Are 5100s for Off Road or just looks and ride on hard ball

I am working slowly on becoming an off road warrior (22 TRD OR), problem is I don't have a lot of $$$$. I definitely want bigger tires - 33s (maybe a pipe dream) but at least 32s.
So I want to start with the suspension - more room for bigger tires eventually and better off road suspension maybe more suspention travel. I don't care about the rake thing just want the lift - 2" seems right but not more than 3." Bilstein 5100 are definitely in my price range - 6112 I know are much better for off road but way out of my $ range

So here are my question RE: 5100:
1.) I know I can use the stock springs up front but is that a good idea ?
2.) just putting 5100 in the rear do I still need to add a leaf spring to get lift ?
3.) if I just add a block with a 5100 in the rear to get lift is that a bad idea for off road ?

I would like to keep the total budget in the $500-$600 range but would go a bit higher to do it right for off roading. I don't want to spend say $600 dollars just to get the look of a lifted truck but really does not make it much better off road when $1000 is what is really needed to make it a much better off road than stock.

 

I believe the OR will go offroad just fine in its stock form.

If you want to step up the level of off roading, that also entails going where you are likely to smash stuff. If you need clearance to get over big rocks and what not, you also will be clipping and dragging over some of them. So if thats your goal, you ought to save and get sliders, lift, and the whole enchilada.

The 22 OR is expensive enough as is. If youve got a warranty and a loan, Id really suggest not beating the crap out of it if your on a $600 budget after making the payment.

Aside from that,

The 5100s are fine with the stock springs. The equivelent in the back is lift blocks with stock suspension. The 5100s in the back wont add much. Add a leafs are not great for what you want.

With a basic leveling kit you can get the 32 inch tires in there and it adds some clearance. But again, your budget and door rails will get smashed on a real trail.

 

Agree to some extent.

If the budget is lower and true off roading is the goal, leave it for now. Save up and buy a proper suspension later on. Start with sliders and tires and work your way up. 32's and 33's fit on stock suspension.

 

The best starter mod for offroading is tires and airing down. A good set of tires will get you far. I believe 33s will fit factory with a little trimming. A cheap 12v air compressor and a deflator tool and you'll be set. Don't forget a buddy.

 

THX much for the good advice - I see so many Tacos around that are lifted with BIG tires - I talk to them and it turns out they never go off road - WTF - why pay for 4x4 and a locker and then never use them . . . . I get it . . . the look. Bought it used so she's paid for so I am not worried about that but I certainly don't want to beat the crap out of it. But I am starting to see a common thread of advice now - sliders and skid plates first. I am sticking to the easy trails but do want to play with the big dogs.

So I will start with protecting the truck - sliders and skid plates. But the next step suspension tires - I want to be smart about it - lift it to fit bigger tires next, fine but how much more $$$ to get a little more suspension travel as well or is that even worth it - I am not worried about or want to pay more just to have a comfy ride on the hard ball.

You are reinforcing what several real off roaders have advised - sliders first (and some skid plates). Tires and supention next.

Good stuff - I have done quite a bit of beach driving so have the deflators and compressor (runs off the battery) and some recovery stuff - traction boards (cheap ones) recovery strap (not kinetic) soft shackles etc. Beach driving and 4 wheeling are totally different animals but I have the airing down and back up down - although I think I tend to air down too low for the trails so I have to watch that.

 

Stock taco with good tires and front skid.
I've got close to 6k dirt miles out of 35k total miles on the truck. You'd be surprised what a stock TRD or will do. Biggest issue will be clearance my front skid shows that but know your trucks limits pick a solid line and air down. Only after 5 years of hard use did I finally upgrade to Fox 2.5 dsc front/rear. Imo if you're going to replace the suspension and actually wheel buy once cry once. In the 5 years I stayed stock I watched friends go through 2-3 suspension changes and spend a lot of money doing so. And went 95% of the places they did.

 

255/85r16 tires will fit your stock wheels and suspension- it’s an easy way to get 33s on the truck. Having a solid tire that you can air down confidently is a good start for off-roading.

the 5100 is a good option for suspension and it gives a more controlled ride than stock. At least get an add a leaf for the back and not just a block. That will buy you some time before replacing the leaf pack with icon, OME, or other quality springs that will give a better ride with more weight capacity

 

Bilstein recommends you keep the stock springs. They are much bigger, better shock than the OEM Off Road shocks, which are more than good enough for most applications.
Adding 5100s in the rear will not give you any lift. Toyota's OEM TRD lift consists of a 1" block which is fine unless you are adding weight in the box, otherwise is more than adequate for Off Roading.

I 2nd the motion of 33" pizza cutters. That's my next move when my awesome 32" Duratracs wear out, although I'll be going 255/80/17, with more A/T tire choices.

 

Back to original question.
500-600 will only cover the front Bilsteins with install and alignment using stock springs.
2" (or 1.75) on 3rd up groove is max without new UCA so you can align it.
Rear shocks alone will do nothing special (no lift by them as only a shock) and rear springs will get you lift but add another 1000.
Yes heavy steel skid plates (front, trans, xfer with full frame support bars, and gas tank) are first and can be last as very capable then.
Big tires add new issues with body mounts, UCAs, spacers, less mpgs, maybe 2 diff gears changes, etc. A 2" bigger tire gives you 1" more under the diffs but approach and departure angles will still be limiting with stock bumpers. I drag my rear and my front gets cramped into the ground on occasion but my bull bar protects - yes bumpers would help but more weight and cost.
On my 09 I went aftermarket springs so I could tow and add weight back there so got 3" increase and added front Bilsteins to get near 2" with a slight rack unloaded - its a truck to me.
If you got the money mod away as much as you want. If shops are doing the work add that cost in as you decide what you want to do. Enjoy!

 

4Runner take off wheels are a cheap option for 17” wheels. Long live pizza cutters!

 

I don't want to start anything here - I've seen this movie before talking tires and sand. I'll just say since this truck will also go on the beach I'm not inclined to get skinny tires - that's the reason I would like to stick with the 16" wheel - for the sand I want a fatter longer patch to float on - probably not as important on the trail.

 

Do you plan to install all of this yourself, or pay a shop to do it?

 

Just start go offroading and make changes as needed. You'll be surprised how capable in stock form. Be honest with yourself on intentions

 

Suspension lift does not help clear larger tires on Toyota IFS.

 

Not suspension but I will definitely do the bolt on sliders and skid plates - too easy. I am a little hesitant about the suspension and then there is the alignment that I obviously can't do myself.

 

Just wanted to clarify, because paying someone labor will eat up 1/2 of you budget. That pretty much leaves you in a budget that isn't practical for what you seem to be wanting.

 

Yeah man that is going to be tough especially on a budget. Installing yourself is super easy...

 

I know mine is a 2nd gen, but still applies. I went out to Moab on stock suspension with 125K on it. I bought sliders and skids first(and used the shit out of them ). I never had plans to lift my truck...until I did

These things are pretty good stock.

255/70's







Now with Dodibinsons IMS and HD leafs on 33x10.50

 

It’s quite possible you will be disappointed if you put really big tires on. More “show than go” most cases. Stock tacos are very capable with rubber that matches what you will be seeing off-road.

 

You can run 265/75/R16 tires with no modifications or rubbing at all on stock, my gas mileage went down around 1-2 mpg after upsizing from stock tires but that was also running a chunkier tire too. Looking at most 33" and similar tires I will likely upgrade eventually but the extra weight and associated performance losses plus needing to address rubbing wasn't worth it to me for what I currently drive vs. the 0.5" better clearance height of the tires I was looking at. I like the idea of skinny 33s but 255 tires are a lot less common than 285 width ones are.

I also have run a 1" block in the rear with some fairly serious offroading - it works fine and I didn't have any notable issues, but I have never considered it a permanent solution since the rear would squat more when adding payload weight vs stock. I'm replacing it with a full leaf pack later this month to handle carrying more weight offroad and give better ride quality; a 1" blocks is cheap though and perfectly fine IMO if you want a bit more height and aren't running lots of extra weight.