2016 OR Suspension Upgrade (Off-Road/Overland) Recommendations

Hey folks,

So I've got a 2016 Off-Road that I've set up for overlanding, and my next big step is to upgrade the suspension. I've browsed the Googles, searched these forums, looked at different manufacturers, and frankly the amount of information out there is overwhelming, and only some of it makes sense to me even then. I'm hoping some of y'all have first-hand experience and can help guide my planning with regards to my specific wants.

My truck is primarily used on-road, with varying levels of off-roading as time and opportunities permit. It's also done a lot of driving on unimproved and washboard roads, and I expect it'll do a lot more of it in the future (for instance, it's traversed the Dempster Highway in northern Canada, going about 1,000 miles without touching pavement in the process). My truck rarely weighs less than 5600 pounds with the current upgrades and the gear that lives in it, so the factory suspension is definitely unhappy. Money is relatively low on the list of considerations.

My current line of thinking is to go with Icon Vehicle Dynamics:
http://iconvehicledynamics.com/shop/671-2016-up-tacoma

I like what I see here because I get a lift, easily-adjustable damping, extended travel, and external reservoirs for long stretches of rough-road driving. Maybe something like the "Stage 8" kit so I can get entirely new leafs? Or would I be better going with the Stage 9, or instead building a set from individual components instead of buying one of their complete kits? When it comes to the difference between their... *squints* ... "2.5 RR" vs "2.5 RR CDCV" vs "2.5 RR OMEGA" vs "RXT etc"... Now I'm in over my head, and why I'm here asking questions.

I've emailed @Icon_Adrian and gotten a little more info than I could find on their site, but for someone with as limited experience as I have, it's like listening to how a plumbus is made:

Spoiler

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWMGd_rzRdY

Or is there someone else you think I should look at buying from instead?

 

How is plumbus made?

 

This is exactly how I felt before upgrading my suspension. While I don't have the most experience, I have driven a 2017 Tacoma with 2.5" Kings with adjusters and now have a few hundred offroad miles and a few thousand on road miles on my Fox 2.5" with DSC adjusters.

Here are my thoughts in going with Fox over King or Icon and again I'm no expert. I found this link pretty helpful in choosing a base line for what I wanted: https://accutuneoffroad.com/articles/digressive-vs-linear-vs-progressive-pistons-shock-valving/

"Digressive shocks are bad at small bumps and large bumps, but good at handling and g-outs. Progressive shocks are good at small bumps and big hits, but bad at handling and g-outs. Linear shocks provide the best all around performance."

After reading this and knowing my driving and trails I like, I knew it had to be a Linear setup. This led me down the road of King or Fox. I really like my buddy's truck with King's (@BoogeySquish). Driving his truck everything just felt super planted and controlled and hitting bumps was much more controlled than the stock setup I had on my truck at the time.

However what clinched the decision for Fox's for me were 2 things:

1. Materials used - I read in a few places that the choices in metal used on the Factory Race Series Fox shocks would last through moisture and salty air (I live by the beach) longer than King. Who knows if this is true, but coming from the Bike industry and knowing a bit about aluminum vs steel vs titanium components on bikes, I trust it.

2. The DSC adjusters. King shocks have 1 type of adjustment, a knob adjusting the ride from softer to firmer. The Fox's have a 2 way adjuster, using a knob for low speed compression and a knob for high speed compression. The minimal difference in price between King vs Fox lead me to go for Fox for the "better" materials and the more advanced adjusters.

I hope this helps some! Also make sure to talk with your local off road shop (perhaps they will be doing the install for you?) about what system and exact setup will best suit your ride. After talking things over with the pros I felt a lot better about the decision making process.