I'm a poor college student with dreams of a 2inch lift on my gx470. Anyone know a combination of random parts that are reliable and a better deal that a kit? that add up to about a 2inch.
cheapest suspension combo
- Thread starter boofsleepy
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The cheapest option would be front spacers and tricking the rear airbags. But i don't recommend that option if you plan to do any actual off roading. You can get a lower cost lift kit like an Eibach Pro Truck or Ironman Nitro Gas Charger for $800-1000 that will improve you on and off road handling and be less failure prone than a spacer lift.
Adjustable bilsteins with stock coils and airbag trick would be my guess . Should run you a couple bills . A YouTube search would probably yield some pretty good examples .
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I have Bilstein 5100s, stock front coils and FJ rears. It’s an okay lift. When they wear out I’ll go with Dobinson’s IMS.
How about a $600 3” lift kit from Rough Country on Amazon? And no name UCA’s? Am I allowed to post the Amazon links here?
Considering it for the 300K mile GX470 I’m setting up for my son so he can look cool and do very minor off roading.
Considering it for the 300K mile GX470 I’m setting up for my son so he can look cool and do very minor off roading.
Here’s the kit I’m thinking of installing:
Rough Country 3" Lift Kit w/N3 Struts & Coils for 03-09 4Runner/07-14 FJ - 76031 https://a.co/d/coYw9uG
Rough Country 3" Lift Kit w/N3 Struts & Coils for 03-09 4Runner/07-14 FJ - 76031 https://a.co/d/coYw9uG
Rough Country is kind of known as bottom tier stuff. That being said it's probably still an improvement over 300K OEM shocks. My new "cheap" recommendation for these is a takeoff suspension from a 5th gen T4R - either a TRD Off Road or (if you can find it) TRD Pro. They will need some mods to fit (rear upper shock mount and front lower shock mount - have not done it myself but apparently it's pretty easy) but will be better quality than a low-buck aftermarket kit.
It won't get much of a lift, but should get rid of the sag, and be fairly capable with a set of 265/70R17 tires on it.
It won't get much of a lift, but should get rid of the sag, and be fairly capable with a set of 265/70R17 tires on it.
Thanks for your response. Can you and others recommend which brands to look at for a decent inexpensive lift for a truck that will only do light duty off roading?
To be perfectly honest it just needs to look cool and be safe on the road. I think I’ll be able to grab a good deal on an OME 3” lift from Mudify or elsewhere during Black Friday and since safety is a concern (it’s my kid!) it’s reasonable to invest in quality basic suspension parts.
Other parts I’ll change out are:
1 - decent quality tires in the largest size possible on the OEM 17” wheels
2 - front bumper and fog lights (no winch)
3 - delete running boards
4 - some sort of cool looking roof rack
5 - seat covers for the front seats
6 - weathertech mats
7 - Bluetooth/CarPlay
Am I missing anything for high quality basic build?
know my drivetrain is solid so I’m ok spending some $$$ on a GX with 300K miles on it. She should make it to 500K with continued proper maintenance.
Thanks again for input on the suspension.
Ironman has a 25% off sale right now. Other cheaper lifts that get good reviews on here include the Eibach Pro Truck (usually <$1K) and a basic Bilstein 5100 lift (basically equivalent to a stock TRD Off-Road suspension). If you do want to keep it safe I'd suggest swapping out the upper control arms with aftermarket (especially at 3 inches of lift). Ironman usually bundles theirs with the kit. The cheapest decent aftermarket ones that use standard bushings/joints are JBAs, other options like Freedom Off Road use a proprietary ball joint.
If it were my rig I'd look for a deal on the Eibach Pro Truck and use the JBA arms. The JBA arms are red and the Eibachs are red/silver, so they'd put some nice "bling" in the fenderwell for your son.
At 300K the rest of the suspension is probably also shot. Bushings and joints just wear out with age (including the steering rack bushings). When I lifted mine at 145K I replaced both front lower control arms, tie rod ends, sway bar end links, and all of the same components in the rear suspension. I used Moog parts from Rock Auto and (with the exception of the tie rod ends) they've been totally fine for the past 30K, and the parts were inexpensive. My GX drives like a brand new vehicle. The last thing you want to do is lift a vehicle where the rest of the suspension is worn out, and it's nominal extra work to refresh everything while you are in there.
If it were my rig I'd look for a deal on the Eibach Pro Truck and use the JBA arms. The JBA arms are red and the Eibachs are red/silver, so they'd put some nice "bling" in the fenderwell for your son.
At 300K the rest of the suspension is probably also shot. Bushings and joints just wear out with age (including the steering rack bushings). When I lifted mine at 145K I replaced both front lower control arms, tie rod ends, sway bar end links, and all of the same components in the rear suspension. I used Moog parts from Rock Auto and (with the exception of the tie rod ends) they've been totally fine for the past 30K, and the parts were inexpensive. My GX drives like a brand new vehicle. The last thing you want to do is lift a vehicle where the rest of the suspension is worn out, and it's nominal extra work to refresh everything while you are in there.
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@Rednexus thanks again for your input! I’m going with the Stage 1 Eibach Pro Truck kit. I’ll try some cheap UCA’s I found on Amazon and hope they work otherwise I’ll swap them for the JBA’s you recommend.
Also I will definitely inspect and rebuild the other inexpensive suspension components when I’m under the truck.
Should I start a little build thread for my humble project when it gets going? Would it be useful to others in the future building a truck on a budget?
Yeah…start your build thread.
It’s good for others to see your journey. And you never know when you will get tho this stage in the photo! Lol
Not mine but someone famous on instagram and facebook
dovetails
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Post a build thread! I want to see it as well!
