Wow, its been a long time since I've updated this thread but better late than never, I guess.
So a lot has happened since our last update. The GX got an overhaul to be showcased at the 2015 FJ Summit. It was a blast but also a ton of work to get the truck ready. We developed some pretty good relationships with both Radflo and Total Chaos to make it happen and cant thank them enough. Great companies all around.
Anyway, on to the LONG TRAVEL BUILD!
First things first, the parts list. It was extensive and very costly even with dealer discounts and favors called in.
Total Chaos
+2" Long Travel kit - Race Version. Essentially the lower control arm is also the skid and has been internally gusseted to shrug off hard hits. It's also engineered for maximum ground clearance. The kit includes:
- Total Chaos Upper control arms
- Total Choas Race lower control arms with secondary shock mount
- Extended steel braided brake lines
- adjustable limit straps
Also necessary, are two chromoly +2" axle shafts to replace into your stock cv's. I opted to go all out with this build and ordered these optional parts from Total Chaos:
- Secondary Shock hoop
- Tower brace gussets
- cam tab gussets
- spindle gussets
Radflo
- 2.5 Remote Reservoir Long Travel front Coilovers with easy click dampening adjustment
- Double Bypass Secondary shock
- 2.5 Remote Reservoir Rear Shocks with easy click dampening adjustment
Other
- Metaltech offset rear lower control arms
- Metaltech air bag conversion
- Toytec Superflex 3" lift HD rear coils
Wheels/Tires
- Method Roosts in Bronze 18x9 -12 et
- Cooper ST MAXX 295/70-R18 tires coming in just a bit shy of 35" diameter. I choose these for their quiet road manners, good looks and the fact that they arent a full 35" because I knew it would be terribly difficult to get the clearance I would need for this long travel setup.
Lets start here:
This photo shows the beginning of the body work necessary to house this wider stance. Those are 285 khumo's mounted on the truck with the Cooper ST MAXX's for comparison. We basically chopped the fenders off at the body and made a wire mesh/fiberglass extension of about 2 inches on each side.
Here's the first rough draft of the fenders:
Of course with wider fenders means wider bumpers. So we had to build custom versions of our latest generation of bumpers for the GX.
Trying the new wheels and tires on before the suspension goes in
Finished Fender Flares
New Roof Rack
And this is where the whirlwind of work began. We were scheduled to arrive in Colorado by Wednesday which meant we had to start driving by Monday Morning. We werent able to start the suspension install until Saturday afternoon. Needless to say, I didnt have a lot of leisure time for pics but I did snag these pics at least.
Tear Down Complete
New Headlights!!
Rear complete
Comparison of Radflo 2.0 vs Radflo 2.5's long travel and some double bypass shock goodness. 2.0's were already set to 3" of lift and you can see how much longer these were. Currently I'm sitting at about 5 inches of total lift in the front
Front ready to be put back together
CHecking clearance
Latest Generation rear bumper with integrated swingarm into rear door using a heim joint. It makes living with a full size swing arm easy and pleasant
continued....