Lift Kit Advice

Alright so i have a 2013 texas edition tacoma and i have been researching Lift kits for days and still do not know which to buy. I've looked up the rough country $250 dollar 3 inch lift, the pro comp $500 3 inch lift kit, and have even looked at the bilstein 5100's. First off I would like the kit for looks i stay on the roads and i would like to not spend close to 1000 dollars. I do know that what i pay for would be the quality of the product but i can handle a "rough" ride that so many people warn others about. right now my choice is the rough country lift and i dont really like the bilstein 5100s because of the confusion of what i need. so if anyone has any advice to what i should do just tell me
thank you

 

Theres a reason its called "Rough" coutry. Not sure why you'd want to put a >$500 lift kit on a $20000+ vehicle. My advice is save for a nice lift. Also search the forum for this topic.. its been discussed to exhaustion and theres a lot of good advice on here. Good Luck

 

Welcome to TW!

If you go 2.5" or higher you are going to need new UCAs to get an alignment, that alone is going to add $400+ to the cost.

Do you know what size tires you want to run?

Are you wanting to lift front and rear? Or have you considered just a 2" leveling kit? (Good on a budget). 5100s are height adjustable in the front, so you could the adjust the front up to 2.5" of lift and reuse your existing springs, reducing cost. Though the preferred method is to replace the springs as well.

https://toyteclifts.3dcartstores.co...able-5100-front-and-rear-5100-shock_p_31.html

 

I have considered the leveling kit and honestly it does sound smarter to buy the leveling kit to save money for a better lift. if i buy the 5100s and my truck is stock which means its leaning toward the front so what should i do for the rear options?

 

If you level (lift the front about 2") you don't need to lift the rear. Personally I don't like level, I prefer the rake so when the bed is loaded it doesn't point nose high. Ideally in the rear I'd look at a 3 leaf progressive AAL for best ride. If ride isn't important you can get the single leaf AAL for significantly cheaper.

If you put an AAL in the rear I'd swap for new springs up front for a good suspension balance front to rear, rather than having a stiff rear and soft front.

Of course you could do 1" rear blocks, but that causes axle wrap and is the least desirable option.

Best options go:
Blocks<AAL<progressive AAL<New leaf pack

 

I went with the 5100's all around set the frond at 1.85 and added a 1" rear block i find the drive just as good as new and maybe a bit better i would highly recommend the 5100's for ride quality and as for axle wrap with a 1" block i have never noticed any issues

 

Buy the lift once and be done, don't do anything for temporary use. What part of Texas are you in?

 

thermat68, what size tires are you running?

 

If all you want is a lift for looks alone and never plan to leave paved surfaces you could simply do a "spacer" lift. They are dirt cheap. I don't have any experience with them but the "Rough Country" brand, from what I've read, has a reputation for being "cheap".

However, if you want a better ride quality and a lift then I'd suggest doing it properly based on everything I've read here on TW since buying my Tacoma.

I ultimately spent a lot of money (for me at least). Just over $2k to do my OME lift with UCA's (since I'm 2.5-3" of lift). I've yet to go "Off-Road" yet but I'd like for the truck to be capable when I get the opportunity!

EDIT: Also keep in mind the higher you lift the truck the greater the likelihood of other issues (CV joints, drivetrain, etc). So simply throwing spacers on alone may not be the whole story.

 

265/70/17

 

So is it possible to add the spacers and the rear blocks then maybe install the coil with the 5100s?

 

The stock coil yes but an OME 885 or something like that in addition to the spacer, hell no.

 

So I'm guessing it would damage the vehicle?
So I could put spacers and blocks and then what could I add on after that?

 

I would not do both the higher you go the more you need to be coscious of drive line angles and alignment my suggestion is to jump on you tube and look at videos of the 5100 ride adjust strut or spacers to decide and better understand your options

 

Are you maintaining stock tire and wheel size?