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my concern is once there is 300lb in the back and 300lb in the front not including passengers, it’s going to sit even lower. I think I like yotaMDs suggestions. I’ll probably do medium duty springs in back and either adjust the torsion bars or by new ome ones when I add all the weight so it’s not sagging in front or rear.
I am not understanding what tire size has to do with cargo/vehicle weight?
if your AHC is working correctly it should never sit lower than it's supposed to on the N setting. It's designed to keep it at that height. If it cant handle the weight it will drop into low and that's when you should be worried about adjusting pressures and messing with other stuff.
), skid plates, etc... but I suggest you start simple and see what changes make sense as you go.
my concern is once there is 300lb in the back and 300lb in the front not including passengers, it’s going to sit even lower. I think I like yotaMDs suggestions. I’ll probably do medium duty springs in back and either adjust the torsion bars or by new ome ones when I add all the weight so it’s not sagging in front or rear.
the stock height part with 750-800lbs of pay load added to it after equipment and myself
That is awesome advice thanks for taking the time to do that.Hang on a second. I think we need some grounding here.
@LowDrag82 A numbered list of things for your consideration:
1. Lift height has nothing to do with tire size on a 100 series. Run 33's. That's fine with stock AHC at stock heights. I run 33.5" tires on slightly more aggressive stance wheels at stock heights. It needed a veeeeery slight reshaping of the fender liner. Zero metal bashing and zero cutting of anything. It's fine. 33.0" tires like a 275//70/18 are just fine with no liner reshaping. The problem with big tires on a 100 is the pinch weld area directly behind the front wheels. A lift does nothing to change that. In other vehicles, it's common to lift the car to fit bigger tires. That's not applicable to the 100 series. It's not a thing.
2. @OTRAMM Certainly knows his stuff. I won't attempt to speak for him, but I can offer my own phrasing which I could see being taken as you might have interpreted his input. AHC requires *active diligence* around weight gains. It's not that it's *fragile*, but it does have a pass/fail threshold that conventional doesn't have. AHC can handle a varying load *better* than conventional. Conventional suspension makes it very obvious as it's being overloaded. It tells you right away in very obvious visual and feeling ways. The car will sink and it will *feel* overloaded as you add weight. With AHC, you do *not* get those same warnings as you go. You add weight, AHC compensates. You add more weight, AHC compensates more. All good. The springs rates increase (due to increased hydraulic pressure) and the vehicle height and cornering response remain pretty close to original. You add enough weight and finally AHC hits the pressure limit and says, "sorry, you're over-limit". When this happens it fails to go into H or drop to L from N. It's the *same limit* conventional has, AHC just dealt with the variance *better* than conventional until you got way, way over the intended range. This action of AHC telling you that you're finally "over-limit" is what gives some people the incorrect perception that AHC is weak. You can reset the system's load carrying range by adjusting the torsion bars and rear springs. In that sense AHC has no "weight limit". That said, everything is easier if you keep weights as close to factory as practical.
3. Torsion bars and springs. You definitely do NOT want to use any of the common aftermarket springs for non-AHC vehicles. At least not at first. They will be WAY too strong unless you have a very, very heavy vehicle. Before you jump into possible spring replacements for the rear or torsion bar replacements for the front, you need to figure out what weight you're adding. The ARB bull bar is *heavy*. You can run that if you like, but I encourage you to look at the aluminum alternatives that offer similar protection at a fraction of the weight gain. My Dissent aluminum front bumper barely weighed more than the OEM bumper. The weight gain was almost entirely in the winch. I think the ARB bumper is a full 100-150 lbs heavier than Dissent. That's not a helpful thing.
Spring progression:
Front Torsion bars:
- AHC torsion bars (<- I'm right here, even with full aluminum armor, a winch, group 31 battery up front)
- Sway away custom bars
- non-AHC torsion bars
- Other aftermarket torsion bars for the 100
Rear Springs
- AHC Rear Springs
- King Springs
- King Springs plus spacer (commonly 30mm) (<- I'm right here and have neutral pressures just below spec)
- non-AHC Rear Springs
- Other Aftermarket Rear Springs
4. With AHC, ride height never changes as you add weight. That's the beauty of AHC. It is constantly measuring ride height and adjusting the vehicle to sit at the neutral height. Doesn't matter if you have 1 person or 6. Doesn't matter if you have a stock bumper or that ARB bull bar. The exception is when you drift beyond the appropriate neutral pressures - IE the pressure required in the hydraulic system to get the car at N height. Thankfully, this is *easily* adjusted. Plug in Techstream or a CANbus-capable OBD adapter with a phone app and crank your torsion bars or swap out rear springs.
Since you're new to 4x4 vehicles and the 100 platform, take a step back and go slow. It's a very capable vehicle without bumpers or a lift or even big tires. You know what's much more important that any aftermarket gear? Maintenance. Simple maintenance. Bushings. Fluids. All the boring stuff. You know what costs a lot? All that boring stuff, haha. CV axles are ~ $1500 per side to pay a competent shop. $600-750 if you're DIYing it. Driveshaft is like $600. My simple little water bypass gasket ended being a $1500 job with me doing all the labor in my already-fully-equipped garage.
It's tempting to bankrupt yourself in gear like sweet bumpers, Air Down Gear Up storage systems (shameless self-promotion
If you remember anything though: you don't need a lift.
That's a lot of weight -
600lb is half the total payload before AHC will default to low mode. The arb winch bar is 260lbs, the rear drawers are 100lbs, plus full size spare weight and cargo, then myself and possibly a co-pilot, it’s liable to be over 600lb. One benefit of the land cruiser with regular suspension is the payload is moved up to 1600lbs. Ahc is rated for 1200lb, according to the owners manual.
I’m just going off of what they said - they do seem to be rather conservative with modding.
this increases approach angles, called the winch bar according to Slee and it’s 260lb: ARB Winch Bar - '98-'07 Land Cruiser. - Slee Off Road - https://sleeoffroad.com/products/3413190/
Approach angle on this bumper is not good. I hate it. I'd love to get rid of mine, just need to find an alternative first.
I’ve looked at so many bumpers and it’s the only one I like the look of that fits (w minor modifications)
It's around 176-184lbs depending on who you ask. My understanding from ARB Coopers Plains (which is an ARB company store here in Brisbane), when comparing the ARB Deluxe Bar and the TJM Outback Bar, was that it was 80kgs or 176lbs.
forum.ih8mud.com
The vehicle height cannot be raised if the load exceeds the following limits:
Good point about the rear seats, them bitches were heavy. I forgot they were even in there as it was the first thing I took out.It's around 176-184lbs depending on who you ask. My understanding from ARB Coopers Plains (which is an ARB company store here in Brisbane), when comparing the ARB Deluxe Bar and the TJM Outback Bar, was that it was 80kgs or 176lbs.
100 Series Full Bull bar comparison.
Hey All, I've been doing a lot of research on full bull bars for my "99 and wanted to put all the info in one place for those shopping around. My main concern is with animal strikes as I live in an area of CA with a LOT of deer and black bears. I commute to work 25 miles and there are carcasses...
The vehicle height cannot be raised if the load exceeds the following limits:
(Quoted from P224 of my owner's manual)
- 572kg / 1,261lb in normal mode
- 442kg / 975lb in high mode
And as noted, it's really really easy (index or tighten Torsion Bars on the front, King Springs + optional 30mm spacers + optional airbags in the rear) to optimise (or baseline) the AHC for big increases in static weight. I dare suggest easier than a conventional suspension - the 200kgs Dobinsons rear springs were F I R M when the truck was empty.
Rear draws - they're lighter than the 2 seats I removed to put in.
The posters here have given you some factual advice based on their own experience with AHC and conventional suspension setups. There are members of the 'mud with serious armour on their AHC rigs, who regularly thank Toyota for such a great system.
Ehhh I'm good
Ahc components often last 3,4,500k miles. That’s highly uncommon for conventional shocks.
