Shocks (and springs?) for highway use, topper + weight occasional towing.

I have a 2007 Tacoma double cab 4x4 TRD, v6 auto. I put on Bilstein 4600 front and rear 30k miles ago. The rear is feeling a bit squishy now with less control.

This is a work vehicle and I always have the topper + about 100-150lbs of tools in the bed. Occasional towing with a small utility trailer, usually balanced and light load, but on the rare occasion over-loaded. I land up on dirt roads a lot and do some light off-roading with a very very rare trip up to a cabin on more serious of- road.

I don't want a lift, highway performance and dirt road is priority. I was thinking of going to Bilstein 5100's in the rear and see how that goes.

Any thoughts or recommendations?

 

I had similar requirements, added a topper and I often pull a 4x8 trailer and allot of camping gear. The back springs definitely weren't up to the weight of the topper, not to mention the gear in the back and a trailer connected and the OE front springs weren't much better after 18yrs. I took the budget approach, I swapped in some ome 884s on the front and general spring HD leaf pack on the rear. It gave the truck about 1.5" of lift which I like because it's on the mild side heightwise. I did require an EGS bushing with the lift. It handles better everywhere then then with the OE springs. All said and done performs well doing what you described.

 

Nice, looks like the same truck! I'm pretty set against any lift, unless it settles back over time... But what shocks are you using?

 

I doubt it’s your shocks. The 4600’s are really great shocks. They are replacement shocks for OEM but are way better, far superior to OEM’s. They should last 70000 to 100000+ miles. I think the problem may be your rear leaf springs. Get some upgraded heavier duty springs. Also fyi 4600’s and 5100’s are the same shock almost exactly internally. The difference is that 5100’s are for lifted trucks. Keep the 4600’s , get heavier duty leafs.
I have 4600’s on my truck. Have a camper shell, tow a boat and off road into some remote country. The shocks are awesome. I also had new leafs installed about 5 years. The overall suspension is solid.

 

5100s, my problem was never the shocks and when I replaced them prior to the other work they didn't improve the ride much and did nothing for the extra weight. I doubt you're going to get much additional load carrying capacity without the truck lifting some unless you go with something like airbags or sumo springs. One could go with stiff rear springs that didn't lift the truck but the ride would be as bad or worse then it is now.

 

Again what you describe is your springs not shocks. You don’t have to replace them with heavy duty springs that make your truck ride like a buckboard. You can simply add a leaf or just get new oem leafs. You have lots of options with springs that will fix your problem and not make for a rough stiff ride. Leaf springs are wear items that do degrade over time and need replacement. Sometimes they also crack or break. You should also examine them for cracks or breaks. Or take it to a suspension shop and get an opinion. Dont lift your truck, you may be creating more problems. If it were me I’d get new springs and if it didn’t do what I want I’d add a leaf.

 

Thanks for the replies, I probably should have checked first, but my leaf springs are indeed entirely flat! I will start there and just get some OEM replacements or a slight upgrade.

Also am considering Sumo springs or Road Active suspension... any thoughts on those?

 

I would go for 5100s up front and 5160s in the rear. When you replace your rear leafs get a progressive leaf pack.

Air bags are going to be a lot nicer than either sumo springs or RAS when unloaded but if those are the two you're going with, I'd probably pick the RAS.

And if you dont have one, get a rear sway bar

 

Do you have recommendations on a progressive leaf pack? Most of the ones I see add about 2" of lift.

 

I was going to say Deaver but it looks like they only have a 1.5" lift option.

I know Alcan can make you a set that'll be exactly what you want. Not sure what their prices are like these days.

 

Thanks. A 1.5" lift may be okay. But that may require new rear shocks? I'm trying to keep the cost on this down somewhat and my current 4600 Bilsteins are probably still good.

I'm down to a couple of options: Replace my old springs with new OEM springs and add the RAS OR go with a progressive spring with a small lift, that may level out when loaded... (the Icon seems like a possible option as well: https://accutuneoffroad.com/product/icon-rxt-leaf-spring-96-up-tacoma-00-06-tundra/ I could only find progressive Deavers with 2" lift. ) if it doesn't require new shocks, got to explore that and see... It seems like these two options are about the same cost.

EDIT: Looks like any lift will require new shocks...

 

I’m not sure why you want any lift. You started this thread saying you didn’t want a lift. Without actually inspecting the truck, going by your description it appears your problem is that your rear springs are weakened and degraded. The simplest and probably least expensive fix is to simply replace the rear springs with oem or quality after market springs. You can consider adding a leaf later if you want a stiffer ride or you think it would help with heavier loads. Your 4600’s should still be fine with only 30000 on them. You can expect another 50000 to 7000+ miles out of then. What ever you decide to do let us know how it all works out and how the ride is.

 

Cheers, yes I don't really want a lift, but would consider it if that was the only solution for better load handling and towing capacity... and yes the springs are flat and driver side starting to bend the other way. Going to go with some new oem after-market springs and then consider add-a leaf or RAS.

 

Happy with my Bilstein 6112's and 5160's paired with Dobinsons Leafs and Timbren bumps.