Doing it right the first time: Lift and Suspension

Part II.

In addition to the supercharger and accompanying gadgets, I want to lift the truck about 2.5" and increase the size of the wheels/tires. I'll be going with body armor front/rear bumpers and rock sliders too. The way it rides now is nice, but I've read a lot and come to believe that I might want to go with the following modification:

* OME 885 Front Coil Springs
* OME Nitro Charger Sport Front & Rear Shocks
* OME Trim Packer (Teh Lean Mean Machine!)
* L/R Upper Control Arms
* Top Plate Spacer
* Coils
* Deaver 2" add-a-leaf
* Front differential drop kit
* Carrier Bearing drop kit

Or would I be better off just going with something like this:

http://hcp4x4.com/i-12178620-toytec-ultimate-lift-tacoma.html

Again, I want it to ride higher but still keep that nice, smooth feel it has now (or even better), and I want to make SURE my CV joints and other mechanical parts aren't going to be compromised. Also, will a 2.5" lift with increased tire size (18" rims) make me significantly more likely to roll it? I'd think not, from what I read, but it's worth asking.

Thanks again for all replies and for your patience with my Noobishness.

 

+2 on the AAL.

I had one, and now the stock leaf pack is dead 5000miles later and I find myself upgrading to Dakars.

Like you said, do it right the first time.

 

If you're going with 885 springs, I would NOT go with a top plate spacer unless you're running lots of heavy armor, front bumper, winch, skid plates etc... You need to preserve some downtravel in the suspension in order to have a decent ride.

 

People will probably suggest the 886's for the added weight of the front bumper...sounds like a good plan so far tho!

 

I would skip the ome kit and go with real coil over like Fox,icon,or kings. For the rear go with full leaf pack instead I would skip the worthless aal leaf pack.

 

although it would be nice, not everyone has the money to go with Fox/Icon/King s or have other obligations/hobbies that they feel they need to spend more money on.

Me I wish I had the money but Im going with basically the same kit. Except getting the Dakars instead of the aal.

 

I know what you mean! not everyone can afford the high end lift kits or coilovers. So the Toytec coilovers and bilstein 5100 shocks are the next best thing for people on a budget and they do perform pretty well for the price

 

But if you are making off roading your hobby save the money, Get real coil overs cause eventually most ppl do that anyway.

 

I have pretty much exactly what you are describing that you want, except I'm missing the rear bumper, and I have the Toytec ULK instead of the OME.
I don't know the spring rate of the ULK, but with the S/C, front plate bumper, winch, 3 skids, and sliders, the ULK coilovers sit about even with stock - according to my eyeballed estimate, with no measuring whatsoever. I've done some trimming with a dremmel and had BAMF do a cab mount chop, so there is almost no rubbing with the 285/75/16s -with the spidertrax spacers.
The nice thing about the ULK is that the shocks are adjustable (I still have about 2" of thread in either direction on my coilovers). It still rides nice, but I sort of wish for the OME so I could have put heavier springs on. It offroads well, I have been working like a dog, so I haven't been able to really beat on it off road since the plate bumper, winch, and skids were installed, but with the mild offroading I've done, there were no problems.

edit: I had the diff drop kit, but ended up removing it for the skids, and my damn CVs are almost perfectly linear. The shim/wedge between the axle housing and spring took care of the carrier bearing.
WRT the carrier bearing, the driveshaft will have some vibrations. I don't recall what was there when it was unmodded and brand new, but after the lift, I noticed there was a shudder around 15-25mph when I was accelerating, and that seems to have gone away, but now I get some light steering wheel vibration around 55-60mph. None at 65 or 70, or 50, just in that range. I'm chalking that up to a bad balance job on the tires. My AAL also seems to have flattened out after 20k miles and lots of heavy loads for work.

 

if most people jumped off a bridge would you??

I know a dumb question. MWAP I mean no disrespect to you, but I disagree.

Like I said today on another forum, to each there own. This is the internet where you will find 1000 different ways to unscrew the light bulb.

 

Nailed it on the head ^

Take notes colt.


Op headline is do it right the first time.


Yes I would jump off the bridge with parachute.

 

good point! and Personally I am now looking at lift kits but for now I am looking at the 5100s since I am on a budget but If I had the money I would go Icon stage 4 the first time

 

this is true. OP was asking about doing it right the first time. To some doing it right the first time is going with the OME because thats all they need. Some consider kings/fox/icons products doing it the right time.

Opinions are like.....well you know the rest.

 

Thanks for all the feedback so far. Some of it is a little over my head, but I'll try to research it before I bombard you all with questions. I guess if I had to narrow down what I'm looking for in a lift/suspension package, it would look like this:

- About 2.5" lift (or enough to handle a 265/70/R18)
- The most comfortable ride possible for DD while maintaining modest off-road capability.
- The ability to support armor all around
- The least likely to cause mechanical problems.
- I'd like to spend under 3k for the lift/suspension unless someone can make a case as to why something more expensive is significantly better.

So whatever set-up best matches those requirements is what I'm after.

 

well I would say the toytec ultimate or OME for what you want for your lift

 

this ^^^

 

I'm only going to mention this because no one else has...

But what about the OEM TRD Baja Suspension?

It will only raise the front by 2.0' and non in the rear, but that's where the Draker or AAL comes in... Pretty sure your tire sizes will fit.

It checks off 4 out of 5 of your requirements.

There are a lot of haters on here regarding the Baja kit (or at least just a lot more 5100 fan-boys), but I had it installed on my 2013 DCLB Sport and love it. I've driven a 2010 Tacoma with full Fox suspension and it feels very comparible to the Baja setup. I also wanted to "do it right" the first time and also be somewhat unique so I went with the Baja kit.

This is who you'd need to buy it off of: http://accessories.toyotaofmorristo...formance-/Suspension-Kit/PTR13_35120/Toyota/B

And you can find a bit of info here: http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/277344-because-baja.html after fishing through all of the crap (haters) comments...

Good luck!

Cheers,

Jay

 

Read this post below. If the thread is the "do it once thread" then you are going to she'll out for the good stuff and skip the middle step of getting the mid range lift (Ome, 5100 yarda yada)

 

Ok, I read through all 17 pages about the Baja suspension. I'm intrigued, and it definitely sounds like it meets my needs/wants.

I would want to make sure I still have some rake at the rear, however, so what do you suggest with regards to accomplishing that with the least risk of any sort of mechanical failure and most practical/useful application?

I'm thinking that just upgrading the leaf springs might do the trick, but I really don't know much, so clue me in.

 

I like the factory rake as well and will probably buy a 1.5' AAL shortly. I don't tow or load the bed very often so at this point I don't think a full Dakar pack is necessary.

Plus, the AAL is only like $90 vs $400ish. I know everyone says an AAL is just a band-aid, but it's pretty easy to put in a full pack down the road if I ever need to.

http://toyteclifts.3dcartstores.com...af-for-Tacoma-with-rear-TSB-springs_p_16.html

I should have really put in the AAL at the time of the Baja install, but oh well.

Just don't do a block, as easy/tempting as it is.

Cheers,

Jay