Deciding to pull the cause on a 2nd gen 4runner sas is usually the moment you stop treating your Toyota like a daily car owner and start treating this just like a dedicated trek machine. If you've spent any time on the stones with the share independent front suspension system (IFS), you already know the aggravation. You're constantly worried about snapping a CURRICULUM VITAE axle, your turning radius is non-existent, and the "flex" is actually a courteous method of saying your own tire moved an inch before the whole truck began tipping.
The 2nd generation 4Runner (1990-1995) is usually a bit of a weird middle child. It has that classic, bombproof Toyota styling and the legendary (if slow) 22RE or the "3. slow" V6, but that front suspension is its Achilles' heel. Swapping inside a solid front axle transforms the pickup truck from an average woods-runner into the rock-crawling beast. Let's get into what actually takes to make this happen without having losing your mind or your whole savings account.
Why Everyone Obsesses Over the Strong Axle Swap
The primary reason people proceed the SAS route is durability. When you're running 35-inch or 37-inch wheels on factory IFS, you're basically enjoying a game of European roulette with your drivetrain. One strange hop on the climb and pop —there goes your journey. A solid axle, especially the 8-inch Toyota axle through an '85 or earlier truck, will be just built in different ways. It handles the torque as well as the weight of larger auto tires without breaking a sweat.
Then there's the particular articulation. An IFS setup is restricted by the geometry from the control arms and the operating angles from the CV joints. Once you move to a 2nd gen 4runner sas , you open up a world associated with vertical travel. We're talking about maintaining all four auto tires on the floor over road blocks that will have got your IFS rig waving a steering wheel in the air like it's asking a question.
Finding the Right Donor Axle
This is where the project actually begins. You possess a few choices, but most men stick with the tried-and-true Toyota 8-inch front axle. It's the simplest to change since the width fits the trunk factory axle reasonably well, plus it shares a lot of parts with all the rear differential box.
However, finding an '84 or '85 Toyota front axle these days gets more difficult. They're becoming such as gold dust in some parts of the country. If you can't find one, some builders appear toward a Dana 44 out of a Jeep or an old Chevy, but then you're coping with different bolt patterns and breadth issues. Honestly, in the event that you're doing a 2nd gen 4runner sas , do your self a favor and hold out with regard to the Toyota axle. It keeps the particular "Toyota soul" associated with the truck in one piece and makes your life way easier with regards to ordering brake ranges and seals.
The Point of No Return: Trimming the Frame
There exists a very specific feeling you obtain when you get a plasma cutter machine or an position grinder and start lopping off the particular factory suspension mounting brackets. It's the "point of no return. " Once these IFS towers are usually gone, your 4Runner isn't going back again to stock.
You have to be careful here. You aren't just cutting; you're cleaning the body right down to bare metal so that you can weld upon your new leaf spring hangers or link mounts. If you're using a kit—and there are a lot of great ones out there—this component is fairly straightforward, but it's labor-intensive. You'll spend even more time grinding plus cleaning than you will actually welding. It's dirty, loud, and sparks will find their way into your sleeves, but it's the most important prep work you'll do.
Leaf Springs vs. Connected Suspension
This particular is the great debate in the 2nd gen 4runner sas world. Leaf springs are the classic choice. They're simpler, less expensive, and incredibly dependable. You weld a hanger in the front, a shackle mount within the back, and you're fundamentally done. For 90% of trail riders, a leaf springtime swap provides even more than enough functionality.
On the other hand, in the event that you have the budget and the ok skills, a 3-link or 4-link set up with coil-overs will be the dream. It's smoother on the highway plus offers insane levels of travel. But be warned: linking a 2nd gen 4Runner is an enormous undertaking. You have got to find locations for all these links, clear the oil pan, and dial in the angles so the vehicle doesn't handle just like a boat on the particular highway. Most people beginning their first SAS stick with leaves, and there's simply no shame in that.
Steering Will be Where People Get Confused
You can't use the stock IFS steering package with a solid axle—at least not really easily. Most 2nd gen 4runner sas builds move to what we contact "High Steer. " This involves using a 1986-1995 IFS steering box (which your 2nd gen already has, thankfully) but relocating it further forward for the body.
You then use a crossover steering kit having a beefy pitman arm and heavy duty tie rods that will sit above the leaf suspension springs. This keeps your steering linkage out there of the rocks and eliminates the particular dreaded "bump steer" where the pickup truck darts left or right every time you hit the pothole. If you skip out on an excellent high-steer setup, you're going to hate driving the pickup truck on the road.
Brakes and Gear Percentages
Don't overlook that you're including plenty of unsprung weight. Those big wheels and heavy axle assemblies need to stop. The common trick throughout a 2nd gen 4runner sas is to upgrade towards the V6 expert cylinder and dual-diaphragm brake booster in the event that your truck didn't already have them. You'll also most likely want to swap to FJ60 vented rotors and IFS calipers on that solid axle in order to keep things cool during long descents.
As for equipment, if you're running 35s, your manufacturing plant 4. 10 or even 4. 30 gears are going in order to feel like you're attempting to tow the house. You'll wish to move to with least 4. 88s or 5. 29s. Since you have the axle out associated with the truck anyhow, this is the perfect time to drop inside a locker. Whether it's the selectable locker such as an ARB or a simple Spartan lunchbox locker, having that extra traction makes the whole swap experience worth it the particular first time you hit an up and down ledge.
The fact of Road Manners
I'll be honest with you: a 2nd gen 4runner sas isn't going in order to drive just like a Cadillac. You're taking a pickup truck designed for motorway comfort and turning it into a tractor. It's going to be taller, it's going to convey more entire body roll, and you're going to listen to more road sound.
Having said that, if you arranged your caster angles correctly and make use of quality shocks, it's perfectly streetable. I've seen guys generate their SAS 4Runners across the country, wheel the particular Rubicon, and generate back. It's just about all about the high quality of your welds and the focus on detail in your steering geometry. In case you rush this, you'll end up getting "death wobble, " which usually is exactly simply because fun as this sounds.
Is definitely It Worth the time and effort?
At the particular end of the particular day, a 2nd gen 4runner sas is associated with work. You're searching at dozens associated with hours in the garage, several thousand dollars in parts, and likely a lot of disappointed calls to your buddies asking for a hand with a heavy axle housing.
But the very first time you remove it on the trail, everything clicks. A person stop looking with regard to the "easy line" and start searching for the fun collection. You stop considering breaking parts and start enjoying the scenery. The 2nd gen 4Runner is a fantastic platform—it's got plenty of room for gear, a comfortable interior, and that will classic Toyota dependability. Giving it the front side end it usually deserved is, in my opinion, the particular best modification you can ever perform.
Just make sure you have the good welder plus plenty of slicing discs before a person start. You're likely to need 'em.