Beginning My 100 Series Journey - Need help! (1 Viewer)

[connort36]

I have been driving my 2000 100 Series (201k) for about two years now. My dad actually bought the truck brand new back in the day and I took ownership as my daily driver after college.

Decided I am going to go with the Ironman or ARB bumpers for my first modifications.

Two questions -
1. If I don't upgrade the suspension along with the bumpers will my stock suspension system fail under the increased weight of the add ons.
2. If I do upgrade the suspension, and I keep standard sized tired will they look goofy/small. I need to get some new tires here soon and was looking at the Yokohama GEOLANDAR A/T G015 Discount Tire | Tires and Wheels for Sale | Online & In-Person - https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/yokohama-geolandar-a-t-g015/p/32585#read-reviews

Thank you in advance for any help, don't want to make any huge mistakes here because this rig is my daily driver and fear of screwing up these decisions is probably what's kept me from making these big changes sooner.

 

[OEMGUY0720]

I have been driving my 2000 100 Series (201k) for about two years now. My dad actually bought the truck brand new back in the day and I took ownership as my daily driver after college.

Decided I am going to go with the Ironman or ARB bumpers for my first modifications.

Two questions -
1. If I don't upgrade the suspension along with the bumpers will my stock suspension system fail under the increased weight of the add ons.

No, the factory suspension will not fail that easy even if you put in a bull bar and winch, unless of course you jump it and land hard.

2. If I do upgrade the suspension, and I keep standard sized tired will they look goofy/small. I need to get some new tires here soon and was looking at the Yokohama GEOLANDAR A/T G015 Discount Tire | Tires and Wheels for Sale | Online & In-Person - https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/yokohama-geolandar-a-t-g015/p/32585#read-reviews

Upgrading the tire size is completely optional, not required.

Thank you in advance for any help, don't want to make any huge mistakes here because this rig is my daily driver and fear of screwing up these decisions is probably what's kept me from making these big changes sooner.

 

[GTV]

The suspension could fail with the added weight if you have an LX with unmaintained AHC.

The stock size tires are small to begin with. If you plan on using that bumper you’re gonna need tires to match.

 

[connort36]

No, the factory suspension will not fail that easy even if you put in a bull bar and winch, unless of course you jump it and land hard.

Upgrading the tire size is completely optional, not required.

Thank you for the gouge!

 

[connort36]

The suspension could fail with the added weight if you have an LX with unmaintained AHC.

The stock size tires are small to begin with. If you plan on using that bumper you’re gonna need tires to match.

I believe the AHC has received whatever standard maintenance it's supposed to. Just had a service done at the dealership and the service manager said it checked out.

Do you have any recommended tires that are good dual purpose? I've got a highway commute and hesitate to jump into huge off road tires.

 

[NE Snowman]

The 200 series guys were talking up the Defender series from Michelin. I had 2 sets of Wildpeaks that did well in the snow but I also drive a lot of highway and I might try one. Heavy snow/ice is what I see more than any hardcore off-road. Stone/dirt job sites mostly.

 

[Texsun84]

Wild peaks are good, nitto trail grapplers are a pretty good value too.

Take it one step at a time, there’s no real need to upgrade your suspension or tire size unless you want to.

I’d see how you like the look/feel of the truck w/ current suspension after you add a bumper. Then let your suspension choice guide your tire size.

 

[GTV]

I believe the AHC has received whatever standard maintenance it's supposed to. Just had a service done at the dealership and the service manager said it checked out.

Do you have any recommended tires that are good dual purpose? I've got a highway commute and hesitate to jump into huge off road tires.

Dealerships are notorious for not knowing how to maintain AHC properly. I would want confirmation that it was done correctly, specifically hydraulic pressure figures. AHC will let you down, literally, if a couple simple tasks are ignored. The weight of a front bumper could be too much if the suspension isn’t in spec.

Dual purpose tires are known as All Terrain aka A/T’. 285/75’s on your original wheels will take you just about anywhere.

 

[connort36]

Dealerships are notorious for not knowing how to maintain AHC properly. I would want confirmation that it was done correctly, specifically hydraulic pressure figures. AHC will let you down, literally, if a couple simple tasks are ignored. The weight of a front bumper could be too much if the suspension isn’t in spec.

Dual purpose tires are known as All Terrain aka A/T’. 285/75’s on your original wheels will take you just about anywhere.

Appreciate the gouge!

Gonna try and figure out how to investigate the AHC on my truck before I crack into anything else.

 

[suprarx7nut]

Get yourself some 285/75/16 tires. Good and beefy, lots of sidewall for comfort and off-road travels and it needs zero mods of any kind.

I believe the AHC has received whatever standard maintenance it's supposed to. Just had a service done at the dealership and the service manager said it checked out.

Do you have any recommended tires that are good dual purpose? I've got a highway commute and hesitate to jump into huge off road tires.

I would take a look at some aluminum bumpers. You can run the ARB or Ironman ones, but they are HEAVY beasts and life is easier all around if you avoid unnecessary weight (as a general rule in all of automotive pursuits, but especially so with AHC - AHC can handle those bumpers you just have to futz around a little more with T-bars than you would have to if you stuck to aluminum). Not saying you can't or that you shouldn't get either one, but give a good search for some aluminum options knowing that you'll get better on-road performance out of the suspension if you minimize added weight.

Appreciate the gouge!

Gonna try and figure out how to investigate the AHC on my truck before I crack into anything else.

Start here: The ABCs of AHC - How to Measure, Flush, and Adjust all in one place - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/the-abcs-of-ahc-how-to-measure-flush-and-adjust-all-in-one-place.1211999/

AHC is a complex system, but knowing just a few basics makes it a breeze to keep up with... 99% of the time.

 

[connort36]

Get yourself some 285/75/16 tires. Good and beefy, lots of sidewall for comfort and off-road travels and it needs zero mods of any kind.



I would take a look at some aluminum bumpers. You can run the ARB or Ironman ones, but they are HEAVY beasts and life is easier all around if you avoid unnecessary weight (as a general rule in all of automotive pursuits, but especially so with AHC - AHC can handle those bumpers you just have to futz around a little more with T-bars than you would have to if you stuck to aluminum). Not saying you can't or that you shouldn't get either one, but give a good search for some aluminum options knowing that you'll get better on-road performance out of the suspension if you minimize added weight.



Start here: The ABCs of AHC - How to Measure, Flush, and Adjust all in one place - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/the-abcs-of-ahc-how-to-measure-flush-and-adjust-all-in-one-place.1211999/

AHC is a complex system, but knowing just a few basics makes it a breeze to keep up with... 99% of the time.

Much appreciated!

Feel like I've already got too many hobbies and this one is a beast. I've been looking into replacing my rear brakes and rotors with OEM parts or a powerstop kit for about two days now.

 

[Live to Ski]

Aluminum w/r bumpers is your friend.

 

[connort36]

Aluminum w/r bumpers is your friend.

Any specific brand?

 

[Live to Ski]

Well, for the front I stand corrected.....I would go with one of the 3 big aussie steel ones (Ironman, etc). The are the only ones I know of that are crash tested & meet airbag requirements (per aussie dot).

Rear, I went with a steel/alum hybrid (dissent). Warning: this is the bumper from hell w/r to assembly. Once installed correctly, works like a champ.

Reason for orig statement...weight is your enemy...very difficult to do a home build and stay under gvwr (weight rating). See post #10 by suprarx7nut. Sounds like your traveling down the offroad/overlanding road = very hard/time consuming/expensive to be < gvrwr.

That's not my story and I'm not sticking to it

 

[whtwolf23]

I have an aging OME lift running on some 285/70r18 Nitto Ridge Grapplers. I really like the setup and have no rub at all with these 34's (33.7).

 

[GTV]

Steel front, aluminium rear. Unless you plan on dropping the bumper on rocks then steel there too.

 

[IGLUZJ]

Devil's advocate for the steel bumpers, I'd go steel in my opinion. As stated, agreed that the crash testing of the bigger brands steel front bumpers is important, and while heavy, for front and rear I prefer steel. Also, for offroading (which why else would you get a front winch bumper), I would go with steel. Unless it's a hybrid aluminum bumper with a steel winch base, I wouldn't want to winch mount to an aluminum bumper. Not saying it's a guarantee something bad will happen, but it's just another thing. I have ARB front and like it. Not the best approach angles but the crumple zones are worth it for me. I would not go with the Ironman front based on @patchagan experience along with others. If I was more concerned with angles, I'd go with the Dissent.

As far as tires go, agreed I'd upgrade them too. For reference, before I got 295/70R18 (34.3"), on the same 2.25" lift the PO had 275/65R18 (32") that I kept for a little bit. That size is slightly bigger than stock. Here's a few pictures / screenshots of what those looked like. Not really the best angles, but I don't have a ton of videos / pics from then.

 

[Live to Ski]

Devil's advocate for the steel bumpers, I'd go steel in my opinion. As stated, agreed that the crash testing of the bigger brands steel front bumpers is important, and while heavy, for front and rear I prefer steel. Also, for offroading (which why else would you get a front winch bumper), I would go with steel. Unless it's a hybrid aluminum bumper with a steel winch base, I wouldn't want to winch mount to an aluminum bumper. Not saying it's a guarantee something bad will happen, but it's just another thing. I have ARB front and like it. Not the best approach angles but the crumple zones are worth it for me. I would not go with the Ironman front based on @patchagan experience along with others. If I was more concerned with angles, I'd go with the Dissent.

As far as tires go, agreed I'd upgrade them too. For reference, before I got 295/70R18 (34.3"), on the same 2.25" lift the PO had 275/65R18 (32") that I kept for a little bit. That size is slightly bigger than stock. Here's a few pictures / screenshots of what those looked like. Not really the best angles, but I don't have a ton of videos / pics from then.

View attachment 3410817

View attachment 3410818

View attachment 3410820

View attachment 3410822

did a quick/dirty search for patchagan's problem w. ironman front bumper. can you enlighten us?

 

[IGLUZJ]

did a quick/dirty search for patchagan's problem w. ironman front bumper. can you enlighten us?

I'd have to find the post on Instagram but essentially the mounting bolts or some interface piece with them wasn't very sturdy where it mates up with the frame, so when he was doing Patch things on rocks it deflected too much and I think would bust his fenders up. Can't remember if any piece of the bumper or mount actually broke. Was a few months back, maybe even a year. I'd probably have to pull up side by side photos cuz I'm doing this from memory but the ARB mounting is a lot more solid.

 

[Live to Ski]

I'd have to find the post on Instagram but essentially the mounting bolts or some interface piece with them wasn't very sturdy where it mates up with the frame, so when he was doing Patch things on rocks it deflected too much and I think would bust his fenders up. Can't remember if any piece of the bumper or mount actually broke. Was a few months back, maybe even a year. I'd probably have to pull up side by side photos cuz I'm doing this from memory but the ARB mounting is a lot more solid.

so it sounds like a mounting hardware issue (nuts/bolts).

Also, patchagan is as extreme as they get, just beats the hell out of his rig. I'm betting normal offroaders/overlanders/etc w. the 100 kinda cringe at denting anything on their rigs (dang, they cost a fortune). Me being in that group, I'm not ruling out ironman noting that they all have to pass the same AU dot impact tests (design is for large animal strikes, not rock pounding).

I guess the moral of the story is to figure out what your gonna do w. your rig before the build up.