Raise ride height on a 1990 All-Trac

Hi,

I bought a 1990 All-Trac 5spd for a winter car and an alternate car to drive instead of our gas guzzling SUV. I have had the car for two days and now know without a shadow of a doubt that having a lowered car in northern Alberta (lots of snow and side roads don't get plowed too often) is not really a good idea.

The guy who had it before me installed:
-KYB struts front and back
-B&G springs
-front strut mounts

I figure it's sits almost 2" lower than stock, thats what it looks like to me. I am scraping the undercarage everywhere I drive because of the snow/ice build up on the roads. I have searched the net for a way to raise the ride height but shy of spending a ton of money I couldn't find what I was looking for. Ultimately what I would like is a fairly simple way to have the car lowered for summer and raised back up to stock for winter. Something that can be done easily when my tires are changed from summers to winters would be best.

Can I had blocks or something to gain extra length from the springs? My brother in law is a machinist and if I know what to ask for he can make it.

I looked at a ton of options, but some of them cost more than I paid for my car!

Thanks.

Coil overs will make it so you can raise your car in the winter and lower it in the summer.

like you say you can add spacer blocks to your spring perches / platforms....

i'd say just find some cheap used ksport coilovers and call it a day.. especially if you'll be doing this regularly..

monkey8oi":3e2asseo said:

i'd say just find some cheap used ksport coilovers and call it a day.. especially if you'll be doing this regularly..

Click to expand...

Thanks for the info guys.

Where would I find some cheap used ksport coilovers? There is lots of new ones listed on ebay but nothing for used. Is there a good place to go for used parts like this other than ebay?

A normal set of coilovers probably wont do the job.
They are designed to be lowered, not raised, and will not give enough suspension droop travel.
With soft high springs, the dampers will be too stiff and will cook (get too hot, melt seals, etc).

Normally you need ~1/3 suspension travel in droop.
Ie, when sitting at ride height, the suspension is compressed 1/3 of its total travel.
The car will be quite unsafe if you dont have that 1/3rd.

In other words... youll need dampers with longer travel too, not just just higher springs.
Itll also throw out your suspension geometry.

Probably best to talk to a 4wd truck modification shop (place that does lift kits, etc).
They will tell you want needs to be done to do it properly & make it safe.

here you go... and it's in alberta.


$2500 CAD

http://www.rallycarsforsale.net/

just click on For Sale -> Rally Parts -> then scroll to the bottom and type "Celica" in the search bar -> and it should be the 3rd from the top.

yum yum DMS 50mm :smokes: http://www.rallycarsforsale.net/clas/in ... s&id=52678

.

During my hunting I came across this air suspension thing from KSport. Is this still a replacement for the stock springs and struts?

KSport air suspension



Thanks for finding those, however I am going to have to claim ignorance, why are these so much more expensive than the megan coilovers?

azian_advanced":u9clnhz9 said:

here you go... and it's in alberta.

$2500 CAD

Click to expand...

The DMS 50mm is near competition grade coilovers at around $6000 new I believe. I actually want those ones posted but for that much money Id feel more comfortable if they were located in the US. Who knows how long customs might hold on to those coilovers.

For those ksports air suspension. I dont believe anyone has ever tried those here. You would be the first one. Be sure to post a review on how they work bc I'm sure we would all be very curious :doh: