Stock height - 5100s or something else?

I have the 3 leaf pack and am out of warrenty so cant get the TSB. My leaves seem to have little to no bow in them anymore so I am planning to do an add a leaf. Hopefully that will help that situation. Will this really increase the bow in all though? I am kind of thinking it may not.

Also I am thinking of ugrading my shocks to 5100s. My biggest question is since I am going to stick with stock height is there a comperable shock out there that is cheaper but still provides the same performance as the 5100s. I dont want to pay extra for the adjustment feature if I am not going to use it. Also I know there will be a small rake due to the AAL but dont really care.

 

somebody with more knowledge can answer your first question. my guess is an aal isn't what's best for you if your leafs are flat.

people are selling their TRD Bilstein shocks on here all the time. they buy the 5100s and sell their old ones. you can find them with under 10,000 miles on them some of the time. that might be an option you haven't considered...

 

^ Are you telling him to buy TRD Bilsteins? Doesn't his truck already come equipped with those? He has the TRD package.

 

I already have TRD Bilsteins.

 

not sure how many miles are on his truck.... if he's looking to replace shocks that have 75,000 miles on them and they need replaced than that's an option. that's all i'm saying...

 

I just did the Toyotec AAL as I was in the same situation that you are. Out of warranty and my leafs were shot. The AAL gave me about 4 inches or rear lift in the rear. The AAL was only supposed to give me 2 inches of lift but that measurement is from factory height. The weak factory leaf pack caused the rear to sag 2 inches since they were shot. So that AAL got me the 2 inches of factory height plus the 2 inch lift. You can look in my pictures to see the results. The ride after the AAL is so much better, I dont bottom out at all anymore even while towing. It seems that now the rear suspension stiffness matches the front for a much more balanced ride. My AAL has really helped the other leafs bow more as the AAL is very arched when you get them new. I know mine still haven't settled completly yet. If you dont have that many miles on your truck I would just suggest keeping the current shocks you have. IMHO with my truck a 65k I didnt think I needed to spend the extra money for the shocks. Good luck.

 

Awesome, that answers the first question for me.

I have 45K on my pickup. I think my shocks are probably ok but I want the added performance of better ones. I want quality comperable to the 5100s but dont need the adjustment feature. I know there are some Bilstien HDs and other types that may work but I just need someone who knows about several types to throw out some thoughts.

 

Go to downsouthmotorsports.com you will be able to find anything as far as shocks are concerned. They have lots of options, and if you send them a PM you can usually get a discount.

 

I was in the same boat as you and the poster above with no warranty and shitty 3 leaf pack. I did the Toytec 1.5 AAL and got the 1.5 out of it. I did 5100s at 2.5 setting up front. The truck ended up being 1 1/2 inches higher in rear. It rides as was stated, much more balanced. If you do go that high up front you'll most likely have to get some UCAs so you can get the correct caster setting for your alignment to be totally correct. The camber and toe can be adjusted enough to not wear the tires but the steering will feel all twitchy and wandering because of the caster not being able to be adjusted after lift. It'll want to follow grooves and uneven surfaces. I didn't even have the TRD bilsteins to begin with so the 5100s made drastic difference. Here's before and after lift pics...........before...

after...

 

I called downsouthmotorsports and they said that there are comperable Bilsteins that are not adjustable but due to their buying discount on the 5100s it is cheaper to buy the 5100s than the comperable non adjustable ones.

Case closed, I guess.

 

Oh that sucks, I guess you could just get the 5100's and leave them at the stock height, then you would have the option to riase if you wanted to in the future. I have found a place that has the 5100's in stock if you are interested. I just purchased mine for the front. Its called suspensionconnection.com

 

The website shows they are out of stock till june. Also they are quite a bit cheaper at downsouth and they should have them next week I am told. I did find a cheap leaf on that site. Thanks

 

Oh thats weird. I just bought mine 2 days ago. I hope that I still can get what I ordered w/o any problems. I knew they were a little cheaper at downsouth, but I'm impatient, and the last time I talked to them they said it might be 8 weeks. That was 2 weeks ago. I still think I only paid 188 total w/ shipping.