W.E. Coilover vs Toyotec Ultimate RadFlow

First of all, thanks in advance to anyone who can shine some light on my first post with their honest knowledge and opinion of my current suspension predicament. This is my first post to the forum, and i just purchased my 2011 Tacoma DCLB 4x4 Sport Edition 2 days ago. I am not new to 4 wheeling or wrenching, having owned over 6 different lifted vehicles (from a Samurai crawler with dana 44s and ARBs to several 2000+ f250 diesels with 10"+ lift kits) I have become far more practical with age and my tacoma is the perfect fit for my new daily driver/expedition rig. I am a very avid hunter and a majority of my offroad driving with this new truck will be on non maintained dirt roads in the mountains that have the occasional washout that you have to navigate. I am getting ready to do a 3" lift on my truck so i can comfortably run some 32" tires and i am tore between the All Pro Walker Evans setup, an the Toyotec Ultimate Lift Kit. I plan on keeping this truck for years, and i like to overbuild anything i do, so the current "cart" inventory on each site is as follows:

All Pro Offroad:
Walker Evans Non Resivour 2.5" Coilover Shock $995
All Pro UCA 1.25" uniball $649.00
Spindle Weld On Gussets $49.00
Sway Bar Centering Collars $38.00
Tacoma IFS Skid Plate $269.00
Tacoma Transmission Skid Plate $99.00
Tacoma Diff Armor $59.00
Low Profile Drain Plug $5.00
Set of Steel Braided front brake lines $58.00
Total:$2,221.00 -$73.60 (10% suspension component discount)
Grand total of $2147.40 +shipping/TAX

The idead of this setup is to knock out the front end all at once and just run a small block in the rear. I am installing Firestone Ride Rite air bags in the rear, so i know my articulation will be kept at a minimum, but that is the price i have to pay for my heavy load of eqipment.


The second option is the Toyotec Ultimate Lift w/radflow coilovers with some upgrades:
Base package $1,169.99
Diff Drop Kit $29.99
1 1/2" Block Kit (works with bags)
2.5" Shock body upgrade $210.00
Spanner wrench $19.99
25047 (?) upper control arms $399.99
Bilstein 5160 RR Rear shocks $190.00
All Pro Spindle Gussets $49.00
Low Profile Drain Plug $5.00
Grand Total : $2,071.98 +shipping (unk on tax)

This package compromises on the underbody protection, but finishes the suspension front and rear. I know this will ultimatley come down to PERSONAL PREFERENCE but i wanted some input from people more experienced with the yota suspension than i. Thanks in advance and i will be doing a complete build thread as things progress!
Thomas

 

Wow, not wasting any time....I like the way you think!

First option but with Icon or Fox coilovers instead! They will out perform WE and Radflo! These are good vendors to go with.

Icons -
Fox - http://downsouthmotorsports.com/i-8...ended-travel-factory-series-kit-with-ifp.html

The rear will hold you back at this point so I wouldn't skimp there! For the price, you can't beat these packages for performance! Also, a good aal to increase weight capacity and shock (Icon or Fox) and your set!

 

with the AAL will I run into issues with my Firestone bags? thats why I was looking into just a standard old school block

 

Shouldn't, an aal just fits in between the overload leaf and rest of the pack......I'm sure a small block is fine too!

 

Why would you want air bags and a remote reservior rear shock? If you want a high performing rear, I'd ditch the air bags and get a replacement leaf pack. Air bags are nice for towing but can limit travel or tear when off roading.

 

well im glad i asked. i have done some more research and it seems i have it all picked out.

Front end:
ICON /Camburg 05-Current Tacoma Remote-Reservoir Coil-over/ Control arm package
$1,860

Rear end:
All Pro 1.5" Progressive Add-A-Leaf Kit
$149.00
Bilstein 5100 Rear shocks
$158.00

All Pro Rear plate bumper and High Clearance tow hitch coming shortly after. Then next will be front bumper and skid plates. I want the rear bumper and hitch first, so after the truck is lifted with tires i can build a offroad trailer that will sit at the right hight to run a zero clearance hitch.
Im going to be ordering the Fuel Boost in a 18x9, what is a tight offset i can run with some 275/65R18 Toyo Open Country A/Ts without rubbing (32.1" tall) and i do not like them to be sticking to far out. 4.5" or 5"?
thanks

 

That progressive aal will ride and flex soft but suck at holding weight.....just an fyi if you're wanting to tow/haul. From my experience bilstein is a poor choice for the rear with the front being that controlled. My front end is like the tires are riding in butter and can barely feel bumps but can feel everything through the back end. Also, the shock cant keep up at the same rate of compression and rebound. For slow speed/flex or on road performance they're great but not off road!

Some may disagree but that's my experience!

 

ditch the 18s, get some 16s or 17s

 

Dont bother with the front diff drop. Useless.

 

thats where my overload bags will kick in. I can go soft with the un inflated bags, and when I need it I can inflate. so I should ditch the bilsteins and get the matching Icon rear shocks?

 

x2!! If you're going to spend that much on the front end might as well not gimp out on the rear. Ditch the AAL/Blocks along with the biltein 5100 rear shocks and get a full leaf pack replacement and better performance shocks.

Also agree with not going with 18's and going with 16s or 17s but it is your truck. Good luck, let us know what you end up with

 

Icons will be MUCH better than 5100's. It's all in what you need though. I'm running 5100's because I have no need for a custom valved, rebuildable shock. I also didn't want the expense up front. Talk to someone like Downsouth Motorsports about running a shock like that with air bags. I don't know if it's worth it because the bags might hinder performance.

 

That is what i was thinking. I am definately going to have the bags, as they are more important to my needs then a super flexy, soft riding rear end is. i regularly have over 500lbs of equipment in my bed on top of a camper shell, and i will be bottoming out all over without them. i figured the bilsteins would at least be an improvement than the stock bilsteins on the truck, while not going overboard and really having a setup that does not let the investment shine

 

You need All Pro expos man!

 

wont those get my rear end up to high though? i can deal with about a 1/2" rake, but from what im reading, with the 3" lift i am going to be tall in the rear by 1 1/2"?

 

so your saying run my front end with the camburg/icon setup stated, and all pro expo springs with a shock like the icon 56503 2" vs emulsion shock?

 

Ya, with 500lbs in the back and a cap....you'll be fine, prob have a slight rake! It'll look bad ass and ride even better!

 

the load will only be on occasion. day to day it will be raked and I'm not looking for that look

 

Doesn't look bad to me! This is Jake's truck (Kyouto42) with Fox/TC up front and All Pro Expo's/Fox in the rear! In person there's a slight rake but looks bad ass still!

 

good looking truck but not the look I'm going for. looking like the progressive overload springs are going to be what I'm looking for