Steering Damper Suggestions

Any steering damper suggestions for a 2012 4WD Tacoma? I do a lot of highway long distance driving and the ruts caused by the semi's pull me back and forth in the lane. I understand a steering damper can reduce some of the movement. True? Will it also help on an unpaved/unmaintained gravel road with multiple wash-outs and holes?

I'm running Cooper Discoverer AT3 XLT 285/75 R16 (I like them much more than my BFG KO and KO2's.) Tough Country 2" Add-a-leaf springs, Rough Country 2" front leveling kit, 1" wheel spacers.

 

IDK about dampers.. with all that lifting, levelling, & spacing, how's your alignment? Do you have aftermarket UCAs to allow your truck to get to a usable caster setting?

After lifted ~2.25" front & rear (on coilovers & rear leafs, no spacers or any of that,) without immediately doing an alignment -- my Taco drove like a shopping cart and I destroyed a set of otherwise good tires.

Got new tires and an alignment and now it's right-as-rain, drives normal, tracks normal, and the tires wear normal.

 

I don't think steering dampers even exist for IFS suspension.

If you're thinking of like a straight axle F250 or Ram, their front suspension is totally different.

 

Hmmm.... I have aftermarket UCA's. Tires rotated, balanced and alignment checked today - pretty far out of alignment. Eliminated the steering shake. I was wondering about the road tracking. Seems they sell the dampers for then jeeps, but not for the Tacoma?

 

Dampers are for old school solid axle front trucks, IFS steering rack trucks cannot benefit from this.

Best thing you can do is check front end, remove spacers and go to a proper coil over that doesnt force the joints in poor angles.

 

I guess my age shows through... I'm contemplating pulling the spacers and going to coil overs. Any benefit in replacing the rears now that I stiffened the leaf springs?

Thanks all for the quick responses! Great site for a newbie.

 

Welcome!

I agree with Gilbert, before getting too far into things. Consider doing aftermarket Upper Control Arms in the front to increase caster and then go to a reputable alignment shop. Not like chain that does the toe-n-go. Changing the fronts to coils may help a little bit if your current shocks are old, but it doesn't solve decreased caster due to the spacer lift in the front.

Popular UCA brands: JBA and SPC