GX470 Suspension Recommendation (1 Viewer)

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Aug 5, 2008
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Looking for suspension recommendations for my 2006 GX470 (currently 123k miles, stock suspension, 265/70r17 c load bfgs)

Uses/Planned Mods:
  1. Non daily driver
  2. Long road trips with crap dirt roads/tracks thrown in. Very minimal crawling.
  3. Tow an extremely light trailer (venturcraft trailblazer 500lbs)
  4. 3rd row removed
  5. Dual batteries
  6. Hidden winch mount (50lbs)
  7. 8-9500lb winch with synthetic line (60lbs)
  8. 2 pretty light people vast majority of the time
  9. Light weight drawer system
  10. Aluminum skids
  11. Sliders
  12. Fj cruiser 8.2 w/elocker axle swap

Desired outcome:
  1. Minimal lift to maintain mpgs and cv
  2. Maintain excellent road manners
  3. Comfortable as possible offroad (especially washboard) with a bit of increase in travel
  4. Reliable for next 50k miles
  5. Around $2,500 or less all in

Questions:
  1. Do I need a diff drop kit for 2"?
  2. Do I need UCAs for 2"?
  3. What suspension kits would you recommend?

Some contenders (will use Metal Tech rear coil conversion with isolators):
-Toytec boss (with what options?)
-Dobinson MRR or regular(reliable?)
-Ironman nitro/foam/profoam? (Which one)
-Old man emu
-Icon stage 1
 
I just put on an Ironman Nitro Gas kit (coilover, rear coils, and shock absorbers) with SPC UCA's and the Metal Tech rear conversion kit. Think current price is around $1400 for all of it, I paid $1200~ during black friday.

I would recommend doing UCA's, especially because of the customizable adjustments that can be made over stock UCA's. If you're going with 285's, I would say its a very good idea to do new UCA's. I'm throwing a diff drop on tomorrow (just the TCF spacers). CV's aren't at a bad angle per se, but just for my peace of mind, plus its only $30~.

I'm not towing or loading my rig up, but I'm sure heavier coils would solve that issue, others here can chime in.

I really like the way it rides, super smooth and quiet on the road, even with 285 BFG's. I don't any hard wheeling, so I went with this kit over the Foam Cell Pro's and I'm very happy. Others here have the FCP kit, and while it looks amazing (my mechanic raves about it) I just didn't see the need to spend more money for something I likely won't ever need.

Also, Ironman has a 3 year warranty (never tested it out) for what its worth.
 
Diff drops in the GX are a bad plan. They reduce clearance more than they help with CV angle. Don't do it.
 
Diff drops in the GX are a bad plan. They reduce clearance more than they help with CV angle. Don't do it.

I'm well out of my wheelhouse here as I have not done a lift and have no plans to, but I saw someone's build here on this forum with a 3pc skid plate setup and a diff drop. And, no, the skid plate wasn't lower than the other two because of the drop. That said, from what I've read from those here whose opinions I respect most, a 2" lift absolutely does not call for a diff drop. You can get inner CV mods that deal very well with the slight angle change, and it will be slight.
 
FWIW I just installed adjustable height Bilstein 6112s up front - 600lb springs, at 2", and I think it would check your boxes. Your plan for the front is right where I'm aiming, too. The ride is very comfortable - tons of washboard snow and ice and potholes here at the moment, and if anything it it very slightly stiff, which leads me to believe it might soften up nicely with a little more weight. I would guess the springs would be too light for a bumper and winch, though. The CV angle doesn't look too crazy to me, but I do wish I had gone for longer inner boots for peace of mind in retrospect. $$$ though.

I was debating between these and the Dobinsons - will still likely go with them for the rear. Progressive rate springs and probably HD shocks because I do want a rear bumper.

UCAs are in my future but it is a money-dependent future.

What winch mount are you looking at?
 
FWIW I just installed adjustable height Bilstein 6112s up front - 600lb springs, at 2", and I think it would check your boxes. Your plan for the front is right where I'm aiming, too. The ride is very comfortable - tons of washboard snow and ice and potholes here at the moment, and if anything it it very slightly stiff, which leads me to believe it might soften up nicely with a little more weight. I would guess the springs would be too light for a bumper and winch, though. The CV angle doesn't look too crazy to me, but I do wish I had gone for longer inner boots for peace of mind in retrospect. $$$ though.

I was debating between these and the Dobinsons - will still likely go with them for the rear. Progressive rate springs and probably HD shocks because I do want a rear bumper.

UCAs are in my future but it is a money-dependent future.

What winch mount are you looking at?

I'm going to be running the Southern Style Offroad hidden winch mount. I was able to get in on the recent group buy. No idea when it will show up though.
 
My guess is that you need at least 650 lbs/in front springs to deal with the additional weight of the hidden mount winch tray, winch, and dual battery.

Get 2.5” diameter front shocks. Those are beefier and more sturdy than most 2” diameter shocks. Probably better to handle the additional weight.

What was the reference to $2500 all in? That’s your budget for the mods?
 
My guess is that you need at least 650 lbs/in front springs to deal with the additional weight of the hidden mount winch tray, winch, and dual battery.

Get 2.5” diameter front shocks. Those are beefier and more sturdy than most 2” diameter shocks. Probably better to handle the additional weight.

What was the reference to $2500 all in? That’s your budget for the mods?

$2500 for suspension only.
 
Do you know the condition of your upper and lower control arms? My lowers lasted to 160k before they needed replacing - so you may still have some life on yours. $2500 will get you King front coilovers and rear shocks, but it won't leave much for anything else (rear springs, coil conversion kit, etc). You mentioned Icon stage 1, but your budget would swing stage 2's, which would get you some uca's if they need replacement. If you're shooting for minimal lift as you'd mentioned (sub 2"), you may not need aftermarket uca's.

I guess when it comes to suspension, do you want rebuildable shocks or do you want consumables? With rebuildable shocks (icon, dob mrr, fcp), your rig can be down for a few weeks - you may have to send them away for servicing. With consumables, you just buy and replace once they're leaky / shot (ome, dob). It's hard to generalize, but consumable shocks may last longer before needing replacement (~50k??) vs rebuildables needing servicing (~30k??) - maybe somebody else can color this in more. This will narrow your choices.

It sounds like medium duty ome or dobinsons kits or a bilstein 6112/5160 kit would be the best fit. These would also leave room in your budget for replacing control arms if necessary, or allow you to shift some of your budget outside of suspension.
 
I'm well out of my wheelhouse here as I have not done a lift and have no plans to, but I saw someone's build here on this forum with a 3pc skid plate setup and a diff drop. And, no, the skid plate wasn't lower than the other two because of the drop. That said, from what I've read from those here whose opinions I respect most, a 2" lift absolutely does not call for a diff drop. You can get inner CV mods that deal very well with the slight angle change, and it will be slight.

Courtesy of Austin on GXOR:

Diff Drops! Alright time to beat this horse dead. Billy Mays here! (Sniff).
Do you like broken diff mount arms? Then you’ll looove a smashed oil pan with that.
Do you like burning up pinion bearings to help your CV angle by 1/8”. Then I’ve got the perfect thing for you!

“The 1" diff drop kit does drop the front mounts an inch, but because of the position of the CV shaft it doesn't lower the diff by 1" due to the rear mount still being fixed above the rear crossmember. A quick CAD sketch using the dimensions above shows that the actual diff drop achieved is only 9.53mm so that is all of a reduction in CV angle achieved. with this type of kit which is hardly worth bothering with. Who in their right mind would give up 25mm of clearance to gain a CV reduction of just 9.5mm? Surely, you would be better off lowering the suspension lift by 9.5mm which would give you 16mm more clearance overall.”

Honestly To each their own. If ya run them And love them great. If you're undecided please just give your suspension guy that supports the platform a $30 tip instead.

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the below is good advice from @AlldogsOffroad ! in addition, i would say... carve some of your suspension budget out for other stuff. my rig is new to me, and i went with a mild suspension option (dobinsons 2" basic lift, with SSO coil conversion)... since then, i've also picked up new sway bar endlinks, oem LCA's (bushings on my originals are worn out), and inner/outer steering tie-rods. even though i'm only going 2" lift, i'm heavily considering SPC adjustable UCA, because it should allow to get the car in alignment easier and provide me with adjustment if i decide to go with more than 2" lift down the line.

if i add up everything...
dobinsons suspension w/front tophats and adjustable rear endlinks - $1,100
SSO coil conversion - $260
OEM LCA's - $580
SPC UCA's - $560 (not purchase, but i think this is the price online...)
Inner/Outer tie-rods - $280

i tried my best to find deals, but meh i'm sure a lot of you found better prices on some of that stuff... but that puts me at about $2,700 for lift and general suspension refresh. that added up quick!

(also, none of this stuff has been installed yet! so i can't even comment on if this is a good route ha!)

Do you know the condition of your upper and lower control arms? My lowers lasted to 160k before they needed replacing - so you may still have some life on yours. $2500 will get you King front coilovers and rear shocks, but it won't leave much for anything else (rear springs, coil conversion kit, etc). You mentioned Icon stage 1, but your budget would swing stage 2's, which would get you some uca's if they need replacement. If you're shooting for minimal lift as you'd mentioned (sub 2"), you may not need aftermarket uca's.

I guess when it comes to suspension, do you want rebuildable shocks or do you want consumables? With rebuildable shocks (icon, dob mrr, fcp), your rig can be down for a few weeks - you may have to send them away for servicing. With consumables, you just buy and replace once they're leaky / shot (ome, dob). It's hard to generalize, but consumable shocks may last longer before needing replacement (~50k??) vs rebuildables needing servicing (~30k??) - maybe somebody else can color this in more. This will narrow your choices.

It sounds like medium duty ome or dobinsons kits or a bilstein 6112/5160 kit would be the best fit. These would also leave room in your budget for replacing control arms if necessary, or allow you to shift some of your budget outside of suspension.
 
King would be my first choice but that can get pretty expensive. For your use and budget I'd look at some of these options:
-OME BP-51s
-Metaltech Radflo setup (Call Mark, he'll walk you through it)
-Toytec Boss 2.5
An adjustable suspension will allow you to dial-in depending on terrain and give the best handling on and off-road IMO.
As others have mentioned a diff drop is not necessary for 2-2.5" lift
UCA's are not needed but if you are going to spend the money on suspension they are the icing on the cake. I ran w/ out them for awhile and there is a very noticeable difference in alignment and handling from OE to an aftermarket once lifted.
If you want 50k I'd stay away from Icon.

Other things to consider are the RLLs. Stock are made of coke cans and the first time you hit something they'll be done. If you're doing the suspension I'd put these on the list as well. Some setups include them depending on what "stage" you go with.

Good luck!
 
The Toytec boss will give you a better ride. The Ironman setup will be pretty harsh. SPCs are around $500 so essentially $700 in the remainder.
 
That’s a basic shock setup. Looks like a 2” diameter front shock. You should do 2.5” diameter front shocks for the weight you plan.

You also have linear rear springs. Progressive rear springs would work better for your towing needs.
 
My recommendation is to get adjustable shocks for flexibility and rubber bushing for durability. KING, Fox, Icon, ARB OME BP-51 are nice but they do need more maintenance. People also complain a lot about the rod ends. They provide better suspension control but require a lot more maintenance and do make a lot more noise.
 
Thoughts on this (~$2100)
  • Front Coils:
    1 x BOSS20-700-R - ToyTec BOSS Coilovers - 700 Lb Red Coils
  • Front Swaybar Relocate Kit for Non-KDSS Vehicles:
    1 x SBR-129 - Front Sway Bar Relocate Kit
  • Rear Coils:
    1 x RCC2.0-P - Toytec Superflex Rear Coils (FJ, 03+ 4Runner, 03+GX)
  • Rear Shock Options:
    1 x TT-75109-P - Toytec Boss Rear Shocks (07+ FJ, 03+ 4Runner, 03+GX and 00-07 Sequoia)
  • Add Aftermarket Upper Control Arms:
    1 x 25480 - SPC Adjustable Upper Control Arms (FJ Cruiser, 03+ 4Runner and 03+ Lexus GX470/GX460)
  • Add Rear Coil Conversion Kit GX470/4Runner w/Airbags:
    1 x MT-GX470-4000 - 4Runner/GX470 Rear Coil Conversion Complete Kit
 
That’s a pretty solid setup. Might be able to remove the front swaybar altogether w/ 700lb coils. You might want to consider the HD superflex rear. The mediums are pretty soft and sag under load.
 
How does that setup compare to the pro foam cell ironman kit?
 
I went with Radflo 2.5 + Resi Front and Radflo 2.5 + Resi rear... and for UCA i went with JBA hi caster.

Total cost was around $3k. If you ditch the resi you can probably get it for $2500. I recommend getting at LEAST a 2.5" shock body suspension since these GX's are heavier.
 

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