Outer Limits 4x4 Board

Hi - I have a standard spec gq 91 swb and it actually goes great on and off road. I went out to landcruiser mountain park on the weekend and had a whole lot of fun. I went with a guy who also has a GQ with body lift, raised springs, 35" tyres and front air locker. Now, while i couldn't go everywhere he did, i wasnt far off the mark and managed to follow most of the time. i managed some of the extreme tracks with relative and surprising ease, but some were too much of a challenge. i would really like to improve my off road handling but maintain on road performance as it is my daily driving vehicle

So - i priced some air lockers and thats out of the question, so i want to know whats going to be my best bang for the dollar.

i talked to a suspension guy and he said if i put raised coils in i will experience vibration from the tail shaft angle (apprently common) so he suggested standard coils but 2" body lift kit so i can put 33" tyres under the GQ SWB to improve traction and height etc

is this a good way to go or do you GQ owners have some better options that i should be considering?

Any assistance and advice greatly appreciated

The future brings winch and air lockers but i want to do the basics and cheaper options first to see how i go.

2" suspension 2" body is the most you need to go in a SWB, this will clear 35" tyres and is a relatively cheap set up.

$200 at most for body lift, do it yourself, its easy as.

Allow $1200 for suspension.
If you stick with 2" you should be fine and wont have any drivetrain vibrations.

And I dunno $1000 for tyres.

There you have it, one dam capable car for a semi reasonable price.

2" suspension lift, 10mm radius arm spacers in the front, 10mm longer than standard heavy duty lower rear control arms (standard ones are week as and the extra length will fix the vibration issue). Fit your 33's and start saving for the lockers.
Forget the body lift and think about some sliders, and a stronger rear bar.

2 inch suspension lift in a shorty and no vibrations are you sure he will be right rysta. cause ive lifted 2 shortys now and only went 2 inches and they both vibrated like pigs. i put gearbox packers in and also longer rear arms and still vibrated so in the end i bit the bullet and put 3inch in cut the rear spring and shock mounts off and rotated the rear diff and then put a double cardin koint in. in saying all that i have 2 mates that are running 3 inch with only 12mm gearbox packers and they vibrate a bit but not enough to worry about. so my point is it really depends on the car shortys are a pain like that.

danman-gq wrote:So - i priced some air lockers and thats out of the question, so i want to know whats going to be my best bang for the dollar..

Search is your friend for your answers on shortys.. some go 1inch up and suffer, others "SAY" they go 6inch with no issues - Pure lottery.

Suspension and lockers are different things when you say best bang for bux... What suspension do u have now? You say Standard Spec - is it original? being 91 mod, chances are it is already changed... is it rooted, lifted or unsure?

While bigger suspension may look good, it wont really get you any further unlike a locker.

2inch sus lift could be ok, but maynot be. 2inch with 33's should be easily done. If it doesnt clear, then go with the body lift too.
http://www.gqpatrol.com/ instructions on bodylifting there.

What are your plans for the truck overall, may assist in better suggestions.

i had a shortie with 4" srings and 1" spring spacers i had 12mm crossmember spacer double cardinal tailshaft and 35" tyres and mine had very minimal vibration (i lent my shortie to a toffee nosed, fussy, paris hilton wanabe and even she didn't complain about it and she complains about everything) i had heavy duty lower arms same length and it was fine. you need to lengthen top arms to correct pinion angle not lower ones. adjuatable top arms are available for around $370 odd and less work than rotating diff hangers. 4" lift is a minimum to get 35" tyres under a gq.

It's a double carden joint not cardinal and I have run 7 inch springs in my shorty with a double carden with no vibrations at all, but that is not what is being discussed here. we are talking about a two inch lift and there is no need to spend a heap of money on a double carden for a lift that small.

You lengthen upper arms ONLY when you run a double carden as the rear uni needs to run in a straight line. For standard universal joints they need to run at the SAME angle which means rotating your diff forward not back. You lengthen the lower arms rather than shorten your upper arms as the wheel base shortens when you raise the spring height.

Jake (ZOOK60) fitted 38 inch tyres with a 2 inch lift with a bit of guard trimming. You don't need to go higher to fit bigger tyres.

All of this has been discussed on previous threads. There's plenty of information there if you are willing to sort through it.

[quote]
Search is your friend for your answers on shortys.. some go 1inch up and suffer, others "SAY" they go 6inch with no issues - Pure lottery.





i agree i put 4 inch coils, 2 inch body lift 35 inch tyres and no vibrations. now running 5 inch coils, 2 inch body running 36 inch tyres no vibrations

Best bang is

Wait for it




BODY LIFT

2" suspension and 2" body and 35s, why stuff around with cardon joints and packers if it drives good now

Thanks everybody for your input, i will do some more thinking about it alland most likley go for 2" spring lift so i can put 33" tyres under it. i know this may seem lame to some of you but im not after an extreme vehicle, just one that is quite capable. i guess front and rear lockers are going to make a huge difference when and if i can afford them. im just a bit jubious about spending $4k on lockers on a car that is 16 years old and has 150000km on it. But then again - i do intend on keeping it and it is on top original condition.

Thanks again