help me pls : front suspension

[dieselboy]

hi again!
wondering who could spare some advice?

ive had my truck almost 2 months now, and really like it.
the previous owner explained he had replaced the rear springs. and all is good.
except, when i go over them really narrow speed bumps at work, when the front come over and back down it will hit the bump stops sometimes. and it does bounce a little. so my diag is $$$$ shocks and saggy springs.

so if i were to do the front what would i choose?

i havnt tried going over the bumps with the hard shocks button switched over.
thinking about it, i was under the car the other night on the rear. and i think the previous owner replaced the rear with shocks that arnt electronically adjustable. (i remembered seeing 2 connectors like an mini S-Video type nicely tucked away) no big deal to me, but it is a bit of a shame. the rear end is quite solid, and does not bounce like the front does.
also the rear must be about an inch higher than the front.

i dont want to lift the car, otherwise the front will be higher than the rear, like im carrying building stuff..
but i was told the rear springs are uprated (he probably ment shocks) ive not been in a standard surf, but i imagine the rear now is probably how a standard surf would be if the button was switched over.

i dont have too much money either, but dont see the point of getting cheap rubbish. i like replacing broken things with new that will last and do its job too.
thanks for your help!

[dieselboy]

just seen this: http://www.toyotahilux.com/?doc=16&cid=139&vid=388
this must be what i have on the back.
i havnt looked at the front.
thanks

[dieselboy]

no wonder they are replaced with no electronic ones. have you seen the price!!

[The Lovely Boyo]

Torsion bars on the front and if they need replacing there are heavy duty ones available.

If the back shocks have been changed you might as well do the front - they're only £35 each.

[dieselboy]

yea i was going to do springs and shocks.
so the front dont have springs? i dont know what the torsion bar looks like.
when i hear torsion bar, i think rear end of a peugeot or citreon saxo.

i went over that same speed bump that i hit the bump stops on, after i switched to hard mode. its a lot better ride. and doesnt bounce like it used to. i will just replace with nitrogen ones.
where can i get the 'torsion' bar (s) as you say?

cheers mate

[The Lovely Boyo]

Torsion bars info (assuming you have a 2.4)

http://www.toyotahilux.com/?doc=11&cid=139

also http://www.toyotahilux.com for most of your spares or http://www.milneroffroad.com/4x4.htm

Try winding them up before replacing. They do sag after a while but mine have been OK since I did them.

http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/torsion_bars

[madcampbell]

i went over that same speed bump that i hit the bump stops on, after i switched to hard mode. its a lot better ride. and doesnt bounce like it used to.

cheers mate

I could be wrong but I thought "Hard Mode" was for Road use and "soft mode" was for off road. ? in soft mode the wheels are pushed further down so that they reach the bottom of the dip...or somthing like that.
When in hard mode stops the truck turning corners like a boat

Mark

[Tallyman]

If only the rear shocks have been replaced then the Hard/Soft switch will continue to work for the front shocks if they are original. I run mine on hard all the time as I find it gives a better feeling in normal driving. Soft makes it a bit too wallowy for my liking.

[Morr]

I could be wrong but I thought "Hard Mode" was for Road use and "soft mode" was for off road. ? in soft mode the wheels are pushed further down so that they reach the bottom of the dip...or somthing like that.
When in hard mode stops the truck turning corners like a boat

Mark

The Hard/Soft modes have no effect on the amount of wheel travel available.
Whether Hard is for road and soft for off-road or vice-versa has been debated before, altough I'm not sure complete agreement was reached. It just alters the response rate of the dampers. Which mode to use in different circumstances is generally a personal choice.
The hard mode will decrease the bounciness which many feel keeps the vehicle more stable off-road, it will also have a slight tendancy to reduce body-roll on the road and can introduce a more sporty like feel to its road manners so many also use it on tarmac too.
There's no hard and fast rule, its about using whatever best suits the individuals style of driving in the particular circumstances.

[madcampbell]

The Hard/Soft modes have no effect on the amount of wheel travel available.
Whether Hard is for road and soft for off-road or vice-versa has been debated before, altough I'm not sure complete agreement was reached. It just alters the response rate of the dampers. Which mode to use in different circumstances is generally a personal choice.
The hard mode will decrease the bounciness which many feel keeps the vehicle more stable off-road, it will also have a slight tendancy to reduce body-roll on the road and can introduce a more sporty like feel to its road manners so many also use it on tarmac too.
There's no hard and fast rule, its about using whatever best suits the individuals style of driving in the particular circumstances.

Thanks Morr,
I was liking it to a mountain bike and was wrong. now I don't see the need then for the soft option.. other than wallowing....?

[dieselboy]

Torsion bars info (assuming you have a 2.4)

http://www.toyotahilux.com/?doc=11&cid=139

also http://www.toyotahilux.com for most of your spares or http://www.milneroffroad.com/4x4.htm

Try winding them up before replacing. They do sag after a while but mine have been OK since I did them.

http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/torsion_bars

yes i have the 2.4 is it different set up on other engine sizes then?

in my truck, on the switch to adjust the shocks - i have 2 modes. either hard or normal. it doesnt actually say soft. but i assumed it, and it does feel smoother over minor bumps, and is wallowy around corners just like a P&O cruiser.
so will i have to buy new bars? or could i get them adjusted?

[stormforce]

yes i have the 2.4 is it different set up on other engine sizes then?

in my truck, on the switch to adjust the shocks - i have 2 modes. either hard or normal. it doesnt actually say soft. but i assumed it, and it does feel smoother over minor bumps, and is wallowy around corners just like a P&O cruiser.
so will i have to buy new bars? or could i get them adjusted?

you can just crank up the front torsion bars by 1 1/2 to 2" max it is the same on the 2nd gen 3.0l but the 3rd gens have springs all round

here's how to do it
http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/torsion_bars/

[The Lovely Boyo]

yes i have the 2.4 is it different set up on other engine sizes then?

As Richard says the 2nd Gens are all the same.

The reason I asked is that the link was to a 2.4 page at Roughtrax. The 3.0 may(?) have heavier bars.

[stormforce]

As Richard says the 2nd Gens are all the same.

The reason I asked is that the link was to a 2.4 page at Roughtrax. The 3.0 may(?) have heavier bars.

just checked on roughtrax and the 2.4 and 3.0 have the same ref.no. for the torsion bars.
If you get the uprated bars then if they are anything like the ones i had then they were tight as hell to fit