Probably a series of dumb questions...

...that have most likely been answered here a million times, but here goes. My wife all of a sudden wants to "lift" our 2017 Tacoma TRD Sport and put "bigger tires" on it. I've had Tacomas since they were just called pickup trucks but I've never lifted one. I'm thinking a 3" lift with 33" tires if that's possible. My questions are as follows:

1. Will I need to move brake lines, drives shaft, etc., or will it just bolt on and be good?
2. Is there a recommended 3" suspension lift kit that's affordable and reliable?

That's about it for now. Looking at different combinations and different manufacturers got me more confused that I was before I started researching. This truck pulls a boat on occasion and rarely does any serious off-roading. She wants it to "look good". We're 53 mind you and I've been happy with stock Tacomas since I can remember.

So if these are really elementary questions, please don't flame me too hard. I'm a complete newb when it comes to this stuff. All responses are greatly appreciated.

 

Great info here https://www.tacomaworld.com/forums/suspension.18/

 

255/80-17’s are small 33”s. No trimming needed. Did have to remove the mud flaps.

Keep the front lift to 2-2.5”. Else you may need to deal with UCA. On the rear I did get +2” brake lines.

Edit: to get the full size spare to fit I cut the exhaust off just after the rear axle.

 

If your wife is also asking you to buy a boat…hold on to her.

 

wow, the wife wants a lift....go big or go home.

 

You may want to find out what she on the guilt trip about.

 

Quite the opposite of my wife!

My add-ons come with questions and funding. lol

Ed

****

 

I would talk the wife out of it. Your ride and handling will be negatively impacted for your use.

 

Yep, I know. Truth is, I work from and have put 8000 miles on this truck in the last two years. As a former MX rider, I've been itching to do something in the dirt as I'm too old and broken for MX anymore. Might be good to do some mild off-roading just to get away and have some fun. I read through a lot of the suspension threads and if anything, that brought on more confusion. I could spend a grand and get a decent suspension lift, or I could spent 10 grand. I won't be doing any Dukes of Hazzard stuff so can't justify spending a bunch of cash. Just looking for a reliable 3" lift that won't cost me a bundle but won't leave me stranded either.

 

I went with a 2” lift for my daily that gets wheeled occasionally. Opted for a full Old Man Emu setup. 887 springs up front, Dakar medium duty leaf springs, and their nitrocharger shocks all around. I bought the kit from Toytec and it came with diff drop spacers, and rear brake line spacers. Everything was cake to install.

It does ride better than stock, handles fine, and the height definitely helped off road. The lift allowed me to fit 285/70/17 Falken wildpeak at3w’s, which are a fantastic tire on and off road. I also replaced my stock 16” spare tire-wheel with a 17” FJ Cruiser steel wheel and a 255/80/17 wildpeak that fits in the stock location without modifying the mount or the exhaust.

The lift and tires are both high quality, and cost around 3500 total. I did spend around 600 bucks on SPC upper control arms because the wheels that I have were a bit of a tricky fit. I installed the suspension parts, but I had a shop mount the tires and to the alignment. My goal was to stick to a reasonable budget, but get the highest quality and most complete kit I could find. I also opted to have toytec pre-assemble the front strut assemblies/springs with new top hats so that I could sell all of my stock parts bolt-on ready and was able to recoup about 500 bucks from the takeoff parts.

If I were to do it from your shoes, I’d opt for a 255/85/16 or 255/80/17 depending on wheel size. These are still 33” OD but are a good bit narrower (and a fraction taller than the 285/70 if I remember correctly). If you’re sticking with stock wheels, they should clear frame/UCA/cab mount according to the research I’ve done. That tire size will save you the cost of UCA’s and the headache of fitting a full 285 width under the truck. They’re better in snow, on paper, and still grip well off road when aired down.