MEDFORD, OR. -Trail Tough products have been making great products for Suzuki vehicles for several years now and we have seen several Trail Tough equipped vehicles on the trails around the North West and have always been impressed with their performance. So when we decided to embark on a new Samurai project vehicle, the choice for suspension was clear. The Following is a complete set of installation instructions with pictures to help aid in the installation of this kit.

All photos can be enlarged for enhanced detail by clicking on them.

Before you begin please note: the orientation of all bolts and nuts on the various assemblies they are shipped to you assembled in the way that they will need to be placed on the vehicle, tools needed for this installation include: welder, metric hand tools, level, jack w/jack stands, assorted shop tools ie. hammer, pry bar, etc.

Front-end Axle Housing Assembly Removal
1. Lift car via jacks or a lift until the weight of the car is off of the springs. This happens at the point where the tires just barely begin to lift off of the ground. Support the vehicle at the frame with jack stands so that the vehicle is secure.
2. Remove bumper and turning indicator lights at the connector located on the inner fenderwell inside the engine compartment.. NOTE: The stock bumper will not be reused.
3. Remove tow hooks.
4. Using a reciprocating or hack saw, remove the outer bumper mounts.
5. Using a die grinder, clean the inside of the frame area where the tow hooks were attached.
6. Insert metal frame bushings into the frame. Welding is recommended to stiffen the frame.
7. Clamp brake lines. Remove Sway bar.
8. Unbolt the shock at the Shock tower. Remove the shackles, and rear spring mount bolt.
9. Disconnect Steering drag link from the Pitman arm. Remove Front Drive Shaft.
10. Roll entire front end housing toward the front of the car and remove.
Rear-end Axle Housing Assembly Removal
1. It is recommended to remove the rear hitch bar and tow hooks.
2. Remove shackle and spring hanger bolts.
3. Clamp rubber brake lines to reduce fluid loss and disconnect at the axle.
4. Disconnect e-brake cables at the drums and unbolt them from the axle housing.
5. Disconnect shocks at the frame
6. Remove driveline.
7. Roll entire rear end housing toward the rear of the car and remove.
Front-end Axle Housing Assembly Preparation
1. Remove u-bolts, u-bolt plates, shocks, and spring packs. Save u-bolts.
2. Remove drag link and tie rod assembly.
3. Cut u-bolt guides off of housing.
4. Clean axle housing. Prep area for new spring mount perch and shock mount.
5. Making sure the original axle perches are level, tac weld the spring mount perches verifying that the new perch is level on all axis.
6. Also verify the perch is lined up vertically with the original perch.
7. Position the shock mount next to the original weld at the end of the axle tube. Level and weld shock mount on the top of the axle housing.
8. Once all mounts are tac welded with satisfactory placement, finish welding. Weld all the way around the perch; paying special attention to the ends.
Front-end Frame & Body Preparation
1. Remove bump stop.
2. Remove shock tower.
3. Grind off and smooth area that new shock tower will be welded to. Make sure to grind up over the top of the frame since the new tower is welded on all 3 sides.
4. Prep shock tower for welding.
5. With the car level, place the shock tower at perpendicular to the floor, 17.5" back from the front of the body to frame mount, and as high as possible (as close to the top of the inner fenderwell as possible without rubbing). Tac weld in place.
6. Once level and location is verified, weld into place.
7. Paint area to seal metal.
8. Massage body tub seem flat to reduce tire rub.
9. Massage front fender seem flat to reduce tire rub.
Rear-end Axle Housing Assembly Preparation
1. Remove u-bolts, u-bolt plate, and leaf springs. Save u-bolts.
2. Remove u-bolt guide.
3. Grind / prep area for welding
4. Level and square perch, tac weld in place. Do not rotate pinion unless you have a CV style drive shaft.
5. Level and square shock mount to spring perch; mounting it 1 3/4 inches away from the perch edge. Tac weld in place.
6. Once level and location of the spring perches and shock mounts are verified, weld in place.
YJ Spring Pack Rebuild
Identification: Rear spring is a 5-leaf with 3 spring clamps. The two ends are of different sizes. The spring shackle end uses a 1/2" bolt and is also identified as the end with two clamps on it. The Larger eyelet uses a 9/16" bolt and is attached to the frame end. Front spring is similar but most likely will be a 4-leaf pack. A second 5-leaf rear pack is suggested for the front if you will be running a bumper and winch up front.
1.Remove old bushings. First wedge the eyelet apart by driving a chisel into the base of the eyelet.
2. Drive old bushing out with a drift or press if necessary.
3. Use a liberal amount of anti-seize on spring eyelets, poly bushings, and metal sleeves. Press into place. NOTE: Small end uses 1/2 " bushings while the large end uses the 9/16" size.
Front-end Steering and Hi-steer Installation
1. Install new tie-rod in the original location. Install new brake lines onto disc brake calipers.
2. Place hi-steer arm in position and push the disc brake caliber into position.
3. Use supplied bolts to attach hi-steer arm.
4. Drag link to be installed once the axle housing is re-attached to vehicle.
Bracket Installation
Before you begin: Familiarize yourself with the bolt orientation on the pre-loaded brackets. This will speed up the assembly process and eliminate headaches.
1. Mount front spring hanger bracket using the stock bolt location to locate the mount.
2. Mark and drill the 3/8" holes for the additional mounting bolts. A pilot hole may need to be drilled. Bolt the bracket on using supplied bolts.
3. Mount rear spring hanger bracket using the stock bolt location to locate the mount.
4. Mark and drill the 3/8" holes for the additional mounting bolts. A pilot hole may need to be drilled. Bolt the bracket on using supplied bolts.
5. Using liberal amounts of antiseize, coat all bushings before installing including frame mount.
6. Install bushing, tap in metal sleeve.
7. Install bolt as shown.
8. Install front shackle stop as shown, install bolts.
9. Install front shackle. Do not tighten bolts at this time.
Final Installation Front-end Assemblies
1. Apply a liberal coat of antiseize to the spring bushings.
2. Bolt spring to the frame hanger using the 9/16" bolt provided.
3. Attach spring to front shackle using the 1/2" bolt provided. Insert spacer washers as shown. Tighten bolts without crushing the mounts or bulging the bushings
4. Repeat for other spring.
5. Position axle under spring and raise it up to the centering bolt. Using the center positioning hole, place new u-bolt plate in place as shown. NOTE: One u-bolt plate is larger, this is for the right front.
6. Install and tighten u-bolts to 40ft/lbs. Repeat for the other side.
7. Install the 8407 shock in the front location using the supplied bolts.
8. Install drag link.
9. Install brake line. Twist the line into a "pig tail" to keep it from rubbing on your tire. Even a couple miles of rubbing will ruin a brake line.
Final Installation Rear-end Assemblies
1. Mark, drill hole, and install the poly shackle bumpstop.
2. Apply a liberal amount of antiseize to poly bushings, Install large eye of the spring into frame mount using supplied bolt.
3. Install and attach rear shackle to rear spring using supplied bolts. Spacing washers are installed similar to the front installation. Tighten nuts only tight enough to contact washer - no tighter.
4. Position rear axle under the spring pack on the centering bolt. Install u-bolt plate and u-bolts. Tighten to 40 ft./lbs. Repeat for other side.
5. Install the supplied longer brake lines. Clamp to reduce fluid loss.
6. Remove e-brake cable upper bracket.
7. Install the 8333 rear shocks provided with supplied hardware.
8. Attach all other mounting points and e-brake cables to the drum brake.
9. Connect brake lines.
Driveline Installation
1. Note the orientation of Drivelines. Match up the 'dot' on the spline to the 'dot' on the yoke for vibration free operation.
2. Assemble the front driveline with the two spacers provided on at each end as shown and install into the vehicle.
3. Use the new extended yoke for the rear driveline. Notice the clearancing. This is so the driveline does not bind in high travel situation. Couple with your spined section of driveline making sure to match up the 'dots' on each piece. Install into vehicle.
Final Installation And Adjustments
1. Install Wheels and tires, set the toe in to 1/8".
2. Adjust Drag link for equal turning in both directions.
3. Bleed brakes to get a firm pedal.
4. Remove and adjust Steering wheel to center.
5. Verify all bolts are torqued to their specification. Re-check all bolts after 100 miles of use.

 
Contact information: Trail Tough Products, www.trailtough.com 1031 Narregan St Medford, OR 97501, 1-877-789-8547

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