REVIEW 3rd gen suspension on 2nd gen

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/sport-vs-offroad-suspension-capability.520919/#post-16519035

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/stock-suspension-sport-vs-off-road.131992/

 

Sport suspension will be noticeably stiffer feeling. The shocks are progressively valved. Meaning as the piston speed of the shock increases, it will increase it's damping force to a certain point. At lower piston speeds damping will be lower.

Off Road suspension is digressively valved. Meaning the as the piston speed of the shock increases, it will reduce the damping force to a certain point. At lower piston speeds it's damping force is higher, like when you are turning and the suspension is loading.

The Off Road suspension has far better ride comfort and vehicle composure than the Sport suspension on or off road in any situation. The Sport suspension does make the rear feel more unsettled as well in my experience. The Sport suspension will subjectively handle better, but that is it's only advantage. But the the handling capability is negligible at best, just less dive and roll. Besides, no one is expecting a Tacoma to take off ramps at 80mph with all terrain tires anyhow.

 

Hello Everyone! I've been diving into this thread as I'm about to put on a suspension from a 2021 TRD OR including front coil set and rear shocks. Lots of people talk about adding spacers and AAL's....That's not the route I'm going down currently. I just want to upgrade the old 2007 suspension without any additional parts (spacers, blocks, AAL). What should I expect the stance to look like? I want it to look as stock as possible, but also don't want a noticeable height difference (Rake?) from front to rear.

Any examples of straight 1 for 1 suspension swaps I can look at? should I plan on buying a 1" block for the rear to level it out if the difference in height is drastic?
Much appreciated!! =D

 

The original post is a one for one swap. No spacers, no leaf spring swap or anything. However, because yours is a 2wd you will likely gain a smidge more lift in front vs a 4wd, so about 1.5-1.75" of lift in front. The rake should end up being very close to mine with about 1" of rake. Which imo is just right.

 

Thanks for this! I read every page except for the OP lol....I'm excited to breathe some new life into my taco!

 

HAHA!!! No worries!! You're going to love the way it rides!! It will absolutely feel as good or better than new, I would argue better than new...but I am biased. The rear especially feels much more settled, probably because the front spring rate is a closer closer match to the spring rate of the leaf springs and better damping.

Now if your leaf springs are worn/sagging you may be almost perfectly level. If you can score 3rd gen Off Road leaf springs with your deal, that would be even better to refresh the whole suspension!

 

yeah for sure, I was able to score a set of pre-assembled shocks/coils off the 21 OR as part of the package!! I cant wait to post some pics!

 

Prior to working on it, do yourself a favor. Whether it's you doing it, a buddy or a shop...apply your favorite penetrating oil to the following. You can refer to the original post for a little more detailed info as well.
- Lower Control Arm (LCA) inner mounting/adjustment bolts. Bolt head side, nut side and in between the bushings and frame mounting points. This is the most important to hit for you and your alignment guy.
- Upper Control Arm (UCA) ball joint nut. Don't get carried away with this one since you don't want it dripping on your brakes.
- Sway bar link nuts
- Front lower shock bolt, no need to do the upper mount bolts but it won't hurt.
- Rear shock bolts and nuts.

If there is dirt or crud build up on those areas, clean them off with a steel or brass brush before applying the penetrating oil. Since I had time, I went ahead and applied the penetrating oil a couple times while still driving it through out the week before doing it on the weekend. Even doing that the LCA adjuster bolts were still frozen. If they are frozen, address that issue after you have it reassembled. Even if they are not frozen, it's a good idea to mark their position, remove them one at a time, add anti-seize and reinstall them. If you use heat, be careful so you don't melt the LCA rubber bushings.

Good luck, have fun and enjoy the ride quality improvement!!!

 

Because I am a new member I cannot reply on buy sell forum and I am very interested in purchasing a set of 3rd gen suspension for my 2008 TRD Offroad DCSB . Anyone selling or do I have to wait. In northern Illinois and there is a swap meet April 22-24 at Jefferson, Wisconsin where I will look if I don't find one sooner

 

Send a PM to Jtaco11. Same happened to me with not having enough posted threads to reply to his thread. He still sold me a set. He is able to source a couple of sets of 3rd gen fully assembled struts and shocks with only a few hundred miles on them.

Here is his thread.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...-front-rear-coil-springs-socal-oc-290.619460/

 

Hi everyone. Just purchased suspension off a 2020 Off Road for my 2005. Will the Upper Control Arms fit as well?

Thanks!

 

Same part number between yours and the 2020 from what comes up when I search for the parts. It will just be new for your truck.

 

Thanks!

 

w00t. Just got my 3rd gen shocks and struts for my prerunner. Thanks @jtaco11

 

Just got this setup installed (2021 TRD Off-Road suspension) on my '07 PreRunner. Driven about 15 miles so far and the drive feels more grounded, more responsive for sure! I'm glad to keep everything stock/factory from Toyota. Looks like some lift was gained but haven't measured. Looking forward to another 150k =D

 

Great thread just flipped through the pages. I just picked up take-offs from a 2021 TRD OR, I've got assembled front shocks and rear shocks (no leafs). My truck is a stock 2007 double cab prerunner 2wd long-bed with 130k mileage. I had the TSB leaf replacement in 2016. Truck is used for: primarily for daily driving/commuting, no off-road use besides the occasional dirt road, and very rarely tow anything.

I'm curious what suspension change I should expect in terms of height and if there is anything else I should consider. My goal is to basically refresh back to something approaching stock/new feel, not trying to add lift, but ok with some.

• It sounds like most folks reporting about 0.75-1" in front, does that sound right for my truck (most of the examples from the tread are for 4wd trucks)?
• What additional height should I expect, if any, for the rear?
• Should I consider anything like aal, based on my intent to continue to daily drive for another 14 years?

I appreciate the input!

 

Since yours is a 2wd, it will likely be about 1-1.25" front lift since you don't have the front diff and all of that stuff.

There won't be any difference in the rear height. You will end up with about 1-1.5" of rake (2.5"-3." ish is the stock rake), which IMO is about right...I don't care for exactly level when unloaded. As far as an AAL or blocks for the rear. I would get it all installed, get it aligned and drive it a week or so until everything is settled in to decide if you want any more height in the rear. Especially since you have the TSB leaf springs, most of the time those raise the rear about .5" over the originals.

As far as bringing it back to a stock feel. This setup is a massive improvement over stock. Even on my 15 with low miles it was a great improvement, on yours with 130k it will be even better. It also depends on what model your truck is. If I recall, the Prerunner package had SR5 running gear if it wasn't specifically spec'd as a TRD OR Prerunner or Sport Prerunner. For people coming from the Sport suspension, this is far smoother and more planted since the Sport rides very rough due to how the shocks were valved. For people who had TRD OR or SR5 it will feel much more planted and retain similar ride quality traits, but with far better damping which is why it feels more planted. Since the spring rate on the front is higher than 2nd gen suspension, you also get less dive in turns and hard braking. Because the damping is vastly improved, the stiffer springs do not make for a harsh ride. It's a common misconception that stiff springs make for a rough ride. While it is true that extremely high spring rates will make the ride very poor, this setup isn't to that extreme. It truly does feel like this is how it should have originally came from the factory. I honestly don't know why Toyota specs the suspension for the TRD Sport like they do. It rides like crap, 2nd and 3rd gen. They should just leave the TRD OR suspension and just add the body trim additions that people buy the sport for.

My theory as to why this setup feels more planted and balanced is that the front spring rates are a closer match/balance to the rear leaf springs. But that's a theory and I am not a suspension expert nor have I tried to figure out the leaf spring rating.

 

Much appreciated sir! I'll install them and report back.

 

Will be adding '21 TRD OR front coils along with shocks front & rear on my 07 reg cab 4wd. My truck only has 80k, had the frame replaced at 55k along with the rear springs, front upper and lower a-arms. Any feedback from anyone with a reg cab 4wd that has done this swap? I have a cap so I'm curious about the progressive aal?

 

I can't personally comment, but here are the Reg Cab guys that have done it. Seems like they have great things to say. They may have replied to others commenting on the ride after their original post, also you may be able to tag them or quote their post to get a better answer.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...nsion-on-2nd-gen.542843/page-17#post-23885855

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...nsion-on-2nd-gen.542843/page-17#post-23917851

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...nsion-on-2nd-gen.542843/page-20#post-24840472

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...nsion-on-2nd-gen.542843/page-28#post-25819211