Lift.. what am I missing

Marty · Post by **Marty** » Thu May 04, 2006 3:45 pm

I have read and reread and don't know why we don't just add the rubber dounts to the top and bottom of the coils (front& back) to achieve the lift we want. We couls still use the stock springs and add the dounts as boosters on weak springs if needed.

Is it the shocks length that is holding this back.

side note I have a bent rim on one wheel so gonna be looking for 14" replacements going around. Can these still run on stock height till we can solve the lift issue?

Soutthpaw · Post by **Soutthpaw** » Fri May 05, 2006 5:38 am

you can use spring spacers but you still have 20+ year old worn out springs. At least what I am working on is increasing carrying capacity and spring rate. I decided against using drop brackets on the control arms at this point cuz i dont see a real need for them. (i do have a set of brackets made just need to weld them the right width apart) Did put polyurthane bushings in th the sway bar ends and frame mounts. Need to wait till I have money for new struts. then I can try out my Jeep TJ modified coils on my tercel. Also will need to buy 14"rims.

There are many ways to do a lift, it depends what you want to get out of it. If I put longer strut cartridges in then I would probably need to do the drop brackets for the control arms because it increases the wheel travel. You can control the rear travel by changing the shock lengths.

Typrus · Post by **Typrus** » Mon May 08, 2006 9:21 am

Why? Well, its less stable than a proper setup. Spacers only take into account one factor- the springs. New struts, shocks are minimal. The struts and shocks have built in stoppers that end the travel so that pieces don't come apart. A taller spring will essentially stress these members by constantly hitting the stop. That aside, the stop itself will keep further lift from occuring at a point.
The best system includes longer trailing links, adapted sway bars (hopefully thicker ones if possible) Polyurethane bushings or higher durometer (harder) rubbers, longer brake lines, at a point an adapted driveshaft... Thats just for the rear. The front also requires the swaybar, control arm, and brake-line mods, but also requires tie-rod mods, as they are forced a sharper downward angle, and more importantly requires longer half-shafts (driveshafts). After a short while, the built in adjuster for camber will be insufficent for the inward tip towards the bottom. | | turns into \ / as the assembly drops. This will not only jack up camber, but will effectively decrease the width of your wheelbase. If the essential members are lengthened, the wheels are pushed back out, camber is fixed, stability is somewhat maintained.

A PROPER and SAFE lift is not cheap, especially for an independant suspension.

You can space it up to maybe 1.5-2 inches and be able to adjust, but more and an unsafe condition is unavoidable. To be honest, I wish I could afford a good 3 inch lift for my car, but I can't afford the custom work involved, as I can't weld and have no easy access to a professional-level welder.

(shrug)

But I really think longer brake lines should be sought for any level of lift.

Soutthpaw · Post by **Soutthpaw** » Mon May 08, 2006 6:40 pm

brake lines often can be lengthened by using a bracket to move where they attach to the frame. Many commercal kits up to 4" do this on a regular basis

For everything you mentioned Typrus you would be ready for a 10" lift. which at that point its easier to just put the body onto a different vehicle

thescamp1 · Post by **thescamp1** » Fri Oct 27, 2006 11:43 pm

Woot! My first post. New to the forums, but not new to the terk, or the "family truckster" as my buddys called my first one. Chopped fenders, 215/75r15 Wildcat EXT's and the classic spring blcks for a lift. Not proud of the lift, but I was young and didnt have the talent or knowledge I have now! But my brother and I have aquired one as a project and... well... I've got the fever again. Anyway...

Regarding the struts...

Yes, with an increased spring rate you will need more travel in your struts, because you'll top out faster. After digging thru Monroe's website's PDF tech file, I found the fallowing info on the cartridge replacements...

Both cartridges are type 't2' and have the same dimensions except the fallowing...

Monroes Part No. 72867 (stock) 72837 (81 starlet)
Body Length 14.25 14.5
Compressed 15.25 15.375
Extended 21.125 23.875
Travel 5.875 8.5

The only thing that makes it not a direct bolt in is the fact that the cartridge body is 1/4 of an inch taller... And I'm sure the strut tube can be lenthened by 1/4" with as much effort as, say, moving the spring perch. I've got a set of complete Wrangler springs on the way vie Ebay, and am looking forward to fitting all of this together. More then likely end up dropping and widening the front lower control arm perches for now, and in the future replacing the lower con arm / sway bar combo with a custom A-arm fitted with beefy Heim joints. I'll make sure to take lotsa pics and document everything.

coltarms · Post by **coltarms** » Mon Oct 30, 2006 10:47 am

I'm in Hillsboro, and have a full set of Wrangler springs sitting in my garage right now. We need to get together sometime and talk about this....

Typrus · Post by **Typrus** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 10:27 am

The issue with the body length is fitting the whole tube into the housing. With extra spring rate, I doubt the "Just leave it 1/4" unthreaded" is anywhere near acceptable.

I wonder if Bilstein has a complete strut housing that'll fit our cars thats a bit longer? Or Monroe. Though Bilstein did make a lift for us through Ski Wagons when they were around.... Wonder how that worked?