How High is "Too High" to lift my FJ?

[knoll0351]

My FJ is my daily driver as well as my off road toy. I wheel it almost every weekend and need to add some additional lift. I've never lifted a rig before and don't know how much lift will make it overly top heavy. I'd rather not role my FJ while side hilling and I'd also like to not have to replace my drive shafts or anything extra.

 

[FJTex]

right now pretty much everyone is offering 3" of lift if you're looking for an actual suspension lift. spacers can give you an additional inch but taht doesnt really give you any extra travel, infact just a little less. there is a 6" kit that is out (i think its tough country's) but its a drop bracket lift so you're ground clearance isint really all that improoved. personally i'd like 4.5" of pure suspension but i think that if you go over 3" it will require a drop bracket for the front susp. or at least different controll arms or axles. anyone correct me if i'm wrong here.

 

[eleblanc]

And i've read all 6" kit requires 18" wheels!

 

[inkpot]

And i've read all 6" kit requires 18" wheels!

Howdy! Our club has several lifted and very lifted FJ's, and I can't see any mechanical reason to to to bigger wheels. They are not changing the O.D. of the brakes, and that is what prescribes the wheel size. John

 

[BC_FJC]

What type of trails are you going on?
How much off camber stuff you do?
How big of a problem has ground clearance been?
What type of ground clearance problems have you had? approch&Brake over angles or just dragging the belly of the truck

my thougts are to keep the CG as low as you can while still giving you the clearance you require

 

[ridgerunner]

Howdy! Our club has several lifted and very lifted FJ's, and I can't see any mechanical reason to to to bigger wheels. They are not changing the O.D. of the brakes, and that is what prescribes the wheel size. John

When you start messing with struts through, does that change the game?

 

[knoll0351]

What type of trails are you going on?
How much off camber stuff you do?
How big of a problem has ground clearance been?
What type of ground clearance problems have you had? approch&Brake over angles or just dragging the belly of the truck

my thougts are to keep the CG as low as you can while still giving you the clearance you require

Most of the runs I've been on have been Rock crawlin' and such. I have run the back half of Mc Grew a couple of times and trails of the like. So far I've replaced my tail pipe three times as it hangs too low, but that could be corrected in other ways. Mainly my muffler has been banged up pretty badly and I'm pretty concerned about my fuel tank as it hangs fairly low, so I take most of the abuse on my passanger side under carriage. I do side hill quite a bit as well so I'm trying to find the best of both worlds...that's why I chose an FJ because it is as close to perfec stock as you can get.

 

[eleblanc]

Howdy! Our club has several lifted and very lifted FJ's, and I can't see any mechanical reason to to to bigger wheels. They are not changing the O.D. of the brakes, and that is what prescribes the wheel size. John

From what i've read on fjcruiserforum all the 5-6" kit available have long knuckle / tie-rod direction and requires larger diameter rims. Maybe a good spacer or a large offset wheel solves it. any how i have no experience, just what i have read. Because i was looking/evaluating cost to raise a FJ up to 6", and the 18" wheel requirement is not really pratical for serious offroading. If there is a way around this i'd like to know.

 

[BC_FJC]

Most of the runs I've been on have been Rock crawlin' and such. I have run the back half of Mc Grew a couple of times and trails of the like. So far I've replaced my tail pipe three times as it hangs too low, but that could be corrected in other ways. Mainly my muffler has been banged up pretty badly and I'm pretty concerned about my fuel tank as it hangs fairly low, so I take most of the abuse on my passanger side under carriage. I do side hill quite a bit as well so I'm trying to find the best of both worlds...that's why I chose an FJ because it is as close to perfec stock as you can get.

I went with more armor, high clearance tail pipe, and a 3" lift, as I travel on a little of everything and have been happy with it so far...
hope this helps

 

[knoll0351]

I went with more armor, high clearance tail pipe, and a 3" lift, as I travel on a little of everything and have been happy with it so far...
hope this helps

That's what I was thinking, thank you for the first hand information. I was looking OME, which kit did you use and did you just go springs and shocks or did you purchase new struts as well?

 

[spaldam]

my thougts are to keep the CG as low as you can while still giving you the clearance you require

I agree. That's why you should only do as much lift as is needed for the size of tire you want, because bigger tires are what truly improve ground clearance. Having more lift then you need might look cool, but from a functionality point of view it only makes you top heavy.


I've always thought that doing a little bit of trimming was better then an extra inch or two of lift. I'm planning on 285/75/16's (33") with no lift on my FJC once my stock tires ware out (or if someone what’s to trade). If I do lift it'll be no more then 3", and I'll expect to be able to put 315/75/16's (35") on it at that point (with a wheel spacer, and a little trimming).


If you do go with a 6" lift that requires 18" wheels, than I'd expect you'd want to put on some massive tires like 335/75/18 (38"). You'd still have a good amount of sidewall with that, but you'd also need some massive off-sets on your wheels.

Here's a calculator to help out with the measurements:

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

 

[BC_FJC]

That's what I was thinking, thank you for the first hand information. I was looking OME, which kit did you use and did you just go springs and shocks or did you purchase new struts as well?

I went with the All-Pro, http://www.allprooffroad.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=131, but the OME is a good kit to.

 

[TennesseeSquire]

right now pretty much everyone is offering 3" of lift if you're looking for an actual suspension lift. spacers can give you an additional inch but taht doesnt really give you any extra travel, infact just a little less. there is a 6" kit that is out (i think its tough country's) but its a drop bracket lift so you're ground clearance isint really all that improoved. personally i'd like 4.5" of pure suspension but i think that if you go over 3" it will require a drop bracket for the front susp. or at least different controll arms or axles. anyone correct me if i'm wrong here.

There is a Rough Country 6" lift, but it's not for sale to the public yet.

 

[woody]

In my opinion....

3-4" lift is perfect for anything your pocketbook is willing to accept for body damage....

spend money on sliders....FULL skid plates.....front bumper/winch.....rear bumper....control arm bracket skids....aftermarket rear lower control arms....spare front CV.... The Team's run products from RevTek, ARB, Warn, Toyota, BudBuilt, AllPro...mmm....I think that's it....lol

then, some research regarding fitting 295-305-315 size tires and the options available....

"more lift" does nothing...proper protection will get you a long ways....the Trail Team proves this continually...Gustaf and I took a pair of Team FJ's thru Lower2 in Tellico and thoroughly tested our sliders and skids...a more aggressive tire than the BFG-AT would have been nice, but more lift would have made minimal difference.

 

[TennesseeSquire]

And i've read all 6" kit requires 18" wheels!

From what i've read on fjcruiserforum all the 5-6" kit available have long knuckle / tie-rod direction and requires larger diameter rims. Maybe a good spacer or a large offset wheel solves it. any how i have no experience, just what i have read. Because i was looking/evaluating cost to raise a FJ up to 6", and the 18" wheel requirement is not really pratical for serious offroading. If there is a way around this i'd like to know.

The Rough Country 6" does not require 18" wheels. I have 17" American Racing Victor's with 33 x 12.50 Mickey Thompson BAJA MTZ's.

 

[FJTex]

I agree. That's why you should only do as much lift as is needed for the size of tire you want, because bigger tires are what truly improve ground clearance. Having more lift then you need might look cool, but from a functionality point of view it only makes you top heavy.


I've always thought that doing a little bit of trimming was better then an extra inch or two of lift. I'm planning on 285/75/16's (33") with no lift on my FJC once my stock tires ware out (or if someone what’s to trade). If I do lift it'll be no more then 3", and I'll expect to be able to put 315/75/16's (35") on it at that point (with a wheel spacer, and a little trimming).


If you do go with a 6" lift that requires 18" wheels, than I'd expect you'd want to put on some massive tires like 335/75/18 (38"). You'd still have a good amount of sidewall with that, but you'd also need some massive off-sets on your wheels.

Here's a calculator to help out with the measurements:

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.htmlhttp://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.htmlhttp://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.htmlhttp://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

Runner Ryan runs 37" krawlers with 3" of lift on his FJ (or at least he DID) if you do a search you can find a thread detailing where and how much he trimmed for it. FWIW.