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Question about 5100s, Wheeler 4-leaf pack and my specific situation.

Discussion in '1st Gen. Tacomas (1995-2004)' started by x2468, Jul 17, 2010.

  1. Jul 17, 2010 at 11:57 PM
    #1
    x2468

    x2468 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Okay... so. As some of you may remember, I want to go on this 3k mile trip with my brother and our motorcycles in the bed. total weight of motorcycles is probably 850lbs, plus me, my brother our luggage etc. I've already determined through my other thread that my leafs need replacing. I brought the Taco to a local toyota dealership to look at the shocks, struts and coils. Although they weren't as knowledgable as I had hoped, the tech pointed out that my front OEM billies and coils look fine but the rear two are leaking slightly and he suggested new shocks. Hopefully he's right about the front struts/coils being up to the task.

    So this is what I'm thinking, since im on a budget but i want to keep my options open. Would it make sense to get the wheelers 4-leaf pack and billistein rear 5100s set to stock height, and then later in the year when I have more money, can i get the 5th leaf added and get billistein struts with 881s??

    Will the 4-leaf pack and rear 5100s be enough to handle the trip i want to take? I guess i could add timbrens too but they're pricey. Does anyone know if the 5100s are still back ordered?

    Thanks in advance. I want to hit the road by next weekend so i need to know what im doing asap so i can order the stuff and have it installed intime.
     
  2. Jul 18, 2010 at 12:19 AM
    #2
    Digiratus

    Digiratus Adventurer

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    Your right. The time frame is short. Assuming you can get the 5100s installed in time (these shocks are not adjustable for lift in the rear btw), I think your plan is a good one. One option for the future is to do a shackle lift in the rear.

    Extended shackles get a bad rap, mostly because it isn't a good choice on old, worn out, stock springs. But, when used with a new set of leaf springs, extended shackles may be the right choice.

    The rear 5100 should be able to handle this but you should confirm this with whomever you purchase from.
     
  3. Jul 18, 2010 at 8:35 AM
    #3
    MTgirl

    MTgirl too many frogs, not enough princes... Moderator

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    Wheeler's/Alcan 5-pack leaf springs, OME 881's, de-badged, Jungle Fender Flares, Herculined bed, HomerTaco grille, Anzo headlights, clear corners,
    Leaf springs - the price difference between the 4pack and 5pack leaf springs is only $10 - if you think you may ever want or need the heavier pack just do it now. It will be so much more expensive to add that later on. When I was deciding on what to do I was told that the 4pack is great if you want a ride close to stock (height and feel) and only occasionally tow or haul anything. If you tow or haul regularly, have a shell or toolbox then the 5pack may be the better choice but does have a stiffer ride and a bit more lift.
    I went 5pack because I wanted to get rid of the dreaded axle wrap and while I don't usually haul anything I do have sandbags for the winter which to me was the same as hauling or having a shell on the majority of the time.

    Shocks - the rear bilsteins were somewhat more available then the fronts. If you're only looking at replacing the rear right now you will most likely be able to get them without much hassle.

    I had the front and rear worked on separately and after the rear was done (nothing up front yet) the 5pack and bilsteins gave me about a 2" lift so I was driving around for a short time with my ass end hiked up in the air, looked a bit stupid but I don't think there's much harm. And if you'll have bikes weighting the truck down you may never notice the height difference.
    After everything was done on my truck it handled so much better, no more axle wrap, no more scary lean on curves at highway speeds, more responsive steering, smoother ride - definitely worth it!
    My personal journey through the world of after market suspensions is here http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/suspension/83863-1st-gen-needs-suspension-upgrades-asap.html - lots of BS to wade through there but you might find something useful too. And if you're going with Wheeler's give Dan a call and bug him with whatever questions you have - he was very helpful when I was getting ready to take the plunge myself. Hope that helps!
     
  4. Jul 18, 2010 at 9:19 AM
    #4
    x2468

    x2468 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    yeah pretty much the only reason i was looking to do the 4-pack now and then upgrade it to the 5-pack later (if possible) was because I don't really have the money to lift the front end and i didn't want to be 2 inches higher in the rear than the front. do you have a pic of how ur truck looked that way?

    I wonder if I could buy the 5 pack and take 1 of the leaves off, then add it later when I have the front components?

    the billisteins aren't adjustable in the rear? So would I even be able to put them in at stock height now and then put them up in lift later?
     
  5. Jul 18, 2010 at 10:00 AM
    #5
    MTgirl

    MTgirl too many frogs, not enough princes... Moderator

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    no pics of the lopsided truck but here's a before and after if it helps to visualize the lift i got from everything

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    I'm not sure if its a good idea to take out a leaf, can't see there being any harm in the short term. Might be a good one for YotaDan to answer. And the rear bilsteins are not adjustable. I got about 2" of lift from the new leafs and shocks - I believe the shocks alone keep the truck at stock height, most of the lift comes from the heavier leaf pack (if I remember correctly).
     
  6. Jul 18, 2010 at 10:01 AM
    #6
    x2468

    x2468 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    So what does it mean when they say "These high performance Bilstein rear shocks are able to accommodate 0-3" of rear lift. " in the description for the rear billisteins? Does that mean when i order them i have to specify how much lift i want, and then i can't change them after that?
     
  7. Jul 18, 2010 at 10:09 AM
    #7
    MTgirl

    MTgirl too many frogs, not enough princes... Moderator

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    Wheeler's/Alcan 5-pack leaf springs, OME 881's, de-badged, Jungle Fender Flares, Herculined bed, HomerTaco grille, Anzo headlights, clear corners,
    No, just means that they can be used with a stock set up (0" lift) or installed with additional components (leaf packs, spacers, etc) to get up to a 3" lift without compromising ride quality or shock performance.
     
  8. Jul 18, 2010 at 6:22 PM
    #8
    scocar

    scocar hypotenoper

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    To be clear, the rear shocks do not add any lift, they just need to have enough travel length (the amoutn they can extend and collapse) to accomodate the increased suspension travel distance created by a lift. This is so the length of the shocks do not limit the amount of downtravel or uptravel your springs allow. The actual lift height is achieved by the height/stiffness of the leaf springs (or by shackles or blocks, but these are not the best way to go, from what I have heard).

    If you lifted the rear end more than 3 inches, for example, you would need to get shocks with more travel.
     
  9. Jul 18, 2010 at 7:13 PM
    #9
    MTgirl

    MTgirl too many frogs, not enough princes... Moderator

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    Wheeler's/Alcan 5-pack leaf springs, OME 881's, de-badged, Jungle Fender Flares, Herculined bed, HomerTaco grille, Anzo headlights, clear corners,
    did i not say that already?!?! :facepalm:and much more concisely i might add.

    (sorry OP, scocar and I just have to get into a little tiff once in a while.)
     
  10. Jul 18, 2010 at 8:31 PM
    #10
    x2468

    x2468 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Lol earlier today i found a post by you in a different thread that said the same exact thing. Sorry to make you repeat it.

    Im going to call wheelers tomorrow the moment they open. I have a long list of questions ranging from product options to shipping options.....
     
  11. Jul 18, 2010 at 9:29 PM
    #11
    scocar

    scocar hypotenoper

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    Eh, what the hell. I didn't know squat about this 6 months ago, and it sucked when I was trying to figure it out and didn't want to waste a ton of money and f' it all up. It is my turn to pass along what I have learned. :)

    Fffft! Ffft! Rawr. Remember when we didn't know scheisse from shaving cream, back in the day (what, 1937?). Ah, those were our days of innocence. How I long for them...wait, no I don't.

    So how's your rear end, MT? :rimshot:
     
  12. Jul 18, 2010 at 11:31 PM
    #12
    Digiratus

    Digiratus Adventurer

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    Wow. :eek: Is that any way to speak to Lady whose laid tile before? :p
     
  13. Jul 19, 2010 at 8:29 AM
    #13
    MTgirl

    MTgirl too many frogs, not enough princes... Moderator

    Joined:
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    Messages:
    68,969
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    Bob's secret mod lair
    Vehicle:
    Then: 12 T4R SR5 Now: 99 - 3.4L SR5 4WD
    Wheeler's/Alcan 5-pack leaf springs, OME 881's, de-badged, Jungle Fender Flares, Herculined bed, HomerTaco grille, Anzo headlights, clear corners,
    ahh, yes - our days of innocence...
    and my rear? Still have all sorts of noises coming from back there! I think its a terminal condition.


    I'm used to it. And sadly I'm used to talking about my rear end with complete strangers thanks to TW. Thanks for sticking up for me though!
     

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