auto shop quote really high and thinks i need more parts before lifting

Hello all
I've been on here reading for awhile and finally started buying the parts to lift my Tacoma.
went to local auto repair shop today and asked about a price for installing coils, AAL's, and getting an alignment.
he went on and on about the angles of this and that but mostly kept asking me about pitman/idler arm. and then told me $600. It sounded really high to me to add coils, aal's and alignment, so i left. does this sound really high to anyone else? especially when I was supplying the parts?
is there something for the pitman arm, to drop it?

I have a 07 Tacoma AC TRD Offroad
I have the AAL's, the diff. & sway bar drop kits and the OME 885's are being delivered tomorrow.
I just had Billstein 5100's put on all fours when I got my new frame installed 3 weeks ago
( Thank You Toyota! ).
I thought I had all I needed, and havent read anything about pitman arms on here so I am lost and wondering if I need something else before lifting this truck?
I was on the fence about installing this stuff, but now it looks like i'll be doing it. and having that new frame should make it easier. I've read the "how to's" on here and feel comfortable doing it. and don't think I'll go back to that shop for the alignment either.
I'm only wondering about some pittman drop kit? or anything else I might need?
any help will be greatly appreciated, I was hoping to get up in the morning and start putting stuff on while waiting for the OME 885 coils to arrive. now I'm afraid to start until i find out, and really hoping you'all will post that I have all i need, so i can start.

07 Tacoma AC TRD Offroad Billstein 5100's front & rear

parts for lift:
OME Coils 885's
Add a leafs
diff. drop & sway bar drop kits
anything else needed?

 

You've got everything! Don't even need the swaybar kit. That's for 2.5" Coilovers so the swaybar doesn't hit them. That mechanic doesn't know what he's talking about.

IF you're at all mechanically inclined, do it yourself. You just need some basic hand tools and it helps to have a buddy there with a car in case you need to run anywhere.

If you follow this video, you'll be fine on assembling the coils yourself. I did this and it worked great. Just disconnect the swaybar first.

 

yippee !! THANKS SO MUCH
I was hoping you would say that, and to find out I don't need the sway bar kit is even better.
I've seen your truck pics and posts while on here reading and trying to figure it out (and copying your parts list).
I didnt think auto shop owner knew what he was talking about,.... and I barely know what I am doing parts wise so i was quick to doubt myself
My truck's not as pretty as yours is, but i might have to post some pics when I'm done.

 

I'm very flattered that you were following my posts and such. That makes me a happy camper!!

Are you thinking you'll be able to do it yourself??

 

I can do it, just have never done it before so a little scared of the unknown. and i usually double and triple the time it normally takes most people.
if I can get it done quickly ( in 18 hrs or less) I'll be a happy camper as it's raining and I might takeoff for the river this weekend to get some kayaking in.
I'm left handed but now have a artificial elbow in left arm, & it doesnt have much strength, so I am mostly right handed now, often have to get in some strange positions using right hand when left hand is needed. I got hit head on on the highway in my 94 F-150 and my left side has a lot of metal pieces in it now, but lucky to be alive.

 

If the mechanic is asking about pitman arm drop kit, it shows he's grossly unfamiliar with your truck. Go to a different mechanic. Toyota pickups haven't had pitman arms since what, 1986?

You don't need diff drop kit. It does more harm than good off-road (can push the front diff into the engine block).

 

You don't need the diff drop either. Glad you are still with us!

 

If that's the case, itd be great to have a friend or two to utilize their strength if needed. The front was pretty easy, but the AAL was a bit of a bitch.

It was hard to get the body high enough off the axle to squeeze the aal in there. I ended up wrapping a ratchet strap between the frame and leaf pack to pull it up, so I could get the center pin in.

You could always do what I did! I did the front one day, then the rear another. It drove and looked just fine with a little bro lean

 

I just used a floor jack on the pumpkin and raised it to max. Then use some 6 ton jack stands on the frame. Dropped the axle down and added the AAL. No ratcheting straps or anything complicated. Obviously only one leaf spring should be disconnected at a time.

 

so I don't need the diff drop either. should have came on here sooner so i wouldn't have bought them in the 1st. place. but i can return them.
and I will do the aal's the way crashnburn80 did it, will disconnect any lines that might get pulled on first and yes, one at a time, learned that lesson on my 74 Bronco I had before the divorce (that Bit#*@ ).
Every time I come back and check this thread i need less parts, If I keep reading, I might not need the coils or the add a leafs
Now I'm hoping to wake up in the morning and it's lifted.

 

The diff drop is a matter of debate as to whether you need it or not. Everyone who's against it says that all it does is rotate the diff and not actually drop it. While this is true, it still helps with the CV angles a little bit. Not a whole lot, but I figured I'll take any help I can get. They also say that it'll starve the diff of oil. I've been on here for a year and a half and have spent so much time reading threads it's a little embarrassing. I have never seen a single instance of diff failure or issues caused from "the front diff being starved of oil". That's my take on it, and that's why I have one.

 

Actually gonna put fender flare back on ( fixed crack ) and then start on AAL's to get a head start on the morning.
have all day tomorrow and hoping it won't take that long. Because I'm heading for the river to kayak a little and help friend work on his metal building that he's building for a few days.

 

Good to know, thanks again. I think i agree with you, and want to keep angles as close to stock as i can. I don't do hardcore stuff, or should say I don't plan on hardcore stuff but sometimes find myself in "it might make it" situations. and it's usually muddy and slippery.

 

Sounds like a great plan. Be sure and keep us updated on progress!

 

Not much of an update to report. I quickly learned that my 3 ton jack stands werent tall enough, and took the 2 hr round trip drive to harbor freight and bought 2 six ton jack stands. then it rained and rained and I didn't get to start. today I hope things go better. still a little nervous to do it, like I always am on things I've never done before but usually find out it's not as bad as I had imagined it. so trying to not let that stop me. after a few more calls to auto shops I got a huge range of prices and times to do it. from an hour and a half on each front to three and a half hours per front? I have made one shop mad when I said I've seen youtube videos where they do it in an hour per side and that's not in a shop but in their own garage at home. so, once again I am back to doing it myself.
I think I am going to start up front with the coils, since they seem to be a little easier than the AAL's, and get a little confidence before moving to the rear leafs.
I did get the coil compression tool, and might use it even though I'm doing it the no tool way, just as an added safety....? I might find out differently when I start
so hopefully today is the day.

 

This is why you don't want to install a diff drop.

 

Thanks Arailt.
I have been doing a little reading since I learned about this the other night and decided to not install the diff drop.

 

Oh brother. I've slammed the underbody of my truck into the ground on things on accident and it's been fine. "Catching it on something" is unlikely because due to the design, the diff is at an angle so stuff will slide off it. Besides, this is all protected under that factory skid.

 

It's fairly well documented on here that second gen diff drops can cause the problem I quoted.

The factory "skid plate" doesn't protect anything by the way. It's a glorified splash guard. If it was to come in contact with a stump or rock, it would buckle and/or crack under the pressure. The first part to suffer the brunt would be your lowered differential brackets.

 

Well it's OPs truck and he can decide on what he wants to do! Simple enough.