Is much of a lift to much of a headache ?

I ran with Rough Country 2.5 extended shocks, Freedom uniball UCAs and the helper leaf with no issues for a few years, however I wanted more height so against all the reviews I added a 1" spacer and shortly after blew a boot, so I removed the spacer and rebuilt the axle and ordered Fabtechs 6" drop bracket lift. Listen to these men and women they know what their talking about.
You can comfortably run stock anywhere up to 2.5" fairly cheap but you will ride like a dump truck and throw off the suspension geometry, your camber and caster definitely suffer.
If you want anything higher then that expect to spend 7K minimum, When done right, your truck can look great and drive great especially if you get SPC UCAs they allow you to get 4+ degrees of caster which is awesome and takes away the dartiness of the first gens.
As to the bearings, the hub bearing wont be affected, you will blow a boot long before a bearing, the needle bearing should be replaced with any amount of lift just because its weak and was never intended for the stress of the axle being on extreme angles.
These are just my opinions form what I've learn working on my own truck, I do all my own work and will customize and change things if I feel they need it.

 

I doubt that Toyota replaces the needle bearing on the TRD Pro models to accomodate the 1" lift in the front. Someone prove me wrong, but saying that replacing the needle bearing no matter the lift increase may not really be accurate.

 

Just because Toyota doesn't do it doesn't mean that it "shouldn't" be done. I think what most have communicated is that it is common knowledge that the needle bearing is a known failure point for those who choose to lift (any amount). Doesn't mean it will fail for everyone; just common knowledge that added angle/stress increases wear/failure rate. My suggestion would be weigh the pro's and con's of what it costs in time, effort, and money to do the needle bearing vs what it would cost in the event of a complete failure.

 

Yeah, Me too. I'd rather replace it if I even think it will be an issue later. Its a 45 dollar part.
That's chump change, and prevents FOD from going into the case.
The needle bearing is a really bad choice for that location period.

I asked a Toyota Mechanic about this and was told its common on any sort of lift.
My sales guy and the mechanic both indicated that Toyota will NOT honor a warranty claim if its not a factory lift,
but will honor and repair it if the lift is factory, so I think the Captain is correct in saying there isn't any difference
between stock and TRD Models.

 

Keep it stock, because stock is cool and you will save a hell of alot of money. Done.

 

I never said it shouldn't be done. Just making the case that Toyota doesn't seem to think it is necessary when lifting the front 1" or less. Otherwise they wouldn't warranty TRD Pro model suspension/differential etc.

 

I think what you're trying to say is, the cost of Toyota changing their design entirely is more than the cost of having to replace a $15 needle bearing on the limited number of trucks that return for warranty work. They absolutely will warranty shitty parts with the same shitty parts, and they do it daily. There's a reason there are TSB's for needle bearing failures; they're a known issue, even with stock trucks. Mine was missing a needle when I replaced it, and that was 100% stock before the lift went on. I've also seen various threads of dealers actually installing the ECGS bushing after numerous failed needle bearings, although most dealers won't mess with installing aftermarket parts. The point still stands though; its a known issue, and we both agree its a good idea to do it.

 

Absolutely. Doing mine with only 1500 miles on the ticker.

 

Is that similar to 2 in the pinky 1 in the stinky?

Asking for a friend

 

small lift is ok without any problems but it gets messy/complicated/expensive if you dream too big.....the tacoma is very good off road just stock

 

5100 Bilsteins set up for a 2/1 lift for 5 years on my 2017 with zero issues!

Oh, and taller pizza cutter tires give you an extra inch lift, under the pumpkins.

 

Once you start having to adjust front and rear heights repeatedly due to increasing weights and use, the process and extra parts becomes just another day.