05-15, TRD Sport and Off Road Suspension Characteristics

If you know there is a/are thread(s) about this already, please provide the link(s).

I know the sport suspension is stiffer where the off-road suspension is a little cushier. I distinctly remember, way back on 2007 when test driving the Tacoma's that I could definitely feel the difference between the two.
My question is this, does anyone know for sure is the difference in the ride strictly done through different valving in the Bilstein shocks that are used or no, it's the shocks and the, at least in the front, the coil springs as well.

Just considering at me next shock absorber change maybe going with the off-road shocks instead of the sports I always used.

Oh, I have no interest in going aftermarket.

Thanks in advance

 

As far as I know the OR uses progressive springs up front. Same shocks as the sport.

The sport has a thicker sway bar I believe.

You do realize the stock billy's are basically aftermarket, right? And they're complete garbage IMO. Once you swap them out the ride improves dramatically.

 

I'm interested in knowing as well.

I have the off road but would like to tune the suspension for more highway use.

 

I understand keeping stock suspension but most of the stock configurations are very much the same, only small differences between them. For instance my SR5 factory has the same ride as the Sport, since the sport package is mostly a cosmetics pacage (hood, color match bumpers, mirrors depaonfing on year, wheels, etc.) so if you want soft you really need to go aftermarket.

 

It's the coil springs on the front. As mentioned above, the OR uses progressive rate coil springs to absorb small bumps more smoothly and make driving off road a slightly smoother experience. All other models have the same linear rate coils. I'm pretty sure all second gen Tacos have the same sway bar. I'm also pretty sure the TRD OR and Sport have the same shocks also.

 

I’m not an expert nor have I spent a lot of time studying Tacoma suspensions but I can see that the OR and sport trucks would have the same shock, but to my highly trained ass it felt the same as other tacos I’ve ridden/driven.

 

My base model V6 had the same springs as the Sport, but different shocks. They all had the same shitty rear leaf springs - some randomly got the 3 leaf pack. others randomly got the 4 leaf pack.. Both suck.

 

I think the ones with 4 leaf packs have the towing pacage like my truck and 3 leaf packs are just your regular non tow package ones, hints why you can two double with the two package over base.

 

Nearly doubling the tow load has more to do with the class 4 hitch and trailer brakes (and transmission cooler on auto trans models) than leaf springs. not arguing, just adding more info

Edit: though you may be absolutely right about stock tow package trucks having the 4 leaf pack. I've never even heard this theory presented. It makes good sense. Put up a poll!

 

3 leafs were for the OR even with the tow package.

 

So it was pretty much random then

 

I believe every 4wd got 4 leafs other than the OR. I don't know how it worked with 2wd trucks. There were recalls though and some involved changing the 3 leaf pack to 4 leaf packs. My suggestion is buy your own leaf springs. I got old man emu and will never go stock again. I even sold my stock leafs for 125.

 

My 4wd had the 3 leaf pack. I now have air bags and Dakar leafs with the OME AAL

 

I have the dakars as well. Great for towing, no bags just a weight distribution system.

 

The bags were my first suspension mod. I just never saw a good reason to remove them. The HD Dakar pack and air bags may be overkill. When I eventually buy a slide in camper, I may find the bags useful.

 

end of thread hijack

 

you're not kidding....but thanks, everyone, got the answers I was looking for.

 

Sports have a 30mm sway bar and OR's have a 28mm sway bar to allow more travel off road use, but allow more body roll cornering on the street. Sports share the same linear rate springs, Hitachi struts and shocks, as the base models. OR's have progressive rate springs and Bilstein struts and shocks (which have variable valving or just valving for off-road use). Also OR's come with 265/70R16 wheels while sports are 265/65R17, which are the same approx 30 1/2 inch wheel and tire diameter, but makes the OR have a "cushier" tire profile (in the same P rated tire), giving a softer ride at stock tire pressures, due to more side-wall to flex/compress.