Outer Limits 4x4 Board

Just wondering in general, i know with IFS vehicles the general consensus is to get the most out of the rear end to compensate for the lack of arti in the front end.
Therefore, if IFS is so hopeless for offroad, is it a waste of money getting good shocks on the front?
The reason i ask is i'm thinking about a new dual cab TD ute with the intention of a SASing it in a few years. I got some quotes ages ago on my 4Runner and it was suggested to me to get RS9000's on the rear and only RS5000's on the front. Is that because the goodies are a waste on IFS?
In the meantime i still want to lift it a bit and live with the IFS so i'll definately upgrade the shocks still.
After the hands down win in the recent 4WD Monthly 4WD Ute test and due to the price difference with all the options (compared to the SR5), i'm thinking Navara ST-R II to do something different.

Either option will be expensive in the long run.

Why not buy a live axle vehicle instead??

If you're intent on SASing it coz its purely the vehicle of choice.. then i'd be saving up my money rather than spending it on a mild suspension upgrade

Why not do a body lift if you want a bit of a 'lift'

2 inch woul dlook alright.. and with fatter tyres.. would raise the overall height by a bit.. perhaps enough to live with until you SAS it??

then once SAS'd you have the option of keepin the bodylift or removing.

TOM

I would prefer live axle of course. But there's no modern vehicles that suit what i'm after in a live axle. Basically i want a nice TD Dual Cab, and i don't want to drive around a ten year old Hilux, hence why i'm offing the 4Runner.
Meantime i was thinking just a 2 inch lift with some good travelling shocks on the rear. A few years is a while to go decent wheeling with stockers suspension...
The few years is not so much a budget thing, i just don't like spending $45k on a beautiful truck to chop it up and put oldschool leafs on the front straight away. It'll be my daily driver that will be used offorad as much as possible, i don't plan on anything full hardcore in it though. In fact the SAS may never happen, i might end up getting a cheap toy for that kinda thing.
None the less, the question is still valid: Is it a waste having sweet shockers on IFS?

no it isn't a waste. A good quality shock will generally do a better job than a cheap one. If you are going to upgrade your shocks for performance gains them spend the money and get good ones suitable for your application. Just because it is ifs doesn't mean that you still don't need it to be damped correctly

Ahh ok, thanks for that. So if you went for Rancho's, would you say 9000's allround or 5000 up front as an example?

4X4 Australia magazine have just taken delivery of an ST-R turbo diesel and mention a bit about it in the latest edition. They are fitting airbags in the rear to improve the suspensions capabilites.

Could be worth keeping on eye on what they do month to month for ideas.

I noticed a huge improvement in my Feroza from fitting new shocks on the IFS. Ride and handling should improve, so it's not a waste of money.

I'm not a fan of Ranchos, but each to their own. Do a bit of a search for problems/ owners opinions with the top $$$ brand shocks and make a decision from there. Try and find a Navara owner with them fitted too and see what they think.

Yeah I really only used them as an example, naturally i'd do alot of research before commiting.
I didn't notice that in the latest magazine, or is that insider info? I only saw it in the test vs the Courier and Rodeo.

4X4 Australia, August 2004 edition, pages 62-65.

I don't normally buy it, the wife got it for me, but it mentions that they had the petrol version for a while previoulsy too.

Sounds like a good choice of vehicle.

one could argue that because it is IFS that you need quality shocks

Hmm, i thought i had the latest one. Maybe i don't........


*Edit* Yep I have the High Rover one. Must of missed that bit somehow, too busy googling over the Navara v Rodeo v Courier test.
If it didn't cop such a bagging i'd go courier cos i get about a $6k discount at Ford through my work....

just some info that might help ya out

i just spent a week at fraser in a mates brand new 04 STR Series 2 Navara and it was a bloody nice ride. plenty of torque, and the ability to crack 160+ kph with 4 people and gear on board. the main downside was the lack of carrying capacity with the new hard covers that the str's now come with. makes it pretty much impossible to fit a decent esky in the back, and certainly not a fridge.

if ya want to ask more specific questions or query's, shoot me a pm and i'll try to answer them for you.

Get good shocks allround the price differance isn`t much,the stock shocks are crap on standard IFS and heat up real quick,Another good thing is to cut an 1" of the bump stops or intill the cv`s bind and space the shock down to get more travel.

antt wrote:just some info that might help ya out

i just spent a week at fraser in a mates brand new 04 STR Series 2 Navara and it was a bloody nice ride. plenty of torque, and the ability to crack 160+ kph with 4 people and gear on board. the main downside was the lack of carrying capacity with the new hard covers that the str's now come with. makes it pretty much impossible to fit a decent esky in the back, and certainly not a fridge.

if ya want to ask more specific questions or query's, shoot me a pm and i'll try to answer them for you.

Thanks mate. Yeah, on paper the Navara's Turbo Diesel blows the socks off all the opposition (including the pre class leading Hilux). Very unlike a Diesel too, it even has more kW's than my 3L V6 petrol, as well as shytloads more torque obviosly.

The hard covers not an issue yet, i'm looking at buying next month and the hard cover deal ends the end of this one. There will be a new "Bottom Line" deal after that, a dealer told me it'll be something like free nudgebar and spotties.
How good is the interior on them eh.....





This has gone a bit off topic now thanks to me lol

Nam is right......................
Because of the short travel on IFS set ups the factory shocks are usually too small and go out to lunch way before the rears as they will heat up very quickly.
Get the fattest and biggest you can squeeze in there, cut the upper bumpstops and crank up the t/bars 2"

By shortening the bumbstops, will that stress any parts that aren't meant to travel that high?
Ahh actually, stupid question cos without looking i assume it'll only give it another inch or so?

Basically you will keep the same amount of wheel droop if you crank the t/bars by cutting the upper bumpstops if not gain a little more.
Obviously with manual locking hubs CV & boot life will be at maximum but the auto hub systems where CV's are spinning constantly will shorten their life if you crank the front end up resulting in them being at more of an angle.

Ok cheers, ironically the Navara is the only one in that comparo with the manual hubs.