Performance Products 1" Springs

[adn3000]

I have been doing a fair amount of research on doing a mild lift to my ’98 4Runner. I really liked the look of Bob’s ’98 and think the performance products/bilstein 1” combo is what I want to go with. The lift will be intended to accomplish a few things; get the rear up a little (sagging), to improve overall cosmetics, and improve ground clearance for some very mild off-roading. My 4Runner is a daily driver and most of the driving is city, in fact almost all of it is. I want to maintain a fairly comfortable ride (as close to stock as possible) and keep the good road manners of the 4Runner. I have a few questions for all you insightful enthusiasts out there. I am thinking of running 265/75/16’s with this lift, should/could I go any bigger? Any of you have any experience with this combination? Likes/dislikes? What was the overall ride like when compared to stock? Also, what size shock do I need? Do I use the same length of shock as the stock specifications? Are there any other modifications that I need to consider that are associated with this suspension lift? I would greatly appreciate any help with this.

-adn3000

[Lee]

1) i ran 265/75's with that setup and it was perfect.
2) i ran that setup for a while and it was great on the road... much better ride over stock.
3)shock size is the same as stock.
4)you dont need to mod anything else.

[MTL_4runner]

I gotta say I prefer my OME 881/906 spring setup over all the other ones I've ridden in, but again this is all about personal preference anyway. The ride is somewhat firmer than stock and has elimiated all the rear sagging when loaded with cargo that the stock suspension used to experience. The 881/906 combo works great and on your 98 4runner you should see about 1.25" more lift up front with the 881's and about 1.75" in back with the 906's (remember some rake is good so it will sit level when loaded with people/cargo). I've had a ton of people ask me about it (3 PMs just this week on the subject) with quite a few following through on it and I have yet to hear of a single person complain that they didn't like it. It's a fairly mild lift with good on and offroad manners and will handle light towing or family road trips filled to the gills with ease (which is pretty much what I was after). You can see some pics in my sig.

You don't need to buy new shocks to run either the PP springs or the OME's but if yours are at the end of their life, you'll definately notice a difference if you do change them.

[adn3000]

I gotta say I prefer my OME 881/906 spring setup over all the other ones I've ridden in, but again this is all about personal preference anyway. The ride is somewhat firmer than stock and has elimiated all the rear sagging when loaded with cargo that the stock suspension used to experience. The 881/906 combo works great and on your 98 4runner you should see about 1.25" more lift up front with the 881's and about 1.75" in back with the 906's (remember some rake is good so it will sit level when loaded with people/cargo). I've had a ton of people ask me about it with quite a few following through on it and I have yet to hear of a single person complain that they didn't like it. It's a fairly mild lift with good on and offroad manners and will handle light towing or family road trips filled to the gills with ease (which is pretty much what I was after). You can see some pics in my sig.

Do you mind me asking what you paid for the springs? And what type of shocks did you use?

[MTL_4runner]

Do you mind me asking what you paid for the springs? And what type of shocks did you use?

I use Old Man Emu (a.k.a. OME) shocks too (OME N91SC up front and OME N86C in the rear). Make sure you get shocks with a "C" on the end of the P/N because they'll be much softer than the standard OME (non "C") version. The non "C" version are often called "firm" shocks while the "C" version are usually called "comfort" shocks (hence the "c" at the end of the P/N )

I bought my stuff up in Canada at www.nsor.com so that probably won't do you much good, but there's a bunch of places to pick up the parts from in the US. The entire setup, shocks and springs all around will set you back about $600-700 but you won't believe the difference in the way it rides. It's not going to drive like a BWM but this is the way Toyota should have set it up from the factory IMHO.

Here's a few places to pick them up:
Wheelers - http://www.wheelersoffroad.com/ome4runner.htm
Toyota of Dallas - www.trdparts4u.com (they carry OEM Toyota and also carry OME parts)
Northridge Toyota - www.northridgetoyota.com (not sure if they are carrying them or not, but worth a call anyway)

[iceman601]

I just put in the performance products/bilstein 1” combo about two weeks ago and its the best mod yet. I remember reading through a couple of forums where people said it was offers a stiff ride, but that wasn't true. This is my daily driver, and now its a whole lot smoother on the freeway.

Before

After


It kinda makes the 265/70s kinda small though

[MTL_4runner]

I don't want to make it sound like the PP setup wasn't good, I just prefered the OME setup is all.

Nice lookin' truck iceman!
Out of curiosity, what are the measurements on your truck from fender to ground front and back?

[iceman601]

Nice lookin' truck iceman!
Out of curiosity, what are the measurements on your truck from fender to ground front and back?

Thanks MTL_4runner....the measurements are ground up to the fender flare lip along the center of the wheel:

Front: 36 1/8 inches

Rear: 35 7/8 inches

For some odd reason the front is still just a hair taller than the rear and thats with the spare tire taken off

[MTL_4runner]

Thanks MTL_4runner....the measurements are ground up to the fender flare lip along the center of the wheel:

Front: 36 1/8 inches

Rear: 35 7/8 inches

For some odd reason the front is still just a hair taller than the rear and thats with the spare tire taken off

Thanks for posting the measurements!
....and those were on stock 256/70R16 tires right?

I know the PP springs tend to ride dead level (ie zero rake front to back) and I've seen a few that settled like yours did. No big deal, just buy a pair of OME trim packers (or a thicker spacer if you want to give it some rake) for the rear springs and throw those in there on top of the springs you have....it should get you pretty darn close to level again. Other option would be a set of airbags but that will make the rear ride alot stiffer when unloaded.

Does it sag very much when fully loaded in the cargo area?

[iceman601]

No problem...still running on stock size tires for now 265/70/16. I haven't had the chance to take my dad's boat out yet or carry any heavy load, but when I do I'll make sure to check.