Oahu Members Thread

I hear ya...It's kind of a controversial topic on the forums as to whether they are really needed for 1-3" lift. It does however lower the differential down lower which may expose it to hitting an object off-roading more so than without. I don't think I'll ever do anything really crazy off-road, but accidents happen! And then I have to replace the whole differential as oppose to just replacing a CV joint if if ever needs it (Which are cheaper than a differential... I'm still hemming and hawing over the whole ordeal as to whether it's the right decision. The alignment between the CV joint and differential is an added benefit for longevity I understand. Seems to be a 50/50 split on the topic. Bullaculla (Iven) doesn't use it on his and said it would probably be better if I didn't use it. I'm not experienced enough in Off-roading to ascertain as to whether this is the right choice to make. I guess I'll think about it some more

 

Here's the controversy:

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/118545-remove-differential-drop-your-05-tacoma.html

 

Yeah, I'm not installing them on my truck

Ricks spacers are a full inch, so it is hitting his factory skid (splash guard) and the rear will not bolt all the way down. The front holes line up fine since there is so much room for the skid to move around, it just looks like they started the bolt at a bad angle. If you look at the pics in the above link, the location of the spacers will mostly rotate the 3rd member and lower it very slightly. Someone did some triangulation a few pages in, and best case scenario, it will improve the CV angle by 1 degree or so. Not worth it to me.
CV boots are cheap, but replacing them is messy.

 

Ryan...I've had the Fabtech spacer kit on for about a month now. I just don't like the way it feels. The shocks are almost fully extended with the 3" lift so there's not much travel and I want better travel for Off-Roading. It feels really bumpy going down the road although I know the Icon suspension will probably be similar, but allow for a more off-road capability than my spacer lift. Looks wise...it's freaking awesome! But I just didn't get the truck for looks...I want to play in the dirt...lol Plus the stock UCA's don't give me the proper Caster I need for better handling. My steering is looser (Not a lot), but it's not like it was at stock, so I think the newer UCA's from Icon will allow a better Caster adjustment. Not sure how you feel about yours?

 

Thanks for weighing in Iven! He's my goto guy...lol When, and if, I need to replace a messy CV joint, I'm sure Iven will be there to support me... As long as I bring beer of course...haha And an extra set of hands and back...haha My back is shit too Iven just so ya know! We'll have to rotate (Tag team) on the suspension project. You're not a slave, but a great guy who loves helping out and working on Taco's... It's much appreciated!

 

Rick, I'm pretty sure your spacers are revtek

 

^^^^^^What he said...

 

Ordered one of these

Bling!!!!

Off course I'm gonna paint it black though...PlastiDip

 

LOL! Does your back have these awesome titanium screws, rods and screw jack too?

 

Damn iven you were born in 75? Haha

 

Fuck you.

 

old man

 

Wow Ivan

 

that looks...fun

 

Holy SHIT! Wow bro and only your quads were killing you today lol

 

Yeah, I saw that thread, way too much bs in there! Somehow the OP thinks that his driving didn't cause the damage and the diff drop was to blame... it does provide a little benefit, a very small one at that, at the cost of lowering the diff mounting brackets. Its all up to you. The lift angles make more wear to the cv, and the boot will likely fail before the cv joint does anyway. They would be easier to replace as Iven said. Just have to figure out which is the lesser of the evils for you. Just don't think that one guy bashing his frontend into a rock means that diff drops are at fault.

Sorry, idk anything about icons... the ucas should have a different caster setting that the stock, but I don't think that they are adjustable. I have the SPC ones which aren't as heavy duty, but they have adjustable caster and camber. If I remember correctly, the revtek has a top plate spacer in conjunction with a coil spacer on stock shocks. Don't know if you'll get more travel but the ride should be better. My toytec doesn't really add any travel.

 

Crawled under the truck to see what kind of damages I got while out at Kaena. Shitty driving, no spotter, trying to go around the deep stuff.
Scraped the passenger slider from the drivers door all the way back, dragged the diff, somehow scraped the overload leaf, tailpipe, shackle mount, tow hitch, and receiver as well. Thank God for Iven's harness plug relocate bracket! Time for the paint/rust stripper and the rattle can!

 

we measured CV angles before/after a diff drop on a 2nd gen and noticed a 0 degree change

mike's point was that they have no benefit but add another variable to become a damage multiplier should you wheel; so overall they have no value.
He's sponsored/raced his truck so he knows what he's talking about

even with mine (i had a toytec diff drop installed) I noticed pretty much no difference. The only reason I havent taken mine off is 100% laziness. lol

all uniball UCA's have built-in added caster to them since they have more movement than the stock ball joints

and you won't get any added travel from oem-replacement coilovers, you'll only see gains from extended coilovers paired with aftermarket UCA's (mid travel vs "lift")

 

Sounds like time for more ground clearance to me

 

Rick (squint) has ICON extended travel coil overs and shocks on the way so he will be joining the mid travel crowd also
I got 2" more down travel with my fox MT lift, with the same amount of stuffage. ICON should be similar.
This is what he ordered. Fucker got free shipping too...
https://trdparts4u.toyotaofdallas.com/Scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=-9323

Ryan, glad the bracket saved you some damage. If you check my bracket thread, one guy just mangled the tow receiver, but harness was fine.