5100's question from a suspension newb

So i need to lift the rear of my taco about 1/2" to eliminate my bro lean (front is a little taller than rear). Can i just get a pair of billstein 5100s and bolt them in? or are there other things i need to consider when upgrading shocks? I've done a lot of work on my truck but never suspension related...

 

No. Rear 5100s do not provide any lift.

 

Shocks don't impact ride height. You'll need to work with the springs or mounts in some way.

The 5100's only 'lift' in the front because they have more than one perch available for the coil to sit on, so by pre loading the coil the truck is lifted. Not optimal, but better than a spacer.

To eliminate your lean, you also have the option of lowering the front.

 

You'll want to get a 1 or 3 leaf Add A Leaf (AAL) to lift the rear

 

Nope. 5100's basically control the rate at which the spring compresses and rebounds. You'll need to actually add something to the spring in order to correct what you're describing. 2nd gens are known for crappy leaves in the rear. I had mine replaced less than 6K miles ago under recall and they appear to have developed some sag in that time. The cheapest approach is to AAL(add a leaf). The more desirable, and significantly more expensive, approach is to replace the entire leaf pack for both sides. Probably not the answer you were hoping for, because this is one of those times when there are cheap ways to fix this, and then there are good ways to fix this...but there are no ways to fix this which are both cheap AND good at the same time. All that having been said, plenty of people are satisfied with AAL...but even those arent exactly free. Just my two cents.

 

AH. I read the description again, they talk about rear 5100's for taco's with 0-1" of lift, which means its for a lifted truck, not that it's going to provide the lift. Dang i thought i had a really easy solution here. Ill look into an AAL, would be nice for towing anyway.

 

If you tow or haul anything more than an empty bed, you will want to skip the AAL option and get replacement leaf packs.