Just to update before I go any farther with my build. My truck has run some harder trails in the last few months and I am still happy with where this budget suspension has taken me. Granted; the rear locker and lower gears in both the axles and transfer case have been the best additions for getting me down harder trails, but the suspension has worked well.
I have added 35" tires which I previously said was probably not a good idea. But now I won't go back. The front end has held up well with these tires over the last 2 years. I will probably have to replace items like steering parts and ball joints a little more frequently but that is a price I am wiling to pay in order to gain a little more ground clearance and break over angle. Although I haven't needed to do this yet. Since I rebuilt everything with new parts when I did the lift, everything is still tight.
To fit 35's I did have to add a 1" body lift and do a bit more cutting and hammering; and the front stillmarginally rubs, but it is only moderate and when it is at full steering lock combined with full suspension compression. I have not seen any wear on the tires do to the rub.
I know that this thread started out showing what a cheap suspension for these trucks is capable of but I think I will morph it into more of "What is this ifs front end capable of off-road and on the cheap whithout breaking." I don't plan on getting rid of my IFS anytime soon, but I do plan on upgrading it to make it work better (mostly taking the "cheaper" route). These are great trucks and I hope to encourage people to take them out and explore and build their trucks in stages and as money permits.
Future plans: ARB front locker (on order). This serves a two-fold purpose: it obviously adds more traction but it also increases the strength of the front differential. The second future mod is a set of modified and lengthened stock A-Arms (via Blazeland Suspension) which I am accumulating parts for as I type this. This is basically a cheap long travel kit that will double the amount of front end travel that these trucks have. Since I can weld I will be using their weld it yourself kit to save some cash, but even if you were to buy their bolt in kit you are still only a few hundred dollars more than a bracket lift kit and you gain twice the wheel travel in the process. The downfall to going with a long-travel kit is that it makes your truck almost 7 inches wider than stock. This puts the front end about as wide as a new Tacoma. It will take some getting use to but the increased front end travel and stability make it worth while in my opinion.
I will post as the parts go in; but it could be several months in between updates, as resources are still slim. Since IFS Toyota trucks get a bad rap about them being "weak" on the trail I aim to show how they can work and be upgraded in stages and "survive" in the backcountry without cutting it all off and going to a solid axle. I still use the truck as a daily driver and for camping but have thrown in a little more trail excitement as the years have gone on.
In the meantime; some of the more notable trails that the truck has been on and survived without front end damage has been: Poughkeepsie Gulch outside of Ouray, CO; Hells Revenge, Kokopelli Trail (with a dissent down Rose Garden Hill) and Poison Spyder Mesa outside of Moab, UT, Devils Racetrack and Fixit Pass in the SAN Rafael Swell in Utah and Pearl and Taylor Pass (many times) outside of Crested Butte, CO. Amongst others. I only mention trails because you can YouTube most of these and see what they are like.
I guess you can have a lot of fun wheeling and camping with ifs (just upgrade your idler arm, I spent the money on a Total Chaos Idler Arm and would highly recommend it if you get out on the trail). Even with an idler arm brace my idler arm was wasted after a season and a half of trail use. The idler arm brace was good, cheap insurance though, as it did keep the idler arm from breaking. If you can't afford the $400 (ouch!) for the Total Chaos idler arm I would highly recommend spending money on the Blazeland idler arm brace if you plan on taking your truck or 4Runner on the trail. They are only like $40 and it did work for what it was intended to do. My idler Arm never broke!
And I forgot to mention, I got rid of the 1" differential drop at the start of the summer as it interfered with my Budbuilt skid plate and belly pan. With such a marginal lift I don't feel that it is truly necessary. I put it in there initially as cheap insurance as I didn't know any better at the time due to a lack of real world information about building this type of front end. I have also recently upgraded my rear shocks to Old Man Emu Nitrocharger sport shocks. Wow, what a night and day difference they made. They are just firm enough on the road and just squishy enough on the trail. When I do the Blazeland long travel suspension up front I will be using Old Man Emu Nitrocharger sport shocks as well since they actually have about the same travel numbers as the Bilsteins that Blazeland recommends. I have not found any information on the Emu's being used with the Blazeland so I guess I will be the guinny pig and report back on how well they work together.
Here's some pics of the truck in action. The first pic is on the obstacle called "the Wall" on the Poughkeepsie Gulch trail outside of Ouray, CO. The second is on an obstacle called "the Wedgy" on the Poison Spyder trail in Moab.
