Recommended suspension kit.

Hello TW!
Im new member here at TW. But I have been a silent member for a while now since some of my question are being answered straight and Im thankful for everyone here.

I have a 2023 OR DCSB and I recently got a canopy camper ad says its about 330 lbs and im not sure if its true. so far that is the only add on weight I installed and Im looking to get some rock sliders probably in the next month or so. with the 330lbs weight I added as a fully stock I am pretty sure it is bad for a stock suspension and everything and I recently saw this thread https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/plan-on-adding-weight-need-to-know-what-to-replace.487905/
And I was like “hold on I was supposed to add these before adding weight?” Look I do not know anything about suspension and Im not really planning to go on a hardcore off roading and for a while I only had a Leer cap with DAC tent.

Is there any recommendation for a suspension in my case? I don’t really want a lift but with the added weight I have, I don’t think I have a choice as I do not want to void any warranty I have since I just bought my taco last Dec 2023 new and I only have 20k km as of now.

So Im just asking what do you guys recommend for a fully stock from front to rear? Im also planning to visit krave automotive just to check for recommendation as well.

 

Are you okay with how it handles with what you got on the back now? If so why change much up?

If you like how it is but worry about eventual sag I'd say buy an add a leaf or new leaf pack.

 

Will you be towing anything as well? So you drive about 10k miles per year. Do you have any pics of your truck from side view you can post? I see your truck in your profile pic but its real tiny hard to get an idea how it is sitting now, that could help others see where the sag is at now with current equipment. What are your skills at doing DIY? Here's a pro-tip, you can drive to your local metal recycler and get your rig weighed for free, they weigh you in, and they weigh you out to determine the weight of metal you drop off -> don't know if you're interested in this but it helped me know weight of my vehicle. I have a trailer and I have noticed considerable control after installing OME medium suspension, I sense that you have similar ideas as I am not interested in the fancy shocks/reservoirs, I just wanted to minimize roll/sway/sagging and maximize stability for my situation. With the added weight of my mods I think I made a good choice.

I learned way back with my '90 Isuzu, I changed all shocks, just shocks nothing else, to the KYB Gas charged shocks and it was like a new truck, it even sat higher but the improved stability was enormous. I realized the oem shocks on most cars were too soft so from then on all my vehicles got the KYB gas shocks if KYB had them for my vehicle.

Like others are saying, it's all up to you, what you will put up with, and how you like your ride, to ride.

 

I drove about 450km 2 days ago to try out my camper and I definitely feel how heavy it is on driving I’d say Im okay with it, like you said I am just worried about the sag as well. Thank you I will look into just adding leaf

 

No Im not planning to tow anything. I can post probably later today a side view. And yes I was actually planing into weight it in but in here it is not free. Could you give me an information about your OME medium suspension? I also found this Old Man Emu 2" Nitrocharger Plus Lift Kit | Toyota Tacoma 2016-2023 and its about 2.5k CAD its pretty expensive.

edit:
Here is the side view.


I also check the leafs and it is straight and I just saw a post on fb asking if it’s normal they said it is?

 

If you're in Canada, that changes things drastically. We get screwed on pricing and availability up here, as well as warranty. Call either one of these two shops and buy what they recommend. Krave Automotive in Calgary, or Overland Outfitters in Surrey.

Also stay away from OME stuff, especially their leafs. And get Greenlane sliders. They are made of aluminum and don't rust. They are also made in Canada and you'll get the best price ordering right from them.

 

Yeh stock leaf springs kinda suck. Id just buy a new better pack from one of the third party companies, and as said above you can save labor costs by doing it yourself if you have the capabilities.

 

ouch!

 

For real and yes I just visited krave automotive just now and this is the quote they give me:




Could you guys give me insight if the price is fair? I also look at my leaf again and surely it bent down so yeah I should definitely need to upgrade it and should not drive it for now until the upgrade is done.

 

I would love to do a DIY since I love doing, but right now I don’t really have the necessary tools to DIY my rig.

 

I think this is what I got, and where I got it. I didn't realize you are in Canada.



https://**********/products/tacoma-2016-2023-ome-lift-kits

 

Im trying to visit the link you sent but for some reason its not allowing me

 

Understood. I have most tools I need, they've been bought over time and often times just for one particular job out of necessity or ease of use. I imagine you could get the tools you need for the job, do it yourself, and still save money. Plus then youd have needed tools to work on the truck. There's no specialized tools per se needed to swap the springs so youd end up with a lot of useful tools.

 

I’d be VERY surprised if you aren’t pushing closer to 500 lbs. additional weight with that camper and awning. Also, that camper is increasing weight on both the front and rear suspension. I know because I also have a “lightweight” pop-up style camper with awning.

If you don’t want to spend much money, you don’t want a lift, and you won’t be doing much challenging off road driving, consider installing air bags or sumo helper springs. Both options are cheaper than a full leaf pack, and won’t give you lift like off-road springs will.

Also, in Canada, I believe there may be an “HD” rear spring option for Tacomas that is “OE”.

There are also third party spring manufacturers that make heavier duty springs for significantly cheaper than brand name off-road springs (e.g. General Spring), but I’m not sure of their availability in Canada.

Note that when you increase your spring resistance, you lower the relative dampening effect of your shocks, and you might find yourself wanting to upgrade your shocks down the line to something a little stiffer.

I see someone made a suggestion of aluminum sliders. If you actually use them like sliders, you will regret getting aluminum. It doesn’t “slide” as well as it gets gouged, and it bends on impact much more easily than steel. The tradeoff with steel is 1.) you have to maintain them to keep the rust under control, as mentioned, and 2.) steel sliders weigh ~180 lbs. You will definitely feel the extra weight, especially on stock suspension.

Now if you just want sliders as steps and for protection from door dings and minor traffic mishaps (improper merging of other lightweight vehicles), aluminum sliders are definitely viable.

 

Yeah... Welcome to modding a truck in Canada lol. Unfortunately that's about right for pricing. You might be able to save a bit trying to order all those parts yourself separately, but if any have to come across the border you risk getting screwed by UPS or Fedex for like 40% of the cost in "brokerage fees" which will ruin any savings you thought you were getting. Which is why I've just bought most of my stuff through either of the shops I mentioned.

That is a decent entry level setup though. The problem is the labour is the same cost as any other setup. So the "buy once, cry once" philosophy heavily applies here cause you absolutely don't want to pay twice lol. But honestly I don't think you need anything more than what Krave suggested. And 5100s are the best you can get without spending considerably more.

It's honestly not terribly hard to DIY. I've done it 3 times now. Most of the bolts are 19mm, a few 17mm, and couple 14s and 12s. Almost all of it can be done with a socket and wrench set. Plus a jack and a couple jack stands. Takes about a full day. You will want to get the coil overs assembled with the top hats so that you aren't messing with coil compressors though. But if you are re-using your OEM coils that kinda makes it tough to do, and new coils are like half of that labour cost...

 

Edit: I just looked up General Spring for verification. The HD springs are way, WAY cheaper than aftermarket offroad springs, but they do lift the (empty) rear of the truck about 1.5”. So if you go the spring route instead of adding Sumo’s or air bags (and springs are generally longer lasting and more maintenance-free than both of those options), an add-a-leaf would still be the best bang for the buck, followed by General Spring. You can get off-brand single AAL’s on sites like eBay really cheaply. A 3-leaf progressive AAL will cost more but will ride smoother than a single AAL, depending on your priorities.

Lifting your truck by 2” or more may make your tires look small, taking you down a long, expensive rabbit hole of tire size upgrade and other mods to accomodate the larger tires. If you stay 1.5” or less, your current tires won’t feel too small.

 

If you're not planning on hardcore offroading, and your truck is so new, why not just get an

$190 add-a-leaf kit for 1995-2023 toyota tacoma - 21.5" short AAL set with isolator pads and square bend u-bolts

add-a-leaf kit? If you're just doing things like fire roads, with the extra weight, you could get away with staying simple. With your truck being as new as it is, the leafs won't be trash yet.

Also, do you really need sliders? If so, you need full skids too. More weight. Now you're getting to the point of a full suspension setup.

 

I would disagree with needing full skids with sliders. On these trucks, sliders take hits far more frequently, with the exception of engine skids.

I have a full set of skids and have never installed the transmission skid, and have never needed it, even though I’m on my fourth or fifth engine skid, after destroying the previous ones. And my sliders are currently off the truck to be repainted and reinforced after taking many heavy beatings.

I just recently installed the transfer case skid to run some trails in Utah that would require high-centering, but it turns out I never needed it. All my high-centering was taken by the sliders, frame rails, and the transfer case cross member. (I do have an exhaust re-route so I am not dragging the low hanging cross tube, but I dragged that for many outings before eventually rerouting it.)

IMO, sliders and an engine skid are plenty sufficient for 5-6/10 rated trails, assuming a relatively competent driver. Beyond that, you’re also going to want a winch and/or a buddy on the trail with you.

But agreed; if fire roads(+) are the hardest thing the truck will see, don’t bother with armor at all.

 

Here is another option, I know you want to go cheap. This is an option to add more spring to your rear leafs. AND, you won't have to remove the current leaf pack, this Hellwig bolts right on top of your current leaf pack and requires a jack, and some wrenches to correctly install.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OCH78UC

 

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One of those should work for you. (none worked, not sure why.)

You will have to type this into your URL bar: