After new tires and shocks, ride has bounce and vibration, is this normal?

Yeah so getting an alignment right away after a suspension install is dumb. The shit needs to settle, as evidenced by your numbers being out the 2nd time. And depending on your caster setting, your truck could be pretty squirly going down the road. Most alignments are done quickly, "toe and go" so to speak, and caster is generally on the low side. I'd bet your truck is in the low to mid 2s for caster.

I think of these things as "tolerance stackups". You toss a bunch of stuff at your truck all at once, and what little is off in each aspect adds up to shitty driveability.

Post up an SOS on the Florida regional threads and you'll get someone to help you out I'll bet. Or at least recommend a good garage in your area.

Good luck my friend!

 

and...

your upper and lower control arm fasteners should be torqued at something approximating ‘ride height’, not while it’s hanging on the rack at ‘full droop’ then dropped on the ground.

your arm bushings may be hyper-torqued, ultra-twisted and mega-strained, thereby counteracting your other squishy gizmos.

 

Oooooh, that's another good point. I've read some pretty gnarly horror stories from people who torqued their suspension fasteners with the tires in the air.

A good shop will know better.....but.......

 

Make sure before you put up an request for help you read the forum rules, don't want to get in trouble

 

I you moved up to E rated tires the ride is going to be a little rougher. They are designed for 3/4 ton trucks with 7000 lb curb weights and 10,000 lb GVWR. Not a Tacoma's 4000 lb curb weight and 5300 lb GVWR. But if you get the air pressure figured out they aren't too bad and the tougher tires really do hold up better if you drive off road or on rough unpaved roads. On heavier truck they recommend around 50-60 PSI unloaded and up to 85 PSI loaded heavy. On a Tacoma around 30 PSI is about right even loaded.

 

Natetroknot you were spot on with the size of my new bushings. They are not even half the size of my old ones. MNMLST I'm a girl, but that's not the reason I'm not mechanically inclined What about keeping the shocks and having the bushings changed out? Could that make the ride the way it should be? Yes, I'll have to find the Florida version of this chat. I'm new to this and started here

 

not such a big deal with some of these off-road super duper, pre-loaded, increased travel coil set ups, but...

crank down the hinge rubbers on some soft springs and fart filled sticks, then toss it out on the street... I’m betting she’s bound up.

 

Thank you Marshall R this sound inline with what the dealer was trying to convey.

 

This is just my opinion, but the 2 best modifications you can do to an otherwise stock vehicle are better tires and better shocks. If I could only do two things to my vehicle, those are the ones that I’d choose time and time again. They’re typically the first 2 things I do to a vehicle, actually.

 

ToyotaDriver, agreed. I'm guessing which brand is best is in the eye of the beholder. For myself I thought the Defender's were a good choice, I believe the Monroe's are what was on the truck. I didn't know the combo of tire tread to shock would be a problem. But I'm learning

 

girls are kool.... just take it to a ‘better’ shop and see if they can straighten things out, again, slightly better bits and professional knowledge/skill usually pay for themselves in the long run.

 

Agreed, MNMLST

 

or....

save your money and get yoselfs sum tools

 

I watched the videos and when they started on the tools to compress the coil before putting on, I had to throw my hands up and walk away LOL

 

More than likely not tire tread, but tire weight and composition combined with inflation (read, how much pressure do I need in my tire to make it behave desirably)

Imagine you’re laying on your back and you throw one of those rubber dodge balls in the air to a pre determined height, catch it and then return your arms to a predetermined position. The balls represent your tires, and your arms represent your shock/spring setup. Now imagine that you took the same sized ball, but it happens to be a 20 lb medicine ball, and repeat the above exercise. The ball goes to the same height, but when you catch it, it takes more energy to arrest the balls descent and then return it to your original predetermined position. The same thing is happening with your heavier tires when they hit a bump. Your stock shocks were designed to dampen the up and down of a stock tire in highway and city conditions. Add mass to your wheel and/or tire (Or brakes, or axle trusses etc, etc...) and your shock is less effective at controlling that tire. Therefore, the tire will travel up further before the shock and spring combo arrest it’s movement, and then reverse its movement and it will be less controlled coming back into contact or a desirable/neutral state on the way back down.

Basically, what I’m getting at is that you need to get a good set of aftermarket shocks designed to take the increased unsprung weight.

 

You can also just take the coils out and take them to a shop that can compress them.

 

pffffffft... put on a helmet and catcher’s chest protector and go for it.


(I’m kidding, spring compressors can be fairly hazardous)

 

Excellent depiction ToyotaDriver thank you and I'm moving toward upgrading shocks from various inputs.

 

So far, I’ve found that I end up spending more money on tools than the project I’m working on. Regear? Press, dial indicator, set up tools, sweet. Rock sliders? Sounds about like the right time to buy that welder I’ve been eyeing. I might have a problem.

 

That was just an observation. That's not contributing to your problems, IMO....but it does sort of show you the differences between Monroe and what you started with on the truck. Leave the back alone until you isolate and fix the problem. Chances are good that you can leave it untouched and get the ride back to normal.

I'd very strongly recommend you get yourself a set of Bilstein shocks installed up front, and drive it for a week or so after. Then get it aligned, and have your tires rotated at that same time. Your bounciness should subside at that point and the ride will return to normal....and if you're still experiencing steering wheel vibes after all that, you need a re balance of the tires.

It's been fun helping you along, wish you the best girl!