Bilstein 6112 install questions

Hey guys! I just got my 6112s and 5160s in the mail. I have alot of my tools with me while I'm out of town, and would like to try to install my 6112s after work one day once ththe time changes and I have more daylight, I've read threads on how to change them, but info is a little sparse on some things. About how long does this job take? I have my electric impact for the wheels. And are there any special tools needed? I know I need to pick up a torque wrench. Will I need an alignment after installation as well? And what are the torque specs for the nuts and bolts I'll have to remove? I think this covers all my questions.

 

It took me ninety minutes. Alignment; yes. Google torque specs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iH7FQUjmu20

 

Thank you! So 90 minutes for both sides? That doesnt sound too bad at all

 

Yes

 

Personally I feel like it's easier to unbolt the lower ball joint and swing the LCA down out of the way. You need an alignment anyways, so no worries messing with the cam bolts.

 

Great Video, thanks for sharing.

 

This is the way I was thinking of doing it based on a write up I saw. Or was it a video? Who knows lol might have to hold off till I get off of this turnaround, because I cant take a day off to get an alignment

 

I've done it both ways - lower ball joint method is just way easier IMO. On older Toyotas the cam bolts can seize up, but that shouldn't be the case on your 2014.

As for alignment, a good trick is to get a paint pen, white out, etc. and mark the cam bolts in relation to the control arm. This way you can put them back as close as possible to their original position. Should get you by for a few days until you can get to the alignment rack.

 

I just did mine, first time doing suspension work but I've wrenched on other parts of vehicles and motorcycles for 10 years now.

I don't know how long it took because I had several interruptions so it was spread out over two days. But if your like me and are extra cautious when doing something for the first time, it will probably take at least 90 minutes per side. Plus the time it takes to set up, jack the truck up, get all the tools out, remove the wheel, and the clean up at the end.

I'm adding a shim on the driver's side this weekend and plan to get that done in under 2 hours, setup and clean up included. I'm guessing the bulk of it will take less than an hour. It will be way easier doing it for the third time now.

I also used the video above as a general guide, but one step I had to do that wasn't shown was to loosen the forward cam bolt to allow the LCA to drop down enough.

Another thing, there's always a possibility with this kind of work that you get stuck somewhere a(seized bolt maybefor example) need to go buy a new tool to finish. Always good to have a second vehicle available. If I didn't have that I probably would just let a shop do it.

 

Thanks for the great tips and responses guys! I used the paint pen trick before when replacing ball joints in my f250. I'm thinking about holding off right now tho since I will need an alignment regardless. I drive 60 miles a day right now, and I'll be driving that for the next 21 days at least. I'm just friggin excited to install this stuff on my truck.

 

I removed the sway bar bolt, lower shock bolt, upper ball join from UCA, four top hat nuts, and the brake line mounts. From the moment I jacked up the truck to the moment I set it down, 90 minutes for both sides.

 

I'm envious of your new setup, it's the same one I would like. Which setting are you putting the shocks at? Also, make sure you torque the suspension with a load and not while the truck is jacked up.

 

I got them assembled at 1.9 from boss offroad 4x4

 

I agree. I just went from a Tacoma to a Tundra and so I didn't even have the socket to take off the lugs. Some ape put them on so I had to bicycle over to Napa. I worked on this for about 4 hours and could not get the LCA low enough to fit in the 6112. I wish I would have paid better attention to your comment about loosening the forward cam bolt.

 

One side took 45 minutes the other about 1.5 hrs because I couldn’t get the bolts in the LCA using my own weight to push down and align it all up. I used a ratchet strap around the UCA and LCA to pull them together and the job was done in about 3 minutes.

 

Sumo91 do you have a picture of before and after you installed the struts?

 

@GELCW I had a spacer level on my truck when I bought it, so it looks the same with the 6112/5160 combo set at 1.9. When I need new tires im going to set them to the highest setting and put shackles in the rear for a 3/1 lift and probably go to 35s

 

And for anyone doing this, I have a Milwaukee 1/2 in drive electric impact that made quick work of everything it could reach. I used a paint pen to mark everything before taking it off with 3 Mark's on everything. Lined everything back up perfectly, and when I got an alignment they said everything was perfect and it didnt need an alignment. One of my tires has a radial pull when it's on the front, so when I rotate my tires I just have to deal with it pulling a little bit to the right for 10k miles before it goes to the rear again.