Thinking about BDS 6" lift and 35s

My point was that many guys add coilovers to the 6" drop bracket because they can squeeze a few more inches with them - especially as they begin playing with the idea of upgrading to 37"s; and that obviously limits down travel. Then they end up with a ridiculously tall rig with an equally ridiculously stiff suspension and high center of gravity.

But yea, without adjustable coilovers added to the mix then the geometry remains the same as the factory geometry.

Dealers are notoriously skeptical of the 6" drop bracket lifts in particular over other suspension modifications.

True about the resale value. Such is the nature of modifying vehicles. All I was saying is that the taller a rig looks, the less money people wanna pay for it.

Wrong about the center of gravity. It all depends how a rig is built. I bet my rig with 40"s is lower than any of these 6" drop bracket rigs on 35"s

 

Okay so what about these two guys? I'm assuming can't go wrong with either one.

https://bilsteinlifts.com/shop/toyo...-kit-2005-2015-toyota-tacoma/#reviews_summary

https://bilsteinlifts.com/shop/toyo...-suspension-lift-kit-2005-2015-toyota-tacoma/

 

Do the 6" lift with the coilovers. I have a 3" fox lift and its...ok. I would of rather have gone higher. With the 35's it'll look sick...if you get the right wheels. Good luck and pics when it's done.

 

If I did the BDS or Fabtech 6" lift with coilovers - does it apply what you're talking about when you said "add coilovers to the 6" drop bracket"? Or are they two different things? The cheaper BDS 6" lift w/o coilovers is $1800, the BDS 6" with coilovers is $3600. When you say "add coilovers to the 6" drop bracket" are you talking about getting the regular $1800 one PLUS getting the coilover and throwing the coilover on top of the bracket that comes with the $1800?

What if I just get the regular BDS or Fabtech 6" with coilovers - is that still horrible the way you make it sound?
If it's okay with 6" coilovers - what about the rear? Add-a-Leaf seems better than just the blocks in the rear right? It just looks super cheap on the rear end of the BDS 6" with just two blocks in the rear.

 

Sorry I created confusion!

You can do a drop bracket lift with the factory coilovers and call it a day.

Pros: It retains the factory suspension geometry.
Cons: The factory coilovers are not the best, and if you start wheeling with bigger tires and add heavy tube bumpers, winch, etc.; your factory units will suck ass.

- OR -

You can do the drop bracket lift WITH coilovers and call it a day too.

Pros: It retains the factory suspension geometry and an enhanced performance. The coilovers, depending on what they sell you, are arguably better than the factory units; they are adjustable (not a good feature to use in this case, see comment below), better spring rates for the added weight of your truck's armor, better damping capacity from the shocks, etc.
Cons: More expensive. The coilovers add a significant amount of money, but it is really worth it depending on what coilovers we are talking about.

- OR -

You can do the drop bracket lift with coilovers that you adjust to gain more lift because you want to have the tallest rig around or because you want fit 37s". This is what I was talking about. It is a terrible idea.

Pros: None.
Cons: An even taller truck that has a horrible stiff suspension, higher center of gravity, decreased wheel travel, etc.

Personally, I would go with the best coilover you can afford from IVD, King, etc.; crank then up to 2-3" of lift and cut as much sheet metal as you can so that you can squeeze 35"s. Throw some control arms too if you can afford them. This is really the best way to go. The center of gravity remains low, the suspension will perform great with the bad ass coilovers and control arms and when you take your truck for service/warranty it will not be as flashy looking tall as one with a 6" drop bracket lift.

 

I'm afraid of how much cutting that would take - especially the Cab Mount Chop. I don't know how much it would take & my imagination is running wild of how much it would take to chop off.

 

Plus I worry about fitting 35s on a 3" lift how much wheel travel I will have for the wheel to go up and down offroading - it wouldnt have much room right? I'd have to get bump stomps etc & lose articulatino?

 

I think the opposite. More guys with a 3 inch lift will end up cranking their coil overs up to the max. which reduces wheel travel .

 

Well, it would be hard to tell until you get under there and do it. There are some variables like your wheel backspacing [determines how far the tire sticks out], the tire width, etc. There is some work involved for sure. This is the route I would follow for sure because it is the one that keeps the center of gravity low.

Each time you lift an IFS, you always sacrifice down travel. It's just the nature of the beast; modifying suspensions is always a trade off. When you crank a coilover, it pushes the lower arms down, which cause the truck to "lift' up. The bump stops should already be there. Not really familiar with your truck; my 1st gent had the factory rubber stops that did an ok job. Then I upgraded to poly bump stops that were a bit taller and supposedly better. It was an easy, cheap upgrade. Not sure if they sell them for your particular model.

If you have the 6" drop bracket without cranking the coilovers, you will retain whatever many inches of down travel the factory IFS has. But now you would have a truck that is taller with a high center of gravity. To me, I would rather keep the truck lower at the expense of a couple of inches of down travel.

This may not make much sense now, but if you start getting serious about wheeling you will quickly see why you want a truck with a low center of gravity. Vehicles with very wide axles can get away with being a taller; the wider axles provide stability.

Ignore everything I said if you just plan to drive the truck down the road

Yes...each time you crank a coilover and inch you lose that inch in down travel. It's the name of the game with IFS, but something's gotta give.

You just don't want to crank 3" on top of 6" because you lose the down travel with an even higher center of gravity

Sorry guys, but when you get serious about wheeling there's only two ways to get down travel: Long Travel or SAS.

So unless you have the resources for Long Travel or SAS, there will always be a compromise between sacrificing down travel and having a very tall rig.

 

I'd be in for an SAS conversion if somebody could figure out the electronics. I can't take a brand-new truck and make it smog illegal. Why would it be smog illegal ? because when you disconnect electronics the check engine light comes on making it illegal for smog in California , any warning lights you fail. And don't say you have a friend who did . nobody has figured it out ! post a link to a working solution that does not involve electrical tape just covering the light up because the computer will still find the code and you will be failed.

 

I have not seen a 3rd gen tacoma with a SAS yet. But there are plenty of 2nd gens and they figured it out. Sooner all later somebody will figure it out for the 3rd gens too. You could be the one

 

6 inch bds with fox coils...35x12.50 R18. I love it. It is what I wanted and I made up my mind and did it. No regrets at all. If I do something else I'll be going SAS.

 

While passing through Houston yesterday, I stopped by a local dealer who has a 17 TRD OR Tacoma with drop bracket lift and 33 inch mud tires on 20 inch wheels. Me and the salesman were talking and I asked to go on test ride. He quickly grab the keys because he was interested in how it road with the larger tire/wheel package. Lift wise, it road and drove terrific, but the shake and extra weight of the wheels and tires would not make it a good daily driver. We took it on a 20 to 30 minute drive, through the city and on the highway. City driving couldn't tell really any difference in acceleration or stopping ability, on the highway it seemed very hard to keep the speed up and a lot of gas pedal to keep the truck at 60 miles an hour.

 

I think it looks good but some people here are against anything that isn't OME or Bilstein 6112's and Dakar AAL... God forbid you mention the word "spacer" anywhere on these pages. If it is what you like/want then more power to ya and everyone be sour grapes

 

6+ and 35s on a 3rd Gen ftw.

I daily drive 10ply M/T 35x12.50R18s and it's fine. You feel the tires more, but unless you're 80 years old and often find yourself shouting at kids to get off your lawn, it's worth it. Aside from obviously not being able to take turns as sharp, mine drives/feels better than stock. Granted I'm not on a DB lift, and cutting out the crossmember is quite a commitment, but get good shocks/springs and you'll be fine. The stock suspension sucks anyway imo.

As far as fitting 35s on a 3" lift, I don't know how the fuck those guys do it. Skinny 35s, narrow wheels, and a metrick fuck ton of cutting shit out I guess.

JUST DO IT.

 

i have a $400 BDS Gift Certificate for sale and a 20% off code if anyone is interested

 

Dude do what you want, it's your money if you got it, if you worked hard for it, the fuck will you care what the "bashers" have to say. Haters will hate all day, at the end of the day it's your truck no one else's. If you want to join a forum that consists of cool people to appreciate your build for what it is, and for the love of all things tacoma, hit up Taco Forum on Tapatalk, you want to be criticized in all you do that doesn't meet someone else's standards and hear about it from 10 different people, stay here.

 

Did you did you have to do any trimming? Or do the cab/body mount chop? I’m interested in putting 35s on my 18x12s. I have a 6” Fabtech with fox dsc 2.5 coilover up front.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/intro-to-fitting-35s-3-lifts.594309/

 

Welp that's it, my next set of tires will be 37's. @Texoma it's been a while because life gets in the way...but I'll be making an appointment soonish.