Suspension Upgrades - No lift wanted

You might want to ask this over in the Gen 2 section. Unless they are high mileage, the shocks should be OK but I know nothing about Gen 2 TRD springs.

 

Those wheels

 

I did a complete chiropractic adjustment on my suspension front and back yesterday evening and man what a difference. I dropped the front end down some which does create a little more rake but it rides noticeably better. Also found the rear end Deaver swap that one side was almost 1/8" off from the other. And, I had noticed that I was leaning a 1/2" on the left front and also on the right rear so that is gone. Sitting at 36 1/2" front now and 38" in back but like this ride so much better and the bump steer hitting a bump as I was coming to a stop is gone.

General update: The Boss COs are fine but I won't buy them again. In addition to not being rebuildable and you cannot even check the shock pressure if you suspect a problem, despite the double plastic ring adjustment setup, supposed to be a lock ring [??], but those COs will actually move over time so it obviously doesn't work well. Need a set screw or something? The Deavers, however, are still the best improvement I've made ride wise and I still haven't put my Firestone airbags on because those Deavers still handle 700-800 lbs. without problems. Now, if I was doing that every day, I would put the bags on but only doing that several times a year, it is not necessary. The 5125 Bilsteins in back seem to be holding up fine.

 

I was super unhappy with the suspension in my 2015 sb with shell. I also did not want much of a lift as I am limited by my home garage. I ended up doing days of research and decided to buy a pair of struts of a 2017 trd sport that the owner lifted. This gave me 1" of additional front height and while I was at it I thru in a toytec spacer on the drivers side to combat taco lean. The new struts are sprung heavier and in my opinion provide a ride quality that the sec gen's should have come with from factory. In the rear I added the icon progressive add a leafs with over load left in as I occasionally Pack a load. I am super happy with this set up and can't believe how much better it is over stock. Drives and handles like a dream.before and after pic below!

 

@canonmutant I know this is an old post but just checking to see if you ever added the Firestone Airbags to your rig and if so how you like them? I have an 04 prerunner and I put the 17" TRD Pro rims on it a few months back and it rubs just a little bit on the front so I am planning on adding a 1-1.5in lift in the front via OME 880 springs (500lb) and 5100's. And in the back I am looking at the J59's but my problem is I put 800-1200lbs in the back of my rig every few months so I would need bags with them so that's why I was wondering if you ever did your install and how it went? Thanks in advance for the info...

 

No, they are still new in the box. The springs handle 700-800 lbs OK and I have rarely carried more than that so just never got around to putting on the bags.

 

Canonmutant,

What would you go with instead of the Boss COs?

Looking to do something similar.
I have an 03 tacoma double cab RWD auto V6. stock 16" wheels.
Have a cap and about 100lbs I carry around all the time.
Tow a small trailer which holds about a yard and a half of dirt.
I would like to carry 800-1000lbs at times.
Thinking of replacing my trailer hitch and was thinking it might be worth it to replace the back bumper with something beefier and with a hitch built right in.
Would like to replace the front bumper(rotted) but they cost to much. Would build it myself if I had the time.
As I was reading all the various threads on this subject, this is about what I've come up with for parts and trying to think it out.

Was thinking of Alcan but they want 7-8 weeks at a cost of $841.00 plus shipping. Pretty high price. No lift and 200lb over stock weight capacity, and will come with bushings.
Lew at alcan said that is for 8 leaves. (Adventure Taco only has 6 leaves with a lot of weight) So not sure how he arrived at 8 for me.Will need to speak to him because that seems like to many.

Alternatively thinking of the J59 Deaver or Daker.

Looking at the Wheeler website as I'm writing this.
The Daker has 6-7 leaves for $378.30 for the pair. Another $100 for an extra leaf.
Anyone know how Alcan vs Deaver vs Daker vs All Pro compare quality wise and differences?
Have not looked into how long it will take to ship them.
The website say's, Dakar Series Springs EL122RA and

$260 EL122RB ARB EL122RB

EL122RB provide approximately 2.25" lift on a '98-'04 Tacoma PreRunner and 4x4.Which I don't want. Would like to keep it stock as close to possible.

Still trying to figure out what rear shock to go with whatever springs I settle on. Alcan suggested Bilstein 5100.

For the front I was thinking of either the OME 881 or 883. One is 500lb spring rate and the other 588lb spring rate. Both 14.76 free height.
I know your dealing with a 650lb spring rate. Would you lean more towards the 500 or 588 spring rate?
Then, it leaves me with figuring out what front shocks.
I do like the idea of being able to adjust the fronts with something like those rings like you have on your Boss CO to make it easy to adjust the height as needed when things settle. But don't like that the adjuster rings move over time.
And I don't like having to calapse the spring to adjust the bilstein 5100.

Wheelers offers a Bilstein 5100 Height Adjustable front shock pair with the OME 881 fully assembled for $452.89 which isn't to far off of what I would pay if I bought everything separate and had to assemble it myself.

Also, I can get a, from what I can tell, OME Complete Suspension System assembled with add a leaf for $1400.66 which includes:
NitroCharger Sport 90004 front and 60062 rear shocks, front coil springs (multiple choices available), Dakar EL122RA/RB rear leaf springs, 95PF5 front trim packer, GS12 greaseable shackles and

$46 OMESB121 ARB Bush Kit OME Shackle Tacoma (OMESB121)

OMESB121, FK21 exhaust hanger, extended stainless rear brake line and U-bolts!
Seems like a good value vs buying them independently, just don't know how those Daker's are to the others I'm looking at.

Anyone know which shocks to choose? NitroCharger vs Bilstein?
The Nitro's are not adjustable so if the front to back height is off I won't be able to easily do anything about it.

Trying to keep track of as many details as possible. Please let me know if I'm missing something.

Thanks for any help.

 

Bilstein 5100s are meant for vehicles with a lift as they offer a bit more travel than stock.

Same for OME Nitrochargers.

OME 881s are also for a bit of lift.

Not to mention J59's and Dakar's.

You're mentioning all the items that will give you a lift.

Keeping it stock height, get Bilstein 4600s front and rear.

For your leaf pack, go General Springs (HD if you're carrying weight) and call it a day.

 

Thanks for the reply.
How much of a lift? Will the lift last over time or settle down?
Since I'm on the original suspension I could use some lift. Just don't want to go to crazy.
Looking more for durability, longevity and quality.
I see that the difference between the 881 and 880 is only about .4 of a lift.
Thanks

 

It's my understanding that the 5100's in the front can be used at stock height on their lowest ring setting, is this correct? I'd thought about using them in the front with my current springs and setting the driver's side one setting up to offset the taco lean at that point on the truck.

 

Can someone tell me what shocks these are?

 

Yes you can with what, OME 880?

Just figured if the poster wants to keep it stock height, why pay the premium when you can get 4600s for a bit less.

 

That was more a question for me instead of the poster. I’ve got the cheapo Moog coilovers on 4600’s up front in mine right now and the drive is fine, but the lean is there. Just installed some Dayton stock height HD’s in the back and those are looking pretty good over the existing 4600’s with my topper on and everything. All trucks are different though, and I agree, I wouldn’t pony up the premium for 5100’s over 4600’s up front in my own truck if I didn’t have that lean going on.

 

you'd be better off getting a small spacer to offset the lean versus paying for the 5100s

may need slightly longer bolts for the "top hat" with the spacer though, nothing too major

 

remember that any "lift" will be over STOCK height. so if your suspension is already sagging then you will notice a drastic increase over the current setup.

the 5100s can be used and raised to give about 3/4" on the first setting (from memory, correct me if I'm wrong) with stock coils as many have done this to "level" the truck (not my liking).

 

Ok,
Are the 5100's a better shock then the 4600?
If I use the 881 and not the stock spring, the spring itself is about .4" higher. Would the 5100 (if it's a better quality shock) bring it up another 3/4" from what the coils are already doing?
Or is the 3/4" lift from the shock part of the coils height?

I realize everything is a compromise to find the right sweet spot between wallet, quality and how one is going to use the truck.

I figured I would shoot for stock height and adjust my preferences based on what others are saying about the quality and combination of the parts being used.

Since I don't have the experience and a reference point to my options of parts needed for this upgrade, I'm trying to rely on and aggregate what other are/have experienced with there setups and saying about the parts to assemble the strongest combination that I will be happy with.
I do want this to be somewhat of an upgrade that will hopefully last me another 140,000 or close.
And yes, anything will be an upgrade from the point of my worn out suspension now.
I feel the job is only as good as the quality of parts going in and they playing well together.

I realize going from a stock spring rate to 500lb is going to make a big difference from what I'm used to. Perhaps even that will be overkill.
Yes, I'm guilty of over building things to get as much longevity as possible out of what ever it is I'm working on.
It's tricky trying to balance ride quality with load capacity and safety.

I see that the front is going to depend on the quality and height and spring rate of the rear leaf spring as well.
Like I tried to ask in my first post...
Can anyone comment on the quality, durability, safety and longevity on the parts in question for my truck?

What does anyone think about the OME Complete Suspension System I mentioned?
If it would work with my 2W drive setup it would make ordering parts simple.

Since there is many variables about height I was hoping I could give myself options by being able to adjust the front shocks to compensate if needed. I did like the spanner wrench idea because of the possible ease of adjustment.
But I seem to loose that option with the 4600 and 5100 shocks anyway at this price point. Are the 5125 a better direction to take even?

Will the rear springs I'm asking about give me the same height as the front setup or throw thinks out of wack?
My week or more of reading all these threads and 30 pages of notes say's I'm getting close to figuring it out based on your real world experiences and I thank everyone for the contributions of insights.

 

short sum up:

5100 and 4600 are the same "internally" so they are not better than the other

stock coils can be used with either. "lifted coils" (the 881s you mentioned) can only be used with the 5100. you CANNOT use lifted coils with the 4600 as they do not have the range/downtravel to support extra height

881 will give you 2-2.5" lift over "stock" ride height. you WILL notice a difference in height and ride quality from what is stock

I got the OME full setup almost 6 years ago now. I went with the Dakars for the rear (no AAL), and the nitrochargers and 881 for the front. I got the full "kit" from @Wheeler's Off-Road Inc and dropped shipped to the house. the fronts are still "stiffer" than I was used to and haven't faded over time (testament to the quality) but have settled about .25" from when I initially put them on

Now that being said I am 4wd so I have some extra weight up front than your PreRunner. I think the recommendation is to go with the 880s unless you plan on going the 4wd conversion route. However many have used the 881s with PreRunners and like them. Maybe I'm getting old but I prefer a little softer ride for my DD but these lifts are more designed for actually going off road (of which I'm lucky to do 10% of the time anymore) so being a pavement only may not justify going with a lift versus keeping stock type components.

 

Read above, Frizzman summed it up.

But it was already shortened to a direct suggestion - Bilstein 4600s and General Springs.

And not even high end coilovers last 140k miles.

Suspension components are wear items, and though they won't "break" if you hit 100k miles on them, shocks don't dampen as well as they used to and springs/leaf packs begin to sag/remain compressed.

Shocks should be replaced at every 50-60k if driving on road.

 

I had my originals on for 132k

Now I'm at 180K but I may just let these ride out as I don't have any issues thus far (other than wanting softer, really wish I could find TRD progressive coils)

 

Thanks,
How much weight can you carry with your setup?

Won't the 880 and 881 be the same stiffness since they are both the same spring rate?
In that kit that you mention, one of the options is the 880.
Does that mean the nitrochargers will fit the zero lift of the 880?

Are the nitrochargers and 5100 about the same build quality and application?

With your setup, is your front and rear level to each other?

Would the Dakers lift the back to much while using the 880 in the front?

Thanks for the help.