Suspension decision, input?

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LL247

LL247

10 Year
Joined
Oct 15, 2013
Threads
5
Messages
49
First off, I appreciate you guys throwing in the input when I was much more confused as to what to get. At the time I was super tight budget, but reeeeeally wanted to lift the Cruiser. Long story short, my wife popped into my buddy's offroad shop and called me to say "I'm ordering all your stuff right now, just so you know." to which I replied, "Awesome! But I'm not totally sure what I want yet?" and she says "Well it's now or never so figure it out in 5 minutes." Even though I tried to talk her into the BP51 route, she said that's too over budget. So she ended up ordering wheels/tires and the standard OME lift, it was 'budget friendly' for what she wanted to spend. I then called my buddy and said, I don't think I want that lift LOL!

So here's the bottom line, the side money I had for a lift is still there. Since the wife bought the wheels/tires and has 1k in there for the OME lift, my plan is to use what I have to bump it up to a lift I'll be happy with. So why another thread posted? Because after reading more and more, it appears everyone with the Ironman FCP lift is pretty happy in terms of ride quality, and price is pretty good. I'm wondering if the BP51 (or any other suggestions) setup is worth the extra money? Remember, my primary is on road comfort with a little bit of light trail duty on the side.

I know you're asking, what were the wheels and tires? Honestly I can't recall the brand at the moment, they're on a display and I loved them. Originally I wanted Method Racing wheels, but these are apparently the same size/offset at 18" and +25. Tires are 305/65 BFG KO2

Input is appreciated! I want to get the lift ordered ASAP!
 
I would stay with the stock wheels. They are fine. If you feel the need to spend money, then I would go with the wheels on the Heritage Edition. I believe they are somewhat lighter, reducing unsprung weight. But they are quite expensive.
 
I had OME suspension with medium duty springs on my previous 200’s and they were fine. They are a bit firm over speed bumps. Super reliable and pretty comfortable on the highway. Now that I have ICONs, I would never go back to OME. My next set will be Radflo or King’s. I would just keep your rig stock to save up for a nicer system that you will really enjoy for many years to come and not regret getting something because it was within budget at the moment. Your stock rig is plenty for most environments.
 
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I pulled the trigger on the BP51 setup about an hour ago. From everything I've read, people are happy with them so going to see how that goes.

Lift goes on Wednesday, I'll post some pics when I get it back from the shop.
 
Well... Shop rescheduled for next week... Stay tuned.

20200127_150741.jpg
 
Those are +12 offset.
 
LL247 said:
I'm aware, I originally didn't pick those wheels but the wife did. Will everything fit and function? No idea, gonna find out.
Click to expand...
It will be tricky with the 305/65. Definitely going to have to remove (or heavily trim) the front mud flaps and redrill the fender liner forward and/or trim. In my build thread you can see me do similar to run 285/70R17 on +0 offset without a lift. +25-40mm is about the sweet spot for not rubbing excessively, but also clearing struts and being flush with the fenders on the larger tire sizes between 33-35".

Another solid affordable lift option to look into is Dobinsons - that is the route I will most likely be going when I do my lift. Ironman (Foamcell Pro) and Tough Dog are some other alternatives to the OME Nitrochargers. These are all twin tube, gas shocks (non rebuildable). If you want a rebuildable coilover that isn't as expensive as BP51 or Kings, I would recommend checking out the Slinky Intermediate-Long Travel 70-75mm lift kits for the Land Cruiser 200 - it's basically a specially configured Icon kit.

Most likely SPC UCA's would be your best bet for also adjusting alignment with the 305/65 and whichever lift, as well as mitigating rubbing. If you combine it with a spacer lift in the front, then I would also recommend a diff drop.
 
timjax said:
It will be tricky with the 305/65. Definitely going to have to remove (or heavily trim) the front mud flaps and redrill the fender liner forward and/or trim. In my build thread you can see me do similar to run 285/70R17 on +0 offset without a lift. +25-40mm is about the sweet spot for not rubbing excessively, but also clearing struts and being flush with the fenders on the larger tire sizes between 33-35".

Another solid affordable lift option to look into is Dobinsons - that is the route I will most likely be going when I do my lift. Ironman (Foamcell Pro) and Tough Dog are some other alternatives to the OME Nitrochargers. These are all twin tube, gas shocks (non rebuildable). If you want a rebuildable coilover that isn't as expensive as BP51 or Kings, I would recommend checking out the Slinky Intermediate-Long Travel 70-75mm lift kits for the Land Cruiser 200 - it's basically a specially configured Icon kit.

Most likely SPC UCA's would be your best bet for also adjusting alignment with the 305/65 and whichever lift, as well as mitigating rubbing. If you combine it with a spacer lift in the front, then I would also recommend a diff drop.
Click to expand...

Not worried about excess trimming, I've done it on many vehicles over the years. As for lift recommendation, if you read above I've already pulled the trigger on the BP51 setup, got the SPC UCA's too because I assumed adjustability will be key fitting this setup right.

Goes on the rack Tuesday at my buddy's offroad shop. I'm confident since they're mainly a shop for lifts, wheels, and tires and have been around for 30 years. He's also lifted around 15 of my vehicles over the last ten years so there's some trust. My '18 Ram 2500 is running a wheel/tire setup that, according to everyone, is not supposed to work due to offset and width. After 20k miles I've never had a single problem... I know it's a different animal but using it as an example, I trust this guy's shop will do what needs to be done in reason. He did say, if he doesn't feel we can make it work properly, he'll allow a return to choose another wheel/tire combo.

I'm taking it to a different shop for alignment though, another friend of mine has an auto shop down the road that specializes in highline vehicles. He has some big, new alignment gadgetry and assures me he can get the 200 on point like it's supposed to be.
 
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