Upgrading After Upgrading...

So, I'm sure I'll be trolled or something after posting this, but here we go...

I have been running searches, reading everything I can get my hands on and have reached a point that I am just overwhelmed with too much data and/or information to make a decision...Hoping some of the site suspension experts will chime in and guide me (I am sure other will find this guidance useful too)...

I have added to my 2016 Tacoma Double Cab TRD-OR Short-bed Model:

Under Rear Seat Vault
Mobtown - 1/4" Plate Front Skid, Transmission Skide and Transfer case Skide and Rear Bumper
Ramsey Winch with a hidden Mount behind the Front Bumper
Weather Guard Bed Toolbox
Slightly taller/wider off-road tires (which do not cause and clearance issues)

I regularly tow a trailer that weighs 3500 lbs. on the axle of the trailer.

With all this armor and added metal/rubber/security, the truck now rides kind of mushy and it is obvious that I need to support/stiffen the suspension and might as well add a couple of inches of clearance at the same time.

The $1,000,000 question is

what shocks (Brand, model numbers)

A. Front with Springs
B. Rear Shocks systems on the truck

will enhance the ride, give me 2 to 3 inches without requiring major changes to drive shafts and other suspension.

AND

Would the add a leaf be the best option on the rear or would it be better to just replace the rear with a full replacement set of leaf pack.

AND

would it be a good idea to add rear lift bags under the new leafs for towing capacity...

Looking forward for all your feedback...

 

I'm about in the same boat with my 2nd gen. I went with OME and am happy with it so far. They were super helpful when I called them directly and provided a recommendation based on my mods. I'm sure one of their full kits would be perfect for you and they don't require any other modification to the vehicle, which is great IMO.

 

Zach...thank you for your response...the one thing I can say is OME keeps coming up in everything I read and see...it looks like Monday will be a good day for a phone conversation with OME...

 

Call @HeadStrong Off-Road and ask for Marie. She knows her $(@T and helped move me away from what the internet said I should have, and instead got me what I wanted. Exactly what I wanted. Can't say enough about those guys. Plus, no tax and free shipping for me since I live in Texas.

 

What he said @HeadStrong Off-Road
My guess is full leaf packs with air bags, and coils with a higher rate. Im no expert and dont know the terminology but marie will set you up properly.

 

Thanks guys...

 

When you are done you'll have to hit up Peter's Mill if you are Bob from front Royal Virginia!

Its right down the road from you.

 

Yah...its me...looks fun...

 

Don't ask this forum for specific tech specs. Ask for good vendors of suspension components here. There are ten thousand ways to skin your particular cat and all of them will work. My advice? Pick a good vendor (Toytec, etc) and get the whole package from one place. This will save you many headaches by only dealing with one vendor. Make sure it's a one stop shop. If I remember correctly there are several places local to Front Royal if that is where you are located.

 

Curious as to what you went with as the internet seems to suggest everything.

 

Can't go wrong with the 6112s. Rides amazing

 

It mainly has to do with coil selection and final height.

In a nutshell I was told I needed 886s to handle extra front bumper weight of the Southern Style Offroad Hybrid + Winch. I was also told to stick with OME Nitrocharger Sport firm shocks to account for said weight.

The weight difference between what you take off to put on the SSO Hybrid Bumper is like 30 pounds. Marie explained that going 886's was overkill for anything other than full plate + winch. The synthetic line 8k or 10k winch + slim bumper and firm ride struts would make my truck ride pretty dang rough. In addition, the increase coil rate would cause my truck to be higher than my intended goal, especially pre-bumper and winch.

I wanted 2" lift, that's it. I wanted a firmer ride, but not a jarringly rough ride.

She explained there's a new leaf pack to replace the original Dakars...and there's 2 variants, a light duty and a heavy duty. She said the light was basically a HD pack without 1 overload, and it caused the pack to sit about 1/2" lower and hold about 300 lbs less. I could always add the leaf later.

I went instead with 887s (lower coil spring rate, but taller coil), and the Light Duty new Dakar pack. Light Racing UCAs, and the NitroCharger Sport Soft Ride.

The entire truck went up 2.25", maintained factory rake, and Caster is perfect, and the soft ride struts are still pretty firm.

I currently have no front bumper or winch, but according to some calculations and how it turned out on my 4Runner, the SSO Hybrid bumper will drop my truck approx 1/4" with winch included (bumper and winch).

That will give an exact 2" lift in front and 2.25" in rear, so an increase in total rake of approx 1/4". Adding a bed rack and a RTT will easily balance that back out, and the 1/4" wouldn't be noticeable anyways.

As far as the ride, it's sportier than stock, less squishy, certainly firmer, but not hard. Handles corners better, squats less while towing, and much less body roll.

Like I said, I wouldn't have come to this conclusion on my own. Marie helped me understand it. She asked me to go outside and take some measurements and call her back to discuss options.

I agree with the guy who said to buy it all from one vendor. It makes it so much simpler, and if you buy a package you normally get a few goodies thrown in, such as my carrier bearing drop, poly bushings for the Dakars, and stuff like that.

My cost out the door was around $1700 btw.

 

Lee

Thank you so much for all the detail...this is extremely helpful and provides a lot of clarification...There are so many moving parts and technical adjustments affected when changing the dynamics of the suspension, it is easy to make a lot of expensive mistakes or damage something on the truck long term...

 

Why do you need 800-1000 lbs of added steel and winch to a towing rig?

That's a lot of weight.

Suspension can balance out SOME of it, but the truck is going to need other upgrades that don't stop there. Braking being the primary, if your trailer doesn't have trailer brakes.

 

Its not a towing rig...I just happen to tow a trailer regularly (Like 2 - 3 times a month). I use this pickup off road a lot and found the paper thin skid plates provided by Toyota to really be useless (hince the upgraded real skid plates). I have never had any issues with braking pulling a trailer with my truck. I have had a number of different trucks (Full size Dodge, Chevy, Ford) for towing and other than power I have not found them to be superior for off road, actually I have found them to be subpar as they get stuck much easier than my Toyota...

I am developing my land right now which is quite rugged in the mountains near Front Royal, VA and having a versatile mini truck has really paid off...go anywhere, pull large trees, stumps and haul large amounts of lumber and supplies...

 

Also OP, a few other thoughts.

1. Big tires, especially Load Range E, are much heavier, and will cause stress on your ring and pinions, and you'll feel it when the truck takes off. THat would affect starting a heavier load while pulling a trailer. The benefit of LR E tires is that they have much less flex in sidewall, and really help with my trailer sway, so I like em.

I went with 265/75/r16 Falken Wildpeak AT3/w Load E. I didn't want tires to stick past fenders, and these are like a 32" tire. It really isn't all that critical to have a 33" other than people like to say they have 33s. My wife has essentially same tire on her 4Runner and we've done some gnarly crap with those guys.

2. UCAs. I say get them now. It's easier to get it all done at once and not have to rework stuff later. My 4Runner's caster is pretty close with a 2.5" lift, but my Tacoma's is dialed in perfectly. You don't need it with a 2 - 2.5" lift, but if you go bigger later, or just want a heavier duty choice, just do it now.

3. ECGS Bushing - whie you are doing the UCAs and have the spindle disconnected to do the struts, just do this too. I did on my Tacoma and now I'll have to find time to rework the 4Runner to take it all apart and do it later. I'll probably do the UCA and ECGS Bushing at the same time on the 4Runner. This isn't an expensive thing, but it's peace of mind to not have to do it again.

 

Tell me more about the Dakars and how they feel. Any side pics of your truck? I'm about to pull the trigger on that leaf pack

 

Dakar "Light Duty" feels about like stock, tad less squishy. That's an unloaded bed, no cap, no bed cover. Approx 2.25" lift from stock leafs on the TRD OR. Personally, I can't really tell they are different other than the height. The OME shocks feel firmer, as mentioned above, and they are responsible for the reduced body roll.

I put a bassboat on it today, and I have literally no idea how much weight that boat was, but it was a pro fisherman's boat from Bassmaster because they needed to use my truck, and it didn't squat it much at all. Once sec, I'll get a pic.

 

People who know things about bassboats can probably give you an idea of said tongue weight. I'd say it leveled the truck. Hard to see in this wide angle shot, but it was pretty even front and back.

 

Do it