pinion angle (1 Viewer)

[Girlslovedirt]

Never have had a quad coil rig that i wanted to lift. Here is my question ...
How do you get the correct pinion angle when increasing the suspension ?
I'm used to leaf sprung rigs where you use shims to get the desired pinion angle or cut and weld your perches. Is this the same for the fzj ? just cut and weld the spring perches or what . I didn't think i was going to install my lift but i can't find a shop i trust to do it for me.

 

[landtank]

How high are you going. I'm not aware of an issue until you approach 4~5 inches. I think that the J series springs don't have any issues and they are above 3".

Also this doesn't seem to follow any set rule either. Depending on the age of the truck you would want to replace the U-Joints along with the springs as the older Joints might not like the new angles and cause vibrations as well.

And unlike a leaf spring where the axle drops straight down, the arms of a coil setup act like a hinge and don't effect the angles as much.

 

[Kalawang]

Never have had a quad coil rig that i wanted to lift. Here is my question ...
How do you get the correct pinion angle when increasing the suspension ?
I'm used to leaf sprung rigs where you use shims to get the desired pinion angle or cut and weld your perches. Is this the same for the fzj ? just cut and weld the spring perches or what . I didn't think i was going to install my lift but i can't find a shop i trust to do it for me.

If you're just going 2" above stock, just get the springs and fiddle with your panhard to re-center the body if necessary. Some people find adjustable panhards a blessing at this point. Somewhere beyond 2" and for sure at 4" and above you need a real lift kit designed for your LC if you want to maintain highway driveability.

By my experience, a 2" lift with 33" tires is the most cost effective for general use daily drive and mild trailing. Some friends swear by their 3" lift's but I haven't had direct experience with their cruisers.


Kalawang

 

[Darwood]

As you know on a leaf spring truck you could just cut the spring perches and reposition the pinion angle (however this could effect caster depending on how you rotate). The 80 is a little more difficult. The spring perches are pretty involved and I don't think anyone here would recommend torching them off. Pretty much the way to rotate the front pinion would be to somehow adjust how the control arms hold the axle. On the 80 you have a 3 link system (two control arms and a panhard arm). To rotate the pinion you would either install off center bushings at the axle side, move the axle mounting holes for the control arm, or get new control arms.

What most folks do, after a certain lift range (4+), is replace the front 2 u joint drive shaft with a double cardan drive shaft and then install slees castor plates or control arms to fix the caster that goes negative after a lift. The pinion is actually pointing pretty high due to the strange u joint setup when stock. The stock setup uses a 90 degree out of phase u joint since the joints are not parallel but instead are just at equal angles.

Hope this helps,

 

[Kalawang]

There are actually stock LC80's with leaf springs ? That's new to me. All the 80's I see here are coils, with the exception of some racers that are modded to take leaf springs.


Kalawang

 

[Girlslovedirt]

How high are you going. I'm not aware of an issue until you approach 4~5 inches. I think that the J series springs don't have any issues and they are above 3".

Also this doesn't seem to follow any set rule either. Depending on the age of the truck you would want to replace the U-Joints along with the springs as the older Joints might not like the new angles and cause vibrations as well.

And unlike a leaf spring where the axle drops straight down, the arms of a coil setup act like a hinge and don't effect the angles as much.

I am in the decision phase right now. Its really hard for me to pick what lift i want to get. 6'' vs J springs (3''- 4''). All my previous trail/dailey drivers i never had the newts to go higher than 4'' and the excitement of the lift always wore off pretty fast. I was determined to get the 6'' lift buit there has been so many people talking me out of it and just go with the J springs. I'v actual;ly put so much thought into it that i am bummed out and don't even want to mess with it anymore , kinda sucks. Maybe i should just stop over analyzing things and buy one.
One thing i know is that i will be running 35-36 inch tires. Everyone tells me its not about lift its about bumpstop location .. blah blah blah. I don't want a rig that looks good but performs like crap on the trail. I rather tear s*** up on the LC and it function and flex awesome than be resting on bumpstops flexing a few inches.

 

[landtank]

I'd wait for the series of 4" lifts that are coming out soon. Several places are going to be offering them, they they seem to be taking slightly different approaches to the issues that come from that high a lift. So we should get a nice choice of options once both are released.

But nonestly a lift on a coil truck really isn't all that expensive compared to leaf sprung truck. If you don't tow I'd put the 850Js up front and the 863s in the rear with OME shocks. Use Christo's caster plate and be done with it. I honestly don't think you'll have any pinion angle issues or any need to screw with the panhard rods. Very cost effective and if you were to swap in new springs after you trail tested them, they could easily be sold to another 80 owner.

But your probably tired of hereing yet another opinion

Good luck