GA Tacoma Owners BS Thread

Thanks man! After owning it for almost 24 hours I took it up to Sarah's creek. Did the main trail all the way out to the dead end. Even with no lift and very mild AT Goodyear wrangler tires it preformed flawlessly . Any time I started to spin I'd back up, turn on the locker, and crawl right up it. It had snowed so the clay and slush was slippery. It was a really good time. But I did break the trailer hitch wiring hook up. I know should have relocated it but I was excited and forgot. I also haven't even removed the dealer stuff off of the window. Slacker I know. It was dark when I got home last night and then we headed out as soon as we woke up.

 

I know videos never do it justice and I wish we filmed or took photos of the climb up this. It was steep and rutted pretty deep.
PS. It wouldn't let me post the video for some reason so this is a screen shot.

 

I think the only way to post videos is to post them to YouTube or some other video hosting service, and then embed the link in your post.

In any case, glad you're enjoying the new truck. The 7-pin relocate should be a piece of cake, get you one of those combo ones with the 4-pin already built in while you're at it, like @CowboyTaco has lined up.

 

Heck yeah!!! Will have to get out and ride soon!! Looking forward to adding some new people to our crew. We went up Tray mountain last night while it was snowing and I've gotta say that was an experience took us two hours to get down the mountain because visibility was minimal.

 

I bought this one (

$31 Hopkins Towing Solutions 48470 Endurance Multi-Tow Vehicle Side Connector

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004N5U7DS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) for like $17 when it was marked down. I haven't drilled the hole in my bumper yet to mount it, but it looks really easy to get everything connected. That project has gone from "let me get all the parts so I can eventually do this" status to "in the queue." I'm not sure there is much difference in the two status, but I'm getting to the point of it needs to be done. I've got 2 or 3 relatively easy house projects to start/finish and I think the trailer harness on my truck will be after those.

And yes, YouTube has been the best way that I know how to embed a video.

 

I don't think I have either, but he had one side loose so it wouldn't be a bad idea. Also, locktite will act as a rust inhibitor. I have had to cut u-bolts due to seized nuts.

Nice avatar. Much mo betta than the previous.

I vote for all at once. If you are anything like me, you go through waves of motivation to do stuff on the truck. If I don't do it when I can, it might end up on a shelf for longer than planned. And then you have something you spent money on that you aren't enjoying.

Also, time to update your profile info since the 08 is no more.

 

I am considering a leveling kit. I am currently running 265/70/R17s. I do not want to buy new tires, so I am considering either a 2/1 lift or simply raise the front 1".
Anyone have any advice?

 

What's your budget?

 

However much it takes to do it right. I've been told a spacer would help but that it would also make the ride worse.

 

Definitely a Fox stage 4 kit!

 

A pretty affordable option that is much better than a spacer lift would be 5100's with 884 or 885 springs and an add a leaf in the rear. I think the better options after this jump pretty substantially in price.
So really it comes down to how much you want to spend.

 

I guess it depends on your definition of “right”. When I did my lift on the Taco, my “right” was replacing all four shocks with 5100’s, AAL in the back, the Headstrong lift coils up front. Ride was pretty good, and it didn’t break the bank. I chose not to go with a block/spacer for a couple reasons. 1) the potential ride quality/handling, as you mentioned, and 2) my stock shocks had 160k on them anyway. Whole kit with the coilovers pre-assembled from HS was less than $800 if I remember right. Installed in half a day with @BYJOSHCOOK.

That being said, the previous owner of my Ford put a 2” spacer up front. Ride is pretty decent, granted it’s the only way it’s ridden for me since it came with the truck. Of course, it might be apples to oranges since obviously the Taco and the F150 are entirely different beasts.

 

By "right" I mean I don't want to do it the cheap way (spacer) and then suffer ride quality. There may be many solutions to doing it the right way, so maybe a better term is "I want to do this in a proper way that won't reduce ride quality or truck reliability."
Thanks for all of the suggestions so far. The Fox State 4 sounds expensive right off the bat, so I'll put that towards the bottom of the list.

 

I think I was all in on my 5100/885 combo and aal for less than $550 and it rode better than stock.

 

Yeah. I was being totally sarcastic. It's way up there in cost.

The best riding lift that I've experienced, keep in mind that all of my experience is with the 2nd gen, was Bilstein 5100s all around, OME 885 springs up front (no extra weight on the truck), and OME Dakar leaf pack in the back.

I helped a buddy install that on his and was immediately mad at how much better his lift rode than my Toytec BOSS adjustable coilovers cost.

My personal opinion is to avoid blocks like the plague. Also, you'll likely want a full leaf pack over an AAL, so I'd go with a full leaf pack up front. Many will say that an AAL is perfectly sufficient, but I went that route and later upgraded to a full pack; so take that for what its worth.

OME Dakar: ~$500
OME 885x front springs: ~$170
Bilstein 5100s: ?

I'd highly recommend Headstrong Off-Road (@HeadStrong Off-Road) for a combination of price and customer service. https://www.headstrongoffroad.com/s...ffroad.com/store/c98/2016__Toyota_Tacoma.html

They even have a kit: https://www.headstrongoffroad.com/s...tein_5100_Kit_w/_Dakars_(HS16BK-1-Dakar).html

Of course, you could always get just the bilstein front shocks and set the coil bucket on a higher preload setting. That'll get you a decent front lift without having to replace anything else and get you "level." Then you could upgrade the springs and rear leafs later. You won't break the bank and you don't waste any money buying parts that you discard when you upgrade later.

 

Depending on how much drop I get from the bumper and winch (that fucker is heavy), I might be in for an upgrade up front.

 

Do any of the newer models Tacomas or 4Runners have this button? It's the only thing I like about my rental and wish my Tacoma had it

 

What does it hold? Tendies?

 

I love that button on the Toyota rentals I've had, so convenient

 

Keeps you from idling forward (ie if you’re in stop/go traffic).