New 2nd Gen Taco owner. Fabtech 6" lift rough ride? Among other issues...

Hello!

I just picked up a new to me Tacoma yesterday morning.

2005 - Access Cab, 4.0, 6 Speed, Sr5, TRD, BLUE - 148,000 miles

The truck has a 6" Fabtech drop bracket lift, with Dirt Logic coilovers.
The rear is blocks and AAL I'm assuming? The dealer wasn't sure, but the blocks appear to be ~2-3".
It's running 35x12.5 Km2's on 17" wheels.

Now I'm plenty prepared that a small pickup on 35" tires is not going to ride like a Cadillac, but I was expecting a little better. Driving the truck down the interstate on the way home, I was chasing it around the road, the ruts definitely grabbed ahold of the truck. Through the little bit of research I've been able to do so far, most report the ride quality of a drop bracket lift to be fantastic, even if the performance isn't the greatest... I don't seem to be experiencing that. The truck goes in for an alignment tomorrow morning, hoping that will help a little.

Is there anything I should look for, do, adjust, check, etc? I'm completely new to Toyota's, it's been all Dodge's and Jeeps in the past.

My first day in the truck


Dealer Photos






Secondly, when starting moving from a stop, if I engage the clutch "harshly", there is a clunking noise that comes from underneath the truck for what sounds like a few revolutions? Not sure what it could be? No other clunking is heard when shifting into the next gear etc. This is a drivetrain sort of clunk, and it doesn't happen if I ride the clutch for a second when starting.

Thirdly. My front running lights aren't working! The rears are, and the turn signals up front are working, but the running lights up front aren't... Is this a common problem? I've tried replacing the bulbs... any help would be great.

Fourthly. My overhead console inside isn't working? Another common problem? I've checked most all of the fuses and all seem good. Any input before check power to the console, etc?

Fifthly. :/ My heated seat's don't appear to be working. The light indicator on the driver side seat comes on, but I can't really tell if it's working. If it is, it's really weak. The passenger side heater's light isn't even coming on. Any input?

Lastly, It's due for an oil change. I'm not sure what type of oil is in it... But I've heard these motors don't like going to full synthetic abruptly? Thinking about going with a blend for the next few oil changes, then changing over to synthetic?


Appreciate any help! Any input and or links to info would be great.
Back to searching for me.

-Max

 

Well, I just got back from the shop. Figured out a few things.
Looks like it's due for a drivers side front wheel bearing.
Also, the Fabtech Dirt Logic coilover on the passenger side appears to have been leaking. It's most likely completely out of fluid, and it's squeaking, very bad. Anyone have experiences with re-building these?

Lastly, the rack and pinion bushings are shot, this is where most of my wandering and bad driving condition most likely comes from. The problem, both Les Schwab and the Toyota dealer has the bushings listed as an "unserviceable" part, you can't even order the bushings... they want to replace the entire rack. Schwabs wants $506 just for the rack, the dealer is at $950. Ahem, no f****** way, there has to be a way to replace just the bushings. Has anyone gone through this themselves? My rack is fine...


I also found out what the"clunking" when starting to move was, looks like my carrier bearing is toast! Unfortunately it looks like a part I can't do in my driveway...

I also fixed my overhead console issue, with a little searching I found this thread:
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/18497-overhead-compass-temp-fix.html
Worked perfect!

Still looking for fixes for the running lights, and the seat heaters, as well as what oil I should run...

I appreciate any feedback!