Thanks for your video Bro! My FJ is stock with the exception of my wheel set and whenever I see an FJ that's been leveled or lifted slightly I feel it looks so much better without the stock rake. That said, I was going to have two inch spacers installed up front, but Dirty Parts in LA suggested Bilstein 5100s for the same money with labor, just like you've done. So, I'm glad I got to see your process and the result. No rust for my 2008 here in Los Angeles. Super clean! I think I'll go with the 1.75 adjustment like you did, as that makes sense and I don't load down much, as it's really just a two person vehicle. Thanks again! Happy trails!
Compared with Russia, you have a lot of opportunities in America to make high-quality tuning. A few years ago I bought the same shock absorbers on EBay with delivery into Russia. In my opinion, the Bilstein shock absorbers for Toyota FJ, have a disadvantage, if you do the suspension lift by 2.5 inches, they do not have enough stock length, and after a while they fail. After Bilstein, I put the Fox (without the tank), that's just what was needed for this machine! Good luck in the future tuning your car.
@@dironaa It would indeed! I have a 2010 army green color, even the roof. Cheap-o tires and stock wheels which are black-coated. I was planning on getting new wheels but then something that's got my heart beating happened: white smoke from the exhaust. As soon as I get a new PCV I ordered, I'm hoping it will solve the issue.. it's quite embarrassing in the streets!
Best kit, upgrade! I went 3rd notch with a Daystar 1.5" rear spacer to fully level and Supreme Suspensions differential drop kit to lower the front differential & reduce excess wear on CV joints & axles.
Nice! Was pleasantly surprised that the ride quality seemed to be the same or better with the Bilsteins than with the factory struts. Rarely seems to be the case with aftermarket suspensions.
@@dironaa did ya replace the rear with billstein as well? Don't miss the Michigan undercarriage cancer on my vehicles, used to get exhaust in cabin from hole in rear quarter on my old samurai lol. Took me forever to find a decent fj for sale that was accident free, but also having not spent even one winter in the salt belt or northeast, they seem to suffer a great deal more than other vehicles underneath/frame.
I’m gathering parts and knowledge before doing the same. Hindsight, would you recommend either OEM or aftermarket lower control arms to replace at this time or purely a decision based on the condition of your vehicle. Thanks.
I had to replace one lower when the bilsteins were installed because one of the cam bolts was seized and the shop couldnt do an alignment on it. The single aftermarket lower that i installed is holding up well 50k miles later, and the original oem lower is still going strong on the other side with 220k on it. I think either will work. I believe the aftermarket arm i installed was Moog brand.
When I go on long trips I find that full gas tank and luggage with passengers actually levels out my factory stock height in the rear. Lot of folks don’t understand that the only way to get higher ground clearance, not body lift, is to install taller tires.
Great video keep up the good work! I have a '07 MT FJ myself and was looking into new shocks but I was curious if you were experiencing and contact with the upper control arms and if there was a problem clocking the spring when reassembling?
Hey . New to the channel . Happen to find this one when looking up a few things on the FJ . Will be getting one in the next few months !!! Great video ! keep them rolling . I am sure I will need some advice as I go . Thanks !!
Thanks man! Yeah, I hear that...have been to the doctor more than once to have embedded pieces of metal removed. Even with safety glasses or a face mask it always seems to find a way in.
How do you like the ride? Have you tested this set up on some good ole fashion wash board yet? Asking because higher end struts like Fox 2.0 rattle you of the road basic wash board.
Whats the difference between a spacer leveling kit and changing front suspension? Is it really worth it to change the front suspension just to get ride of a factory rake?
I've put spacers on jeeps in the past and the difference essentially comes down to suspension travel: with a suspension upgrade you will be gaining more travel and theoretically a better ride, but with a spacer you will maintain the stock suspension travel. Is it worth swapping to eliminate rake? To each his own. I prefer the look of a leveled vehicle so I'd say yes, but I'm sure there are plenty who prefer the look of a raked vehicle.
Spacers are horrible for a stock suspension and ghetto, spacers lift by compressing the top of the coil over putting undue stress and changing the geometry of the suspension. Spacers are the Temu of lifts!
Maybe if we were building a land speed racer, but for everyday driving I've never noticed a difference in handling between a vehicle with rake and a leveled one
Slight rake gives you more steering response in general. If it sags at the rear much higher chance of understeer. Tune your own application to understand. If you're going to load your truck occasionally the rake helps keep the truck level when loaded. All depends on use. My GX has an unfortunate 2 inch lift at the rear with stock ride height at the front. Great to load up the truck, drives very neutral. When unloaded it wants to act like a drift car. Too much rake IMO. Will have to correct it this year.
@@dironaa I changed all four shocks and it rides like a sedan. The old shocks felt hard and stiff. I saw that you only changed the front but not the rear, that's probably why you didn't feel any difference.
@@dironaa The FJ after you level it with the shock it looks nice and strong. I have the same color as yours but my roof rack is silver and it stands out. Your neighbor must be lucky to have you as neighbor, you are very knowledgeable on fixing things, especially cars.
Dirona that’s what I mean! I learned too that what upgrades you do on that vehicle better be good, because you’re not going to want to go back in again unless you replace ALL the rusted stuff. LOL!!
There weren't really any good instructions available, I just more or less tried to follow factory procedures for replacing the stock struts with other stock struts and modified as necessary.. Haven't heard of the upper control arm breaking before but with the small amount of lift I ended up with I don't foresee that happening. May be more of an issue with larger lifts?
If both front tires were off the ground (which I didn’t do) I could see leaving the sway bar in place, but I have a hard time picturing the strut clearing the tie rod without compressing the spring. I’ll take your word for it. If I need to remove a strut again I’ll take it as a challenge to leave those two things connected lol
@@dironaa Yeah I actually just did the job this weekend. I only lifted one side at a time and the only thing I did was remove the two steering knuckle bolts, loosened the camber bolts, removed all the strut bolts smacked the lower control arm down and it was pretty easy to get out. I did start off by having the entire wheel turned inward (when changing driverside, turned steering all the way to the right) because I also replaced the brakes and it helped open up some room. The struts I put on mine were for a 6" suspension kit too. Nonetheless, great video!
Dude it looks Cool!!!! 😎 She's ready to run over some zombies. And if someone don't have the skills you have and technic, they don't need to touch this task. How long did it take you to do this? Man You scared me with what you had to do. I just got my FJ and l put rust killer on the frame. I was going to do the shock and now I see why the previous owner never replaced The factory shocks!!!! 😠 Too much work involved!!!!!! PLEASE TELL ME IT RIDES BETTER!!!
Took a full day if I remember right then brought it in for alignment the next day. Shop couldn't do the alignment because the adjustment bolts were rusted inside one of the lower control arms, so I had to cut the lower control into a few pieces to get it off then install another with new hardware. From the first bolt that was turned until the alignment was finished was probably about a week. Feels like it rides exactly the same as stock to me; I'm just happy the ride didn't get worse.
All control arm bushings should be loosened and retorqued when altering the height of a vehicle to prevent premature wear of the rubber bushing. Can you get away without loosening the bushings? Yes. Will your bushings fail sooner than they would have if you torqued them at a neutral ride height? Most definitely.
Did you seriously just try to match the front and rear fender wheel openings and think that is level? SMH…just stop. It’s the frame, not some random point that isn’t level front to back stock. Good heavens…
Thanks for your video Bro! My FJ is stock with the exception of my wheel set and whenever I see an FJ that's been leveled or lifted slightly I feel it looks so much better without the stock rake. That said, I was going to have two inch spacers installed up front, but Dirty Parts in LA suggested Bilstein 5100s for the same money with labor, just like you've done. So, I'm glad I got to see your process and the result. No rust for my 2008 here in Los Angeles. Super clean! I think I'll go with the 1.75 adjustment like you did, as that makes sense and I don't load down much, as it's really just a two person vehicle. Thanks again! Happy trails!
I envy the clean metal in socal! The politics not so much..
@@dironaa ditto.
Compared with Russia, you have a lot of opportunities in America to make high-quality tuning. A few years ago I bought the same shock absorbers on EBay with delivery into Russia. In my opinion, the Bilstein shock absorbers for Toyota FJ, have a disadvantage, if you do the suspension lift by 2.5 inches, they do not have enough stock length, and after a while they fail. After Bilstein, I put the Fox (without the tank), that's just what was needed for this machine! Good luck in the future tuning your car.
Great video👍
Thanks 👍
Put these in my 2011 Sierra and 2015 Silverado. Leveled them both and improved the ride quality greatly. Love them.
They handle very well for non-OEM equipment!
PB blaster is your friend spray on the night before that's what I use on my fj great vid
I sprayed every day for a week before but this rig is so crusty it still put up a good fight. Thanks!
props for all that hard work. That FJ looks really badass!
Thanks! Would look even better with a new set of tires.
@@dironaa It would indeed! I have a 2010 army green color, even the roof. Cheap-o tires and stock wheels which are black-coated. I was planning on getting new wheels but then something that's got my heart beating happened: white smoke from the exhaust. As soon as I get a new PCV I ordered, I'm hoping it will solve the issue.. it's quite embarrassing in the streets!
Best kit, upgrade! I went 3rd notch with a Daystar 1.5" rear spacer to fully level and Supreme Suspensions differential drop kit to lower the front differential & reduce excess wear on CV joints & axles.
Nice! Was pleasantly surprised that the ride quality seemed to be the same or better with the Bilsteins than with the factory struts. Rarely seems to be the case with aftermarket suspensions.
@@dironaa did ya replace the rear with billstein as well? Don't miss the Michigan undercarriage cancer on my vehicles, used to get exhaust in cabin from hole in rear quarter on my old samurai lol.
Took me forever to find a decent fj for sale that was accident free, but also having not spent even one winter in the salt belt or northeast, they seem to suffer a great deal more than other vehicles underneath/frame.
I’m gathering parts and knowledge before doing the same. Hindsight, would you recommend either OEM or aftermarket lower control arms to replace at this time or purely a decision based on the condition of your vehicle.
Thanks.
I had to replace one lower when the bilsteins were installed because one of the cam bolts was seized and the shop couldnt do an alignment on it. The single aftermarket lower that i installed is holding up well 50k miles later, and the original oem lower is still going strong on the other side with 220k on it. I think either will work. I believe the aftermarket arm i installed was Moog brand.
Great video....thanks
Buddy I feel your pain. Just did a lift kit on my sons 2010 and we’re in Northern Ohio. Lots of hammering, PB blaster and heat.
Gotta wonder what southern car guys do with all their free time...
Nice video thanks
When I go on long trips I find that full gas tank and luggage with passengers actually levels out my factory stock height in the rear. Lot of folks don’t understand that the only way to get higher ground clearance, not body lift, is to install taller tires.
Cant beat the look of a low vehicle with big tires
You can’t tell me that didn’t improve his approach angle
hey do you have a video on the winch install on that factory bumper?
Yes I do and here it is:
ruclips.net/video/4Acyc3hzXms/видео.html
Great video keep up the good work! I have a '07 MT FJ myself and was looking into new shocks but I was curious if you were experiencing and contact with the upper control arms and if there was a problem clocking the spring when reassembling?
No contact with upper control arms and no issues with clockspring
Hey . New to the channel . Happen to find this one when looking up a few things on the FJ . Will be getting one in the next few months !!! Great video ! keep them rolling . I am sure I will need some advice as I go . Thanks !!
Thanks! I'll be bouncing back and forth between making Jeep videos and FJ videos but there will certainly be much more FJ content to come!
Another great video, rust is the worst to deal with. I always catch flakes in my eyes
Thanks man! Yeah, I hear that...have been to the doctor more than once to have embedded pieces of metal removed. Even with safety glasses or a face mask it always seems to find a way in.
How do you like the ride? Have you tested this set up on some good ole fashion wash board yet? Asking because higher end struts like Fox 2.0 rattle you of the road basic wash board.
It rides well. I didn’t notice much of a difference from the OEM shocks
Hi good morning. I’m trying to get the bilsteinlifts kit for fj cruiser. But it show me a different story size! Which one I suppose to get? Thanks !
Head over to fjcruiserforums.com, theres a buch of great info over there!
Do you have a link of where you got them? Im not wanting to do a whole lift kit, too much, but doing what you did seems good enough.
Bought them on eBay. I'm happy with the leveling only, any lift in the rear too would have been too much.
Whats the difference between a spacer leveling kit and changing front suspension?
Is it really worth it to change the front suspension just to get ride of a factory rake?
I've put spacers on jeeps in the past and the difference essentially comes down to suspension travel: with a suspension upgrade you will be gaining more travel and theoretically a better ride, but with a spacer you will maintain the stock suspension travel. Is it worth swapping to eliminate rake? To each his own. I prefer the look of a leveled vehicle so I'd say yes, but I'm sure there are plenty who prefer the look of a raked vehicle.
Spacers are horrible for a stock suspension and ghetto, spacers lift by compressing the top of the coil over putting undue stress and changing the geometry of the suspension. Spacers are the Temu of lifts!
I never understood the whole rake concept.wouldnt the truck handle better with more nose dive as opposed to level
Maybe if we were building a land speed racer, but for everyday driving I've never noticed a difference in handling between a vehicle with rake and a leveled one
Slight rake gives you more steering response in general. If it sags at the rear much higher chance of understeer. Tune your own application to understand. If you're going to load your truck occasionally the rake helps keep the truck level when loaded. All depends on use. My GX has an unfortunate 2 inch lift at the rear with stock ride height at the front. Great to load up the truck, drives very neutral. When unloaded it wants to act like a drift car. Too much rake IMO. Will have to correct it this year.
Thanks for posting video. This will be my weekend project. What did you torque all the bolts too??
I believe I found all the torque specs on fjcruiserforums.com
Cool video man! Could you tell me what kind of bumper mod/ winch that is? Thanks!
Thanks! Here's the video showing the bumper install:
ruclips.net/video/4Acyc3hzXms/видео.html
Dirona cool thanks man!
That's the same shocks I installed on mine and it rides way better than the stock ones.
I didn't notice a difference after installing mine. Vastly improved the look of the FJ though
@@dironaa I changed all four shocks and it rides like a sedan. The old shocks felt hard and stiff. I saw that you only changed the front but not the rear, that's probably why you didn't feel any difference.
@@dironaa The FJ after you level it with the shock it looks nice and strong. I have the same color as yours but my roof rack is silver and it stands out. Your neighbor must be lucky to have you as neighbor, you are very knowledgeable on fixing things, especially cars.
Good Lord that was a lot of work to replace with 5100s! Hope you’re happy with em.
Had I realized how rusty everything was I would have kept the stock struts!
Dirona that’s what I mean! I learned too that what upgrades you do on that vehicle better be good, because you’re not going to want to go back in again unless you replace ALL the rusted stuff. LOL!!
Very true!
Um.....red Loctite? Was that a deliberate choice...?
I only use red. Never had an issue removing it when needed
Did the structions say anything about replacing the upper control arm? I was told if not done the uca
Can break after lifting. Under stress.
There weren't really any good instructions available, I just more or less tried to follow factory procedures for replacing the stock struts with other stock struts and modified as necessary.. Haven't heard of the upper control arm breaking before but with the small amount of lift I ended up with I don't foresee that happening. May be more of an issue with larger lifts?
Neversieze is your friend!
Never leave home without it! LOL
I did this 5 years ago, 👍🏼
Still holding up well?
Dirona Works like a champ
Fun fact: you can do this without taking off the swaybar and tie rod.
If both front tires were off the ground (which I didn’t do) I could see leaving the sway bar in place, but I have a hard time picturing the strut clearing the tie rod without compressing the spring. I’ll take your word for it. If I need to remove a strut again I’ll take it as a challenge to leave those two things connected lol
@@dironaa Yeah I actually just did the job this weekend. I only lifted one side at a time and the only thing I did was remove the two steering knuckle bolts, loosened the camber bolts, removed all the strut bolts smacked the lower control arm down and it was pretty easy to get out.
I did start off by having the entire wheel turned inward (when changing driverside, turned steering all the way to the right) because I also replaced the brakes and it helped open up some room. The struts I put on mine were for a 6" suspension kit too.
Nonetheless, great video!
Dude it looks Cool!!!! 😎
She's ready to run over some zombies. And if someone don't have the skills you have and technic, they don't need to touch this task. How long did it take you to do this? Man
You scared me with what you had to do. I just got my FJ and l put rust killer on the frame. I was going to do the shock and now I see why the previous owner never replaced
The factory shocks!!!! 😠
Too much work involved!!!!!!
PLEASE TELL ME IT RIDES BETTER!!!
Took a full day if I remember right then brought it in for alignment the next day. Shop couldn't do the alignment because the adjustment bolts were rusted inside one of the lower control arms, so I had to cut the lower control into a few pieces to get it off then install another with new hardware. From the first bolt that was turned until the alignment was finished was probably about a week. Feels like it rides exactly the same as stock to me; I'm just happy the ride didn't get worse.
Tap the dust shield? You mean the one you hit with a carpenter hammer 6 times…zero reason to loosen the LCA inner bolts
All control arm bushings should be loosened and retorqued when altering the height of a vehicle to prevent premature wear of the rubber bushing. Can you get away without loosening the bushings? Yes. Will your bushings fail sooner than they would have if you torqued them at a neutral ride height? Most definitely.
Did you seriously just try to match the front and rear fender wheel openings and think that is level? SMH…just stop. It’s the frame, not some random point that isn’t level front to back stock. Good heavens…
The fender openings are what make it appear level