hilux suspension

[pilot]

about to put new suspension kit in my 2004 hilux ifs.just wondering what you guys think would be a good brand to use since theres so many out there.its only got standard factory in at the moment and i wanna go 2" lift

[berad]

How can someone answer a question like that...

Whats your budget

What is the truck going to be used for and why

what are future plans

Tyre size

etc etc etc etc

[sloshy]

How can someone answer a question like that...

Easy, forget about suspension, go an air/pro locker instead, money better spent I reckon. Then if you want the look of a 2'' lift then throw in a cab lift for bugger all.

[Kingston_99]

i have done the 2inch lift.

only things i changed was the rear leafs for a 2inch lift from iron man. still have the stock shocks but im changing it soon for a smoother ride on the rear.

front is all stock, i have jus wound the stock torseion bars to max so it sits level with the rear. still stock shocks but im chnagin them for longer shocks as they top out.

only thing with lifting the front, is the higher u go the stiffer your front end becomes. but i have put 32 big horns on and run 30psi and its abit smoother. i only did this for looks mostly and to stop gettin hung up in ruts.

its realy what you want out of your truck mate. i'd stay away from ironman shocks cuase there not worht it even though there cheap. i went for a drive in a mates lux (IFS) had old man emmu (spelling) gear and i was amazed at how smooth the ride was on dirt roads. i think he only had a 1inch lift on the front and 2inch on the rear for carring loads.

[pilot]

no plans really its just an every day driver, do a fair bit of pigchasin around some pretty steep and rough country thats the reason for the 2 inch lift.tyres on it now are cooper 30".only gettin new suspension because the rear springs are starting to sag and 1 of the front shocks is rooted.i'd prob have to get medium or heavy duty springs in the rear as most of the time i have a steel crate on and i tow a ski boat alot over summer

[pilot]

and budget well anythin under about 2000

[Kingston_99]

jsu get urself some iron man leafs, 2inch lift on the rear and wind the fronts up to sit level with the rear. jus get bigger rubber so u can run lower psi in them for a smooth ride. thats wat mine has pretty much

[dat383]

It would be pretty hard to go past an Old Man Emu Suspension kit for your hilux.
As previously posted,great ride,with better load carrying,without the harsh ride some other brands give you.
And well priced.

[beinthemud]

jsu get urself some planks of wood made in thaiwan leafs, 2inch lift on the rear and wind the fronts up to sit level with the rear. jus get bigger rubber so u can run lower psi in them for a smooth ride. thats wat mine has pretty much

[Kingston_99]

jsu get urself some planks of wood made in thaiwan leafs, 2inch lift on the rear and wind the fronts up to sit level with the rear. jus get bigger rubber so u can run lower psi in them for a smooth ride. thats wat mine has pretty much

and wats wrong with doin that? jus lifting the rear and winding the front up mate?

[ferrit]

[quote="dat383"]It would be pretty hard to go past an Old Man Emu Suspension kit for your hilux.
As previously posted,great ride,with better load carrying,without the harsh ride some other brands give you.
And well priced.[/quote

ive got OME all through my 92 lux with the solid axle (so ive got an even worse ride to begin with!) and its brilliant. Custom made the front packs from a set of HD fronts and MD rears (both OME) because im running a non stock config in mine (winch, winchbar, 2x N70EX batteries and a 1KZ-TE engine!) and HD rears, the rears are a little rough, but not too bad!

Greaseable shackles transform leaf springs too- Dont scrimp out on them either!

[Micky-Lux]

I had Old Man Emu shocks on my Lux, after 18 months, the shocks were rooted. They leaked like a sieve. I thought the ride was good, until I completely ripped out the old suspension, and replaced it with EFS (torsion bars, shocks, rear leaves, shackles, bushes, damper, etc), now it rides like a car on the road, and handles heaps better offroad.

I won't touch OME again. It's over priced for what you get. I've also got OME in the V8 cruiser work car, and it's got issues too, but that would be a whole different thread.

[dat383]

I thought the ride was good with OME, until I completely ripped out the old suspension, and replaced it with EFS now it rides like a car on the road, and handles heaps better offroad.

if you really think EFS rides better than OME,then that tells me two things,
you have a REALLY comfy lounge chair for a seat,or a REALLY big shock absorbing arse!

[bugshifter]

Took the Hilux down to get EFS and got the complete kit front and rear and now the Mack truck feels like the car and the ute feels like a Mack .

I did ask for light weight srings as never really carry much in it but now feel i need to put sand bags in just to hold it on the road.
Had them fitted at Wacol in Bris

[dat383]

Took the Hilux down to get EFS and got the complete kit front and rear and now the Mack truck feels like the car and the ute feels like a Mack .

I did ask for light weight srings as never really carry much in it but now feel i need to put sand bags in just to hold it on the road.
Had them fitted at Wacol in Bris

You are one of many.


You could just fit some"big rubber" then let your tyres down really low to gain some sort of ride quality.

This is sarcasim by the way.

[Kingston_99]

now who would lower your tire presure "realy" low. im only runnin 30psi on roads and dirt roads.

up yours if you want to be a smart arse mate

[chunks]

[mmaaxx]

Id recommend no more than a 30 to 40mm wind up at the front of the stock torsion bars unless you have a heavy bullbar and/or winch.

Rear I would go 2" ironman... ironman foam cell shocks all around to suit.

remove the swaybar on the front, it will allow the IFS to work more independantly.......

trim the inner guards as much as possible and you should be ok to run 255/85x16's.....33.3x10.2x16 bighorns.....

you'll have a lower centre of gravity.....you'll have a good performing front suspension, or as much is possible with that model IFS setup, and the tyres will give you the under diff clearance you really need.....

after that...go lockers and you'll be surprised where she'll take you.....

tyres are what give you clearance......not the lift.....

[Micky-Lux]

I thought the ride was good with OME, until I completely ripped out the old suspension, and replaced it with EFS now it rides like a car on the road, and handles heaps better offroad.

if you really think EFS rides better than OME,then that tells me two things,
you have a REALLY comfy lounge chair for a seat,or a REALLY big shock absorbing arse!

Nope, no lounge chair. Stock Toyota seat at the moment, not real comfortable as the springs are worn out and has SFA adjustment. Nothing to do with suspension.

Big arse? Maybe. But not that big.

Never had issues trying to keep it on the road, but don't drive like a speed demon on the road these days either. The springs are set pretty soft in the rear, and the only thing I could fault in doing this is that I may end up putting a set of poly bags in the rear to lift it slightly when I carry all the camping gear. Unloaded it's fine, which it is most of the time anyway.

As we speak, it's got a 110L fridge, 25kg deep cycle battery, an extra 80L of diesel, 20L of water, a full tank of fuel, chainsaw, 2 weeks worth of food and camping gear, recovery gear, two spare tyres, toolbox, tent, and 8 cartons of Bundy, and it's fine.

For the short road section, and as I did coming up from Brisbane, I'm running 38psi rear, 34 front, and usually go down to 30/34 on the dirt unless it gets really rough. I've done a heap of corrugations lately with no issues, but I am happy to let you know in three weeks how it goes as I'm currently about to drive out the door to the Cape.

If you don't like EFS, don't buy it. I don't like OME, I won't buy it. Simple.

[beinthemud]

Id recommend no more than a 30 to 40mm wind up at the front of the stock torsion bars unless you have a heavy bullbar and/or winch.

Rear I would go 2" ironman... ironman foam cell shocks all around to suit.

remove the swaybar on the front, it will allow the IFS to work more independantly.......

trim the inner guards as much as possible and you should be ok to run 255/85x16's.....33.3x10.2x16 bighorns.....

you'll have a lower centre of gravity.....you'll have a good performing front suspension, or as much is possible with that model IFS setup, and the tyres will give you the under diff clearance you really need.....

after that...go lockers and you'll be surprised where she'll take you.....

tyres are what give you clearance......not the lift.....

Not sure didnt realy read the whole thread but I think he wanted better shocks not ironcrap

[ferrit]

Ive got a coil sprung prado on Bilstiens/lovells and a Leaf sprung hilux on OME everything, and the lux, while it certainly isnt in the same league as the prado for ride comfort (no leaf sprung vehicle will when compared to coils) it certainly can hold its own in terms of corrugations and rough stuff.

When i coil the lux front and back, i'll be using OME gear again, im just that impressed with it already, and its not $300 a shock like the billies are!

[Micky-Lux]

OK, back now from a two and a half week pounding on the Cape.

I travelled with two GQ patrols, one with Tough Dog shocks, and the other with something else (unknown).

We all suffered from shock fade at some point, but the corrugations were pretty severe in places. Basicly after a couple of hours on the development road doing 80km/h or so, the car started to handle like a boat. Let everything cool down, back to normal. I was impressed how long it took my shocks to fade out though. They were red hot when they stopped working, and I doubt any shock could withstand that indefinately. As for comfortable ride on a rough corrugated road, is there such a thing?

I hit a washout mid corner at about 65km/h that made one hell of a bang, but suprisingly, no bent bits. The only complaint is that the rear leaves have sagged slightly, probably due to the pounding, and the load it carried up and back (although the load was slightly lighter on the trip back due to the fact that we drank some of the contents.)

[dat383]

As for comfortable ride on a rough corrugated road, is there such a thing?

Yes there is such a thing,but many cheaper suspension kits will never achieve it!

[Kingston_99]

Basicly after a couple of hours on the development road doing 80km/h or so, the car started to handle like a boat.

theres your first problem. my standard lux goes good on there doin 100-120, any slower and its hell. buts thats all the tourist here sit on 80 while us locals just want to get to the places we are headin to.