And if your running skid plates you need to modify them , space them down ,...unless your over 3"+lift , I vote no to the drop . And as the guy above said you may have front driveshaft phase issue and develop a vibration .
2011 - Diff Drop - Need Advise
- Thread starter DRRichey
- Start date
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The DD kit I used has a spacer for the rear bolt. It does rotate the diff slightly, as it's a 1" drop in front but the rear washer is only maybe 3/8 or 1/2", so less of an angle on the front driveshaft.
Given how many get install on 100s, I wouldn't think any rotation from the DD would make a significant difference, but Ben is much more of an expert than I am.
Taco2Cruiser
Crazy American Off Road
100 series front ends and the frame and crossmember around them are completely different. You can drop a 100 diff entirely and evenly. It also made a lot of sense back then as Toyota was placing the diff outputs higher in relation to the hubs than what we see on the 200 (or any of the current architecture. Then Toyota learned from their mistakes and 200s, Prado framed SUVs, and 2nd gen Tacoma all got their front diffs placed lower to begin with. But... old habits are hard to die, combined with a fear of breaking something.
But on a 200, where you might drop the front diff 1”, the output sure doesn’t get that much. Plus you now have different CV angles which is a great way to cause pull. I’ve pulled two diff drops out of 200s now that were complaining of “pull.” I didn’t changed alignment at all, and both guys said it was better.
I don’t think anyone will cause real problems with a diff drop on a 200, but I just don’t see how it is going to increase any component life in the tiniest way. Combined with what’s the point of lifting a cruiser, to the lower the ground clearance?
I did mine after I had a boot tear. Then again it was already a replacement boot (not sure if it was Toyota or aftermarket), so who knows if it was the boot or the angle? But (1) the boot tear after ~25-30k combined with (2) the Toyota mechanic (who I trust) telling me the angles looked steep about 20k miles beforehand and recommended a DD kit, and then (3) the fact that while I have a mild lift I run about half my mileage on the highway at 75mph with a heavy trailer in tow which ultimately effectively increases my front lift to 3" or so (which is where manufacturers start to recommend a DD kit) and I felt it made sense in my case.
For most folks though if you're doing a 2" lift I agree they don't really seem necessary. Plus yeah you lose an inch of ground clearance in the center by doing one (though putting your tires on the rocks instead of around them helps a bit there). And with IFS where your range of articulation is fixed, I've always wondered if when doing a DD if you actually increase the risk of CV damage during full compression, since your diff is lower and thus the CV can now compress upwards more than factory spec?
Anyway, the DD kit definitely reduced the CV angles. I think I took pics or notes and posted them at some point, but it was like a 15 degree difference in the angle. Now whether that angle ultimately matters I do not know. The engineer in me wants to run multiple tests with and without the kit to see how the CVs and boots hold up, but at ~30k per reboot by the time I figure out the answer I'll be well past the life of the 200.
Hey fellas.
Im thinking about putting one on in my sensor lifted LX that i will be aiming for 1" of travel augmentation up front.
Given that the the full droop CV grenades are reported to be a thing by some prominent members here, and in 4 LO HI+ i will be 4" lifted up front with added droop, do you think its still a bad idea for me?
I do want to do skids eventually, probably aluminum (maybe?), is there a good way to avoid interference or is that due to the skids shape/design and proximity to components.
Im thinking about putting one on in my sensor lifted LX that i will be aiming for 1" of travel augmentation up front.
Given that the the full droop CV grenades are reported to be a thing by some prominent members here, and in 4 LO HI+ i will be 4" lifted up front with added droop, do you think its still a bad idea for me?
I do want to do skids eventually, probably aluminum (maybe?), is there a good way to avoid interference or is that due to the skids shape/design and proximity to components.
So unlikely this will result in being outside of normal operating angles with a sensor lift and even a top mounted spacer. The examples of CV go boom are still exceedingly rare and if I recall they were on trucks with front locker engaged.
