LJ78 6 inch lift with rear custom 3 link (1 Viewer)

[pradocruzer]

I'am almost finished my six inch lift and rear three link. The first picture is a four inch dobinson lift. If you are like me it is always not good enough. After five months of research and many lost nights of sleep the project started.
This March the family and I went to Japan to see the in-laws. The wife let me buy some 6 inch coils. I brought them back in my suite case.
My exhaust kicks out in front of the drivers rear tire which allowed me to build the third link cross member.
This Prado flexes like mad.
I have to tune in the bump stops and replace my shocks with longer ones. I cut the lower link mounts off the frame and moved them 8 inches ahead.
All my joints but one, are hiems from Bilistic fabrication.
The lower links are 37 inches and the third link is 26 inches. The ride is nice and stable at highway speeds but has the softness of a 6 inch lift with no rear swaybars should have.

I hope this gives everybody great ideas. I don't know if this setup is the best but it sure feels good to me and works well.
I would love to see everyones custom lifts.
Any questions just ask. We are all on the same team.

Landcruisers Rock!!

 

[pradocruzer]

More pics

Some more pics.

 

[pradocruzer]

one more

one more

 

[Roland]

one more

Nice job....

 

[LCHJ60]

Yeah thats looking really nice man!

 

[prado t]

Good Work, I am glad to see that someone is modifying these creatures.

 

[RHD Toyota's]

is the front the same as the rear, i mean 37 inch lower links and all

what springs are you using

 

[pradocruzer]

The six inch coil springs are from www.rabbitauto.com This site is all in Japanese with cool pics and ideas. The front suspension is all stock, arms ect. I made sway bar drop blocks and the panhard has been extended with 9000 rancho's. I built castor correction plates to restore the drivibilty.
I will covert the front to a three link also as soon as the bank account will let me. If you look at the lengths of the coil springs you can see that they stoped the lean to the right. The right front coil is 1.5 inches longer then the left front spring and the rear right spring is 1 inch longer then the left spring.

 

[prado t]

I keep coming back to this thread I love my 74 but I sure miss my 78

 

[champjack]

wow that is awsome great job

 

[1990 LJ78]

Great job ... Pradocruzer
Shows what can be done to our Prados..
Lift wise..
I also like the info on comparison of spring heights.
My Prado is starting the famous lean.. to the right..
Will have to fix that soon too I guess.
Closing 90,000Kms too almost time for belts etc..

Regards

 

[pradocruzer]

When I put in my four inch Dobinson coils, the rear was 1 inch higher then the front and the front and rear right side was one inch lower then the left side. As you could see it looked silly. I used spacers to level it out.
With the new six inch coils the front coils are 1/4 inch lower then the rears and the truck is dead level.

 

[simonliew]

Hi Pradocruzer,
what do you do to correct front caster?
l have a Zeal 3" lift on my HZJ77 with longer shackles,the Zeal leaves only work with longer shackles,l had 2.5 degree castershims and it was driving allover the road,now l put 4 degrees shims and i think l may need more caster,or could be the 10" wide wheels that cause it to wonder.
Those Zeal leaves ride rough,if l have to do it again,l go springover.
Simon
TLC import
Winnipeg

 

[pradocruzer]

Hey Simon. The very first thing I did with my truck before any mods is I put it on my alignment rack at work and printed out all my reading for the stock truck. When the suspension lift was finished the truck went back on the rack. The front diff was losened off and set live to the original castor reading. Two holes were drilled in the castor plates I made and it's drove great ever since.
I do not know your castor specs. There are so many smart people here some one must know.
Do not guess any more. Find out your front castor spec, take your truck to an alignment shop get them to record all your readings.
The simple math will tell you the shim you will need.
After your castor is returned to normal take it back to the shop and get the toe set. Camber is not adjustable unless major modifications. If the truck still wanders it is not the alignment and now your front is set up.

Hope this helps.

 

[RHD Toyota's]

could you order me some springs I can't read Japanese

 

[lulo]

Beautiful Job Mate !, nice Toy ,

 

[RHD Toyota's]

how much of a benefit is it to lengthen the trailing arms, as it seems you can get away with the front as it is?

 

[RHD Toyota's]

also your loosing ground clearance the further you move them forward are you not.

What about a bent set-up

 

[brownbear]

looks very nice... but now you need bigger tires to fit those new holes

 

[pradocruzer]

Thanks for all the great comments every one, like I said please ask questions.
Hey RHD. The great flex the rear of this truck has is not the extended lower controll arms, it is the the thee link set up.
My original plan was not to move the lower mounts foward. The hiem joints with spacers is perfect fit on the stock mounts (two inches wide).
I was only going to make the third link and build lower arms on the stock brackets.
After I put in the six inch lift I found the controll arm angle was not to my liking.
If you put your prado in drive and stomp on it with the brakes on full you will feel the truck lift up.
With the six inch lift and stock arms, it lifted up a lot.
This can be great for rockkrawling but suffers on other offroading.
I wanted my truck to do all off roading. I know this will never happen.
The longer arms has less upward lift and alows more downward travel.
We all know that locked or not, all four wheels on the ground is a good thing.
I myself do not like bending steel, unless done right you lose strength. The lower controll arms are 2 inch 1/4 wall dom tubing.
I can drag them all day.
The six inch lift will work just fine without the third link and longer arms. The flex wont be there but you will have lots of fun all day.

Yes brown Bear I do need bigger tires and new wider rims. The tires are from my suzuki sidekick with a sammy front end so they were free. I'am broke these days. Soon I hope (just have to work on the wife.)

Thanks everyone