Just a little girl trying to jack up her little black truck.. Haha, but really any advice will do!

Hi Everyone,

While I've had my Tacoma for over a year now, I am new to Tacoma World and have not made any modifications to it. I like to hunt, fish, camp and just be out in the mountains. I bought my Tacoma so that I could lift it and use it for hunting. Of course all my guy friends never let me drive and we always use their vehicles for hunting. (which is a good thing, my truck still looks new!!) This year I want to get it lifted, 3" or so. I just started looking into lift/leveling kits. I also bought bigger wheels, I just need to get tires.

Sooo.. for a girl who frequently goes to the mountains, hunting maybe twice a year where the terrain might be more rough.. What type of lift should I be looking into?? What kind of tires should I get for my 17" wheels??

Thanks!
K

 

I hope you had a shovel!

 

@tcBob oh it surely will

My suggestion for the lift is a the , readily available from Wheeler's or Headstrong... I just put this on my truck and I've pretty much love the new ride

 

I'd recommend you stick to a 2-2.5" lift for reasons of lower cost, better ride, and less-necessary-parts.

 

Check out HeadStrong Off-Road's site. The 6112/5160 combo set is dreamy. I just installed it and it drives so cush and smooooooooth. Max 2.5 lift will avoid having to do a diff drop, and keep your factory-like ride.

 

Welcome! Were you able to drive out of the snow or was your truck stuck?

 

Just remember tires get you ground clearance. Now with that said you can only go so big on your tires before you have to start cutting away at your truck to make them fit.... most people do pretty good with 285/70/17 tires and with the right alignment you will not rub.

If you are not doing any crazy offroading and you are really just trying to get from point A to B then you dont need to spend 2k on a lift. Everyone will tell you that any lift over 2 1/2" - 3" will require aftermarket upper control arms to get a proper alignment and keep your truck from wondering all over the road. Those can get pricey.

Shocks with reservoirs are more for extended use and high speed offroad use. The main purpose of them is to keep the shocks at a lower temp during extended use.

Springs add lift to the truck. Rear leaf packs tend to be a smoother ride and better with heavy loads. You can get an add-a-leaf that will give your rear a lift but some complain about the ride being stiff. Some dont mind it though.

All in all it depends on how much you are willing to spend on your lift. Once you figure that out, check back in with a figure and i bet you will get many more recommendations.

Anyway welcome to TW. Use the search bar and check out the drop downs. If you read enough you will find the answer to just about any question you may have.

 

remember if its still has a factory warranty if you go over 3 inches of lift you void the warranty from what i understand but i could be wrong.

 

You only remove the warranty on the parts you remove or alter. It's a law.

But you better believe they'll blame stuff whenever they can.

 

Welcome Kim, nice truck!

If you have some free time, check out the Suspension section thread, there's more info than you'd think possible on lifts for these trucks.
Suspension

Good luck!

 

Thanks for all the Advice!

In that picture I was only stuck for a few min's. I was able to get out in 4low with the differential lock on.

As for the lift/leveling kit I was hoping to stay around $1,000. I have been doing alot of research..

I almost purchased this leveling kit, because it comes with the upper control arms and they say you can still reach factory alignment.
http://camburg.com/all-products/05-12-taco/toyota-tacoma-pre4wd-05-15-entry-level-kit/

But I am still considering a 3" lift kit. My Toyota dealership is offering a "special" for a 3" Revtek lift, BFG tires and American Eagle wheels. $3,200 installed. The "lift kit" actually uses spacers and cost about $400. I found this Pro Comp lift kit, that I am considering purchasing however I would need to get upper control arms separately. http://www.4wheelparts.com/Suspensi...ks.aspx?t_c=1&t_s=38&t_pt=3533&t_pn=EXPK5081B

There are soo many options available, I need to keep doing my research!

 

Definitely the kit from Camburgs website is the best bet out of those options! Everyone after this post will agree in sure. Crazy how many options there are! Keep researching, you're definitely on the right track. Looking forward to a build thread coming up soon

 

When I lifted my truck I was on a similar budget and went with Bilstein 5100's all around, Toytec/eibach srings and a wheelers 3 leaf pack ( ). Iv'e been very happy with the ride quality on and off road.

The people at wheelers were great to work with also.

The UCA I added later but everything was properly aligned with the oem UCA's.

 

this is what im considering purchasing...

http://www.headstrongoffroad.com/store/p227/Coil/Blistein_5100_Kit_(HS05BK-1).html

 

That kit through HeadStrong is similar to another one I was looking at. http://toyteclifts.3dcartstores.com/3-lift-kit-with-Bilstein-5100-Front-Coilovers_p_364.html

 

A leaf pack (3 leaves) will give you a better ride than a single leaf, single leaf will be a stiffer ride.

 

Welcome and good luck with your lift.