Noob questions about lifting

I bought my dream 03 SR5 a little over a year ago and have been wanting to lift it ever since. Problem is, I came into it with no knowledge of lifting a vehicle and with my research I'm still having problems picking out what works best for me. So, some help would be greatly appreciated.

The truck has 194,xxx miles and from best I can tell 100% stock. I work in construction so I do haul material. Normally its under 150lbs but sometimes can range up to 500ish. I want to make sure I do everything right because I want this truck to last me so i am willing to pay more for what is needed and would be best, but i'm not looking to spend several thousands of dollars.

I think I want to aim for 2.5-3 inches of lift in the front, and about 1.5-2 in the back. I don't off road, the most my truck would ever see is a dirt road from hunting or riding my mountain bike.

Currently all of the shocks need to be replaced. I decided to wait a year after I bought the truck so if any immediate problems show up I could fix them before it unloading money on a lift, and I wanted to get full use out of the current shocks.

Do I need an alignment after I lift? If so, are there special places I have to take it for the alignment to be done?

Do I need to do a differential drop?

After the lift im looking into running 32-11.50-16s

I've looked into Bilstein and Skyjacker, and I need help picking everything out. Thanks!

 

This pry isn't the answer you're hoping for but... contact wheelers off road(vendor on here too). Tell them exactly what you asked here and you'll be on your way in no time with the right stuff at a reasonable rate!!

At the top of the page if you haven't noticed there is a sticky on the subject as well. Titled.... First gen diy and how to....

 

Hundreds of threads about this.

2.5" means you may need new upper control arms.
You will need an alignment from any good tire shop or full mechanical shop.

Just keep searching and reading. Lots and lots of info on this site. Guarantee every question you have is answered already 15 times and you will learn things you never thought to ask about.

 

Alignment, yes. Upper control arms, no. I have been running/wheeling with a lift for 75k miles and never had a need to run aftermarket UCAs.

The lift will be perfect for those tires.

Do not get skyjackers. I also would not recommend Toytec for the front. Get all-pro's Bilstein kit. It is much easier to adjust and doesn't have a crappy top spacer incorporated into its design.

For the back, if you plan on hauling heavy loads, call Alcan or order online. You can get them to custom make you a set of leaf springs with the appropriate ride height and load rating. Mine are built for an extra 200lbs and 2.5" of lift, but it can haul well over 500 lbs like a champ and has settled to be perfectly level with the front suspension. If you do not want Alcans then get the Deaver 10pack, as that will be better for heavy hauling applications. You will also need to order the appropriate shocks for the rear. You WILL have a stiffer ride in the rear due to heavy-duty leaf springs. This is just a fact. You can not have a heavy-hauling truck and have it ride like a boat, it's simply not possible. The Bilstein rear shock selection is extremely limited to higher pressure valving, which does not help with the stiffness. But you get used to it, again, it is a truck, not a luxury car.

 

Thanks everyone for the input. Will do more research and I'll post a final "cart checkout" list before ordering.

 

I have billys on all 4corners and Old Man Emu 882's on the front. gave me a good solid 2.5 and the ride is really good.

 

Happy with my ome and dakars ( wheelers kit)

 

Ok so ive looked around and this is what i've come up with.

http://toyteclifts.3dcartstores.com...nt-shocks-and-matching-rear-shocks_p_94.html#

http://toyteclifts.3dcartstores.com/ICON-15-inch-Progressive-AAL_p_970.html

Few questions:

What tire size for a 16" wheel would run best with this set up?

No diff drop with these?

Any suggestions?

 

No replies? I'm going to order soon and wanna make sure I get everything i'll need.

 

After researching day and night I went with wheelers.

Ome kit with dakars and 881 coils with a 10mm enhancer.

04 double cab sits perfect. Did the alignment with a buddy on a brand new hunter Hawkeye machine and everything's perfect with factory upper control arms.

 

How's the ride on that? Did you have to extend brake lines for that?

 

Just an extended line in the back. It comes with wheelers kit.

And order the kit to move the brake valve lever on the axle. There is a brake load compensator valve that senses ride height- needs to be adjusted for then lift. It was like $10

The ride has some bounce. Reminds me of my old yj wrangler. Its getting better though.

The 880 spring supposedly gives a minor lift. The 881 gives a little more and is a little stiffer. The 882 is the same as the 881 but 20mm longer for supprting a heavy bumper.

I went 881 with a 10mm spacer to put myself between the two. I'm glad I did as I do not want a big bumper and the 882 would a been too tall. Even for the DC with a v-6.

 

Do you have any pictures of the finished product
I'm this close to ordering the OME kit w/881's.

 

Can someone throw a link for the wheelers kit? I'm on the mobile site and can't seem to find it..

 

Only 2 pics I have handy. I just started a photobuck acct and these are the first ones I posted.

 

^^ looks great! Any vibration issues?

 

I dropped the carrier bearing 3/4" since it looked a tad steep. I just did it with a stack of washers as a trial. No issues so I'm gonna replace the washers with a solid spacer.

I didn't drive it without dropping the bearing so I don't know if it was no good before or not. Instinct told me it needed some help.

 

One thing your gonna want to do is check that your alignment cams rotate in the LCA bushings. I acquired this truck needing a frame. The cams were seized solid and I replaced everything when I did the frame job.

If your cams are seized your gonna need new ones -$60 for OEM on eBay or online Toyota parts dealer. And I used Moog lower control arm bushings from rock auto.

 

OME 882s with wheelers leaf pack with aal. 285 75 16 nitto trail grapplers