The AUSubaru.com.au Forums

Hey guys,

I'm after some advise. I want to put a 3inch lift on the Red brumby we got.
Either i buy one, or i make my own.

I'm kinda hoping to build my own. I know it gonna be easier to buy one but i want to learn to build one.
On the other hand i know a new kit is $500 posted from Suby Wan Kenobi,
But do you guys think it will be cheaper to build it myselt as i've got the cutting tools and the welding tools.

Also i think i can manage the lift bolcks and the rear braket for the rear suspention but i will need some help and advise on how to build the front struts as i understand i need to offset them.

Also what would be better/stronger/cheaper, steel vertical tube reinforced by the small horizontal tube OR alu blocks?

plz post Pics, measurments, info, ideas and anything else i missed that could help:)



Guyph

Any one has any ideas???

SHS steel blocks and solid ally blocks will both be sufficient. There will never be enough force to break a SHS block. Steel is cheaper than ally and steel is easier to work with in context of welding etc.

Ever thought about using a poly compund? Strong, light, easy to cut/drill.

just some options for ya

alex

50mm round bar works well, its just the front struts like u say. flat plate top and bottom, with hollow pipe in between. not sure on the offset though buddy, definately inwards though. Ive made some form alloy, stainless and poly. I liked the polyones best, but gavethem to a mate for his zook.

Cheers, Rohan M

What is poly? ok thx i'll start to get prices:)

Another thing, All the hight for all the bloks is 3inch right? Or do they have some minor variation?

poly is plastic

theyre doing it with all the big 4x4s now.

alex

Guy pm sent and for every inch of lift (25mm) you need 6mm of offset toward the engine

and here are the components needed

2 inch kit one piece missing (gearbox mount)



4 inch kit with what looks to be a 2 or 3 inch for the gearbox , a different way to do the rear diff and nothing for the rear shocks either



neither kit has a steering extension either

hope this helps looking at the strut tops you can see the offset

TOONGA

mmm that second kit looks expensive...all laser cut

alex

yep they are expensive stainless, laser cut and shipped from the USA

http://www.sjrlift.com/index.php?option ... mid=100054

but not impossible to make in Australia

TOONGA

Keffa wrote:poly is plastic

theyre doing it with all the big 4x4s now.

alex

awesome idea
so much easier to manufacture
bloody brilliant
..... now just have to find the right Brumby .... sigh....
really wanna targa top ......
in blue......

Thx.

What would be the differance of using a 2inch body lift with 4inch on the front sturt and rear suspention? What are the reasons, advantages, disadvantages etc etc

Also in the first pic, the two greyist bars on the bottom left thats not straight, does it have to be like that or is it possible to use two seperate blocks for one side?

And is one small black block missing or it just have 5 (is that the missing gearbox mount?)? Is there a reason why they are using only 2inch for the gearbox lift and not 3inch?


I want more and more to build my own:)

running bigger strut tops is like doing a suspension lift. So if you run 4inch strut tops with 2inch body lift its like doing a 2inch susp lift ontop of a 2inch bodylift.

This adds extra angle to your cv shafts and causes boots to die prematurely and puts extra strain on the joint itself. I had 1inch lifted springs in my wagon to compensate for the heavier ej motors and i had no problems with a small amount of extra suspension lift. (you have them springs now Guy)

cheers

alex

Guy this should explain it in a pictorial form

with a 2 inch, 3 inch, 4inch or however many inch all round the angles on the cv shafts are near neutral



by inconsistent lift I mean 4 inch on the struts and 2 inch on the body and the angle on the shafts is greater causing more wear and greater failure rates

but the engine /gearbox clearance to the ground is greater and you still get the option of bigger wheels than with a 2 inch all round lift

and finally those joined blocks are like that because thats how some people make them mine are all seperate (which did make it harder to keep them all in place but thats about all)

TOONGA

Yeah keffa, Still have had no issues with the cv's. Did many bunouts and donuts in the mud/sand and still no crack on the boots:)

Thx toonga, I understand now... not sure what to do yet if going uniform lift all round or inconsistent lift:)


Since i want to go 3inch, What do you guys think of a 3inch body lift and 4inch suspention Lift? They should be less impact on the cv's but a bit better on ground clearance or not really and will be like 3inch all round?

I dunno about your lift on the L guyph, but my 3 inch lift has 2 inch lift on the gearbox crossmember/radius rod mounting plate.

This should be able to be done on an MY as well without any issues.

For the offset I've heard that you should go for 7mm offset for every one inch/26mm of lift. Build it, you'll have fun doing it and as you say, the strut tops will be the hardest part. I've seen holden shocks used in the rear instead of using a bracket.

Cheers

Bennie

yeh matatak used rodeo rear shock i think and actually got a fair bit of droop.

Matatak did that so he didn't have to run a strut extender bracket at all on the rear end (because the one supplied with his kit didn't seem to fit his car). Those shocks were long enough to not require it.

Extra suspension lift is acceptable in a Liberty, kindof acceptable in an L series, but from what I hear a definite no-no in an MY - the CV's aren't at fantastic angles already. Maybe if you massively compensate for it with the offset, but I think you run into issues actually fitting them into the strut tower then.

Guy - don't try and re-invent the wheel, especially if you have this much trouble understanding lift blocks in the first place (this is your third or forth "lift kits for dummies" thread I think) Best bet would be just re-create a simple 3" lift kit as pictured - it's tried and tested a million times over.

Definitely have a go doing it if you have the materials and welding skills.
I would recommend getting a pro welder to do at least the steering extension tho (even this isn't technically legal I think). Last thing you want is to try turning a corner or avoiding a hazard and having the thing snap. No steering = no living!

Yeah on my L series the gearbox/Radius rods blocks are smaller, 2 inch like you say.
Should i do the same with the brumby if i go 3Inch?

Do you guys know if the rodeo sturt be high enough to go with a 3Inch kit?

And finally, I know i have put up a few lift thread, but i'd rather be 200% sure before and ask a million question to the guys that tried and tested it a million times over then spend the money only to find out everything was for a waste.

thx

yeah gearbox and radius rod plates need to be 1" smaller.
See if u can find a photo of a 3" lift kit to suit MY laid out on the ground, that'd be the best thing to work from I'd say.

I think Matatak was running 3" lift and he stuck those shocks in without using any kind of extender bracket on them.

ill ask matatak tonite. His my wagon seriously had the most flex ive ever seen from a subaru.

Guy, he might still even have the shocks as the body of his car is just sitting rusting at his place

alex