RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
AS Simon mentioned, the 300 Series is not just a facelifted 200 Series Landcruiser; there are many differences that required him and the Tough Dog team to develop solutions. Starting with the front end, the strut is physically located differently to the 200 Series. The 300 Series front struts are mounted on a 24mm peg which is welded to the front of the lower control arm; on a 200 Series, the strut sits in a clevis mount inside the actual lower control arm.
At the rear end of the big 300 Series, Toyota has basically redesigned the way the suspension is packaged. While retaining a live rear axle and coil springs, the way the coil springs and shocks are positioned is completely different. Starting with the shock absorbers, the stock 300 Series shocks are longer than the 200 Series from the factory – a good thing. Simon tells us they are able to make the shock longer again by up to 15mm when developing a shock for the 300 Series, which allows for greater wheel travel off-road. Plus, the shocks can carry more oil, which results in better performance on corrugated roads.
Coil spring and shock absorber positioning is also different on the rear end, with the coils sitting farther outboard (away from the diff centre) for a more stable ride. Rear shock absorbers have been mounted outwards of the chassis rails, and lean forward on the 300 Series. So, it was back to the drawing board to develop suspension packages from scratch to suit these changes found in the 300 Series.
Additionally, Simon tells us Tough Dog has developed a sway bar relocation bracket, which lowers the sway bar back to its factory setting, restoring the alignment of the sway-bar link rod after raising the 300 Series. Tough Dog also offers a heavy duty adjustable Panhard rod for the 300 Series, providing a complete suspension package.