Ironman4x4 2.5" Stage 2 Nitro-Gas Kit - 2WD Prerunner Edition - Ongoing Assessment and Impressions!

Terminals are tight, it cranks okay. The battery is getting low but I have a jump pack if I need it.
MAF looks kind of dirty, though I've seen worse.


EDIT: The air filter is clean though, looks really good actually. So if that's clean the dusty trails we've been on today shouldn't really have had a effect on the MAF.
The truck fired right up maybe twenty minutes earlier, no problems. Not a hit of shudder. It's been running great all day.

 

Well we "ceased to have a proper ignition sequence" at a designated camping area and we're just outside of town so we have signal for our mobiles thankfully.

When in Rome


I'll try it again in the morning after it's had time to settle and if it still won't start up we'll just have to tow it.

 

Also to the actual topic of this thread.

I am extremely happy with the Ironman kit!

Real world first hand experience and testing is leagues better than all the reviews and opinions you can find elsewhere. But we all know that right?

I get so caught up with all the technical aspects of researching things that sometimes I miss the opportunity to actually go out and enjoy stuff.

I heard some squeaks today on the trail, they were faint and I imagine they are due to my oversight in properly and fully greasing the LCA bushes during installation. Those are the Whiteline bushes anyway and not part of the Ironman4x4 kit.

On our two hour highway drive to the mountains it was well behaved and provided an enjoyable experience (my wife's assessment!). I ran 36 psi front and rear and did not notice any drifting. The speed limit in our area is 75mph, I drove between 65 and 70 on the way up. Netted 17.6mpg over those 85 highway miles.

The off road portions included well graded gravel roads, medium sized technical rocks and some muddy sections. Most of it was driven at 15-20mph and a few open areas where we could hit 40mph. It was pleasant overall, however an air compressor is absolutely next on my list!
We had a lot of fun and had I been able to air down I have no doubt we would have been gliding over those trails.

EDIT: On handling; Now, I understand that the Tacoma (especially a lifted one) is "not a race car", and despite that apparently being the standard response from some people when they can't come up with anything constructive to add, You know who you are, I should add in here that it did well on the twisty mountain roads, better than I was expecting it to do. 35-40mph around the curves was not pushing it to any limit I nor my Wife were uncomfortable with. I do have my sway bar attached still, so body roll was minimal.

Any good driver will know their own limits as well as those of their vehicle and will know when they can push those limits and when they should not.

I have yet to fill up after getting home but used just shy of 3/4 of a tank for the rest of the trip.

The drive back was smoother! (Though I did have alarm problems Video Here) The springs have settled down a bit, about a quarter inch from before the trip. Not a bad break in trip!

So first trip impressions are good! If you're on the fence about an Ironman kit I would say give them a shot, especially if you're a 4x4. Even my 2WD does well with it despite the lack of extra 4x4 component weight.

I will keep updating as I put more miles on it.

 

Thank you! Yes we are glad it wasn't in a worse place, we were really far out earlier in the day and that would have been bad.
My Father-in-law is going to bring a trailer up tomorrow if it won't start for us.

 

Updated!

We also made it home!

 

So I bought a new positive terminal connector and battery today. I went to start it yesterday and it did the same thing, just one click. Multimeter indicated 8.2 volts.
I took it in to have it charged and tested, it was toast.
I went up a size to a 27F, Duralast Gold. I got a good deal through my Ford dealership buddy.

 

Trip Report!

We put 3,322 miles down last week on our trip to Wyoming.

Average MPG was 19.11

We went stopped in Aurora, Colorado for a couple of days on the way up and then continued on to Cody, Wyoming. Went into Yellowstone for a couple of days and tooled around Cody a bit. Took a day trip up to Billings, Montana (A possible candidate for our eventual relocation) so we could see the city. It was pretty nice, we enjoyed it. Stopped in Durango, Colorado on the way back and rode the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railway Steam Train (that's a long title!) That was awesome!

I kept an eye and ear on the truck the whole time, rolled with a full set of tools just in case! Other than a light squeak from the front suspension that I have not pin-pointed yet and a funky brake feel (may be time for new pads and rotors) it was a champ! No mechanical or other issues at all.

We started the trip at 199,536 miles and rolled over 200,000 just before Colorado Springs!




I was watching that like a hawk so I wouldn't miss the rollover.


The ride was great, smooth on road and off (the little we did go off road). I know I'm not able to give an accurate 4x4 point of view like I imagine a lot of you will be looking for in relation to this Ironman4x4 kit but, I hope my assessments will help at least a little bit!

I have been eyeing a few FJ T-cases and A750F transmissions in my area, so maybe I will be able to have better input eventually!

 

Hey, Im considering buying the Nitro Gas Suspension Stage 2 kit for my 09 4x4 taco. Can I get another update from you? Also does the Pro Forged Aluminum UCA, are these uni-ball or ball joints? Im new to the Off road world and some more insight about this kit and UCA would be great. Thanks!!

 

Welcome to Tacoma World!


It has been great, I am really happy with it! I didn't post more on my last trip but I have had zero issues with it. I have somewhere in the ballpark of 4000-4500 miles on the suspension kit I believe (I would need to check my mileage records).

If you've read through the rest of this thread you'll have seen that at first it was stiff but I have less front end weight, and besides that it "broke-in" quickly and has been smooth since. I have been checking the bushes and bolts periodically and have found no problems. Install was fairly straightforward and I didn't run into any issues with the kit itself (I had other problems on the truck ) Component quality is solid, No paint chipping, no creaking noises.

My only squeak I have narrowed to my LCA bushes which are not part of the Ironman4x4 kit.

I would suggest getting extra grease to have on hand during install. I ordered the 8 oz Formula 5 Prelube tub from Energy Suspension. You'll have it for when you need to re-grease in the future too!

The UCA's utilize an OEM style ball joint so if you ever need to replace it (for maintenance or trail emergency) you can get it from any parts store or a Toyota dealer if you want. That's nice in my opinion, makes it much easier and reliable. They come with OEM style rubber bushes as well. They are fully assembled in the box.


If you have any other questions let me know and I'll answer what I can!

Good luck and have fun!

 

Your thread just convinced me to pull the trigger on a set, thanks for the write up. Ironically they now offer a free compressor with lift kits!

 

Right on! I'm glad I could help!

If you have any other questions let me know, I will do what I can to answer them.

Oof, I'm a little jealous of that air compressor deal
I'll get one eventually.

 

Thanks for the update, hope youre doing better than others in texas with the snow!!

 

No problem!

We are doing well, El Paso planned a bit better for this sort of thing and updated the grid here for cold weather.

For the two days the snow stuck it was a bit nuts on the roads, but spending 25 years in Ohio means I actually do know how to drive in the snow!

 

I’ve got about 2 months in on my nitro gas set up and I’ve got this annoying creak going on in my rear passenger area. I can’t pin point if it’s from bushings or leafs rubbing or too much play. Anybody here have experience with that?

 

Oh you haven’t heard my truck yet have you?

https://youtube.com/shorts/LSc4l9pmVBc?feature=share


From what I can tell mine is mostly, if not all from the front end. Is your creak a similar sound to mine at all? Obviously not as much creaking.

 

Thanks for sharing! Mine is similar in sound to this : https://youtu.be/9BXEbdUrsDQ

It’s only when I pull into my driveway or take a sharp turn.

 

If you hop on the back and bounce do you hear anything?
I would guess it’s the bushes, are they polyurethane or rubber?

 

slightly at the front bush / shackle. No high pitch squeak just that low creak.

poly bushes that came with the kit.