Nice and level with air bags.... loaded! No issues with AHC holding neutral now.
Air Lift 1000 Install (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter wngrog
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I had to use the hilift to lift the rear of the truck, then use another jack to line up the axle. On the second side I dropped it into low mode first and had lots of wiggle room. The first side was just in neutral. Almost done.
Did it today and everything went pretty smoothly. Riding on 866 OMEs, used the original bags that Nolan recommended, cut the OEM bumpstop down to the first fold and reused it. It all lined up as it should and I'm ready to pull a small utility trailer to NC. Used the supplied tee and made it a single air valve installation. Mounted the valve on the bracket that the 2003 factory electrical connector sits in. The cheapo - Harbor Freight three piece set for $14 - step drill bit worked like a charm! First time I've used one of those and it really is a time saver. Nolan, you da man! Thanks.
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Hello everyone!
just to add a bit on this topic.
I have a Toyota Land Cruiser 80 with OME 2863J 3" lift.
I called the guys at Air Lift and measured the inner space on the back of the coils.
it is 5.5 inch diameter and 10.5 inch length.
currently, I'm running 315 tires (35) on 16" rims and the hight from the floor to the start of the fender on the back is 38.5 inches (nobody seems to put this number and is very important in my opinion.
in any case. The people at Air lift told me to get the 60808 kit. its the same diameter bag as the 60728(the ones for stock 80) but are 9.5 inches in length. She girl that answered the phone told me you want about 1 inch of play between the bag and space inside the coil, so this would be perfect.
Im going to order now and will let you know how it all fits!!!
im running a metal rear bumper with tire, swing arm, and a lot of crap in the back! when loaded all up it would go down about 1.5", way to much but the OME J are already medium duty and the Heavy duty coils are not tall enough plus i already got and installed this 6 months ago, so, this should work!
thanks to all the comunity for all the info!
just to add a bit on this topic.
I have a Toyota Land Cruiser 80 with OME 2863J 3" lift.
I called the guys at Air Lift and measured the inner space on the back of the coils.
it is 5.5 inch diameter and 10.5 inch length.
currently, I'm running 315 tires (35) on 16" rims and the hight from the floor to the start of the fender on the back is 38.5 inches (nobody seems to put this number and is very important in my opinion.
in any case. The people at Air lift told me to get the 60808 kit. its the same diameter bag as the 60728(the ones for stock 80) but are 9.5 inches in length. She girl that answered the phone told me you want about 1 inch of play between the bag and space inside the coil, so this would be perfect.
Im going to order now and will let you know how it all fits!!!
im running a metal rear bumper with tire, swing arm, and a lot of crap in the back! when loaded all up it would go down about 1.5", way to much but the OME J are already medium duty and the Heavy duty coils are not tall enough plus i already got and installed this 6 months ago, so, this should work!
thanks to all the comunity for all the info!
Any specialty tools required for this job besides the step bit? I think I have one of those. I have never fooled with springs or suspension at all but I have turned a wrench and done quite a bit of automotive work.
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Nope. Easy.
Thanks. Are the instructions that come with the kit easy to follow? I have read the entire thread and I am not clear on how they are installed.
I found that re-reading this thread of more help and especially with regards to routing of the air lines, but overall an easy installation.
aaronrules
Coolest person you know!
Following the first posts directions, I did this install in less than an hour. Pretty self explanatory once you see everything you get with the kit.
Ok that gives me some confidence. I just have the factory jack and a scissor jack from a Crown Victoria and 4 3 ton jack stands. I called around and they want $285 parts and labor to install so if I can do it in a couple hours it would be worth it.
A Harbor Freight floor jack can be a very handy tool for this job.
I will be tackling this tomorrow. I plan on taking photos of the two bolts that need to be removed. If anyone needs other photos or has any tips I am all ears.
I am about 2 hours into this project and I can either go buy a floor jack or pay someone else to do it. I think both ways will end up costing me the same amount.
Good question! I have installed mine and have not yet tried enough load or articulation to test it. Airlift says minimum pressure is 5psi, I think I need to try out and see what pressure good for bump-stop. Which will be different for the load and the springs we run.
I just got this finished. It ended up being a bigger project than I wanted to get into on a Saturday but it is done. I spent 6 hours working on it. The problem I had was I started with only 3 ton jack stands, the factory jack and only one small block. This setup made it impossible to drop the axle far enough to get the springs out.
I bit the bullet and spent $95 on a Harbor Freight 3 ton jack. This jack helped me raise the truck but it still was not quite enough to make it easy. I had to use pry bars to get the springs out. There is a brake line that needs to be disconnected. It is bolted with a 12mm bolt in the center of the vehicle.
This was a 24mm socket.
This was the other bolt that needed to be disconnected. The bottom shock bolt was pretty self explanatory. Once I got the new bags in I routed the air lines so they could extend a bit if needed. I used the @LandCruiserPhil mudflap delete kit to mount the air valve. I pumped them up to 15# and took it for a spin. It was definitely a rougher ride but that is fine. I am going to check the pressure tomorrow. The manual said 2-4# drop after install is normal so as long as there is 10# in the morning I will be happy. I will then keep them at 5# when not loaded. I would recommend a floor jack for this project as @marcfj60 cautioned. If not big blocks are a must. All in all if I would have paid someone to do it who knows what they would have done. It seems good shops are pretty tough to find and I now have a floor jack.
I bit the bullet and spent $95 on a Harbor Freight 3 ton jack. This jack helped me raise the truck but it still was not quite enough to make it easy. I had to use pry bars to get the springs out. There is a brake line that needs to be disconnected. It is bolted with a 12mm bolt in the center of the vehicle.
A note to others, 6 ton jack stands are probably the minimum for working on the cruiser. Stands are rated for the pair so 3 ton are only good for 3000 pounds per stand. It may seem like enough but when things may be out of level or shift around that loading can be exceeded. There is a post here of someone injured when their jack stand FAILED. Cars weigh about 3500 pounds, 100s start at 6500 and many on MUD are over 7000. The other thing is the height, most are too short, I have found the 12 ton Harbor Freight have enough height for most any work, plus the reserve capacity gives me more piece of mind for cheap Chinese stands.
As luck would have it my passenger side air line was ripped off of the airbag. I read this thread and elongated the holes with the 3/4" step bit but it appears it was not big enough. I need to pull the springs again. Will this job be faster using some type of spring compressors? I really don't want to drop the axles, disconnect brake lines and buy bigger jack stands. The spring compressors seem like an easier deal if I can find an auto parts store to rent them.
Dont waste money on spring compressors. Invest in a 3.5t floor jack. With the wheels off, you can raise one side of the axle high enough and drop the oposite side to the ground with your bottle jack. Spring should pull right out. It will go much faster this time around.
I just bought the 3 ton floor jack at Harbor Freight a few days ago. I have two sets of 3 ton stands but I think I will need to buy the 6 ton to get the cruiser lifted high enough.
