3" Lift advice

Hey everyone! Long time lurker, first time poster on TW. The information on TW thus far has been invaluable to me.

Because my stock shocks are finally dying and most of my tires are bald as fuck, I've finally decided it's time to lift my truck. I've pretty much decided on a 3" suspension lift, yet I'm having a hard time deciding on which combo/kit/parts I should go with. I've heard of numerous different setups, but really looking for some good opinions and helpful ideas that you all might have. This truck is mostly my daily driver, with some driving on the sand on the weekends.

Front Springs or Coilovers:
Shocks:
Rear Springs:
Misc parts needed?:

I plan to buy the parts from toytec if possible, so If you guys wanna post links from there it would be helpful.

(inb4 trolls and "use search" )

 

Daytime bump

 

Here is some good reading to star out with.

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/suspension/11282-tacoma-lift-faq-guide-read.html

Any particular reason you want to buy from toytec exclusively

 

I just put on a 3 inch front and 2 inch rear lift in mine. The front has not the coil over spacers, but the kind that you bolt on top of the shock assemble (not sure what its called exactly) and aluminum blocks under the leaf springs with some 19-26 inch skyjacker nitro shocks. I also put on a differential drop kit and am waiting for my kyb front shocks to get here. all of this cost me about 350$ since I put it on myself. Got the kit off of ebay and the rest off of summitracing.com.

 

I have, and have been happy with Icon kit.
You can get in various degrees or $$$ of upgrade.
I got good support when a shock end broke. Probably my fault, but they said "Shouldn't have broken". I got an advance replacement thru ORW. All-in-all a good experience from both companies.

 

If you want a good overall lift for moderate price and great ride I'd go with an OME Lift w/ Light Racing UCA's.

 

Thanks for the reply.

I have already read that sticky a couple of times, but am asking for of a specific "shopping list" of exactly what parts I need to buy.

Also, the reason I would prefer to use toytec is because they seem to have decentish shipping prices for Hawaii.

 

The parts you have listed in your OP are all you need to buy (you may also need new ucas to get your alignment right). Are you looking for us to recommend a specific brand of each line item?

 

Yes, if possible.

I saw the that "ultimate toytec 3" lift" which only confuses me more, as the rear struts it comes with are the 5025 series shocks (which I thought were only for stock height?)

Also, will a whole leaf pack make much of a difference over AALs?

Do I need any other bushings, u-bolts, or anything else?

 

5125s come in many different lengths, from stock all the way to 6"+ lifts.

The leaf pack will ride better than an add a leaf, it's all how much you are willing to spend.

Keep in mind that new ucas will be another $400+

 

I would recmmend the OME lift from Downsouthmotorsports.com I had to put on a set of upper UCAs to get my allignment right but it was all worth it. Great ride and no complaints here.

 

OME

 

I've heard lots of good things about OME (Old Man Emu, in case nobody has mentioned what it stands for). I've also heard lots of good things about DSM (Down South Motorsports). I personally have 3" front SwayAWay coilovers w/450lb coils and a rear AAL, running 265/75/16s. I've Always thought a 3" lift with that tire size is visually proportional. Drove around a long time with blown rear shocks. I got Rough Country 9000 rear shocks from Wheelers Offroad in Sept, and my ride is now actually pretty good, considering my front tires are completely trashed... I'm not a big fan of Dunlop... Anyway, I've had these rear shocks for a couple months now and they seem like pretty good shocks for the price, and Gary @ Wheelers was extremely helpful on the phone.

Ok, so that is what I've got as far as a lift- it's not really the smoothest ride I've ever driven, but I'm fairly happy with it.

 

OME 881's or 883's(w/o spacers)?

 

883s might be a bit heavy/stiff with a harsh ride unless you plan to have a plate bumper and/or winch down the road

I got 2.25 inches on mine from stock with 881's...no spacers.....but mine is a 4banger reg cab much lighter then your truck

 

The part that's kinda confusing me is:

"883 coils for an additional 100LBS front weight (can also be used for 3" lift without top plate spacers with no additional weight)" Would this mean I could run the 883s fine w/o a front bumper and still achieve a 3" lift? If later on I planned to put a bumper on, would my truck then drop an inch?

 

Bump

 

Yes the front would drop if you put a plate bumper on.

 

So is OME actually a 2" lift? The spacer bringing it to 3"?

 

For the most part OME lifts are closer to 2'' than 3''. I wouldn't use any spacer if you are going to spend the money to have a good lift like OME. Go bilstein/eibach if you want 3''