Fox Life!!! Anything Related to Fox Suspension

“The Fox 2.5 Factory Series piston is a high flow race design with 3D CNC porting to eek out every bit of ride quality, while the Performance Series is an industry standard, low flow piston designed with manufacturing in mind.”

https://accutuneoffroad.com/articles/fox-2-5-factory-series-vs-2-5-performance-series/

 

How long does it take for fox 2.5 coilovers and tundra rear shocks to settle? Also, how much ride height reduction should I expect?

 

couple of weeks, I think mine settled in around 10 days. Lost maybe 10%, if that. Probably less. I think it depends on how much preload you put on.

front coils settle. Rear shocks won’t settle, new leaf pack or add a leaf will in the rear

 

I'm on Fox 2.5 coilovers with dsc (14" 650 lb spring) and I'm currently sitting at 3.5" and 3.75" center hub to fender. Should I adjust them down to 3.0" on both sides or leave them at 3.25" so they settle to 3.0"? I want a 3" left in the front.

 

3” over stock height on a 3rd gen is too much. You should stay at 2” above stock height or less. You’re ride will suffer. You don’t want that now do you.

 

Clarifying my previous post.

Stock I was sitting at 21" and 21 1/8".

After lift I'm at 23 1/2" and 23 3/4". In the end I want a 3" lift upfront (2" over stock). My question is since there seems to be a settling effect on the coilovers should I...

A. Shoot for 3"
B. Shoot slightly higher than 3" to compensate for the settling effect?

I'm totally new to this please excuse the ignorance.

 

I suggest reading this.

https://accutuneoffroad.com/articles/tacoma-4runner-coilover-preload-faq/

 

Anyone know where to get mounting hardware for 2.5 coilovers? I purchased a used set and I'm missing one bolt but thought getting all new would probably be best.

I've Googled but no luck. Wanted to check here before I start calling around.

 

I would head to a local ace hardware, take one of the existing bolts with you to match them up. I would go with a grade 8 if standard, grade 10.9 (or 12.9 if they have it) if metric.

 

@cmbondo Thanks this was helpful.

If I understood it correctly for my type of coilovers I should not exceed 21" of compressed height. (Center of shock mount eyelet to top hat)

What's not clear is how I would know how much to crank the collar up or down.

Do I take a measurement of the current compressed height of the coilovers and the exposed threads above the collar. Then I either subtract or add the desired amount?

For example if I'm at 23.5" hub to fender and want to reduce the height to 23.00", then I reduce the exposed threads by 0.5"?


Or is it trial and error until you get to the desired height?

 

It's trial and error as it's going to be different on every truck due to differing weight distribution. But a good starting point in not to exceed 27 exposed threads on the coilovers. An estimate is about 8 threads for each inch of lift on a stock truck. Now if you have anything other than the 13 inch 600 lbs coils or lots of weight than all that is out the window. And of course at the end be aware of the 21 inch max length. Good luck.

 

Honestly, not the answer I was hoping for! But oh well!

I have 14" 650 lb springs and I'm currently sitting at 23.5" ride height hub to fender. This will be my third time adjusting the coilovers. Luckily I have access to a lift and strut compression tool.

 

If you have the 2.5s, they can be adjusted on the truck with the front end off the ground. I've done it numerous times as have others on here.

 

I do have the 2.5 with dsc.

Does it take a lot of effort to turn the collar by just lifting the truck off the ground? I'm worried about having enough space to work with under there. Any suggestions on how to make it easier?

 

5/16 punch... wd40... short pipe to put over punch for leverage, pretty easy, with truck lifted, easy to get at even with tire on..

 

Can be done on truck but I still like to compress the coil. This way you don’t damage the preload nut.

 

This is a bit of a sketchy hack: With the truck on the ground, I used a ratchet strap (common 1500lb break force strap) and made 4 passes from the bottom to the top of the spring. I evenly spaced them at 12oclock,3,6,and 9. I attached the ratchet with some padding behind it to protect the spring and just tightened it enough for some tension. Then I jacked up the truck from the front. With the weight of the truck now off of the springs, and the straps holding it compressed, I was able to turn the collar with no effort at all. Sketchy but I didn't have a compressor and was ok with the math. Say the spring is held by the strap at 2" of compression, this means there is 1200 lbs. of force in the spring (for a 600 lb./in spring). Each section of the strap would see about 150 lbs. (4 loops=8 sections in tension)

It's a PITA to weave the straps in there, but I was giving myself a hernia trying to turn the collar without...

 

It's interesting to hear everyone else's experience with adjusting the preload on the truck. I can lift it off the ground, slightly loosen the allen bolt and turn the preload nut without any significant effort. I mean you need a little muscle but I'm a small guy and can do it no problem. No cheater bar or lube, just the 5/16 punch. And no damage whatsoever to the preload nut. I guess there should be a disclaimer, "Individual results may vary."

 

Yeah, before the strap idea, I didn't have a punch but found a beefy flat head screwdriver that was a bit too fat. It was a nice strong screwdriver. I cut off the end and I grinded the shaft down down just enough to fit smoothly in the spanner wrench holes on the ring. It was nice to have the plastic handle and about 10" of lever arm. It was turning but I was having to brace myself on the sliders with one hand to get a good pull with the other. I made it about two turns before my ghetto tool broke right in half. Ratchet straps to the rescue!

 

I still suggest compressing the coil. This is the damage I am talking about, deforming the hole in the preload nut. They are about 50$ each.

yes everyone has different results. And whatever works for you