Front end & Donahoe suspension woes 05 Tacoma

My '05 Tacoma is used for serious backcountry offroading & I rely on it for work. It has 3" Donohoe Suspension coilovers, another 2" of body lift & 33" mudders. So far I've broken the rod end & the shock shaft, at separate times. I've had 2 total FRONT END reconstructions. Obviously there is a weak link in this system. Anyone out there experiencing similar issues or with any advice?

 

Sounds odd. What does Icon say?

 

They say they've never had either problem before and without seeing it in person (long drive to CA...) they don't know what to say. They have sent new parts (charging only shipping) but that doesn't help when I'm stranded in the woods with clients. Since it's the 2nd failure of the system I figure there is something inherently wrong with the pairing of this kit and my Tacoma. I'd like to avoid the cost of ripping the whole thing out, but I don't trust it as is.

 

maybe your coilovers are cranked too high?

 

Are you running factory bump rubber in the front? Only thing I can think of that causes this kind of damage is the front suspension bottoming on the shock on the upstroke.

Is anything hitting the shock at full droop, like the upper control arm or the sway bar?

 

Sounds like coil bind to me. Let's see some pics

 

Ahem... SAS
















































No but seriously... SAS.

 

Only for leaf spring SAS, otherwise it will be harder on the coilover, since there's a lot more unsprung weight.

 

Sounds like you're bottoming out the shock before the bump stop is making contact.

 

Exactly.. Timbrens bump stops perhaps are needed

 

What the Hell do you do for work? Sounds like fun to me.

 

I'm running some DRs at a 3" lift and offroad my rig pretty damn hard. I've yet to encounter this issue, but will definitely be keeping an eye on my DRs. Thanks for the heads up, OP.

 

I can vouch for him! He jumps it and beats it up and those DR's have held up very well!

 

My Toyoter motor mounts gave out before the DRs did.

 

Thanks for the help. I have also broke both motor mounts and the truck has never left the ground. What other suspensions would you recommend? I have heard good things about total chaos but am not sure I can put chains on with that system.