thinking of TC/Camburg LT now, but daily driver...

Hi all,

So I was hardcore ready to buy some Camburg UCAs and some extended-travel Fox remote reservoirs for up front (still a very big option), but am now considering an LT kit (Camburg or TC...coin toss?), since I have a distinct feeling I'll end up going to LT in the long run (note this happened with my toyota pickup about 11 years ago). Now, the questions/problems!

So I've spent a few weeks and read many threads about the various pros/cons about the Camburg and TC UCAs, and was set on the Camburg ones. I then read a bunch of threads about folks saying that they use their LT tacos as their daily drivers (some with unbelievable commutes I might add...). My beloved tacoma is indeed my only car, and I am living in the northeast for the next 1.5 years (born/bred in barstow though). So, my questions are:

- how unreasonable is it to install a LT kit (camburg or tc) up front, while keeping the rear-end stock (due to $$, and the fact that I will likely not use it for much off-roading while stuck up here for the next 1.5 years)? ie- is it a terrible idea or not to leave the rearend stock for say 6 months while I save up some cash?

- are they actually 100% bolt-on? If I (for some unforseen reason) have to revert to stock, I'd like that option.

- how ridiculously bad is my truck going to look if I have my stock tires/rims with an LT kit up front (265/65/17 BFGs)? new tires are certainly out of the question for at least a while, due to both the fact that they are pricey, and the guy I bought it from had just put new tires on like a week before I purchased it.

- how difficult is it to get the glassworks or fiberwerkx glass fenders to look good up front? If I take it to any body shop (I know nobody up here), will they be able to do an adequate job (I do want my baby to look good still)?

- are fiberglass fenders a 100% necessity up front at the time of install of an LT kit? My guess is certainly yes, but I'm wondering how much compression/how close the tires will actually come to stock fenders if I'm just commuting to work on the freeway and back for a month while saving up a few extra bucks for fenders.

sorry for the wall of text. My 100% biggest concern is that I don't want to have recurring problems (realignment/fix this or that) every 2 months if I'm hardly touching the desert. My past experience with an LT setup was not super-fantastic (though it was a custom setup, guy did a hell of a job for his first set). I'm hoping the TC/Camburg kits are reliable enough for someone who drives on the road most of the time, and takes very long road trips.

thank you so much for any answers and help.
-Ryan

 

I have burg LT kit on my truck. If you have a empty garage you can do the install easy! It may take you a few days to install, but it's so worth the effort!

My truck is a DD. I don't have any problems except my gas mileage sorta sucks...

Here is a pics of my truck with 265/75/16's
Photobucket is being gay... I will post a pic up later.

It's not that difficult to put glass fenders on the truck. It takes a little time though, the more time you take to put glass fenders the better it will look.

I have heard the All Pro LT kit doesn't require glass fenders, but that is only for the 2nd gen tacomas.

 

the only welding required is the limit strap mounts

 

limit straps and TC gussets.

 

read bold

 

I am sure you can get 10% off the TC LT kit as well.

 

wow, thank you guys already for those replies. they are very helpful. 04LT, I will not be installing the LT kit myself, as I don't trust myself (I have no problem taking apart and working on ridiculously expensive lasers everyday, but I don't have to drive those with my girlfriend's life in my hands).

97yota and 04LT- with respect to the fiberglass looking good, you're right I meant good fitment. I had glass up front and rear on my old truck, and it just never quite looked right, granted not as much time was spent on installing it as should have been. I'll admit that a lot (or most) trucks I've seen on the forums with glass up front look pretty smooth.

My real biggest concern, after taking into account your guys' answers (thank you!), is whether or not I will run into any recurring issues with LT up front. I mean issues when not taking it out in the desert, since I'm stuck out here for a bit (that is- constant realignments or other crap breaking/being problematic, even just if driving on the highway). I also don't mind a slight hit to gas mileage (though it is painful these days!), but I do take frequent ~200 mile each way trips, which is another reason I want to make sure I don't run into the constant realignment or whatever-type issues.

Thanks again guys, I honestly really appreciate input and advice on this.



***edit*** I just realized that the simplest way of summing up my biggest concern is: is there any negative or downfall to running long-travel up front rather than what is stock or just a UCA + coilover setup? Specifically, in terms of reliability (namely on the road)? Thanks!!

 

I wouldn't go LT on my daily driver. Spindles for sure though.

 

If you wont be wheeling the truck for a year and a half I would wait to do anything to the truck. You have 1.5 years to change your mind. You may not think you're going to change it but the world might change it for you. If you aren't going to use it for it's intended use then I personally don't see the point. I would wait until you are ready to use the truck and build the front and rear at the same time. I know that's not as fun but it doesn't sound like it'll see much off road use for a while anyways.

As far as alignment - gusset the cam tabs and then mark your cams with a marker so you can tell if you're alignment is ever knocked out of whack. I've been doing this and I usually just turn the cam back to it's original marked spot if it ever gets knocked out.

 

why wouldn't ya? i'm trying to find out of there's any real downside to it (aside from initial money), relative to stock. I understand beating your truck up and running LT can cause issues, but that is the same with beating it up + stock or mid-travel. I won't be beating it up any time soon, but would like to know if there's anything still inherently wrong with them, or rather inherent issues that arise.

also, I admit spindle lifts look very nice. and, on my last truck i broke >3 driver's side spindles. not fun.

*edit* this was a response to Rakso's post, sorry it came up after yours all.on.black! But thanks for the reply. I need to crash, but am looking forward to hearing some more feedback when I get to work in the morn'.

 

Spoke with Tim at DMZ a few weeks ago a lot of his customers use their tacomas as DD's. Also vitang told me his turning radius increased with his engage kit. Not sure if that's an issue with camburg or TC but definitely something to take into account depending on your day to day driving.

 

I wouldn't mostly for the MPG drop and because I don't take my truck Off Road every week. I'd be happy with some spindles. Just my choice. Never had a LT though, so I can't speak for drive quality.

 

hi all,

i appreciate the input (even if it's not always what my little heart desires to hear). I'm still up in the air about what to do, but I am leaning toward just sucking it up and doing an LT kit up front for the time being. I'm *leaning* camburg, but still not sure after even more hours of trying to differentiate the big two.

One thing that I just read which scared me, is that with stock tires/wheels, someone in a thread posted that you need spacers? this sounds wrong to me (I have 265/65/17s, which eric, is I think 30.6 or something inches). I imagine they will look a bit small, but is there really any mechanical problem with running them + either Camburg or the TC lt kits?

Any other input or responses to my questions is still much appreciated. I also saw a picture of a guy who didn't tighten some bolt on his TC LCA, and it broke on a speedbump while he was going 5 mph in a parking lot. Things like this are what I'm worried about, any random crap issues that might arise if it's mostly driven on the road/highway (input here is particularly appreciated!)

thanks again.

 

You don't need wheel spacers since the kit only changes the lower and upper control arms. The only reason you might need spacers is due to the spindle gussets. For example the All Pro spindle gusset will not allow the stock wheels to fit since it comes out 1/4-1/2 inch and the tire rubs on the gusset.