Who actually NEEDS Kings / Use Cases?

HA! I was banking on those black friday/christmas sales which also just so happens to be when my bonus rolls around

 

And now you have your answer. The answer to your topic is yes...if your budget allows.

 

I feel like I'm almost obligated to update the OP with a summary of my findings...maybe I've im bored later tonight after work

 

Have you looked into Foam cell shocks like Tough Dog or Ironman4X4? There is a GB going on for the Tough Dog front, rears and UCAs. Not many people are running the Tough Dogs here yet but the Ironman are gaining popularity in the Tacoma realm. They have a nice following with other trucks and SUVs and big in Australia.
Mine stock right now but I’m planning on getting the Ironman set but SPC UCAs when the time comes. Just thought I’d throw it out there.

 

I’ve been super happy with my basic Old Man Emu setup

 

haha this is why I'm in the boat of "fuck it just buy the kings" some folks say they're happy, others say they ride really stiff on the road. Without actually driving a truck myself I will probably never know, so opt for the "safe" route and just go straight to kings.

Unless someone in the Denver area is willing to let me wheel their truck with bilsteins, OME's, and kings! Will trade "special" favors for 5 minutes with your truck

 

I didn't make a.post about it when I was looking, but I read all of the same info and came to the same conclusion. Buy what I wanted, regardless of NEED, and reap the benefits throughout. Better performance, better quality, better re-sale, no potential for wondering what could have been....etc.

Annndd...a group buy that was closing quickly made me pull the trigger.

 

Well, to be honest, my truck does ride pretty rough but I have nothing else to compare it to. Hopefully someone who has ran both can provide more useful info.

 

Same ^^, I had a spacer lift on my oem suspension with 33s and rode plush, but I threw on armor and new suspension at the same time so it's hard to say what made my ride harsher since I changed so many variables at once.

 

This is exactly how I purchase my vehicles lol.

 

I haven't read through the whole thread so this may be a repeat but, I put the OME BP-51 on my '16 4Runner. I loved them, swore by them, swore I wouldn't ever do anything else. I've always been a big fan of OME lifts. Well, I bought my '20 Tacoma and found the BP-51 to be about the same cost as Kings or Foxes. I figured what the hell, why not try Kings. Guess what, the ride is night and day difference even from the BP-51s (which are a nice shock, specifically made for our trucks). At this point, even if I never took my truck offroad, I would still put Kings on. The ride is awesome on-road and then they really shine offroad. I think you would have similar performance if you go with King, higher end Fox, ADS, or Elka. You won't regret the few extra bucks for the Kings.

 

My main gripe with the OEM suspension is that it doesn't take small fast bumps very well IMO. Stuff like freeway cracks and things like that sometimes feel like I'm in my old track car on stupid stiff suspension and tires. Then when you get it off road those same feelings come back on the smaller washboard roads leading to the main trail. Then I get to the main trail and have to be super careful to not slide off a rock or big root knowing all the extra weight and soft suspension will leave me banging stuff off the armor.

 

Thats encouraging! Thanks for the input

 

I’ve gone through 3 suspension setups (High end Fox 2.5 w/ clickers, 5100s w/OME Coils, now on Dobinson front w/ 5125s in rear) and honestly man ride doesn’t change a ton. Obviously a 600lb coil will feel softer than a 700, whether it’s a Coil Over or shock/spring setup. Preload on those coilovers will change the ride quality and can make them ride worse than a spacer lift.
IMO unless you are bombing down roads with whoops or severe washboard you really won’t notice much of a difference. You’ll notice more with progressive vs digressive than 5100 vs coilover.

 

What if I'm bombing it down a few miles of rocky forest road? Not whoops by any means, but it's taking constant small bumps that basically never stop. Think dirt/rock mix with some 2-5 inch rocks and roots the entire time. Most of my camp back roads look like that.

Also "bombing it" to me is like 30 mph lol any faster seems sketchy with the potential of others on the road.

 

I don't know enough about the brand or foam cells but they sound interesting to read into.

 

Well, don't skimp. Get a larger diameter shock than 5100's, resi shocks are a good thing. You'll be on washboarded roads in CO and points West and washboards kill small diameter shock performance, downright dangerous descending a steep washboard road with toasted shocks. Buy once, cry once.

 

I am on roads just like that most every weekend and totally enjoy my setup. I feel it’s better for it than 5100s and OME coils, but just as good as most CO setups at a fraction of the cost. My buddy runs 2.5 Icons and said that my setup rode better than his when I took him for a run. Plus no need to re-build which is a huge hassle

 

Great quality but ugly as it gets. My buddy installs them a lot on land cruisers and older 4 runners.

 

Interesting...I wonder why they haven't taken up with the tacoma crowd?