REVIEW 3rd gen suspension on 2nd gen

Lots of great info on this thread! Would love to get an opinion on the (poor man's) setup that I am about to install, possibly this weekend.

Purchased 2021 TRD OR Shocks w/preloaded coils and struts with 2k on them. Picked up wheelers aluminum 1/4" top spacer for DS and PS and a 2" add a leaf. I anticipate a bit of settling in the rear with the DCLB (as wheelers stated) and about +/- 1/2" rake. Does this seem right?

 

I think you may have more rear lift than you want with that setup. Figure you’re going up ~1.25” in the front and ~2” in the rear. That should then yield ~0.75” more rake than stock.

Here’s my truck with 3rd gen suspension in the front + a 3/8” thick spacer (~1.75” net lift) and a 1” block in the rear on TSB springs. Theoretically yours would be a half inch lower than mine in the front and a full inch higher in the rear.


I recently installed Bilstein TRD Pro suspension paired with a Headtrong AAL with overload left in. I should check to see if any settling occurred but I actually got almost 2” of lift above where I was with the 1” spacer.

Unless you are looking to increase rake I would consider altering your plan. Maybe more lift in front? Maybe take out the overload leaf to reduce rear lift?

 

Thanks for the feedback, nice looking truck!

I'm debating sending back the single AAL and picking up a progressive AAL as I am not carrying consistent loads, really just on a tight budget. My spring pack is pretty played out with a negative arch. I wonder what taking the overload spring would do...

 

You could always consider a block for the rear but if your existing pack is sagging then that's something you'll want to deal with. The stock pack doesn't have much arch when weighted so what you're seeing might just be normal. I had near new TSB leaf packs on mine when I bought it and they were basically flat when new and had zero sag.

If your leaf pack is saggy then I wouldn't do a block or AAL until you deal with the leaf pack. Not sure about your region but around here you can get 3rd gen take off leaf packs for cheap. There's even someone in the forum right now selling a 3rd gen leaf pack + Headstrong 3 leaf AAL for $100. They're missing the overload but you could pull that from your existing pack if you wanted.

I would not remove the overload spring unless you're doing an AAL and want to reduce the amount of lift. This seems to work for a lot of people. Personally, I like the extra lift and I fairly regularly carry semi-heavy loads so definitely don't want to be without the overload.

 

Go bigger than the 1/4. I have 1/2 on both sides and my brother in law is running 3/4 on both sides. I have plenty of rake with the 2 inches in the rear.

 

Hmm from my understating I would have to extend the brakelines?

I think I may swap the single aal for the progressive 1.5” to keep it level and maintain a better ride.

 

You won't need a longer brake line as the shock is the down travel limiting factor and will not allow it to extend far enough to be an issue for the brake line.

An AAL will ride better than a lift block any day and extend the life of your leaf springs. However you are still just adding onto a not so good OEM leaf spring to start with. While the TSB leaf is better than the other, an aftermarket leaf spring will ride better assuming you get a standard load.

However, something else to think about when lifting the rear is that the stock 3rd gen (2nd gen is the same I believe) extended travel is only about 23" (std length 5100's are only 22.94", 5160's 24.06", 5100 B110 27.28" but req other mods). So by adding 1.5-2" of lift in the rear you will be that much closer to the extended travel of the rear shock. That causes 2 issues.... 1. Rough ride since average bumps and railroad track crossings will possibly cause the shock to fully extend and the tire leave the ground. 2. Poor off-road performance as the rear cannot travel down very far and keep the tire on the ground to give you traction. Those 2 points are why I chose not to lift the rear any further when I originally installed the 3rd TRD OR suspension.

 

do you actually need longer shocks for the AAL? i dont offroad other than lots of forest service roads.

 

I haven't heard that yet... I would be curious to hear people's experience and performance with a progressive AAL (1.5"-2"lift) with 3rd gen suspension.

 

Do you need the 3rd gen UCAs to do this swap?

 

No.

 

My brother in law hasn't had any problems but he is not an extreme off-roader. He has been to the off-road park a couple of times and came back in one piece.

 

Do you NEED to, nope. But just know that if you have a rough ride or notice that traction while flexing the suspension isn't as good as it was when the rear was stock height, that is probably your issue. I was more or less just giving you a heads up. There are plenty of people that lift the rear and don't touch the shocks ever and fine.

 

got it thanks

 

I have those 3rd gen TRD Sport front suspension coil overs if anyone wants them for cheap. Got some Icons off a totalled truck the other day.

 

Was it hard to get the front struts in since they are longer?

 

Nope. Zero issues.

 

They aren't any longer, just that the spring is a higher load rating which gives you the lift. It's a pretty easy, if you have done brakes you can do this pretty easily.

 

Awesome! yea I've changed brakes and struts before on my vehicles, glad to hear its just plug and play. Cheers!

 

Hey guys, about to pull the trigger on a suspension from a 2020 off-road and am planning on installing it on my 2015 base model. Figured it would be a nice ride upgrade, as well as give me that 1" in the front.

The seller claims the suspension only has 2k miles on it, but kinda looks more worn that that? But idk I don't really know what I'm talking about, but see attached pics!

I shouldn't need anything else other than the shocks, struts, and ucas correct?