Moderate Lift on a Moderate Budget

I plan on lifting my prerunner this summer. Is this ambitious considering I only have $300 to my name as of now? Yes. Do I care? No haha.

The plan is simple, do things right the first time so I don't have to redo in 3 years. I do not plan on spending 4k on suspension for a truck that is worth 10k like 40 year olds in a midlife crisis with too much money for Fox suspension. I also do not plan on spending 200 bucks for spacers like some trashbag teen in a squatted silverado.

The writeup for the Parts:

• Front Shocks x2
  $149 Bilstein 24249928 Shock Absorber
  Click Here
• Front Coils
  $214 Old Man Emu 2883 Coil
  Click Here
• Rear Shock Left
  $104 Bilstein 5100 Series 96-04 Toyota Tacoma Rear Left 46mm Monotube Shock Absorber (33-247724)
  Click Here
• Rear Shock Right Click Here
• Leaf Pack
• Leaf Bushing Kit x2
  $40 ARB Bush Kit OME Shackle Tacoma (OMESB121)
  Click Here
• Extended Rear Brake Line
• Shock Top Hat x2

Not unreasonable by any means, just trying to make the most of my hard earned money. Totals out to around $1300. May be more if I need a shop to assemble shocks, but I don't know yet. By the way, this is roughly a 3 inch lift. Feel free to mention anything I forgot because I am a 17 y/o who is pretending to know what I am doing.

 

What front coils are you planning? You've got upper control arms twice. Are you planning on putting in an add a leaf for the back?

Understand you might get 3" more distance from the ground to your frame rail, but springs settle and it'll lessen over time. Bigger tires are the only thing that actual lift the vehicle

 

Thank you, I linked the wrong thing. Yes I know springs settle. I have a rake, so I took into account the rear not rising as much to level the truck out. I do plan on bigger tires too, this is just for me to keep track of the suspension components.

 

I'd also think of maintenance items. Do whiteline bushings in the lower control arm, and new lower ball joints if they haven't been done recently/regularly.

 

Is that something I can do on my own or do I need a shop to do it. Preferably on my own so I can learn to do it and replicate again in the future(aka low budget don’t wanna pay shop).

 

That all depends. I'd say generally all the suspension work on these trucks is very doable for the average DIY'er. But keep in mind certain jobs will require a bit more than the average set of sockets and wrenches, so buying tools can quickly increase your total budget (unless you've already got access to a wide array of tools).

 

Fortunately since I am still in highschool I can leech off of some of my dads tools (extensive amount because he’s an engineer). But I still have my own set and will look into more tools as I go through the process.

 

There are some thorough youtube videos for doing these things on our exact trucks. I suggest watching a bunch of em and seeing if it's something you feel confident as DIY.


The other thing I thought of is new top hats and paying a shop to assemble the coil over... watch failed spring compressor videos on YouTube and you'll understand why I say that.


EDIT This is what I mean by tophat

 

Thank you so much. The link you sent has an option for extended studs. I don’t need that unless I were to put a spacer up there right?

 

Not to my knowledge no. You will need to have those front shocks set at the lowest setting with those 883s. Do NOT stack lifts.

 

Yes of course. I was planning on the springs doing the lifting and not the shocks. The other way around sounds like premature wear. I think I was just making sure I just need the non extended studs. The only spacer I’m considering is a 1/4 on the front wheels for 15’s if they don’t clear calipers.

 

What's your reasoning behind replacing the upper arms? Unless you need to replace the bushings in the upper arms, and it's easier for you to just replace the whole arm (and ball joint) instead, the OEM arm is fine. There is a big misconception that you NEED to replace the upper arms with a lift. I am unsure how that started, but it's not true. I ran OEM arms for 20 years with 2.5" of lift. You only need to replace the arms if you can't get a proper alignment (which really comes down to the tech doing the job).

There is also a MevoTech part number that is the same as the SPC arm for a much lower cost. So you might want to do your research on that, and hit rock auto for those rather than pay more money for the same part. (edit, those part numbers are: CMS861192 and CMS861193, but they don't appear on rock auto anymore, but it does look like you can get them elsewhere)

In general though, skip the arm unless you need it.

 

i feel seen.

 

Check Hellbent Steel. Com for front spacer. Less than $100. Spacer blocks for rear. People dont like them but cheap along with shackles.

 

You can get by without the UCA's. I did this exact lift without new UCA's and it worked fine. You may want to get new OEM, lower and upper ball joints, tie rod ends, and look at a poly bushing kit for the steering rack (they don't cost much).
The OME coils are good but I prefer the Eibach springs like these. They don't have the harshness of the OME's.

 

Thank you I don’t really want UCAs I just hear ppl say I do. Have you had both springs?

 

I've had both. They are both better than stock, but I like the ride of the Eibach's better than the OME's. Just my impression

 

Thank you, is there a big price difference?

 

I'd pass on the SPCs.

And is there no kit you can buy that would save you from buying these individually? There was a few years ago when I did it..

 

The Eibachs in the link I posted looked like they are a little cheaper than the OME's you listed in the original post.