AJ120s 2009 D4D and DIY camper trailer

[jimmy91 Member Find all posts View Profile Close jimmy91]

Very interesting mate. Would you recommend it? My lift kit is still in order so I might ask arb for a 2 opinion on this. Tha ks for the info mate. Your rig is looking good. What's next on the list mate?

[Peterpilot Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Peterpilot]

A 40mm improvement in downward suspension travel over your previous OME set up is a great result, well done Andrew. I managed a 50mm improvement with a similar set up but that's compared to the standard Toyota set up with shorter shocks than your previous OME Prado items:


What is your total downward suspension travel measurement from bottom of rim to guard with the rear suspension fully extended and both wheels off the ground, 930-940mm? Also, with the vehicle safely hoisted, how do the rear brake lines look at full extension?

[8608 Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close 8608]

good work.

if you have a look through my thread build, i'm sure i posted a a parts list of my modified OME suspension.

try some N74E's next.

i have heaps of spare OME rr shocks in the shed now.

i'm now running a 700mm (open) long shock on the back, and works great for lifts between 3" and 4". of course the rr sway bar is the limiting factor. sway bar in = touring mode, 15 mins to get the sway bar out = extreme mode.

[AJ120 Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close AJ120]

Very interesting mate. Would you recommend it? My lift kit is still in order so I might ask arb for a 2 opinion on this. Tha ks for the info mate. Your rig is looking good. What's next on the list mate?

I can't see any reason why these shocks would be an issue, so yeah from my short experience with them I would say go for it. They give you and extra 20mm down travel even without modifying the sway bar mounts, assuming price is similar why not!

Still planning a few tweaks for the rear suspension and then a few tweaks at the front as well, everything other than that is still top secret

A 40mm improvement in downward suspension travel over your previous OME set up is a great result, well done Andrew. I managed a 50mm improvement with a similar set up but that's compared to the standard Toyota set up with shorter shocks than your previous OME Prado items:
What is your total downward suspension travel measurement from bottom of rim to guard with the rear suspension fully extended and both wheels off the ground, 930-940mm? Also, with the vehicle safely hoisted, how do the rear brake lines look at full extension?

Haven't quite got the full 40mm yet, but I will with some more work on the sway bar mounts

My chassis stands don't get the old girl high enough to bolt the wheels on at full droop now, so haven't measured but it should be in the 930-940 mark based on my measurments. I was a bit rushed putting it back together on the weekend and haven't checked the brake lines but will do!

good work.

if you have a look through my thread build, i'm sure i posted a a parts list of my modified OME suspension.

try some N74E's next.

i have heaps of spare OME rr shocks in the shed now.

i'm now running a 700mm (open) long shock on the back, and works great for lifts between 3" and 4". of course the rr sway bar is the limiting factor. sway bar in = touring mode, 15 mins to get the sway bar out = extreme mode.

Thanks Steve, don't worry I have been through you build thread plenty of times, both here and on the American forum! Probably my favourite build (other than my own of course) You have different prioritories to me but based on your needs yours is bloody well put together!

The N74E's are a firmer shock than the N71E's I fitted, I prefer the softer ride and although its early days I am happy with the ride.

If I run a shock any longer than I already am; then I need longer springs or they will fall out. My modest lift suits my needs pretty well at this stage. My rig is much more on the tourer side of things and there isn't much in the way of hard core wheelin within cooee of me, except for big sand dunes, so a 3 or 4 inch lift wouldn't improve things much for me.

Cheers Andrew

[AJ120 Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close AJ120]

Adjustable sway bar links

So continuing on with my quest for maximum flex in the rear I needed to extend the sway bar links some more as this was stopping the last bit of travel in the shock. I could have forked out the $205 for the superior engineering extended links, but thats $205 that I can't spend on something else................... So I made my own!

First up, Cold rolled shaft 80mm long and 19mm diam, drill straight through to tap a 10mm thread, then file (cause I dont have a mill) a flat on each side to take a spanner, I filed them until a 17mm spanner is a neat fit.




Then the nervous part, cut the original sway bar link in half! and run a thread the full length of the shaft on each half. I had a few issues here with a nut, the nut doing the job; and I thought for a while I had buggered the whole job but with patience I got it sorted.

Screw on a couple of locking nuts, and put it all together and you have a fully adjustable swaybar link.






As seen in the picture above the swaybar link is about 30mm longer than standard, with the other spacer I made it gives me 40mm extra, so back to about standard. Just a matter of experimenting as to what to set them at.

Hopefully I get a chance to find a spot to flex it up in the next few days and see how it works, and of course take a few pics.

Cheers Andrew

[Hutch Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Hutch]

Sounds like a new venture to go with the sidesteps!


Hutch- 2012 Prado 150, some TJM Kit.

[Peterpilot Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Peterpilot]

Nice work Andrew, much more professional than spacers. It will be interesting to see how much wheel travel is now available.

[AJ120 Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close AJ120]

Pretty happy with the end results, the old girl is flexing up nicely now.
I managed to jack it up and get it on stands high enough to allow full droop, bottom of the rim to guard is 930mm. Brake lines at full droop are OK, but only just, brake lines probably aren’t something that should be “just OK” so I might look at getting a couple a bit longer.

Took it out to the local travel ramp to test her out lol.










Cheers Andrew

[AJ120 Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close AJ120]

And a few more








Sway bar link looks good at full flex, not all twisted back like previously!




Time to start the reading and research for a few tweaks at the front, probably not much more flex I can get there without spending mega bucks on a set of Icons and new control arms, but a few extra mm lift in the front might be nice.

Cheers Andrew

[MidLifeCrisis Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close MidLifeCrisis]

Very nice AJ.

[Johno Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Johno]

Looks good AJ120.

Your missing your parking light/indicator in the bullbar. Drivers side.

Johno

[ondaboat Coopers Pale Ale Find all posts View Profile Close ondaboat]

Your missing your parking light/indicator in the bullbar.

LED Uppgrades next hey AJ & DJ time to clean Dads car by the look of it.

[AJ120 Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close AJ120]

Yeah I know the front light is missing, well its not actually, whats left of it is zippy tied behind the bullbar. The broken light was the only real damage from my Madigans trip, so cant complain. I have the indicators that just screw into the crappy bit of plastic in the bullbar, pretty ordinary design and not helpful for an LED upgrade. One of the many things on my todo list.

And yes, its a bit grubby at the moment, DJ is a teenager now so not much chance of getting him to wash it

Cheers Andrew

[foxclan Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close foxclan]

Best take a look at the future AJ.
http://au.search.yahoo.com/r/_ylt=A0...fv=gKaUL2mtAqA

[120D4D Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close 120D4D]

Nice work Andrew on the end links. I got lazy and extended mine 15mm with a couple of HT nuts.
Of course with the OME 120 shocks I doubt I've actually gained anthing but hey the end links are now back to Vertical so can't be a bad result. Forgot to measure the before so will never know of any flex gain!
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