The caster angle is the imaginary line that the front wheels pivot on as they turn. This angle determines how well a vehicle will tend to track a straight line without constant steering correction, the front wheels tendency to return to center after making a turn, and the amount of steering pressure required to make the wheels turn. In short the caster angle is critical to a vehicles steering and handling. Too little caster (our imaginary line approaches straight up and down) and the front wheels will be very easy to turn, but will not tend to return to center and will not track a straight line well. This leads to wandering, and driver fatigue due to the constant necessity of steering correction, and not being able to take your eye off the road for fear of changing a lane without wanting to. Too much caster (our imaginary line lays back towards horizontal) and the front wheels require more input pressure to turn. This is due to the fact that as the wheel turns the contact point on the tire moves up the side and the steering must actually lift the weight of the front of the vehicle to turn. Too much weight and the steering feels very resistant, and the steering components are overstressed and prematurely wear. With the correct caster there is just enough angle that the weight lift will make the tire want to return to flat contact (straight ahead) but there will not be too much resistance or stress on the steering components.

As an 80 series Land Cruiser is lifted, the front control arm swings down at the front, but remains fixed at the rear. The caster angle approaches straight up and down, and the resulting steering and handling is predictably poor. There are numerous methods of dealing with this problem, some yielding better results than others, and obviously some more expensive than others.

80 Series Caster Correction Bushings
If the lift is no more than 2" over stock these caster correction bushings will provide the necessary amount of caster correction to regain proper steering control. The kit consists of four offset polyurethane/steel mounts to replace the factory rubber mounts found in the front axle control arms. Installation requires complete removal of the control arms, and an automotive press to remove the old bushings and install the new offset ones. This installation is best performed by a professional auto mechanic or alignment shop. These bushings will not properly correct caster for lifts over 2". Set of fourbushings.

OTHER RELATED LINKS:

OME Caster Correction Bushings 80 Series
 OLD MAN EMU/4+PLUS 80 SERIES 3-INCH SUSPENSION KIT
 OLD MAN EMU 80 SERIES COMPETITION SERIES COIL SPRINGS

80 Series Front Control Arm Drop 80 Series Front Control Arm Drop Brackets
In our opinion this is the best way to correct caster for the majority of uses of the 80 series when lifted 3" or over. Not only will these brackets correct the front caster angle, but they will properly realign the front control arm to the vehicles frame. Why would this be important? Simple, the control arms on an 80 series not only position the axles in relation to the frame, they also transfer acceleration and braking force from the axles to the chassis. This angle or geometry determines how the vehicle reacts under acceleration, cornering, and braking. Trust us, Toyota spent a lot of time, money, testing and engineering to determine the correct angles and geometry for the 80 series suspension. Is this perfect for
everyone? No, if you're using your 80 series as a "rock buggy" you obviously have other concerns than how the vehicle handles and steers, but for the vast majority of us that use our 80 as a daily driver, suspension geometry determines if our vehicle is a joy to drive or a pain in the rear. These bracket kits are designed to drop the fixed end of the OEM front control arms either 3 or 4 inches and bring the caster back to stock alignment and into the center of the designed travel arc. On vehicles w/3-4 inches of lift, stock bushings are retained. On vehicles w/5-6 inches of lift, caster correction bushings can be used to properly realign the caster. One big advantage of these bracket kits is installation requires no
drilling, the control arms can stay attached to the front axle, no press is required, consequently they are much easier to install than any other caster correction option. Sold in pairs as a set.
 

 

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