Lift kit for Landcruiser ...which brand!!

[McGirr]

Getting the cruiser ready for the Cape and need thoughts and comments on putting new springs , shockies and steering damper.

It's a 2000 model with original springs and shockies and has never been off road. So far I have looked at the iron man range. I will look at Tjm and Arb and get prices and see what deals they can do.

Not after anything over the top just basic.

Mark

[D4D]

I had EFS on my Patrol and was happy. Talk to the suspension dude on myswag, can't remember his name sorry.

Edit - His name is Zordo, thanks dno

[Hairs]

I had EFS on my Patrol and was happy. Talk to the suspension dude on myswag, can't remember his name sorry.

Edit - His name is Zordo, thanks dno

Hi Mark,
Like D4D mentioned.
When I replace mine, and I know my 80 is a different beast to your 100, but I'll be looking at the EFS system for sure. I haven't heard anything bad about it,  people seem to be happy with it.
Pricing is good as well.
 

[BigJules]

Got a price on OME and Tough Dog today, doggies were cheaper by several hundred dollars.

I've been using OME for many years, it's been terrific but I might try another flavor.

[Moto Mech]

I had OME in 4 differant vehicles now and have always loved the ride/handling Ive had. Combined vehicles have done 100000kms over some shocking tracks and its always stood up well. You also get the added bonus that if anything ever does fail,you have an Australian wide support network to help out.
My Current 105 Series has Tough Dog springs in it at the moment(not sure on load carrying) but it suffers alot of body roll cornering but has a nice comfortable ride. I have OME springs, shocks and steering damper ready to go in on the weekend.

[Sixtys Guy]

OME for me too. Had it on two 4wd's now and would go with it again in a flash.

[SUPA105]

Have OME plus 2" in our 105 series....medium front, heavy rear springs and OME shocks.....?looking for a change in the future these are about 7 yrs old. Here good things about Ultimate suspension.

Cheers

[swanny]

Not sure wat ur suspension type is, but hard to go past HD dobson coils F and R, and one of the Koni series shocks ( Koni 82 ) for me.

Cheers

[areyonga]

I put OME 2 inch lift on my 2000 105 series and castor correction bushes and its great.  It has slightly heavier springs on the rear to compensate for the weight of the trailer etc, would use OME again

Trevor

[Burnsy]

I had King Springs and Ranchos in my 80 series and they were good still after 10 years.  I think the new 105 has Dobinsons with Koni's - it rides really nice, not sure if the improvement from the 80 is the springs or track width.

[Bill]

I went Tough Dog all around last time with no complaints.
This time I went with EFS sorings and RAW Nitro shocks and I am happy.
The EFS/Raw combo was over $500 cheaper than the Tough Dog...
Bill and Morag

[TOY80ST]

Kings make a fair few springs for suppliers in Australia and produce the better quality spring due to the metal they use.

IMO I would look at Suspension Stuff in Brisbane. They only do suspension for 4wd's and the guys are suspension enthusists as well as avid 4wder's. They made a cutom set of springs for me with a variable compression rate for my camper and I am very happy with it.

I was put onto them by a guy who does reviews on 4wd components and even he said I would not be sorry. In the next year I will be doing an upgrade on my cruiser and I will be looking at their system for it.

[ML-VR08]

Id be looking at Ultimate Suspension - i have had EFS previously and also in my current ride, but swapped over the Ultimates, they are by far the best ppl to deal with, they will go out of their way to help you and its all custom built to your setup, not just a rubbish off the shelf kit to suit every tom, dick and harry!!!!

[Hairs]

Hi Mark,
I guess it comes down to what you want from your suspension.
How much coin are you wanting to spend, how hard you are going to be on it, that kinda thing.
It's all a compromise.
Eg, tyres, What's the point of putting mud tyres on when 95% of the surface they'll see is the black top. Same as why put a set of LT and spending all of your time off road. 
you have to be happy with something that delivers you what you want.
April 08, I put a set of Ultima Shockabsorbers All Round $275 for 4, I've been happy with them, I know they aren't the best but they have served me well. nearly 50 000klm's, Towing, some off road, but she spend 95% of her time on the black top, why spend a fortune on something that I really wont see the benefit of?
Anyway, just another 2 cents worth.
 

[shanegtr]

I've got EFS xtreme shocks in my cruiser and I think the valving is woeful, rears to soft on compression and just ok on rebound, fronts the compression seems ok, but the rebound is to hard. Off the self shocks I would look at either koni, bilstein or OME. My next set of shocks will be custom valved

[schmik]

I am happy with my OME gear. I would buy it again.

From what i hear... ridepro shocks are very resistant to fade. i.e they are great for corrugations.

mike

[BigJules]

Whilst I have always been impressed with the OME suspension I've used I do think it has not lasted as well as I expected. Terrific for 25K, good for another 25K, OK for the next 25K and then (now) just not doing it for me.

[Matto]

Hey McGirr,

I'll throw my hat into the ring for Pedders. We've got a 2" setup from them, inc the foam-cell big bore shocks out back. I really like it. Some Pathy owners find the rear too stiff, and unladen it probably is on the hard side. Loaded up though, with the camper on, it works brilliantly. Plus you've got nation-wide support at any Pedders dealership. No idea how it compares price-wise to the other options.

Best thing we've ever done with the suspension throw is a set of airbags in the back. So I'd include them in whatever suspension setup you end up with. I thought your new Cruiser came with them, in which case you'll probably just need spacer rings if you go to raised coils. If not, worth their weight in gold (if you buy them from OS and save some coin).

Cheers!
Matto

[yogi]

Hi Mark,

I would personally stay away from anything cheap or sounds to good to be true ie Iron Man / Raw / Blue pack ect you will be replacing them sooner rather than later. If you want to have reliable long lasting suspension then you need to look at middle of the road stuff as a base point. EFS, OME ect are a good off the shelf type kit's but there are still a few basic question you need to ask yourself before you even think about suspension.

1. Are you going to be putting a winch bar / winch on the truck ?
2. Are you going to be fitting a rear draw system and how much load are you expecting to have on the rear of the truck ?

If you intend to load up the rear with fridge's / draw systems ect and tow then you can compromise and go for a spring that suits that load but will not be as nice as a softer spring with a air bag around town ie Pollyair bag system ect

3. How high do you want to go ?

I would think 2 to 3 inches would be a good place to start as you don't need to modify control arms ect to get the 4x4 to drive in a straight line. (once you raise it you always want to go higher ..... lol)

The most important thing no matter what type of suspension you go with is once you do raise your car you should get a wheel alignment and some camber bushes for your lower control arms to suit your new lift (unless it's IFS then you will need a torsion bar upgrade ect) a lot of people will tell you that you don't need it. My advice is find out what caster your car should run factory and after you raise your spring height make sure your in the same vicinity if not the same. Otherwise you will be fighting your car to keep it straight on the ruff stuff and it can tire you out very quickly and make long drives a pain in the arse (not to mention dangerous).

I like Koni shocks and the 88 series will set you back about $1500. The best part about this type of shock is you will never have to buy another set again. Not only are they adjustable they are fully rebuildable. Also the top 10% of the shocks travel is valved exponentially to prevent bottoming out on big jumps …. Lol

Matched up with a set of King Springs to suit your load will set you back about $600-800 depending on spring rates.

Pollyairs about $500 (if you go that way)

Lastly you have the steering dampener ..... stay away from the coil over types I don't think your going to be needing one of those. $100 will get you a good gas type unit. (these will get replaced a lot over the life of any 4x4 doing corrugations ect)

Hope some of this is of some help.

yogi

(If you want a number of someone to speak to about King Spring spring rates PM me)

[munter]

if you only want a couple of inches, i would say got an ARB OME kit. tough dogs are good shocks but are rubbish on corrugations!!!! I hate them for touring

 the OME shocks are great, hence the $$ extra. might as well go their springs aswell casue then it'll be setup correctly,

it's better off doing it this way cause your not going extreme and all the different combo's are not worth the time. Go with something tried and tested

[GeoffA]

I like Koni shocks and the 88 series will set you back about $1500. The best part about this type of shock is you will never have to buy another set again. Not only are they adjustable they are fully rebuildable. Also the top 10% of the shocks travel is valved exponentially to prevent bottoming out on big jumps …. Lol

Matched up with a set of King Springs to suit your load will set you back about $600-800 depending on spring rates.

Pollyairs about $500 (if you go that way)

Agreed........

I've had Koni 82's on mine for 10 years and about 150km. They've never faded or given any trouble.
Koni only go to 2". If you only want a 2" lift, Koni (in whatever model) is hard to go past IMO.

I've recently fitted Firestone air bags to help with the trailer (supposed to be tougher than Polyairs).
They are available with an outer sleeve for protection, which also increases the allowable presssure.
5psi does what I need.

 

[Dragonfly]

+1 for EFS. Had them on my 100 series and have them on my 120. Love 'em and they're a smidge cheaper than OME.

If you are in Vic: Call Phil at Ontrack - www.ontrack4x4.com.au - he did both of mine and a lot of other work on both the 100 and the 120.

[Blueroo]

Ours has EFS torsion bars and EFS heavy duty rear springs coupled with Ironman shockies all of which I'm more than happy with. We'll give them a good testing out in Tassie next March.
If yours is an IFS 100 series be careful with how much the front is lifted. Too much lift will kill the CV joints. There's some very good info on that on the LCOOL site in the 100 series forum.
cheers
stue

[Roo]

I had Ultimate suspension Gibson Ryders(41mm bore?) in my 80 series STD deisel. With a set of 2" Kings springs to suit my steel bar and storage in the back it was a great to drive on and off road.
I went with a bilstein package for my 100 series IFS though. Very happy with them too so far although twice the price to set it up properly compared to the 80...or a 105 I suppose too.

[Blueroo]

I agree with Roo about the Bilstein package. Once the Ironman shockies wear out I'll replace them with Bilsteins for sure. 
cheers
stue