97 Taco Coil SAS

[RockTacoAU]

I am most of the way done with my SAS on my 97 tacoma. here are the specs: ford hp 44 with chevy 6 lug outers 4.88s and lockright. partmike superarms, high steer 1.5" .25 wall TR and DL with 1 ton ends. yota ifs steering box (custom shaft made of tacoma shaft plus TM 6inch extension and yota rag joint) T100 oil pan.
Here are some pics:

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Mar3016.jpg

removing IFS crap
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Mar3017.jpg

Jamin torching off the Ifs brckets(much better than the sawzall and cutoff)
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Apr0320.jpg

axle sittin under it looking good
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Apr0323.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Apr0324.jpg

just a few inches wider than the rear
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Apr0325.jpg

steering box plates made and installed, frame sleeved, box installed, My 5.5 EB coils mocked up
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Apr1629.jpg

bolt in link xmember will hold up the links, will go right under the front output of tcase 2x3x.188 rectangular tubing, i took teh tranny xmember out in favor of a FROR mount.
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Apr1631.jpg

modified PS reservoir with 3in exhaust tubing for more capacity and DL
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Apr3034.jpg

[RockTacoAU]

a little carnage from 5ft cheater bar, i hate weld in bungs I cant get my DLE to thread in far enough (anyone know any tricks for this????)
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Apr3035.jpg

I should get it close to driveable this weekend. I have researched 3links and i believe my 2 lower links will be mounted below axle centerline and taper in to the xmember, my 3rd link mounted on the passenger side will be perpendicular to as close the center of the axle as possible sloping slightly down to the axle. any other tips???
should look similair to this with forged JJs at the frame end and polyjoints at the axle end.
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/3LINKplacement.jpg

I want to run 36 to 37in iroks while keeping the truck low as possible (frame to ground about 26inches)
Yall let me know what ya think.

So after getting my FROR xmember in place I figured out that my link xmember hung way to low so i modified it a lil
link xmember take two: http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/May2138.jpg
now it hangs down just level with the tcase skid plate (perfect)

Then i figured out the easiest way to make my steering shaft work, I did the usual double u joint into single u joint then i just used the Tacoma IFS TM shaft extension slipped it onto the tacoma shaft and it bolted right to the ragjoint on the box. It works great.http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/May2137.jpg

and here is what my lower link tabs for the xmember look like :D http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/May2139.jpg

I made the lower link mounts for the axle today, and worked on the link xmember somemmore.
It is all coming along slowly but surely, maybe i will have it rolling by the end of this month.


So i have been gettin a few things done, my lower coil buckets are done, got my lower joints and tabs al mocked up in place and am ready to cut links (28" long not including the joints) I got the axle all level and the truck level. I figure ill get the lower links done then make the top and all the brackets then mount the coils and lastly make the panhard and tabs.

[RockTacoAU]

What do yall think about my link placement. they taper out just a little from the frame to the axle. loks like i have plenty of TR/DL clearence. caster at 6* to 8*.
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Jun0948.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Jun0947.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Jun0946.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Jun0944.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Jun0943.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Jun0942.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Jun0941.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Jun0940.jpg
Must finish never ending SAS ;D

P.S. these are all my posts with pics pasted from CAOS
Matt :beer:

[FrankenToy]

This is exactly what I was hoping someone would post up. Been thinking SAS but not wanting leaf springs. Keep the pics rollin'...:smokin:

[92toy21]

Nice work man.... keep it up and lets see it done some time soon..

[GA86yota]

bad ass man !!! you gonna run spacers in the rear or wheels with less back spacing ?

[RockTacoAU]

i will probably run some 1.5 spacers in the rear to even everything out, I made the trac bar brackets today so everything is ready to go, I am just waiting on welding(I dont trust myself to weld suspension stuff.)
thanks for the comments I hope to have it done soon.
Matt :D

[swank501]

very nice there! I will be taking notes although I plan to use an FJ80 axle in my taco.Are you going to use a tower on top of the diff for the 3rd link?

[swank501]

nevermind, Ijust looked at the pics again

[RockTacoAU]

I made a mount that is about 8inches tall it is as close to the center of the axle as possible. I think it is better to put it there on a driver side drop axle becuase of the rotation or something?

[swank501]

I made a mount that is about 8inches tall it is as close to the center of the axle as possible. I think it is better to put it there on a driver side drop axle becuase of the rotation or something?
Would you be able to upgrade to dual cases with that rear x-member?I can't really tell from the pics although it looks like it will have crazy flex!

[RockTacoAU]

I made the link xmember bolt in and it is right under the front output so i could easily move it back some If i decide to go with dual cases. I would just have to make longer links (right now they are all about 3ft long).
Matt

[MT4Runner]

Nice!

There's some great tech right here with the 3" exhaust tubing to extend the PS reservoir: :smokin:
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Apr3034.jpg

[RockTacoAU]

thanks i got that idea from tacominator on TTORA it should help with cooling alot since it just about tripled the capacity and the best part is that it is easy to pour fluid in it now becuase it sits right at the top of the motor, I also plan on running a PS cooler as well.
Matt

[MT4Runner]

Here's another dumb idea--now that it's got a lot of surface area, how about some cooling fins to cool even more?

[RockTacoAU]

:D I actually thought about puting some fins on it, that would be:grinpimp:
but i will prolly just put on a cooler and be done now that i have a lifetime warranty pump from autozone anyway (they had no idea what they where gettin into:shaking: )
Matt

[RockTacoAU]

well i am tired of the seeing the truck sittin there waiting on welding so i got a friend of mine to give me some welding tips and i started practicing on some stuff and i can already run a pretty good bead. Fawk it i guess i will just weld everything up myself, if it breaks atleast i will be the one to blame.
wish me luck:D
Matt

[RockTacoAU]

well i got the coil buckets welded up today and ran out of wire, CAs are finsihed. My welds are gettin better so i guess ill be tacking everything into place tomarow and i will post up some pics.
Matt

[RockTacoAU]

It drives and wheels:D, I finsihed it all up and everything works great, My stock driveshaft worked perfect with the HAD adapter. I ended up goin wiht some 6.5 EB coils becuase i needed more lift they are super soft. I have 13.5 RS5000s on the front with some custom shock hoops. AP front SS lines and rear 1.5" wheels spacers. I need to put my lokcrite in the front and make a hybrid leaf pack and some shcles to get rid of the block in the rear and i hsould be good to go for a while:D
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Jul3058.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Aug0664.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Aug0663.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Aug0662.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Aug0661.jpg

What do yall think?
Matt

[millerjouni]

Dope....starting to become a more reasonable route as first and second get trucks get older and older and tacoma prices get lower.... can't wait to do a double cab one day.

[FrankenToy]

Did you still use 28" links (top and bottom) after everything was completed?
When you swapped oil pans were there any other parts needed (were you able to just to change the pick-up or did you have to swap out the entire oil pump, etc...)?
Can you post up a few close-ups of where you cut the cross member and added the tube right beneath the engine?

You did a great job :grinpimp:. Is there anything you woulda done differently after having driven it? How does it drive (low speed, high speed) compared to the stock Taco IFS?

(I know, I know, a thousand questions...)

TIA...

[RockTacoAU]

1)all my links are the smae link they are about 36inches long,

2)I just swapped the pickup tube and oil pan(some swap out the dip stick but it is a PITA so i just trimmed mine a lil and it works fine)

3) I just torched off all my crossmembers and added one to the front, one for the links and the Tcase one from FROR. No tubing right under ther engine.

I dont think i would change a thing after everything, I dont remember how a stock taco drives but this is soooo much better than my TM lift kit's ride. nice smooth ride at 40 and 80 no problems whatsoever. My steering can be difficult when parking. (I will add hydro assist before long to fix this)

Thanks for the compliments let me know if ya got anymore questions
Matt

[FrankenToy]

Tubing under the engine is prolly the exhaust. :laughing: My bad....

[dawezel1]

eb coils whos that and how much lift are those springs?what size tires and lift in the rear?

[thepinktaco]

eb coils whos that and how much lift are those springs?what size tires and lift in the rear?

EB coils are Early Bronco coils.

[RockTacoAU]

those are 36 iroks in the last pics, and i now have a hybrid leaf pack in the rear half wagoneer half taco and some 2inch shackles, cut out fenders and 12in bed bob.

[toyin]

i'd like to see pictures of the bob job if you get a chance. How much do you have into front setup?

[toy86]

nice little setup you got, im gonna be linking the rear of mine this weekend but plan on linking the front around christmas time and this setup looks pretty nice

[RockTacoAU]

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Sep0668.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Sep0465.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/MMORVLosprimos.jpg

My front set up costs the same as a leaf spring set up except,
- leaf springs
+ 200 for coils
+ 300 or so for joints and link materials

[Evilwhitey]

Whose 6.5" EB springs are you using? What's your ground to frame measurement? Do you have plans for linking the rear?

[RockTacoAU]

BC Broncos makes the coils, they are close to 200 a set with shipping.
I have been thinkin of one linking the rear with a big forged JJ that i have as a spare. Been lookin at airshox for this but might go coils for $$$$$$.
frame to ground is around 24" i think.:beer:

[toyin]

That's a sweet truck. How hard do you think it would be to do the same set up with an FJ80 axle? I would want to use the FJ80 cause it's stronger, still yota, and i already have a built mini case that i could keep and reuse to keep the money down. The spring set up looks pretty sweet. It would also be easy to upgrade to full coil over later down the road.

[RockTacoAU]

it would be a tight fit, it was pretty tight with my full width axle but im sure it can be done.

[Mawnov]

The truck Looks great, Good work!

[RockTacoAU]

thanks, the only thing that has changed is i cut a few inches out of the fenders for more clearence for the iroks:D.

[Zeb8806]

The pinktaco used an fj80 and minicase and it turned out real well he had no clearence issues and its one of if not the lowest sas tacomas around.

[SinisterTaco]

its one of if not the lowest sas tacomas around.

It's also riding on 32s. Put 37s on there and see where it sits.

Brian Ellinger (FRORF) says his is sitting at around 24" and it's on 42s.

[RockTacoAU]

Here is a few things ive gotten done on my truck in the last few months.
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Feb19143.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Feb19135.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Feb19138.jpg

i have a lil over $100 in my hydro assist and it works great, would work even better with a bigger pump.

:grinpimp:

[Mossyrocks]

youll love the hydro assist for sure. I dont know how I ever wheeled without it.

[RockTacoAU]

youll love the hydro assist for sure. I dont know how I ever wheeled without it.

yeah morris mountain was my first trip with it and i love it. Only problem is sometimes i need to rev it up to get it to turn in tight spots, Could prolly use a smaller pully and maybe a cooler.

[briansc33]

Good choice going with Corbeau's, I love mine! Question though... Where are your shoulder harnesses mounted to, or going to be mounted to (I can't tell from the pics)?? Also, do you plan on building a cage (int. or otherwise)??
Rig looks really good man!

[RockTacoAU]

Good choice going with Corbeau's, I love mine! Question though... Where are your shoulder harnesses mounted to, or going to be mounted to (I can't tell from the pics)?? Also, do you plan on building a cage (int. or otherwise)??
Rig looks really good man!

shoulder harnesses were just sitting in there at the time, i plan on building a partial interior/bed cage deal soon, just got my bender set up and have to build bumpers first:grinpimp: and an EB rollcage.

[drice82]

you know what model and year your axel is out of? you know the WMS-WMS number also by chance? Thanks Looks good, like the coils route

[RockTacoAU]

you know what model and year your axel is out of? you know the WMS-WMS number also by chance? Thanks Looks good, like the coils route

measurement is around 66" WMS, it is a hp dana 44 out of around a 77 ford f150, be careful becuase some of the later axles had cast in radius arm wedges, which make the axle worthless. :grinpimp:
Matt

[RockTacoAU]

Here some pics of my new rear bumper i just finished ;D.


http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Mar13148.jpgURL

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Mar13147.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d193/WhyHikeAU/Mar13146.jpg


What do yall think, i think we almost got this whole bending thing figured out.
8-)

[Boheefus]

It's all about the speedhole bling :D

Still riding nice on the street? Notice any coil deflection as they have been used and abused?

I am thinking on a 3 link for my 97 Runner next spring. Was gonna go coilovers, but I like keeping it simple.

[RockTacoAU]

Still rides better than stock, coils are still perfect BC broncos 6.5s. For the $$ coils are the way to go if you are running a fullwidth axle IMO.

[lone toy]

is that dom ? looks cool simple going to add d rings later?

[Boheefus]

got any shots of the upper coil buckets? handbuilt or store bought?

[Boheefus]

ahem....

[RockTacoAU]

sorry guys havent been on here in a while

The upper coil buckets are just a bunch of quarter inch plate. With 1" D's welded in the top to hold the bronco springs.

The rear bumper is 1.75 .120wall Welded Seam because it was less that half the cost of DOM and will work fine for bumpers. The support tabs on the rear crossmember actually are drilled out to hold D-Ring:grinpimp:.

[CarolinaTaco89]

measurement is around 66" WMS, it is a hp dana 44 out of around a 77 ford f150, be careful becuase some of the later axles had cast in radius arm wedges, which make the axle worthless. :grinpimp:
Matt

Hey Matt, is that WMS - WMS measurement before or after you swapped the chevy outers. If it is before the swap, what is your final wms-wms measurement.

[Radman]

whered u get the high steer knuckle from?