Hey people
I have a 1988 4wd extracab pickup. It has add-a-leaf rear. Does anyone know who makes a lift spindle for this type of Toy?

 

Or if nobody makes a lift spindle then how can I lift the front end a couple/few inches for relatively cheap?

 

there is a couple cheap options. ball joint spacers from 4crawler.com (bout 100 bucks) will lift up to 1 1/2 inch.
or crank torsion bars up which can give aditional 1 1/2 to 2 inch.
i had both BJ spacers and torsion bar crank done on my old 4runner and was running 36s no body lift with some rub

a little more expensive is ifs drop brackets too 4 to 8 inch

 

Spacers and torsion cranks sounds ideal to me. I am thinking, since I just got a welding machine, that I will mod my fenders and do this lift. I want to run 35"s. I e-mailed 4-crawler.com sales. If they are still available I'll jump on them. Also what kind of gears should I get? I want low enough to be easy on the engine and drivetrain...

 

with 35's and IFS i would suggest at least a 4" lift......... also depending on your wheel width and offset selection will determine how much rub you will get...... cranking the torsions and the b/j spacer will help but at most will net you 3" of lift....... i think you'd be fine if you only planned on running 33's but i think if you actually wheel it and use the suspension at hand it'll rub and become annoying (IMO).

oh and btw........ toss the lower front valance as its likely the first thing you'll rip the tires on when you turn.

 

Thanks. Don't forget I have a welder so I can create more fender and firewall clearance. I'm sure there is some rust in there I should be cutting out anyway. So tubing the firewall will be quick and painless. D'oh I just painted that valance and bumper. Lol. I'll trim it a bit.

 

that will help. the only issue is more so the pinch weld area towards the cab. thats where you will likely rub like nuts..... SFA trucks have options where you can move the axle forward with a shim but IFS is a bit more difficult since the arms are pretty much fixed on the frame points......

only other thing i could mention is maybe a body lift but....... i do not suggest body lifts as i personally dont trust the added leverage between body and frame.....

 

ya just trim the fenders and cut up the firewall a bit and 35's will be fine

this is a picture of my old 4runner with bj spacers and cranked torsion bars front, and longer shackles with a buggy leaf in the rear and NO body lift and those are 36's on a 16inch rim i did rub but the fenders were uncut. fyi carry spare idler arms because you will be breaking them

if you have a "welding machine" or as most folks call a welder, just save up a lil more money and do a home brew sas swap.

 

yup...... start the choppy choppy...... if you have a welder then by all means you know what a sawzall and grinder are.... so hop to it

yes indeed.

HIGHLY SUGGESTED!!!!

 

Would I be breaking idler arms if I bought the Total Chaos one? Like any project things begin to add up fast. And I have 3 projects on the go! My head and my heart hurt.
I don't even want to lift the rear. I want the raked look with a spare in the bed.

 

A very good frame for where I live and the trucks age

 

ya those chaos arms are stout but spendy just save your money and carry a spare till you can do a better suspension. if you are going for form over function which sounds like your plan then im sure you wont be doin any wheeling and what not thats going to mess up any idler arms. i broke two in about 6 wheeling trips but i was also rock crawling and just beating on the truck

 

yo shoud jus invest in a SAS conversion. lift spindles will increase the angle on the cv joints which could cause all kines of problems.

 

I am more of a go fast kind of driver. Love to drift. If I could afford it I'd get Total Chaos front suspension. But no. I will just use BJ spacers and crank up the torsion bars a lil. Throw on some 33's and begin some body work including rust repair and fender flares. I have some Hella fog lights. And I think my 4x4 should have a roll bar, not my lowered 2wd lol.
Desert racing style. Even though I don't live in the desert.

 

well buy the parts and post some pics... since you are only doing 33's you probably wont need fender flares and if you do get some make sure they dont stick out farther than your tire... so many people make that mistake and its ugly as sin
oh and p.s. my 4x4 has got 40 inch iroks, a solid front axle, and is like a slinky and ill still drift it on narrow logging roads doing 40 no prob. so remember fender flares, a bed rake, and fog lights arent going to make you a better drifter, sell or dont buy things for looks and get stuff that matters

 

I'm waiting for my bj spacers. I live in BC, Canada, so it's going to be a while. I want 33x12.5s should I mod the fenders? I'll buy tires when the spacers arrive. Install and then there will be pics.

 

When I had my 90 4Runner

I had a Pro Comp 4" lift on it. 2" spacers with 15x10 Alcoa look-alikes. The tires were the same dims as yours. No fender mods were needed. I did use the BFH a bit on the bottom portion of the fire walls. I also took off the mud flaps. Only trimming involved was the corners of front valance.
Hope that helps.

 

work on 88

I am bobbing my bed. My memory of wheeling around here a few years ago(last time the truck was insured) tells me that the tail end dragged in many places. I will explore new territory with this mod.

 

My bed is really rusty.Parts are fiberglass. It was easy to cut but I have to go easy welding it up. I hope to eventually make it out of metal again.

My bumper balancing. Nothing is welded yet.

 

I finished the bed bob