Lift Kit for a 96 4 runner

[yotacruzer93]

im looking for a lift kit that has doesnt have blocks in the rear and will work off road not just to look cool. the trials i ride are pretty washed out so i need to be able to flex it out a little. i know is ifs i dont really need that whole story. some time ago i saw i saw a company that make a kit that would really flex but i cant seem to find it any more
thanks
matt

 

[bkfj40]

go Old Man Emu (OME) for the lift...

lots of vendors on here can set you up - the closest to you and a great set of guys is IronPig Offroad down in Fredericksburg, VA

 

[StevenS]

I 2nd the OME set up. I have this on my Tacoma and love it. You won't regret it. Great performance and reasonable price point too. Get stiff springs if you're planning to go Expedition style and plan to carry a lot of gear full time. If you don't anticipate regular heavy loads then you can get away with the medium springs, which will make for a less harsh ride. Good luck.

S

 

[yotacruzer93]

what is the biggest tire set up you can run with the OME set up? can it fit 33s?

 

[pillguy]

Go with Sonoran steel lift kit

I have his lift kit in my vehicle. Tundra springs in front and land cruiser coils in back. I got 3" lift in front and about 3.5" in back
Cruiser coils are comfy. You do not to get too stiff a spring otherwise you willnhate it. Read yotatech and other sites to get a feel for what is out there

 

[cruiseroutfit]

I'll second the options presented here. Having dealt with and installed many of the suspensions on the market for the 3rd gen, in the end the OME is the only kit we choose to stock on the shelf. Not to say there are not other kits out there just that we have had really good results with the OME components. Using the LC rear springs is a great option too, with a half dozen different 80/450 front OEM coil varieties you can really tune the suspension to your needs.

 

[ToyTec Lifts]

We have a variety of lifts. We also offer adjustable coilovers in our Ultimate lift kit.
Ultimate lift kit for 96-02 4Runner - Toytec Lifts: Toyota Lift Kits: FJ Cruiser Lift Kits, Tacoma Lift Kits, Tundra Lift Kits, 4 Runner Lift Kits, Sequoia Lift Kits, Toyota Truck Lift Kits

 

[StevenS]

go Old Man Emu (OME) for the lift...

lots of vendors on here can set you up - the closest to you and a great set of guys is IronPig Offroad down in Fredericksburg, VA

Is that James Asti's outfit?

 

[cruiserbent]

Sonoran Steel. Just installed the 1.2A kit. Love it. Great ride,great flex. Get it with the front springs assembled.

 

[brian2sun]

The SS 1.2 is a nice lift, but it's almost double the price of the OME kit and comes with a bunch of expensive custom doodads that you can either make yourself or they just plain aren't needed, like:
-The brake line extension (you can bend the bracket down for free)
-The sway bar adjustment brackets (you will want to remove the sway bars anyways if what you want is flex)
-The flush zerk fitting (buy a small M6 bolt for $1 or a needle grease zerk fitting)
-The adjustable pan hard bar (buy a pan hard drop bracket from Toytec and save $150 or just keep using the stock one and let the axle be 3/16" off to the passenger side) I have my stock pan hard and have had no problems for several years now.
-The Daystar bump stops (if you want more flex, these limit it). I have much more flex than a SS 1.2 will give you and I still rest on my factory bump stops, no problem.
-Parking brake bracket (never needed one for mine).
The SS 1.2 lift can be sourced and pieced together with what you actually need for ~1/4-1/2 of the price SS gets.

I love my OMEs and they are much better for carrying extra weight (from bumpers, sliders, skids, etc..) than the Tundra/LC coils, but the Tundra/LC coils ride smoother so that's a personal choice. My OMEs ride as smooth as any kit out there, but I also carry ~600 lbs extra weight so that makes them ride like a Caddy.
The only issue I have with the OME kit is, if you remove your rear sway bar, the rear shocks aren't long enough to let the suspension do a full cycle so you will bend or break the shocks after a while. I got Tokico Trekkmasters made for a FJZ80 Landcruiser (for $35 each new) and they are ~2" longer than the OMEs and support all the flex you will be able to get.

Since you mentioned flex, some custom rear heim-jointed lower control arms will give you more flex than anything else will. Here's some pics of my flex:

And the thread for my links:
4runner Custom Lower Links ! - Toyota - 4Runner . org Forum

Here's a good read all about your lift options:
3rd Gen 4Runner Lift Information and FAQ's - Toyota - 4Runner . org Forum

Good luck!

 

[pillguy]

thanks for the link. I am wanting to do something like that. heim joints that is..

The SS 1.2 is a nice lift, but it's almost double the price of the OME kit and comes with a bunch of expensive custom doodads that you can either make yourself or they just plain aren't needed, like:
-The brake line extension (you can bend the bracket down for free)
-The sway bar adjustment brackets (you will want to remove the sway bars anyways if what you want is flex)
-The flush zerk fitting (buy a small M6 bolt for $1 or a needle grease zerk fitting)
-The adjustable pan hard bar (buy a pan hard drop bracket from Toytec and save $150 or just keep using the stock one and let the axle be 3/16" off to the passenger side) I have my stock pan hard and have had no problems for several years now.
-The Daystar bump stops (if you want more flex, these limit it). I have much more flex than a SS 1.2 will give you and I still rest on my factory bump stops, no problem.
-Parking brake bracket (never needed one for mine).
The SS 1.2 lift can be sourced and pieced together with what you actually need for ~1/4-1/2 of the price SS gets.

I love my OMEs and they are much better for carrying extra weight (from bumpers, sliders, skids, etc..) than the Tundra/LC coils, but the Tundra/LC coils ride smoother so that's a personal choice. My OMEs ride as smooth as any kit out there, but I also carry ~600 lbs extra weight so that makes them ride like a Caddy.
The only issue I have with the OME kit is, if you remove your rear sway bar, the rear shocks aren't long enough to let the suspension do a full cycle so you will bend or break the shocks after a while. I got Tokico Trekkmasters made for a FJZ80 Landcruiser (for $35 each new) and they are ~2" longer than the OMEs and support all the flex you will be able to get.

Since you mentioned flex, some custom rear heim-jointed lower control arms will give you more flex than anything else will. Here's some pics of my flex:

And the thread for my links:
4runner Custom Lower Links ! - Toyota - 4Runner . org Forum

Here's a good read all about your lift options:
3rd Gen 4Runner Lift Information and FAQ's - Toyota - 4Runner . org Forum

Good luck!