Question About my Lift Kit

Hi there,

Im new here. I've been doing weeks of research and due diligence and finally came up with a kit setup that I think I want to go with! I would be curious to hear your opinion, advice, etc.

My car,
2023 4Runner(5Th Gen) TRD OffRoad Premium, 18k Miles.

What I want to do?
I just want to lift it 2.5" in the front and 2"in the rear. Its mainly for look and I will use it for commuting, city driving, shopping, gym, etc.

Kit I want to go with,

FRONT
BILSTEIN 5100 FRONT SHOCK
DOBINSON 2.5" Coilspring(C59-302)
JBA HIGH CASTER UCA
UPPER STRUT MOUNT

REAR
BILSTEIN 5100 REAR SHOCK
DOBINSON 2" Coilspring(C59-505B)
UPPER STRUT MOUNT

FALKEN WILDPEAK 285/70/R17 AT4W
METHOD MR305
METHOD LUGNUT KIT

What do you think? am I missing something? Is it a balanced kit for what its worth and what I need it for?

If the answer is yes?

JBA HIGH CASTER UCA says 'Every 3,000-5,000 miles: Grease the ball joint with lithium complex grease fortified with moly, until you see the boots swell (3-4pumps). Grease the arm bushings with the same grease until you see grease pushing out from the EZ Lube ports.' in their website... Is there alternative to this where I don't have to deal with the greasy process like the OEM?

Thank you so much in advance! I've been doing lots of research, watching videos and lots of calls. Im still not 100% sure about which direction to go. Your advice is highly appreciated.

 

If its for the look, skip the UCA's and see if you can get it aligned with factory UCA's. I was running 2" of lift and factory UCA's for the past nine years and 110,000 miles without issue.

 

Welcome

 

welcome. Agree with above, save the UCA money. 2.5 and below not really needed for alignment purposes. If something is wrong with your OEM UCAs yes, change them at this time.

 

welcome

 

Thank you everyone!

 

Thank you for the answer

 

Welcome from Wisconsin!

 

if your 99% street, Id lean towards my set up. Check out the details in my info page. I looove my setup. Been on several 1000 mile family trip loaded for vacation and ride quality imo is amazing and i have stock ucas. No bmc, no trimming and kept all mudflaps in place.

 

+1 on stock UCAs. I have dobinsons IMS suspension with the 302s up front and 599s(a little shorter than what you’re going for) in the rear and this is how it sits on 275/70/17s. I ended up with about 2.5(maybe even a bit more) up front and was still able to get a good alignment. I’ll probably lower the front a smidge in the future to account for rear weight as I add it... Or put a bumper on

tinkerer’s adventure has a great video on UCAs.

 

You can get the front end aligned and caster in check with stock upper control arms as long as you dont go over +2.5" of lift up front.
You dont need aftermarket upper control arms unless you are going 3" or more lift up front.
If you are lifting the front +2.5" then you only need about 7/8" of lift in the rear to stay perfectly level so doing +2" in the rear is going to stay similar to stock with a little rake and keep you a little rear upward.

+2.5" up front and Eibach +1" springs in the rear is a legit setup that is practically perfectly level and looks and rides great.

 

Hey we both have Lunar Rock!

Firstly, Thank you for the reply and posting the pictures to give me an idea!

I went and took a look at your info page! I think the reason you're not rubbing and not having BMC with 2" and 1.5" in the rear is that you're using Stock TRD OFF ROAD wheels. I ordered Method MR305 17" 0 offset and I think it has more dish than the stock TRD off road wheels. And that is exactly why I want to lift mine .5" in the front and 1" in the rear more than yours so I can fit the Wildpeaks(285/70/r17) without rubbing after removing the mud flops and tiny bit of trimming in the front fascia!

Thanks again

 

WOW It sits really good on those 275's! Love it!

Thank you for the reply!

 

This was really helpful! I know this is not very common but I kinda like a little rake cuz it doesn't look like its sagging! Im not a big fan of leveling this car cuz it looks boring and static in side view! But after your advice, maybe I only do 1.5" in the rear to have a tiny bit of a rake and more clearance for 285 WILDPEAKS! What do you think?

 

Maybe not the best picture in the world, but this is +2.55" up front and +0.875" in the rear on 305s
This "APPEARS" that the rear fender has a bit more room than the front, and that is correct it does. There is about 0.5" extra gap on the rear fender vs front fenders. If you are looking at fender gap it looks like i'm +0.5" in the rear
HOWEVER
When you put this vehicle on concrete and put a 4ft level on the running board is is EXACTLY perfectly level. The lower window trim rakes upward slightly, but the bottom of the rear window is level with the running boards.
This vehicle has weird physical lines, the lower window trim is not on the same plane as the lower rocker and the fender gaps dont mean level. This vehicle is absolutely dead nuts level on concrete, the running boards and lower rockers are dead on flat with the ground. The lower window trim rakes upward and the fender gaps make it appear rear high slightly. Dont go by fender gap alone use your measurements.

+2.5" up front and +1" in the rear is basically dead on level on a 4wd even though the fender gaps wont match.

 

I have a different opinion. Get the SPC UCA instead. Yes, you still have to do a little maintenance on these but you will gain flexibility for alignment purposes and for fitting the 285s. I am not a fan of the stock UCA's, they are weak IMO and dont offer you the flexibility of the other ones when it comes to fitment. If you are just a mall crawler, then you will probably won't be servicing the SPCs. There are other choices on UCA but way more expensive and for more tough applications. I say do it right.

 

I just chimed in to say you don't need UCAs, but it appears most other people have told you that also.

The Dob coils are overkill for your intended use but it's your money and truck!

 

Welcome!

I agree, skip the UCAs. Believe it or not, high caster UCAs actually increase the chance of rubbing. And since yours is essentially brand new, you've got another 150k before you need to worry about the UCA ball joints or bushings.

FYI, most people do 2.5" front and only ONE inch in the rear, it gives it a more level appearance and at only an inch you don't need to worry about shock length or axle shift. The higher you lift the rear, the more the axle shifts towards one side of the vehicle.

 

My driveway isn't perfectly flat, but here's a pic of mine with 2.7" up front and 1.5" in the back.

 

Looks great, how's it ride?

 

6112's in the front (extra weight springs) with 5160's in the back. Rides great.

 

Thank you so much for the detailed response! I appreciate it!
I think I will go with 2.5"/1.5".

 

Just ordered Dobinson UCA Thanks for the advice

 

This is PERFECT! Exactly what I want! Hey thank you for sharing the picture! I LOVE IT! I will go 2.5" Front/ 1.5" Rear!
Do you mind sharing where you got the Running boards?

 

Those are 5 degree with top plate RCI sliders.

 

Aren’t SPC still a gamble? Far as I hear, even the revised ball joints are still prone to quick failure.

I kept the stock UCAs with around 2.5 in of lift. The alignment specs were ever so slightly out of spec in caster (about 0.1 degrees out). It drove fine for my tastes, but you can expect the steering to be slightly more “lively” as caster angles are reduced. If you can’t live with the idea that it might feel like it needs more correction to keep it centered on the highway, then aftermarket UCAs might be right for you. Personally, I’d go with dobinson UCAs that don’t require the constant maintenance, or something similar that’s not from Amazon or ali express It’s not a big deal for some, but if you drive a lot, it can be a pain to add greasing to your routine.

And be aware that if you decide to gonwith aftermarket UCAs, you will likely require a body mount chop with 285/70-17s,even with stock wheel offset. The rubbing will probably be light on-road, but you stand the chance of tearing off the mudflaps in some situations at full steering lock.

 

I agree! I ordered the Dobinson's (UCA) to be on the safe side! Im already prepared to trim some of the plastic in the front bumper, but not viper cut! and of course mudflops are going to be removed as well! I will post once done!

 

keep the mudflaps on. heat them up and mold them out of the way for clearance

 

Yes, I've seen some people do that in Youtube as well. I guess Im just going to wait to see what's the situation after installing. Melting it is a good one if I can get away with it!

 

Hi everyone, I just ordered my last part for the lift kit and Im about to install it. I have a question and would love to hear your opinion...

I have a Toyota certified technician who will install the kit with me! However, I will not be able to do the alignment same day. In fact, I will have to wait 3 days to do it. Is it ok to drive it home super slow, park it for 3 days and drive it to the alignment center slow also? do you see a major problem doing that?

My second option is there is also and certified technician at a different Toyota location and he will install it at the shop after hours but he wants me to leave the car there for 3 days or more but he will do the alignment as soon as he installs the lift kit. I don't want to leave my car for 3 or more days in the shop because,
A) I want to know and see how the kit is installed
B) I will need to rent while the car is in the shop and it will cost me +$200 extra.

What do you think? is it ok to install it with the first guy and then do the alignment in another time frame?