new to toyota fam

Hello Toyota family! I just picked up a 04 Toyota Tacoma prerunner 2wd reg cab with 115k. I got it so i could haul stuff to goodwill, loads of soil ,& commuter. I also grabbed this truck cause i'm having my Cadillac engine rebuilt & painted. I like Toyota trucks looks and durability. Now i have a question about the suspension on these trucks. This truck bounces like i'm on a mechanical bull ride. I have new firestone LT245/70R17 tires, suspension bounce checked out good. Is it just me because i'm so used to a smooth Cadillac ride? I did drive a 1996 dodge sports v6 truck and it was not as bouncy. This truck has lived on the West coast it's whole life. Can it be lowered and still have the hauling power? Should i load ber it to see if the bounce comes out?


good

 

The stock suspension is meh, at least on the TRDs for this gen. It's all in the coils and its spring rate especially if you're trying to haul things.
And yes switching from a Cadillac I'd say you've been a bit spoiled haha.

 

What is the Toyota Family recommendation for shocks,struts,springs & coils?

 

Well there is a plethora of options you can choose from. Are you looking to lift it as well? Doing anything to the rear?
Lower end options - bilstein and some other brand I can't think of
Mid options - Old Man Emu (OME)
Higher end - icon, fox, King, ADS

 

I don't want to go higher. Would like to either go lower or stay same but to stop the bounce out of it. To me it feels like im 4x4 ing it the city streets. It does buck to much i believe.. Had a friend who is a Jimmy truck guy test it, he said it was a little bouncy,load bear it to see if that helped, also said if shocks were new might take time to wear in but i dont think they are new. looked at back shocks today they say toyota on them bounce checked and where stiff.

 

Welcome and good examples from above^^Dereck!

 

Cost for a smoother ride i will pay the price! These pics of my shocks and springs say Toyota on them so i'm going to say they are originals so it would be time to replace them. What am i looking at in parts cost do u think? That is the whole suspension with the leafs.

 

Interesting, I guess that's what the regular cabs came with. My 03 TRD double cab stock had blue tokico shocks.
Depending on what you get I would say anywhere from $300-900

 

thanks for letting me pick ur brain TashcomerTexas..

 

Haha anytime
From the looks of your first pic it appears that your truck might have a slight lift on it, that or I'm going crazy.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/bilstein-4600s-new.390710/#post-10901451

 

you will need to get these too cause the bilstein 4600 front struts don't come with new bushings for the top stem of the strut

 

You could also use p-rated tires (more flexible sidewalls) rather than LT-rated tires. Thats what I did. I sacrificed some load capacity, and durability. After 4 years of offroad and onroad driving, no issues yet.

More weight in the back would help. Those single cabs are very lite.

 

Now when you say "mechanical bull ride" i think dead shocks. shocks are supposed to do as they describe, absorb shock. if the shocks are truly dead, you really will get a mechanical bull ride feel. the truck will be extremely bouncy and will not settle til 3 or so upward/downward strides. good shocks will not allow any stride at all. you push the vehicle down at a wheel, it comes back up slightly above resting point, and settles down to resting point nice and easy, that is it. bad shocks will bounce up, fall down, bounce up, fall down, and bounce up a final time with maybe 1 more downward/upward sway. you can find some youtube video examples about the "bounce test" that is normally done to check shocks.

aside from this, you have a truck. it is going to be very stiff suspension because it's meant to be loaded and ride very well while loaded.

 

of course i did the bounce test one and a half, but is it suppose to buck like a BMX bike "BRONCO" move? lets not get off topic what are the good shock names and model numbers for this year truck?

 

Spacer/block lift?

 

Guy who I bought it from said it wasn't lifted. I definitely do not know..

 

Think you're used to the Caddy suspension. Trucks bounce a little bit, but that's what makes them fun! Welcome to the forum!

 

Well what about seats this has a bench?

 

If you're coming from a cadillac to a Tacoma you're going from driving a couch to driving a tank. These trucks in my opinion are some of the hardest riding on the road next to 3/4 and 1 ton trucks. A pre runner may be a bit better than my 4x4 but I'm not sure. It's the harshest riding vehicle I've ever had, and that's saying a lot because my drift car is on cut springs and low profile tires and it rides like a cloud compared to my truck. I don't really mind, just an observation. For suspension I run Bilstein 5100s and Eibach coils, it's really common on lower end trucks like mine around here, but will add 2.5 inches of lift if you use the coil + strut combination. I like them so far personally. And what I think of when you say bouncy is the rear tires coming off the ground over bumps and skidding left or right. On my old crappy KYB rear shocks that was a big problem. Almost put me into bridge once because the rear of my truck got air and skidded right. Never happened again after the Bilsteins.