Just thought Ill would run through what I did to replace the front suspension on my 1980 with later model 1993 parts.
This all started because I haul heavy loads and the brakes on the 1980 were a bit sketchy with a ton of crap on the back. The 93 has bigger discs and a much better brake calliper design and bigger pads. My first thought was to just replace the discs and callipers but the spindle is quite different and the calliper would not bolt on.
I was able to replace the whole front end and no modifications are required if you get all the parts.
Every part is different but they do bolt-on and I only had to adjust the toe-in when finished to make it work. As a bonus, the torsion bars are a larger diameter, 25mm up from 22mm so it carries the load much better and the ride surprisingly is better.
If you are going to do this you need to grab all the parts below and all the fastens as well as most of them are different.
Top wishbone. (I put the shims on the 1980 back in and they worked fine)
spindle
Disc and calliper (the brake hose on the 93 is shorter so grab that but the 1980 will fit)
lower control arm (you must use the 93 spined bolt as the spine on the torsion bar is bigger)
Caster bar (use the 93 bolts as they are different)
Torsion bars (the 80 bars will not match the 93 lower control arms)
I used the 1980 tie rods and had to adjust the toe-in but caster and camber are perfect as I put the old shims back where they came from.
I also did the ball joint flip which means mounting the lower ball joint on top of the lower control arm rather than under it in the factory position, which drops the suspension an inch or so
The results were better than expected the steering is lighter and the front sits a little lower. The best part there is more travel before it hits the bump stops so when it's loaded its a smoother ride over the railway lines.
The brakes.. well they are a bit better the feel ismuch better, I don't feel like I have to use both feet on the pedal

 

Post up some before and after pics for the people

 

Got to have the photos too? ok here goes here's me working on my lux
Here are all the parts I removed and will need to be replaced for this swap
You will need the control arm bolts, with the spline as they fit into the torsion bar mount which is different.
The bolts fit in the end here.
You will need to replace the top wish bone, spindle and lower control arm, disc and calliper.
The 1980 brake calliper is a smaller and a crap design.
The ride height before the suspension swap.
Ill post some after photos soon

 

Here the lux is with no water in the tank
and here it is with 1100 litres on the back. looks cool, but I'm not lowering it any more than it is as I often haul heavy stuff.

 

Oh shit that looks like it brought it down a couple inches

 

The brakes are starting to really work better now, I'm guessing they are bedding in, and getting rid on the surface rust. No more squeaks and clunks from the brakes. The clunk was from the horrible calliper design that doesn't hold the pads properly without rattling around. Also, i can now cart water around without feeling like the lux is going to fall in half.

 

Great thread Liquidhandwash!
I just joined the forum just after reading your posts. Very clear concise info!

Earlier this week I just got my first Hilux LN40R-KRQ (what the heck is the KRQ), I think I may have paid a bit on the high side but I couldn’t find any rust in it so I thought it would be a great starting point for my daily tinkerer, only downside is a little funny repair on some front end damage and the L 2.2 diesel leaking oil from the front and rear.

Now I’m looking to do a similar conversion as the stock drums do nothing, did you convert to rear disks too?

I’m thinking if I can find a donor get the master too and do the rear disks at the same time.

Thank you for the post

 

There is probably something wrong with your rear brakes or master cylinder if the stock drums do nothing, Mine is got a little too much brake bias to the rear if its not got a load It will lock up the rears if I brake hard, and I have to be careful in the wet or on gravel it will lock them up without too much effort.

 

I must admit I’m exaggerating on the drums, they do work as they should. But I’m going to be moving timber and sheet products with it so I figured while doing bushes and ball joints I may as go disks at the same time.

Edit, did you stick with the original sway bar too or did you use the one from the 93 ute?

 

Now that's a good looking work truck! Good find in my opinion.