you in your comment about stock fronts having such a small gap. I look at it and…it’s comical. I’m going 5100’s all around. 1.75 front but a 3/4 inch cornfed rear. I’m hoping the 265/70/17 wildpeaks don’t look diminished. Almost treads to swap to 275’s….or stock size when Coopers since they tend to run ‘taller’. Both get decent marks for wheeling so….it’s a coming or 3 flip now on tires lol.

 

Thanks! Good luck with your lift. I am interested to see before and after numbers if you have time to measure. If doing it yourself, definitely mark your LCA positions and disconnect the spindle mount. Lower the arm with a jack to decompress the coil. Safest, easiest way to swap springs I've ever done for sure. Wish that trick worked on my f150...
I'm happy with the 285/70r17 ridge grappler but they are TIGHT. Any of your choices would be a stress free fit.