Lift kit Problems

So I have bilstien 5100's set to 0 all around and some OME 885's on my 2010 Tacoma. At first I had a 1/2 inch spacer in the mix too but the ride was so jarring I thought I might break my back.

Taking the spacer out made a world of difference but now the truck rubs really bad and is almost un ridable when I have a few people in it. Plus it looks way lower without the 1/2 spacer.

I've seen a lot of guys talking about setting the bilstiens at .85 but will that cause the same issues I had with the 1/2 spacer? Should I just set the bilstines to 3" and remove the 885's? I could trim more of the truck but I really just don't like the look this low.

Thank you much!

 

i just installed the same exact set-up this weekend. My ride doesn't seem to be THAT bad. Just a little rougher.

Where is the truck rubbing? I'm curious.

 

What model is your truck (singel cab, double cab)? What size tires do you have?

 

I have been running that same setup on my 2006 DC SB with the 5100's all around with the fronts set at 0" height and the 1/4" spacers to get the full 3"s of lift with OME 885 coils. I dont think the ride is bad at all, just a little bit stiffer but thats about it. I had to do some minor trimming though to clear my 33"s.

 

Yea I have 33's too. I wonder if the dealers installed my set up though I think I had a 1/2" spacer not a 1/4.

Tires are rubbing the inside wheel well (sp?) even when I hit small bumps (not just turning).

 

Well with the 1/4" spacer, you will get 1/2" of lift. Thats why with just the OME coils you get 2.5"s of lift then with the 1/4" spacer, you get the full 3"s of lift.

What wheel/tire combo are you running? Offset, backspacing, etc...?

 

I have Procomp 7089 on BFG285's

 

I'm guessing you're running 285/75R16 or 285/70R17. Have you trimmed anything at all? That size tire typically needs some wheelwell trimming even at 3" of lift. Check my "bjmoose installs OME" thread in my sig for pics of the wheelwell trimming I did.

 

I think you are imagining this. Taking off the top plate spacer will have absolutely no affect on the ride quality. Only preload spacers affect ride quality.

 

Also you haven't mentioned what truck you have. Different trucks weigh more or less, and that affects how much height you get out of a given suspension component.

 

That may be an oversimplification. Ultimate downtravel is limited by the UCA and the upper balljoint, even without a shock installed. So if the truck is light, and there are 885s plus a half-inch top plate spacer, it's possible he used up nearly *all* the available downtravel.

I can't imagine how my truck would ride if I put some top-plate spacers on top of the existing 885s.

 

Yes I'm running 285/70's. Its a 2010 4 door Tacoma TRD Sport, short bed. I'm definitely not imagining a problem with having the spacer on. Even the tiniest bump in the road would jar the suspension really badly. With the spacer off it rides like it did when it was stock, even better.

I don't mind doing trimming, haven't actually done much yet. But I do need to figure out what to do to get it back to a full 3". Should I set the bilstiens to .85, remove the 885's and set to 3 inches, or see if my dealer messed up the installation of the spacer with the 885's and try that again?

 

Here's how it looks now:

 

So my question is are your UCA's maxed out or close to it? if that's the case you might be toping out when you hit a bump.

 

Looking at the pic, I'm guessing you're already at a full 3" lift just with the 885s. With the spacer, you were higher than that, and that's why it felt so bad.

Chris4x4 is well known on the site and has done a couple OME installs. He says the 885 springs will lift you to 3" even on the double cab (that's more than the mfr claims)

Advice is worth what you paid for it, but my advice is as follows:

1. Either learn to love the height you're at now (recommended)

OR

2. (Pre-Runner only!) look at adding a lift spindle

OR

3. Investigate drop-bracket lifts such as RCD

 

Not sure how to tell if my UCA's are maxed out, I have the total chaos ones, should be plenty of room.

I don't think I'm at 3" of lift, even with the AAL's the front is slightly lower then the back. If I get even a few people in the truck it rubs really bad on any bump (without turning). Do you think trimming will be enough?

 

Where's it rubbing?

 

I would tend to agree that the top plate spacer can't be the reason for the "jarring"
Most cases the jarring comes from either the UCA's hitting the coils, or the shocks over extending. (You don't look tall enough for either)

As for the rub:
You can look at my cardomains link to see the amount of trimming you will need to do; to make your truck drivable on the street with a 3" lift, and 285 BFG AT's.

Did you trim your fenders at all?

Also every time you change your ride height, you WILL need to have your alignment done again.

Alignment also will make a big difference on tire rub. The tire will move a fair amount in the fender well depending on the alignment settings.

Post up complete picture of your set up. i.e. UCA's, struts, stance etc...

This will help us to see if we can spot what is going on with your set up.

Understand that we are on the internet and cannot see your truck. So it makes it really hard and time consumming if we need to ask you for individual pictures, so post up as much info/photos to help us, help you.

 

Ok, I'm going to take it back to the shop and have the spacer put back on and trim the fender.

Is the front of the cab supposed to visibly sit up a lot higher then the back even with AAL's on a Sport 2wd? Last time with the spacer it definitely sat higher.

 

How thick is the spacer? I know you said it's a half inch spacer, but is that the thickness of it, or the amount of lift it gave you? Spacers will lift twice their thickness. A 1/4" thick spacer should be all you need with this setup.

As for the leveling, what kind of AAL are you running, 1.5", 2"?