I need lift/spacer advice

I just did something similar:
I bought:
Bilstein 5100's- middle setting on the front
General Spring Replacement Leaf Springs
Moog Front Coils
Front Spring Insulators
Toytec Hardware pack
-
All in I spent a tad over $840 on parts and shipping.
I am not a terribly competent mechanic, I rented the spring compressor for free and had the job done in about 12 hours of work. A good mechanic could do it in 3 hours or so. I did have use of a lift which helped alot. Truck rides so much better. If I was going to do it again myself I would pay a shop with the ability to assembly the front struts or buy them assembled. I also did inner and outer tie rods, upper and lower ball joints, sway bar and rack bushings, and installed a rear sway bar in that 12 hours.

I run 265/75R16 BFG KO2's and do not rub anywhere....

It rides stiff- if I was going to do it again I would have ordered the HD rear leaf springs from General Spring and not used the 1" block. The ride got much stiffer when I switched from the Cooper ATP tires to the BFG's which are E load rated.

Overall I am very happy with it.

 

If your on a tight budget spacer lifts would be a good idea. Personally if I had the coin I would do a completely new shock and strut lift kit. I know old man emu is a great company for the price. My 02 Tacoma double cab has spacers. I paid $147 for the kit off eBay. It took me about 2.5 hrs to install bc I have mechanical experience but the lay person could do it in about 4. I am not doing rock crawling but I do get on some pretty rough roads and this kit does great for what I need. Handles fine, but it is stiff and rides a little rougher. Keep in mind that my truck has 160xxx on it and it’s not a brand new truck so rough riding is to be expected. Hope this helps all so.

 

I believe it was old man emu where you had to move the front mount for the leafs 2" forward.

 

Unless you are doing some custom long travel setup, you don’t have to relocate the mounts (shock or spring mounts). Most lift system use the stock mount locations, so you don’t have to worry about it.

The only thing you might need if you get new leaf packs, are longer U bolts. Some leaf packs are thicker than stock, so the longer U bolts will fit around them and clamp to the axle. Other than that, all mount locations can remain stock.

One of the reasons lift springs (that use the stock leaf mounts) typically get stiffer is because they end up with a larger arch (higher lift over the same “length” springs. But getting springs designed from the ground up for that application will still be your best bet for a good ride. Usually, that means more thinner leafs (6, 7, or even 8 leafs), rather than the few thick leafs you see on stock trucks.

There is an option of modifying the rear suspension to use chevy 63” leaf springs, which are a lot longer than toyota leafs, and can provide a moderate lift, smoother ride, and lots of travel. The process is fairly involved since you are completely re-engineering the rear suspension, and I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re not serious about wheeling with it.

 

Thanks.guess I have homework too.. not a hardcore wheeler.just a weekend warrior, i.e. camping and fishing.

 

that’s for 95-97 trucks, and isn’t specific to the brand (all pro has a similar recommendation) since toyota redesigned the rear suspension for 98, but since the OP has a 2002, that doesn’t apply.

 

Oh sweet. I've got a 04.

 

2.5" rough country suspension lift kit. Have 265/70/17. -12 offset, absolutely no rubbing. Think for 05 and up its $60. had mine for 6+ years. Def an option to check out

 

JuSt did front and rear suspension on the wife's 02 prerunner quad cab. Took the 1" block out from the oe leaf pack and put 2.5" lift ome dakars with bilstein 5100. In the front I took out the 1.5" top spacer and put bilstein 5100s set on the 2.5" setting in the oe coil. My rear leafs were sagged out and my struts were blown. With the new setup the ridea is so much nicer. Gained a full 2.5" in the rear from where it was. Lost 3/4" in the front. All the parts plus shipping to ca from toytec was just under $1200.00 . This is mostly a daily driver. Looks good with the lift and drives nice. Hope this helps.