Smoothest Ride Questions

I am new to TW so forgive me if this has been talked about. I want to put a 3 inch lift on my 97 Tacoma but cant justify just lifting it to look good. My reasoning for the lift is (partly cuz is looks awesome) because I do a ton of off road driving and I want something that rides very nice..

My ideas were to put skyjacker soft ride leaf pack on the rear and then where I have most of my questions is on the front. I don't have deep pockets so I was going to go with Old man Emu 881 coils and Bilstein 5100 struts set to 1.25 but im not sure if there is a better way to get smoother ride because I know the more I preload the coil the stiffer my ride will be. Any tips will be so greatly appreciated!!!

 

Don't preload a lift coil, just get 882's. Preloading it with 5100's will give you a more jarring ride. I've heard some people say the ride is weird when you mix bilsteins with ome coils so maybe stick with nitrochargers up front and bilsteins in the back. this guy has those skyjacker leaf packs http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/1st-gen-builds/314377-1995-5-taco-slow-build.html

 

Thank you tacomataco2. My concern is I don't have an aftermarket bumper and don't plan on one so im worried the 882 coils will be too stiff. Tell me if im wrong??

So if I stick with the 881 and nitrochargers how will I achieve 3" of lift??

 

So my new plan is to do Skyjacker softride 3.5" leaf pack and then OME 881 coils and nitrocharger sport stuts up front with a lift enhancer spacer.

Does anybody see anything wrong with this set up?

 

Depending on the type, spacers tend to give a more harsh ride. OME coils are usually really good about providing an great amount of lift with them. What are you trying to achieve with the spacer?

Are you upgrading your tires as well? The type of tire you choose will also affect how your truck rides too.

 

Spacers ride like shit plain and simple.

 

I just lifted my truck with a Bilstein 5100/Eibach coils and did the OMD leaf spring mod with 5100 rear shocks I believe it rides way better than the stock! Like others said the only options for a smoother ride are OME or Bilsteins/Eibach, unless you want to adjustable coilovers.

Here is the spring mod if you want to check it out... http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/suspension/194386-tacoma-spring-refurbishing.html

 

Save your money or wait for a sale and go either with King or Icon there is no comparison!!

 

The only reason I wanted the spacer was to achieve the 2.5 to 3" in the front
in order to match the back because the rear skyjackers are 3.5 inches of lift.

 

No I am not upgrading tires at this time im on a very tight budget so that's why I cant upgrade tires rims or get the more expensive kings or icons :/

 

Wow looking into the kings and im in love I just don't have the cash!!! Damn

 

Do you want to level it or have some rake? With 3 inches in the front, 2 or 2.25 inches would level the rear.

 

I put 1.5"(I think) add a leafs in the rear and I had about 2 inches of rake(with 2.5" spacers) took my overloads out and leveled it with the 3 inch spacers. My 2.5" spacers rode better because they weren't billet like my 3 inch spacers are

 

the bilstein/eibach seems to be way cheaper, and gives a full 3"... so if you are on a budget…

 

Ok guy im no longer going to paint my truck so im gonna spend the extra cash and get some good suspension so I can speed through the desert on good smooth ride.

Im thinking Icon 2.5 coilovers (no reservoir)
Icon 2.0 in the rear to match with skyjacker leaf pack..

any other ideas for the rear? because I have a 97 I don't find many other leaf packs that fit my year and get me more than 1.5" of lift. I don't want AAL cuz I never carry a load and don't want a stiff ride. I think softride skyjackers will make a great combo with icon 2.0 correct me if im wrong.