All-Pro 3" Leafs Sag When Loaded – AAL or New Pack?

Looking for advice on my rear spring setup. Truck is a 2015 Tacoma TRD Off-Road (manual) with:

• Total Chaos +2 LT kit
  
  
• King 2.5s w/ clickers (front & rear)
  
  
• All-Pro 3" rear leaf springs
  
  
• Bay Area Fab rear hangers & Dirt King relocation
  
  
• 35s on SCS wheels
  
  
• Aftermarket bump stops, no sway bar
  

During the week I run empty and it rides great. But recently purchased a new tent set up and on weekends I load it with:

• iKamper + rack (~400+ lbs)
  
  
• Cooler, tools, spare, gear
  

With the load, my rear leafs flatten out and I’m left with about ½" of bump stop clearance. The truck rides noticeably rougher, and I can tell the shocks don’t have much room to work with the sag.

I’m trying to decide between:

1. Adding a 1.5" AAL to support the weekend load
   
   
2. Swapping to a heavier spring pack
   
   
3. Leaving it alone and just being careful when loaded
   

Goal is to keep it plush when unloaded but safe and controlled when fully packed. Would like to hear from anyone with a similar setup or thoughts. Appreciate the input.

 

Plush unloaded is going to mean you need airbags. No way to get a plush ride and the ability to load up 700 pounds and not be in the situation you're in. You can do day star cradles if you're worried about articulation.

 

Which spring pack? I'm running a very similar build to yours with similar weight, and I have a good 2.25" up travel before bump contact on the AP Expedition 2.0 pack.

 

Appreciate the input — makes sense for a lot of builds, but airbags aren’t really a great fit with my long-travel setup. Even with cradles, they tend to limit flex and don’t hold up well off-road.

I’ve thought about just leaving the rack and tent on full-time to keep the ride consistent, but that’s not ideal either — especially when I hit the dunes or want to keep things light.

Trying to strike a balance without going full HD spring pack. Still leaning toward a good AAL for now, but open to hearing what’s worked for others running LT with part-time loads.

 

Dude your build is sick. I’ve looked into the AP Expedition 2.0 before and it definitely seems like a solid option.

I’m currently running the regular All-Pro 3" pack. Unloaded I’ve got around 2.5" of up-travel, which feels great, but once I’m fully loaded with the tent, rack, cooler, and gear, I lose about 2" and end up with maybe half an inch or basically riding the bumps. The ride suffers and the Kings don’t have much room to work.

Do you think adding a leaf to my current pack would get me close to what you’re seeing? Or is that just a limitation of the base All-Pro spring? Appreciate your insight man.

 

How does that handle when your truck is empty, though? I'm running a similar rear leaf pack with my Deaver U402 Expedition Stage 3 (3" lift with 1000 pounds) and I feel like I barely have suspension in the back when I'm empty, hahaha. Speed bumps are horrific under 50 mph or so, lol. I mean, they are pretty good over 50, lol, which is maybe what @Jaxon.NW is going for!

 

Thanks for the compliment! If you're alternating between fully loaded for camping, and totally stripped for bombing desert trails, AAL might be your best option, but you'll still be limited on up travel when the bed is full and the tent is mounted. Unfortunately you can't really get the best of both worlds, nor can you valve your shocks effectively for both situations at the same time. I suspect that your spring has more travel and flex than mine, and swapping to a HD pack will cost you some of that, so you'll have to pick your priorities.

Compared to the OP's rig, this truck is never really "empty", since the tent, racks, tanks, recovery gear, etc. stay put all the time. The added cargo weight in the bed and cab can be an additional 3-400 lbs when going out to the mountains or desert, but the ride is pretty similar on pavement, and only mildly stiffer when no cargo is loaded.