Daystar 1” Leveling Kit – Install Instructions

[bluehaze0959]

ok, does adding this kit kill the factory warranty??

[1983FJ60]

bluehaze0959 previously said:

ok, does adding this kit kill the factory warranty??

No.

But if you have suspension issues, they might hassle you.

[Scottsfire]

I have to admit, as a newbie to suspension, this seems a little intimidating to me,but I want to do it.

[Pap]

I wouldn’t bother trying to separate the ball joint with a ball joint separator. All you need to do is give the flat section of the housing a few wacks with a hammer and it will just drop down.


Pap

[CosmicCruiser]

I did this last month. The kit was $50 and $75 each side to have it professionally installed. Wish I had the time to install myself though.

[Zurn]

Haven't checked this thread in a long time... If I can get a new ball joint boot for $14 that’s the way to go. I haven't done anything to mine yet, just keep checking to make sure it has grease in the boot. I keep thinking mine looks low in the back too, that's why I ordered the rest of the DayStar kit, I'm going to do the back first to see what it looks like and then add the extra 1" to the front if it needs it. The head lights do need adjusted, I keep getting flashed! I'm waiting to save up enough money to get some bigger tires, then I'll install the rest of my DayStar kit. I really think this is a kit anybody could do themselves, you just have to have the alignment done after you get it installed. I’m not sure about the 285’s yet since I can afford them. I’m guessing you will still need to do the body mount mod to be sure you don’t have any rubbing at full flex.

[Zurn]

You can always PM me if you have any questions. I'd be happy to answer them!

[Briareos]

Very informative post - nicely done.

I am coming from the first generation tacoma (95.5 -04) world, which is very similar to the current FJ front suspension, so this might be an appropriate time to share some previous experience with these types of spacers (which will hopefully not applyto the FJ).

Some previous gen taco owners ran into two problems with spacer lifts that installed ABOVE the top plate of the strut assembly.

The first problem (for older tacomas) arises because when the suspension is fully compressed, there is a fixed minimum distance between the upper and lower mounting points for the shock which is reached when the bumps on the A-arm hit the stops on the frame. By adding a spacer ABOVE the top plate, it effectively reduces this minimum compressed distance by the thickness of the spacer. Some shocks may have a compressed length that is greater than this newly reduced distance, and as a result, and when the suspension is fully compressed, the bottoming forces are absorbed by the shock rather than by the bumpstops/frame.

The second problem (for older tacomas) arises because a spacer added above the top plate effectively increases the overall length of the shock assembly. This additional length translates into additional travel for the suspension, which in the case of the older tacomas, would result in additional stress on the tie rod ends, ball joints, and would allow the upper A-arm to hit the coil at full extension. All Pro had released a steel bolt-in spacer for tacomas that was notorious for this problem.

If anyone else does this mod (which I am also considering when I finally get my FJ) could you please do the following:

After you have compressed the spring and taken it off the shock, place the shock with spacer on top (but no spring) back into the suspension and jack the lower arm up to verify that the bumpstops are still the limiting factor in the compressed end of the suspension travel.

Hopefully the new FJ suspension is different enough from the old tacomas that this isn't even an issue, and I applaud the original poster for breaking new ground to install this kit. I hope I am not creating doubt or confusion over something that may not even be an issue. Thanks for sharing your install experience. I have done this so many times on my old tacoma that I have grown to HATE even the sight of a spring compressor.

Thanks,
Shawn

[loner]

Zurn previously said:

Haven't checked this thread in a long time... If I can get a new ball joint boot for $14 that’s the way to go. I haven't done anything to mine yet, just keep checking to make sure it has grease in the boot.

Part number is 43324-69015 for the replacement boot kit.

[justinh]

There should also be two bolts on the bottom of the spindle/steering knuckle that connect the lower ball joint. You should be able to remove these two bolts instead of removing the upper ball joint, if you did it this way you wouldn't have to worry about any boots. Check the instructions on the toytec web-site, they are, imo, much better than daystars.

Also, is this spacer 1" thick? If it is 1" thick with the geometry of the suspension it will give more than 1" of lift at the tire.