Bah. It's time for a new suspension.

So, I've been putting this off a bit, but...

Truck is stock. As far as I can tell, everything under it is OEM, or close enough (I think the previous owner had a cat stolen, one has a heatshield and the other doesn't, looks like the one without was welded on...)

So, the frame is rust free, but the suspension... Is not. Front shocks, at the bottom where they bolt to the LCA, is rusting. It's not terrible rust, but it's more than just surface rust. I thought I had a balljoint issue, but I noticed that the swaybar endlink has ejac-- Uh, ejected all of the grease all over the endlink.

The rear suspension is sagging, squeaking, squealing, and making all kinds of neat noises.

So... I think it's time to redo the suspension. What I want is an offroad oriented suspension with minimal lift (2" front, 2.5" or 3" rear), or no lift, but is softer than OEM suspension. I do a lot of light offroading, mostly dirt trails, nothing overly serious (I very rarely actually need 4WD, but there's a few sections that require 4LO and Difflocker to get through). Other than that, it's a commuter.

Is there a front spring setup that can give me a slight lift while also being softer than OE? Shocks, I'm guessing Bilsteins are the way to go, but I have the same question for the rear... A leaf pack that gives a slight lift, while also being softer? And struts, again, I'm guessing Bilsteins?

Should I do UCA's while I've got everything torn apart? I'm probably going to rebuilt the driveshaft as well, since that's making neat noises as well.

 

The minimum to consider is 6112/5160 Icon RXT etc

 

One cat having a heat shield and the other one not is stock on my truck. Just look for the Toyota logo on the one without to see if it is stock.

For shocks I would think maybe Eibach pro shocks (not the sport) with a spring lift. From what I hear they ride softer than OEM Bilsteins and going for other Bilsteins will only give a more stiff ride.

 

Any suggestions for springs?

And yeah, I'm not worried about the cat, I've had no problems with any P042X codes. I'm probably going to remove the remaining heat shield and engrave my VIN, paint bring yellow, and maybe engrave local PD's name on the cats as well.

The last question is... If I do have a balljoint going bad, should I get balljoint deletes?