Introducing my 98 4Runner DD. (1 Viewer)

[jynx]

Also, here are a few pics from when I modeled a set of sliders for a fellow 3rd gen'r.

Look ma, no boards.

And looking spiffy, don'tcha think.

Actually the reason I started looking again. I was very pleased with my 80 sliders from WKO, and while they are bolt-on out of the box, that's nothing a quick bead from the miller can't take care of.

I also picked up a 5th 5 star wheel from my bud and since I have close to 30k on the current set of ko2's I will find a used tire to put on for now and pick up a full set of 5 when the time comes for a new set. At the rate I drive that will only be a year or so.

 

[ugamurph]

Let's get that lift on, @jynx. I feel a GSMTR prep day coming on soon. I don't have a ton to do to get ready, but I've got a few.

 

[jynx]

Well I finally have an update worthy of posting. Been lots going on in my world lately and I was able to carve out some much needed wrench therapy time yesterday for myself and got my ICON setup bolted up.

Started with the rear because that seems to be where most folks seem to have the most trouble. I started spraying down the upper shock nuts a couple days prior to starting to hopefully save myself some swearing. It worked, sort of. For those who haven't ever messed with the rear of a third gen, it is VERY clear that the shocks were installed prior to the body going on. Between the upper control arms, gas filler tube and exhaust there is barely enough room to get a wrench or ratchet in there and you have about 30°- 45° of movement at best. That really is the worst part, so as long as the upper nut Will come loose, the rest is just fiddly, if that nut were to be a problem, you'd be better off the just cut it off, it isn't worth the hassle.

Anyway, fortunately mine broke free with little issue. I ended up putting a set of channel-locks on the upper shield of the shock and crimping it to get some bite on and prevent the shock from spinning while I backed off the top nut. The lower mounts weren't bad, just a zip with the impact. The bushing were shot, but the shocks actually seemed to have resistance which is pretty impressive because there is a good chance they were the original ones.

I took some notes from a few videos and just pulled one tire at a time and used the other to leverage the axle down so the coil pretty much falls out.

New vs. Old. Interesting to me was that the old coil had a longer free length than the OME 906 replacement.

If you look close you can see the crimps on the old shock.

Every install I've seen in the past always talks about making sure to reuse the "body washer" on top of the bottom bushing. Well the ICON bushings are HUGE and since the shocks didn't come with a replacement and I was afraid using an OE one would do more harm than good, I just want commando.

Bushing fill the space nicely. The upper shafts are massive and the new top nut is 19mm vs. the OE 14mm.

Lowers go back on with the stock hardware.

Rinse and repeat for the other side and the rear is done. Took a few hours, not too bad. Will be looking at a good flex head And a stubby to add to the tool box as those would have been immensly helpful during the process.

Too be continued...

 

[jynx]

With the rear wrapped up it was on to the front. The front is much less involved depending on how you go about cycling the suspension assembly down to get the lower bolt thru. The ICON front COs come factory set to give 2" of lift which is just what I was after, so no adjustment needed. Similarly to the rear, I did just one side at a time.

Out is very easy 3 nuts up top and the big nut and bolt on the bottom, a little wiggling and out comes the old CO.

New vs. Old

The old fronts are highlander +1" I had put in a year or so ago to help offset the extra weight of the front bumper.

Installation for me since I was only installing a +2" setup wasn't bad. If I could have found my big pry bar it would have been very easy, but I made due with my medium bar. I hung the top with the supplied hardware and with it tight, I wrapped the end of the pry bar to protect the had and then used it to pry down the suspension until I was able to slide the lower bolt into place. Some folks disconnect the knuckle or use the factory jack to push down, the pry bar worked just fine for me. And with that the DS was in.

And then repeat for the PS.

With everything buttoned back up and the wheels back on I rolled out for the glamour shot.

It sets pretty much dead level. Picked up right at 2" Out back and about 1.5" (over the highlanders) up front. I still need to have it aligned, but after putting 40 miles or so on it, so far it isn't hadling that bad. I know tire wear will be a problem so that will be going on this week at some point.

Downside is I discovered I have a rear axle seal weeping a little so looks like a rear axle rebuild will be in order soon. I also need new away bar bushings, but other than that not looking too bad for 275k on the clock.

 

[jynx]

@Southeast Overland do you all have any experience with the FOX roost shields? Specifically do you know if they will fit around an ICON 2.0 shock base? I don't drive hard enough to justify spending the $130 for the ICON shin guards, but for $30, the roost shields look like they would be a good fit. I know I am probably committing some carnal sin by asking that, but I'd like to get something on to protect the shafts without breaking the bank.

 

[BMThiker]

FYI, my Icon rear 2.0" extended travel shocks came with rubber boots (the previous ones did not). I'd ask Icon if they can send you some of those.

 

[jynx]

Interesting. I will do that, thanks Rick