suspension

[Tlocken]

So i have a 2010 gx 460 So when it comes to suspensions, for an overland rig, that might do some moderate off-roading what is a good suspension? I was looking at ironman, OME, radflo, bilstein. But I'm not sure where to draw the line i doubt I'll need a stage 5 or higher and affordability is a consideration.

 

[IAm_Not_Lost]

Well, I am not experienced with the gx460 specifically, but in general for "overlanding", a moderate 2" lift with 32-33" tires is a pretty good compromise for a medium sized vehicle. For the most part a vehicle can undergo a 2" lift without having to adjust much in the way of suspension angles and extending lines. Although that is of course vehicle specific.

With regard to which brand...OME or Bilstein are usually solid choices and generally have cost effective options. Part's availability is a big one, make sure whatever brand you go with has good support. I bet the GX forum has more specifics as well.

 

[Pixelsaurus]

I put a Dobinson 2.5" system on my 2012 GX and have been very happy with it. It supports 33" tires and has been tested on over 20K miles both highway and rough off road. 33" tires are really the max for a GX without getting into series rubbing issues.

 

[ZanSTI]

Biggest thing to remember when lifting a IFS front suspension Offroad vehicle is this; every inch you lift, you lose in downward travel. This of course can be offset with control arms that have joints with higher angles of flex, but unless you get a ”full on lift” that also drops your front frame and replaces the spindles this is key depending on what kind of wheeling you plan to do.

Biggest thing to keep in mind is:
a) what type of wheeling do you plan to do?
b) what size tire do you plan to fit? (This is the real equation since you lift to fit bigger tires).
c) how much weight over stock are you planning to carry?
- c doesn’t pertain to the lift so much, but if you plan to load down the back end or add heavy bumpers etc. you’ll need appropriate spring rates and dampers that won’t fade due to excessive motion on trails/highways.

 

[Shakes355]

I cant speak specifically to your platform but it should be noted that real coilover suspension systems (ie. Fox, King, Radflow, Icon, etc), while amazing and capable, do require semi-regular maintenance in the 30k mile range that can significantly add to the cost if you do not do your own work. More traditional systems like those available from Iron Man, OME, and Bilstein do not. This obviously comes at the cost of performance, but you should keep it in mind if your budget is thin.

 

[Maverick9110E]

I cant speak specifically to your platform but it should be noted that real coilover suspension systems (ie. Fox, King, Radflow, Icon, etc), while amazing and capable, do require semi-regular maintenance in the 30k mile range that can significantly add to the cost if you do not do your own work. More traditional systems like those available from Iron Man, OME, and Bilstein do not. This obviously comes at the cost of performance, but you should keep it in mind if your budget is thin.

This is true, but the cost to have them rebuilt or serviced isn't that bad. Fox sells the parts for about $75 a shock plus labor. Still way less then a new pair of coil overs.

 

[Aeroscout]

Following.

 

[Joshua Buss]

As said before I would avoid going the full 3 inches as that is where it start to put significant strain on the upper control arm. If you really want to squeeze in bigger tires then squeeze the budget for a proper lift otherwise stay with a simple 2 inch lift level kit.

 

[Pixelsaurus]

Here is my Dobinson set up. I went with new upper control arms and simple shocks and heavy springs in the rear as have a built in drawer and kitchen and sometimes tow a small trailer. In the images you can see how rear sits both loaded and unloaded.
There are lots of good options other than Dobinson but I am very happy with my set up.