Thanks for the great explanation to what happened to our Taco while on a trail in Utah. We ended up towing the truck all the way home to the Seattle area, because we couldn't figure out why the wheel had gotten shoved up into the UCA while creeping along a slow winding trail and hitting a downed tree on the side of the trail at about 2-3 MPH. After I watched this video I went out and checked out the tabs on the damaged side and sure enough they were flattened completely. I'd give this video two thumbs up if I could.

Good video and very insightful explanation. I chose the TC cam tab gussets kit for my 4runner and they are fantastic. The original cam tab was broken which caused the cam bolt to break and the out of alignment led to a worn out wheel bearing as well. (Stellar Built helped me with the cam tab gussets and they are the best offroad in California IMO)

Fabulous video man. You do this all day, you hit on a bunch of stuff that saved me time and guessing. I have 35s and 100k MI. mostly pavement driving but even w yota reliability the tires have so much leverage smoked the lowr arm bushings. If I could offer any advice to someone reading this just remember. You lift and get big tires it will wear stuff out faster. Learn how to check stuff yourself. Your just a number to most shops. Most want u in n out. Do it urself, save$, and learn along the way. Had 2shops tell me my truck can't be aligned. Looked myself and saw the prob in 2 min.

New '07 Tacoma owner here. Thanks for your advice. Subscribed.

good information! i'm here because my 2012 4runner driver front cam tab is flat and i get a lot of thunking noise while driving. nothing is loose that i can find so it must be this. I'm going to go the cheap route for starters and gusset weld the stock tabs and see how they hold. running 295/70 r17 and i think they are partially the culprit.

Just had my tabs flattened during an alignment. Likely will go with option 1 or 2

Any suspension recommendations for a daily driver/weekend camper? Looking to clear 33's on my 3rd gen Tacoma. I was watching some older videos. Looks like you were running OME BP-51's and now Kings? Would be a cool video idea. Thanks!

Im installing TotalChaos' cam tab gussets to my 4runner. I currently have 2 bent (stock) tabs.

I have a 93 4 Runner and it feels at 40 mph like when I'm rounding a left handed corner it feels like my passenger front tire wants to roll out and go under my rig. Just had Toyota replace the track bar an front end alignment. I just put new upper and lower ball joints on and used Toyota parts, then I replaced tie rod ends and wheel bearings on the front. I did just step up from 35 inch tires to 38.5x11x15 boggers. I'm going to replace my control arm bushing next. Any tips on what it needs. It feels like I'm teetering on 3 tires at 50 mph.

would love to see a more detailed video on the JD FAB LCA pivot kit. How much does this change the cutting, trimming, cab mount relocate for 35s?

Great video. 2019 tacoma, zone 6" sus lift. Had cams tack welded, still will NOT hold an alignment. Any suggestions what could be failing/moving??

Wow! Thank you for this information! I have a 2005 tundra. I tow a 4500k pet grooming trailer. My truck pulls it smooth. However- I need to make sure everything is good with suspension etc. For now- I def need Upper control arm bushing replaced- My truck goes into my mechanic Wednesday. I'm sure she'll need a bit more- of course both Upper control arms and maybe ball joints (?) (I am no mechanic, just trying to research and learn about my truck!) The bushing (rubber) is very much deteriorating. I see it and Hear the noise while driving. Any suggestions of what other things to tell mechanics to check for? Thanks!

Awesome video man thinking I'll deffs go jdfab or mc kit 🤘🇨🇦

Nice video appreciate you making it. I tried welding the flats of the stock cam tabs before and used them with the bison cam eliminators, still bend and the bison's still tried to rotate. I'm going to try the TC kit next with 333 fabrications cam eliminators, a friend has been have good luck on his 4 runner with them. Recently another friend installed the JD kit. very nice but the price....hopefully someone will come up with a more economical solution, but what a sweet kit that is.. thanks

Most helpful video I found thanks !!!!!!

The Cams and tabs are not designed to support the vehicles weight thats why the tabs get messed up. Its important to make sure the LCA bolts are kept tight, once they loosen then game over.

Good Info. I'm a street only guy so don't really need any of the upgrades, but I do run the cam eliminator kit. Why? It makes no sense to me that you would run one cam in one position and the other cam (on same LCA) in a different position, basically "cocking" the LCA and kind of forcing it to run in a cocked position. I run the cam eliminators in the center position on all 4 and also have an SPC UCA so I can adjust C and C. Seems to work well for me. Also have Super Pro bushings in LCA and all rear control arms.

JD Fab pivot kit 💯

Hello, my dealership bent a couple of mine from a botched alignment. The body shop said they wouldn’t weld it because that area is considered spring steel. Even went so far as to say that it would require a whole new frame. What are your thoughts on that? Thanks

When i put on the 6” lift i welded the stock cam tabs to the frame…. The kit came with a whole new crossmember and another set of cam tabs.. crappy part was had to notch the frame for the steering rod..

I'm installing new LCAs in my 5thGen 4Runner. I will be welding/gusseting the OEM tabs. I run 33s but I'm not sure if I need to go to the next level with Total Chaos or the others you mentioned. I try to minimize impacts as much as possible, but that's no guarantee that I shouldn't step things up a notch... or two... or three. :)) If my current set of skid plates are any indication, I might need to crank things up to 11 (outdated pop-culture "This is Spinal Tap" reference). Thanks!

Great information…thanks!

Could you show the weld you do for the lower cost fix. I'm interested in finding a shop to do this for me. TIA

Just took apart my 2018 truck to put in some new Bilstein shocks for a small lift and discovered my front cam sleeves completely seized. Had to break out the sawzall and hacksaw but I got it out. Unfortunately I'm replacing it with an OEM cam since I can't justify spending so much on the aftermarket kits.

Great info!

I dont do off-road so i want to correct my camber because my wheel is crooked in how can i solve this problem 3 mechanics no one could fixed

Nice video but You could have shown pictures of the options you made to us. Thanks

Hey Braeden, I’m just beginning to modify my 2002 Tundra. I’ve found a good shop in my area and they seem experienced and knowledgeable. Still, I wanted your opinion on whether to replace control arms or keep the stock ones. We’re replacing shocks and springs front and rear and only aiming for 1’ lift. As you’ve suggested, it’s about handling the weight better, not about getting sky high. Just to keep the cost down my guy suggested we Reuther stock control arms. What do you think? I want to be able to go off road confidently, but I don’t plan anything crazy. Thanks, AD

Such information, much wow.

This is all such excellent information, thank you so much! I am actually getting ready to do a complete rebuild on my Tacoma's LCAs - all new ball joints and poly bushings. I actually have a question that I'm sure you would be way more qualified to answer than myself: Okay, so I already have SPC adjustable UCAs. My question is, could I just get away with getting rid of my cam bolts and simply replace them with regular grade 8 or 10.9 bolts and still be able to get a decent alignment? My thinking is, if I can get sufficient adjustment from the UCAs and tie rods together, then I might not even need the extra LCA adjustability, right?? Or wrong? Lol I am so damn tired of my alignment being off after a simple backcountry drive. I prefer to do my own alignments at home, but its usually just for toe because the cam tab adjustment is such a pain in the butt and I just end up making it worse. So if I could eliminate it altogether, I'd be a happy camper. More simplicity/fewer things to worry about. Thanks to this video, I fully plan on reinforcing my cam tabs with a bead of weld either way. Anyway, I really appreciate your insight and expertise!

I had a Marlin Crawler kit preemptively installed on a 2019 4Runner. The Cams were nearly frozen on one side. The downside to the Marlin Crawler set-up is that it requires a diff drop to clear the drivers side.

This video was great. Kinda like the random noise in the background. Brings some “realism” to the videos

Do you know if there are any kits like the JDFab kit where it pushes the control arms forward, for a 1st Gen Tacoma?

My 2017 4Runner has the sleeves seized but the alignment came in decent with the lift and bigger tires so I’m gonna let it be.

Looks like I took a foot ball up into the passanger side front cam tab and smacked half of it flat and may have bent the nose of the lip also. Slow rock crawling with zero speed. 32" with a 2'" lift. Looks like it got hit by a hammer. I don't weld. How do I go about asking a shop if they could repair it? So alignment has not been altered. Sacramento, Ca area.

I’ve been trying to find people with your knowledge in the Los Angeles area and can’t it’s frustrating I have a 06 4 runner with 3 inch lift SPC uca and if you know of a location near me please send me there location good video thank you

Awesome video. Could the settings on the cam bolts affect the height of the front of the vehicle? For instance have one side sag?

New format works! I would keep the intro video though. Shop noise wasn’t too bad and I think this opens up the opportunity for you to use more props / show some actual related work being done as it happens. If it also means there’s more frequent videos from less burnout that’s even better 😛

Like to see you do a video on the welding. This was great info. Why dosen't Toyota weld them from the factory?

So, I just bought a new 2022 2wd Tacoma. Mainly on road use with some light off roading. Should I be concerned with them bending? Thanks

Do people ever break the stock lower control arm ??? I understand the lower ball joints can break ..but what about the control arm itself ???

Once the tabs are welded is it possible to change the alignment after that? Would an alignment be needed before the spot weld? Thank you!

Same as prado, hilux, fortuner and ifs landcruiser just checked the ol n70 hilux and yep one is bent thats why my tyres are fooked 😅

Awsome content,.mahalos!

Could you do a video on differential drops?

Hey man, question for ya? what truck do you run? I just upgraded my tires on my 2007 tundra 4x4 5.7 from 295/65/18 to 285/75/18's, and while at the shop waiting for the mount, balance, alignment etc, one of the tech's came out and showed me why they could not do an alignment and why I could have had minor cupping on the inner edges of both previous front tires. He explained that he thinks whoever did my previous alignment after installing my lift, SPC uca's etc bent these cam tabs and they weren't able to do alignment until these cam tabs were fixed. He explained removing the lower control arm, hitting the tab with with a bead of weld but was guessing it was gonna cost me 4k and suggested I went and revisited the other shop that did the LIFT KIT installation to get them to do the work since they bent the tabs in the first place...1) Why would they bend the tabs? 2) would they have bent the tabs or could they have been bent naturally while out bombing on the backroads? I don't jump, nothing crazy or stupid, but I do spend a lot of time on rough gravel roads in fishing and hunting... Lift is a Toytech Boss 3" lift, set at "2.5, SPC UCA's, 285/75/18 Duratrac's Any help with this would be much appreciated? is your shop in BC? Im on the island...

Does this apply to 2020 TRD Pro 4runner?

When you say grease, what kind are you using?

I have a '21 4Runner and they seized up on me already. Had to scrap the entire lower control arms and start over. PITA

Get aftermarket skid plates that cover up the cam tabs and you won't really have an issue.

I rum 32” tires and off road fast and slow the hell out of my 01 Tacoma for since 2001 and never have bent a cam tab but welding wouldn’t be a bad idea. The rest I think is a waste of money.

People watching this is going think the JD lower cradle is something new. For as long as it's been out they don't market very much. It's a nice upgrade

I have a 2018 and mine were seized.

Well lots of good info. Need some visuals thou. Other wise it becomes a long monologue

I had never heard of this before…😮. So thrilled. 👍🤪🏳️‍🌈

Obviously this applies to newer Toyota trucks because Toyota went to a bigger body style... This is a tiny little issue... Please note: This is a "fabricator" that is talking about these Toyota trucks... He is NOT an engineer, mechanic, or even a person whom could change oil on a Toyota truck! I won't subscribe at all because Toyota engineers are the best in the world and fabricators are dumb.

Why do American's have such problems with imported vehicles "Toyota's" yet here in Australia we really have buggerall problems in our's?.

I went solid axle.. @creampuffcrawler