Gx 470 suspension swap

[Jarsnice]

Im going to swap the suspension on my gx, I want to know if it’s advisable to do the work myself, I have limited vehicle experience, I’ve assited in pulling and installing coilovers in a civic, and have changed the front brakes in my accord that’s about all.

I have a bone stock 2007 GX non KDSS with 140k miles., looking for about a 2 inch lift. I planned to change,
factory oem Toyota LCA’S
Dobinsons IMS kit
SPC upper control arms
havent decided on the coil conversion kit for the rear, I will look into more what works best with the Dobinsons.
How difficult would that be, and any other tips or advice.

 

[yeos]

It's a fairly involved process which I would recommend doing with someone that has prior experience. You've gotta have the right tools and a mindset that some components may be rusted out forcing you to remove it by other means (cut, torch etc). I've done many suspensions before from Hondas to Subarus and now Toyota trucks and while I am capable of doing it on my own, a helping hand does make things much easier.

 

[Mahalol]

I think with the right tools you can get it done. Sounds like you have enough basic experience to do the job. However, it’s stuff like being able to jack the rig high enough along with jack stands.

Things to look out for that might give you trouble are the front electronic damper controllers, the removal of the rear airbags and access to the top rear shocks. All of these can be hard to get to unless you are creative or have the right tools.

I have a lot of experience but I couldn’t even get the rig off the ground with my racing jack and 3 ton jack stands. I was dead in the water and ended up paying to get my suspension installed.

It definitely can be done with a lot of time and patients. Good luck!

 

[CarolinaGX]

I did mine in the driveway by myself in an afternoon. I have a fair amount of experience and all the right tools. Watch some videos on the subject and get an idea of what is involved. The biggest difficulty I had was the long a$$ bolt for the UCA's. It is doable but it seems like you won't have enough room to pull them out ,thankfully you do (just barely). Otherwise, it is a straight forward procedure. I suggest you apply penetrating fluid on all of the nuts the night before you plan to do the work.

 

[andymmiami]

I was in your situation a few months ago. Before buying my GX470 my experience working on cars was extensively on miatas, my old volvo sedan, and my moms small suv on occasion. You sound like you know what you are doing but let me warn you, the floor jack that you likely used on your civic won't work on the GX. I have issue with my current floor jack, an aluminum harborfreight 2.5 (i think) ton jack. My 3 ton jackstands that were overkill on my miata and small suv's are suddenly not big enough for the GX. I do not have to use a piece of wood on the floor jack to lift from the frame of the GX to get it high enough.

Your results may vary but I underestimated just how big the GX was when my only frame of reference were smaller cars.