To Lift Or Not To Lift

Crater Lake?

 

Looks fantastic but do you get any rub or clearance issues?

cooper s/t maxx?

 

WOW you guys have "NO IDEA" how much I appreciate your input. You have defiantly helped me make a much better and more informed decision. I am going to go with like a 2.5 shocks and coil-overs (Probably Billsteins since I had them on my JEEP) and wheels and tires. Will post a picture when I get it done, Might be a little bit since I am out with shoulder surgery right now. Thank you all very much.

 

Are those 275/70/17s?
Looks nice

 

Yes. Cooper ST Maxx. No rubbing at all. No rock crawling, but I did try to make them rub last time I was in the mountains. None so far.

 

I'm running 33"×12.5" wheels have the fox series 2.0 lift with adjustable coil overs, made a few adjustments and it works like a top.

 

Yes sir!

 

Yes.

 

Look at Firestone or Air Lift brand air bags for your truck. You can haul twice that many sandbags and have a perfectly level truck. They are not very expensive and easy to self install.

 

Where I wheel, moderate offroading is fairly tough. I have wheeled moderate trails here in NH with a stock Taco, and while it can be done, a 3 inch lift helps to get the front diff and frame off the rocks and allows you to take much more difficult trails. It gives you better approach, departure and break-over angles, and it increases overall ground clearance. Forget people who say a lift doesn't give you ground clearance...that is false. It is true that a lift will not increase your lowest point of clearance, namely your rear differential. The only way to raise that is with larger tires. Every other point of clearance, however, is higher after a lift. It makes wheeling easier, you can clear rocks in the front and on the sides because your front diff and frame are higher. Then all you have to do is snake your rear diff between some rocks, or get a rear tire on a rock to clear the diff. For me, if I wanted to do moderate wheeling, a 3 inch lift and 32s or 33s would be my starting point. To be honest, I would rather have a 3 inch lift and 32s than a leveling kit and 33s for wheeling.

 

Thanks for the reply! Just destroyed my entire day at work reading all 40 pages of @Jibbs thread but it was totally worth it

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/put-255-85-16s-on-stock-or-wheels-and-suspension.491079/

 

This is pretty much what I am thinking for my truck but am open to all feedback.

275/70/17 BFG All Terrains
700# king coilovers and 600lb springs (future skid, bumper, winch)
OME Dakar leafs with add a leaf
Timbren bump stops
King adjustable rear shocks
Firestone Ride-Rite airbags (future camper)

 

fwiw, I've done some pretty sketch shit on my stock suspension with 255s. Granted, I have an inch over 2nd gens by default. I'm still gonna upgrade the suspension, but mostly to carry the extra weight I'm planning on adding to the truck.

 

how much extra weight are we talking...? You think I'd be OK with bolt-on sliders & a RTT?

 

So I'm planning on an aluminum bumper so up front I'll have about 150 between that + winch. I'll also be running sliders, bed rack, and eventually RTT. I have a storage box full of recovery stuff that lives in the bed which is probably about 90 pounds, and a cooler in the summer.

If you run an empty bed then just the RTT might be fine

With those things I've had no issues but I would rather be safe than sorry, because I might upgrade my skids too.

 

I generally always have bins of camping gear/5 gallons of water in the bed when I go out. Maybe look for something smaller than 85 ratio to be safe?

 

This. Your wheel choices have to do a lot with whether or not you're going to rub on 285s. There's a video of some guy running 285s on stuck suspension without rubbing and he just used a heat gun on his fenderwell to remold it. Now if you run skinny 255/85/16s, you're not going to rub for sure. But if you go 285/75/16 or 70/16 a lot depends on your wheel specs.

 

Not entirely true- you need to be on stock wheels for this. There are plenty of aftermarket 16s that will push you back far enough to rub on the fender lining even with 255s.

 

Sorry, shoulda mentioned stock. I ran 255's (see avatar) on OEM steelies and they didn't rub whatsoever. I had to adjust my coils and do some minor trimming when I went to 285/70/17s though.

 

Where'd you get your steelies? Such a classic look...