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Future father with suspension problem needs help

Discussion in 'Suspension' started by DDZPyrite, Mar 13, 2012.

  1. Mar 13, 2012 at 1:22 AM
    #1
    DDZPyrite

    DDZPyrite [OP] Active Member

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    Hi gang,

    First off, forgive me for starting a new thread on a common topic that may have already been discussed (I couldn't really find an answer). So my problem is this: my wife and I recently purchased a 2012 Off-Road 4x4 Tacoma and she hates the ride quality. She has even made a comment to me comparing the ride of a 2009 Ford F150 to our new Tacoma, saying the F150 was much more comfortable (and I have to agree). She went on to say that for a new truck she expected a softer ride.

    Granted, she is about 10 weeks pregnant and at the peak of her morning sickness issues, but even I feel it's a little rough and there must be something out there that can make the ride less stiff. I certainly can deal with it as is, but I would rather make my wife feel good about our new purchase and provide more comfort while riding in the new truck. We agreed on the 4x4 Off-Road because we both value the utility the truck can bring if we ever have to bug-out in the event of a natural disaster. I felt the diff locker would be useful to have for this purpose so that's why we chose the Off-Road over the Sport package.

    I am turning to you all, the Tacoma World community to help me come up with a setup that will offer us a smoother ride.

    I did some research on these forums and I think long travel suspension might be the way to go. Judging from some vids i've watched and some of my own theories, this setup seems to be the best, however I cannot afford this so lets not go there folks;)..........thanks. (long travel gurus please comment for my future reference)

    I am hoping to get away with doing shock and spring replacement. I've been reading a lot of people doing Bilstein 5100 shock replacement with OME 885 springs for lifting purposes. I don't mind doing a lift if it will yield me a better ride.

    Lastly, can anyone tell me why the Off-Road suspension is more rough than the Sport model. Is it the struts or the springs? Sorry for the long thread and thank you in advance for your help.
     
  2. Mar 13, 2012 at 1:41 AM
    #2
    tb99trd

    tb99trd Well-Known Member

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    Tom
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    buy someone's stock (non-TRD) coils. I'm a 1st gen guy so I could be wrong about some of this but my understanding is that the TRD coils are stiffer. shocks are prob stiffer than non-TRD too. Bilstein 5100s are even stiffer so you don't want those. I think best and def cheapest bet is sr5 coils. you could get them dirt cheap on here from someone who is upgrading to OMEs or 5100s. Come to think of it, you might want to look into OME also. They have a bunch of different options stiffness-wise
     
  3. Mar 13, 2012 at 1:46 AM
    #3
    Konaborne

    Konaborne Pineapples on pizza Hawaiian does not it make.

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    Cody
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    fox extended travel remote resivoir coilovers, 14" eibach 600lb coils, All Pro tubular chromoly 1" uniball upper control arms, All Pro expedition leaf packs, 10" bilstein 5150 piggyback reservoir shocks 265/75r16 Goodyear wrangler MT/R kevlars wrapped around 16" Helo 791 gloss black, Mini H1 retrofits with 6000k bulbs, 18" magnaflow w/custom exhaust reroute various decals, Sockmonkey retro hood stripes

    Who told you the 5100s are stiffer?

    Set at stock height, 5100s give a much better ride than the HD Bilsteins that come stock on TRD ORs. Even comparing my lifted '00, it rides better than my stock 2010


    OP, I'd say go for 5100s. Lifting the truck generally makes it stiffer- the only way around that would be to drop some $$$ and get yourself coilovers with matching rear shocks/ a nice leaf pack, but that's in the $1000s

    set the front 5100's to stock, get the normal 5100s from downsouth motorsports, and off you go. Give em a call, they've helped tons of members on here with their shock needs; they can talk you through what you need versus what your budget will allow.
     
  4. Mar 13, 2012 at 1:48 AM
    #4
    tb99trd

    tb99trd Well-Known Member

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    yeah i figured i'd get called out on that. total guess. i'm right about the coils tho. stock non-TRD coils = less stiff than TRD coils
     
  5. Mar 13, 2012 at 1:58 AM
    #5
    Redfox1

    Redfox1 'Stralia! Riding Roo's and wrangling koalas

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    Odd I thought my truck rode way too much like a car. Anyways LT is a little overkill for you, I agree with Kona's post.
     
  6. Mar 13, 2012 at 2:02 AM
    #6
    Konaborne

    Konaborne Pineapples on pizza Hawaiian does not it make.

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    fox extended travel remote resivoir coilovers, 14" eibach 600lb coils, All Pro tubular chromoly 1" uniball upper control arms, All Pro expedition leaf packs, 10" bilstein 5150 piggyback reservoir shocks 265/75r16 Goodyear wrangler MT/R kevlars wrapped around 16" Helo 791 gloss black, Mini H1 retrofits with 6000k bulbs, 18" magnaflow w/custom exhaust reroute various decals, Sockmonkey retro hood stripes
    :cookiemonster:

    Actually, I missed the LT part of the OP...

    OP, I wouldnt recommend LT either. LT's a full suspension swap thats gonna put you $10,000 in the hole/ Designed for high-speed desert style racing, theyre not necessarily the safest suspension upgrades.
     
  7. Mar 13, 2012 at 2:03 AM
    #7
    Sublime

    Sublime Well-Known Member

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    Off road designed suspension will be stiffer in general, no way around that! I'd say the Sr5 or base models would have the softest suspension but I'm only speculating! You may just need to buy an all wheel drive car if you don't like the ride of a stock truck.....id say their softer stock than with aftermarket suspension. Long travel will prob be stiffer on road at low speed too! It's made for high speed and designed to soften up in that environment!

    Have only been in lifted tacos but my buddys stock Titan is soft as hell on the street/speed bumps etc. Once taken offroad though, that soft suspension bottoms out and is miserable...its a trade off!
     
  8. Mar 13, 2012 at 2:17 AM
    #8
    TnRedNeck721

    TnRedNeck721 Nick Namer

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    No mud flaps, plasti dipped emblems, and rear bumper, Weather tech digital fit, Bed mat from tractor supply. Pioneer 4400BH head unit. B.A.M.F bed rail tie downs. AVS vent visors.
    i wonder if it’s just because it’s so new. my ’07 DC short bed TRD OR 4wd rides much better than a F-150! i wonder if after the springs get used so to speak a bit it will soften up? :notsure:
     
  9. Mar 13, 2012 at 3:57 AM
    #9
    Sublime

    Sublime Well-Known Member

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    Load the bed with a few hundred pounds and go pound it offroad! And flex the shit out of it to "stretch the legs" a little. May have to swap with a sport model!
     
  10. Mar 13, 2012 at 4:44 AM
    #10
    wolftree

    wolftree Well-Known Member

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    DDZPyrite,

    I would suggest approaching this in steps, cheapest first, as there is no difference in the rear springs of TRD and Non-TRD trucks. The TRD shocks are not true Bilsteins, rather they are built to Toyota specs by Bilstein. Most folks complain about Tacoma being too soft of ride, myself included.

    First, get 2- 50# bags of childrens play sand and put them in the bed of the truck. Probably right over the axle. They can be pushed forward if needed for hauling. This should make a fair amount of difference. Cost:$5-10.

    Second step if needed, install Bistein 4600 shocks. These are true Bilsteins. I would start with rears only and change the fronts if needed. Rear shocks, $100-$150 plus install.

    Try these first, before spending lots of money.
     
  11. Mar 13, 2012 at 5:16 AM
    #11
    Pugga

    Pugga Pasti-Dip Free 1983 - 2015... It was a good run

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    OP, where are you located?

    I've got a set of SR5 coils sitting around, if you're close, shoot me a PM. I'm not convinced they're the solution you're looking for but I'm selling them cheap :). The reason I have doubts whether they're the solution you're looking for is the progressive coils are supposed to absorb bumps better, they're softer at first and the more you compress them, they become much much firmer. Mine will be more worn and broken in so they might ride smoother for you.

    As far as aftermarket coils, I'd avoid them if you think the ride is hard already. The OME and Eibach coils are both stiffer than the factory coils. They give a more controlled ride and, I think, a better ride but that's because it rides more like a truck and most members like that.

    I would actually agree with tb99trd, the 5100's are firmer than the stock Billies. If you want softer, I'd look into the Nitrochargers rather than the 5100's.

    Lastly, I think if you wanted a smooth, car-like ride, you should have looked into a Chevy. The Tacoma is shorter, narrower and lighter than the full size truck you're comparing it to. Most full sized trucks do ride better than a mid-sized truck in my opinion. This is why you test drive before you buy! :cool:
     
  12. Mar 14, 2012 at 12:08 AM
    #12
    DDZPyrite

    DDZPyrite [OP] Active Member

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    Thank you all for the response. You all have great information.

    It seems I should get the Bilstein 5100's first and go from there. I certainly understand the trade-off Sublime was talking about and I don't want to sacrifice the off-road suspension. I was just hoping there were aftermarket products that could "improve" ride comfort while keeping the off-road tuned suspension.

    So are the struts/shocks the primary component that dictate the quality of the ride? I don't know the details of independent suspension and the function of each individual component within it - can someone give info about this topic?
     
  13. Mar 14, 2012 at 2:58 AM
    #13
    Sublime

    Sublime Well-Known Member

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    The 5100s will ride firmer than what you have as people think stock is too soft??

    Is there a loacl chapter where you could cruise in other trucks and get a feel? Im not sure upgrading the suspension will net you the softer feel you want! Maybe a set of "2.0" foxs from AllPro with the compression adjusters? Then take all the pre-load out and they "should" be as smooth as can be!

    Also, great idea to lower tire pressure and throw a little weight in the bed! I've noticed a difference with both of those at various times!
     
  14. Mar 14, 2012 at 5:16 AM
    #14
    Sublime

    Sublime Well-Known Member

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    Right!?!

    Dude, your truck looks mean with those fenders! How do you like them? Bet they stuff good!
     
  15. Mar 14, 2012 at 7:39 AM
    #15
    Gabe911

    Gabe911 Well-Known Member

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    X2
     
  16. Mar 14, 2012 at 8:18 AM
    #16
    Zombie Runner

    Zombie Runner Are these black helicopters for me?

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    oil change...
    ditch the overload leaf in the rear and get the wheelers offroad 3 aal pack
    I did this on my previous tacoma and it smoothed out the rear really nice!
     
  17. Mar 14, 2012 at 8:30 AM
    #17
    Pugga

    Pugga Pasti-Dip Free 1983 - 2015... It was a good run

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    But how do you lift the front without making it stiffer? Any of the aftermarket coils have a higher spring rate than the stock coils.
     
  18. Mar 14, 2012 at 8:36 AM
    #18
    DDZPyrite

    DDZPyrite [OP] Active Member

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    Yes, I did read your comment and I actually checked them yesterday (forgot to mention that). They were 29 psi in front and 30 psi in rear (door sticker says 29f 32r) so I inflated 2 psi in there rear. Not much difference though thanks anyway.

    BTW who/what is OP?
     
  19. Mar 14, 2012 at 8:38 AM
    #19
    Pugga

    Pugga Pasti-Dip Free 1983 - 2015... It was a good run

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    OP = Original Poster (Person who started the thread)

    You should either have the same pressure in the rear or a little lower than the front. The back end is a lot lighter than the front and doesn't need as much pressure unless you're towing or hauling. I'd drop them all to around 29 - 30 PSI (not that 2 PSI makes too much of a difference).
     
  20. Mar 14, 2012 at 8:47 AM
    #20
    jgwheeler17

    jgwheeler17 I'm a zit. Get it?

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    neglect, mostly.
    how about some billstiens 5100's all around, with the front set at 0 with some OME 885 coils? add zombies suggestion of the 3 leaf pack and it should be much better. . . :notsure:
     

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