View Full Version : Suspension and Body Lifts
shifted
03-01-2011, 08:43 PM
Asking more specifically to do with Hilux Surfs.
Had a look today at one with a 4" suspension lift & 3" body lift (due to VP Commodore V6 engine conversion).
In regard to these lifts - street legalities? CV Joints become a problem?
Is it commonplace for these lifts? Canary-do-able? Anyone have any background with these lifts?
I am going to inquire tomorrow to see if it can get lowered at least an inch or so but it seems the cross member may be an issue clearing the sump.
In regard to general 4x4'ing - what do these lifts actually allow for?
Apologies for the silly questions.
Cheers,
Paul
mr_mike
03-01-2011, 08:48 PM
You are allowed a 2" raise over standard height be that either bigger tyres, suspension lift or body lift.
Any more than 2" over standard height and its illegal.
So say you have 31" tyres you can change to 33" and a 1' body lift. and so on.
body lift is an easy and cheap way to gain tyre clearance for bigger rubber. A suspension lift will give you more suspension travel upwards.
depending on how extreme you go on your lift , with 4"inchs i dont think you will get hassled by cops. CV's dont become a huge problem , more so the angle that they are put on , but snake racing does IFS kits to target these problems to do with IFS. Lift provides more up and down wheel travel , and also more clearance to avoid smashing bottom door seals and under body , but that also accounts with tyre size , also good for crossing water.
mr_mike
03-01-2011, 08:54 PM
cops will grab u in a raised vehicle and you do stand out, my old hilux was raised 6 inches all up (2" sus, 2" tyres and 2" body).
I had the cops come after me after seeing me parked in traffic, they were cutting thru car parks, servo's and jumping medium strips to get behind me took them a good 10min to eventually fight thru traffic to get behind me. Was done for to high, mud tyres and dark tint.
You think imports and preformance cars get picked on try reading some of the 4wd forums they get hassled just as much
mr_mike
03-01-2011, 08:56 PM
the 4" IFS lift kits are a bit of wank factor IMO, whats the point in lifting a car 4" and still having the x member same height and u still dont achieve great wheel travel.
2" suspension lift and ball joint spacers to keep the CV angles a bit more level is a better option.
shifted
03-01-2011, 09:04 PM
See the issue I am seeing at the moment is height wise, a total of 7" is massive. But I am unsure if it can be lowered due to the sump/crossmember issue. Something I will have a look into.
Seems at the moment I am off by 5" from legal anyway? Is it due to the lift that the crossmember is put in place? The car I looked at has SAS not IFS, 80 Series control arms, 2" wheel spacers, Prado Coilies and Shocks, rear LSD, T700 Auto and 3.8L VP Vommo V6 (including adaptors and wiring harness)...
Would love to own it, but don't want Canaries.
my car atm is 2 inch on lift and 2 inch on tyres , has no problem off road and i dont get hassled by cops , i recon its kind of a hit and miss really. i got plenty of mates that got way more extreme then me and never been touched aswell.
shifted
03-01-2011, 09:46 PM
Hmmm...is there anyone that is recommended to speak to that would know if a decrease in lift height is possible? Is ARB//4x4 World in Osborne Park a good place? I just don't want to buy it (planning to buy it) and then get fucked on...
Edit: I think the tyres on it currently are 33"
when i need anything to do with 4x4 i go to coastal 4x4 in jandakot , top blokes and know there shit
evoeata
03-01-2011, 09:50 PM
Coastal 4x4 in jandakot are pretty helpful with aftermarket gear.
Oh and lowering= homo.
shifted
03-01-2011, 09:50 PM
Will definitely be calling them - thank you. :)
What 4x4 do you drive if you do not mind me asking?
shifted
03-01-2011, 09:51 PM
Oh and lowering= homo.
Feck. :(
iv got a 1994 discovery TD
mr_mike
03-01-2011, 09:58 PM
the surf ur lookin at also isnt engineered for the SAS conversion so not only will u have to deal with the suspension being to high but also the fact the front suspension has been cut off, modifiedand is completly un-engineered.
i'm pretty sure a SAS conversion can be engineered in a Surf but its alot of fuckin about with engineers and trips to the pits etc. Alot of hassle for ur first 4wd
shifted
03-01-2011, 10:07 PM
It seems to be a common place conversion. With the SAS, is it not just different suspension?
I am assuming insurance here may also not be possible...unless engineered?
DanWA
03-01-2011, 10:10 PM
shifted if the surf was red, you do not want
mr_mike
03-01-2011, 10:11 PM
yeh it is a common conversion but it still needs to be engineered.
SAS conversion consists of cutting all the front suspension components of so you have bare chassis rails then weld all the new spring hangers and steering components on.
So it is a pretty major job.
Suspension height would also make ur insurance void just like any illegal mod.
Shifted are you aware the surf also has some issue with the gearbox needs a new shift unit r something. Is the v6 conversion engineered?
Its an awesome lookin rig and i was tempted myself but yeh to many "major" issues to sort.
shifted
03-01-2011, 10:21 PM
It is red - just was told on the toyotasurf.asn.au website to stay away as well. What is the issue with the vehicle? Too much dodgy shit?
It needs a VSS Interface (hence gears are a bit funky, apparently this fixes the issue though).
I am assuming you both know about the vehicle?
That is the link...
GumTree (http://perth.gumtree.com.au/c-Cars-Vehicles-Motorbikes-Parts-cars-1992-Toyota-surf-SAS-and-3-8L-conversion-W0QQAdIdZ247977504)
DanWA
03-01-2011, 10:22 PM
if its the red one, has dodgy rego and the conversion is not legal
shifted
03-01-2011, 10:24 PM
I know the conversion is not legal (is this a change of engine form thingy?)
Dodgy rego - ???
I guess either way I am on the hunt... just seems most Surf/4Runner/Hilux from 1990 to 1997 cop a lift kit and etc. so legalities in my view were answered. :)
Just means to keep on looking ahaha
DanWA
03-01-2011, 10:27 PM
that red car has been around a while and previous owners have had stickers disappear
what makes you like that over the grey one?
shifted
03-01-2011, 10:47 PM
U know I saw a grey one? Or u mean the one mxracer had for sale on here? That sold before I got to it. I saw a 94 4runner RV6 the day before but two doors need replacing due to rust and asking 1k more. 2" lift kit though so its legal...
Marti
04-01-2011, 10:28 AM
my car atm is 2 inch on lift and 2 inch on tyres , has no problem off road and i dont get hassled by cops , i recon its kind of a hit and miss really. i got plenty of mates that got way more extreme then me and never been touched aswell.
didnt rhys get a yellow on his patrol?, massive lift and tyres ?
Yakky Bear
04-01-2011, 11:08 AM
Too much lift! 4" would be maximum ,lift kits wont get you up hillclimbs lockers will. It shits me people put all this lift in to look sick but be impractical as fuck. Also remember the higher it goes you should also consider widening the track as hilux/surfs have a high tendancy to tip over.
Jump onto westcoastcrawlers.com.au (think thats it) lot of perth crawler guys there.
shifted
04-01-2011, 11:38 AM
I know the guy that put it together. He wasn't allowed to complete it properly for other reasons that I cannot go into and it is not legal for these reasons. It is however all wired up correctly and all sensors are working correctly. I should know as I wired it up under duress. The entire conversion package came out of one that I'd bought for wrecking (wanted flares and front clip only rest, was going for scrap) and while hit in the left side without driveline damage I've never ever driven anything that vibrated so much in my life. Said friend went past at the time and was like a kid in a toy shop and just had to have it. Was told that he didn't want it and all went to turd from there. 6 owners in 3 months? Do yourself a favour and run away unless you want a project
That is the story behind the red one - looking at a Hilux this arvo now instead.
Yakky Bear
04-01-2011, 11:56 AM
Pretty sure i know the car used to be owned by a perth4x4 member named smurfx and also by a guy named mike.
2JZA70
04-01-2011, 02:24 PM
my 4 runner Solid axles front and back it had a 2inch lift and 1inch body lift with 32 x 12.5 muddies and it would chew out drive shaft uni joins every 6months lol
mr_mike
04-01-2011, 03:19 PM
Too much lift! 4" would be maximum ,lift kits wont get you up hillclimbs lockers will. It shits me people put all this lift in to look sick but be impractical as fuck..
.
^^^ this 4 wheels with drive will get u up and over most things alot better than a 4" lifted rig on 33's with 2 open diffs.
I have been one of them blokes that lifts a hilux up stupid high yeh looks tuff on the big tyres but so fucking impractical. was a prick to get in and out of and took 2 ppl to get a bike on the back.
Unless ur doing some serious rock crawling and driving thru deep deep ruts there is no need for a massive lift.
Turbo2.6L
04-01-2011, 03:46 PM
Spot on.
2" lift, decent muddies & a front locker will destroy most tracks in WA.
shifted
04-01-2011, 04:26 PM
Just picked up a 1996 2.8L Diesel Toyota Hilux 4x4 Dual Cab...
5Spd
Extractors
CB Radio
50mm lift kit for spares
New alternator
New starter motor
New harmonic balancer
Replaced whole front solid axle
Replaced front springs
New drag links (dunno wtf this is)
31" Cooper ST Tyres
New water pump, timing belt, head gasket
New clutch
Front and rear oil seals
Front rotors and disk pads
Radiator hoses
Uni joints on rear tail shaft
No ridiculous lift. Little bit of body work damage as expected but it is a daily hack/4x4/shit carta-arounda. :D
mr_mike
04-01-2011, 05:44 PM
sounds like a good pick up, how much u pay if u dont mind me askin?
shifted
04-01-2011, 07:40 PM
6k with about a grands worth of spare parts :)
Lasoya
04-01-2011, 07:54 PM
Doing a bodylift on a car with airbags is illegal and can not be engineered or insured without lieing
mr_mike
04-01-2011, 08:07 PM
do u mean load assist air bags or proper suspension airbags?
Lasoya
04-01-2011, 08:31 PM
do u mean load assist air bags or proper suspension airbags?
Crash airbags
Passage GT
04-01-2011, 08:39 PM
my thoughts on lifts has always been choose the tyres your gonna run and what your gonna use the car for
if you want to run 33s, get a lift that will allow you to fit 33s without it scrubbing, bigger tyres = more ground clearance which means your less likely to get hung up on shit, yeah lockers will give you more traction but if your diff is hung up on a rock all the traction in the world isn't going to get you over
everything needs to work as a whole package
my patrol i plan on a 4inch susp lift with 35s and front auto locker, enough to fit tyres without scrubbing and without being too high
mr_mike
04-01-2011, 08:46 PM
one of the biggest advantages of a suspension lift is increased approach and departure angle without ur bumpers gettin hooked up.
2jzlux
04-01-2011, 09:35 PM
7 inch lift on a hilux is crazy they have a habit of rolling over at stock height let alone +7 inchs.
Check all the panel shop holding yards nearly every hilux that has crashed will have roof damage also.
suburban
14-02-2011, 06:22 PM
definately too many sipingpingpingpings with jacked luxes
they dont get called rolluxes / gutluxes for no reason. Keep it tame and im sure it will do what you need it to. My mate has a '99 2.7 petrol, 2" and 31's and it goes hard and everywhere. Sure it didnt keep up with my old XJ, or my mates 4500 patrol - but for 2" and 31's you wouldnt expect it to
as per everyone else - that SAS'd surf is asking for trouble. I wouldnt touch it with your dick
the rollux thing is a myth, its all about how you drive the car.
mine has
3'' springs
2'' body lift
3'' extended shakles
33s
1'' dropped front cross member
1'' dropped rear spring hangers
dual lockers and hasnt been rolled yet.
and ive gotten into some stupid spots.
idealy if you can get ifs hilux rear springs in the front of your lux and some 75 series cruiser springs in the rear, some extended shakles and 33s and a locker or 2 you will go 95% of places but expect to break shit. next step from there is a crawler.
suburban
15-02-2011, 05:08 PM
decent body height from factory, skinny width, plus weight of seperate chassis and body - mate they dont call them rolluxes for nothing
coucheee
15-02-2011, 10:30 PM
didnt rhys get a yellow on his patrol?, massive lift and tyres ?
lol rhys was running 37s when he got done, that just servd him right lol
i run 4" sus 2" body and 35's in my gq shorty and they dont even look at me.
but all it takes is one cop in a bad mood and he will ruin your day.
mild_to_wild
22-02-2011, 12:45 PM
i had a V6 4runner 2 inch body,3 inch spring lift with front torsion bars wound up with 33inch super swamper boggers with a rear locker,it went everywere, never got hasseled by the cops. i would defenately do the same again.Deffinately wouldnt go any bigger than 33 as you do loose a bit of power.
i had a V6 4runner 2 inch body,3 inch spring lift with front torsion bars wound up with 33inch super swamper boggers with a rear locker,it went everywere, never got hasseled by the cops. i would defenately do the same again.Deffinately wouldnt go any bigger than 33 as you do loose a bit of power.
was such a good runner as well chris
mmmm boggers
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