Bed shell on 2016 Tacoma. Should I upgrade the suspension?

Good Evening,
I recently purchased a '17 silver DC SB TRD OR. I am researching which shell to buy, based on weight and overall security. I will be using the vehicle for daily commutes mixed with Rocky Mountain outings with my family. I am concerned that the vehicle might sag excessively if I keep the stock OR suspension. I was hoping to get some assistance with opinions and pictures of sleek camper shells and if you upgraded the suspension to cope with the additional weight.
Below is some Tacoma porn:

 

Personally, Ive never replaced the shocks when adding a camper shell on a truck. Your leaf springs are what will sag if the bed is weighed down not your shocks (leafs are there to hold up the weight). If its a big issue you can do an add a leaf or upgrade to a different leaf pack that is stiffer (like the all pro, though its overkill if you're not offroading) but I think you'll be fine. If you have that tool box filled with tools or significant weight in the bed all the time then stiffer leafs or airbags are something you could always look into. You'd be surprised how light a camper shell is though

 

Shocks don't do anything to help the sag from the additional weight. Shocks are just there to absorb the movement from the leaf springs. That being said, you can remove the shocks from the rear and you'll see no change in ride height, it'll just be bouncy.

You'll need to add air bags, new leaf springs, or an add a leaf the rear suspension if you see it sagging more than you'd like. If you do new leaf springs or an add a leaf, you'll need to upgrade your rear shocks to ones that will have a longer stroke.

I don't do camper shells, but personally, I would add the camper shell and go from there. An upgrade may not be necessary.

Allpro Expo leaf packs are good for handling additional weight in the rear of the truck.

 

Lol we're twins

 

Thanks for the quick replies. I am now kicking myself in the ass for not being more specific. I have been looking into AALs, but I would rather do a leaf pack. I figured with the shell, camping supplies and whatever stowaway climbs in at the last minute for an adventure, the vehicle may give a bit too much for my liking. I would love to just buy a tonneau cover for storage, but it limits my space, which is important when living with a 5' bed.

 

I recently added a shell to my 17 DCLB and I think it's level or just a smidge lower in the back. Will definitely be more noticeable in the back loaded with gear. I'm planning on adding a leaf but looks fine without a heavy load.

 

My 2007 Taco with a shell was having a sag problem when I hitched my teardrop up and loaded the bed. I added Sumo springs and swore by them. I assumed I'd be adding them to my 2016 but was wrong. Maybe in another 120,000 miles but not now.



Silver's the best color BTW.



SB

 

I do fancy the silver. I mainly want level weight when driving. I have a month or so before I order a shell so time is on my side. BTW, what shell is that?

 

Century Ultra Sport. Leer and Century come out of the same factories (and molds) with the same warranties and in Missoula the Century prices were about $200 less. Check prices for both.




SB

 

I will check. The only must haves are windows that open, to include the front window for cleaning, along with an LED cablight built in. I'll probably add the rest myself.

 

I had them add the windoor (which I highly recommend) and the price for it was $50 cheaper than what the Leer dealer quoted me. I passed on the font slider since I never used it in my 2007. But you can have them add whatever you need.

SB

 

Thanks for the info. Love this forum already.

 

Im with you on the camper shell, I love having them on the truck. So what is your need exactly? Are you only hitting a dirt road once in a while to camp? or are you going to do mild offroading with a bed full of gear to get to a remote area? Will you ever be towing a trailer, etc. This will all affect your ride height. Best thing to do is get the shell and test it out of course

 

I will be camping with multiple people while weather permits. I rough it at the KOA with my Touareg TDI, but this baby will definitely go off the beaten path for camping. I will test it out for a few months before deciding on whether to upgrade the suspension or not.

 

Nice! Yeah I'm sure if you do frequent offroading you'll be more than happy with uca upgrade/coilovers up front and an all pro leaf pack with some upgraded shocks. I had that set up on my old tacoma and loved it. Thats what I would do if I was to get another tacoma.

 

I have an ARE MX cap and noticed no sag after it was installed.

 

Thanks for the info. I priced the ARE Overland and they wanted $2100, AMERICAN! They sure do get pricey.

 

If you do go with an AAL, go with a single AAL and not a multileaf progressive. They're stronger, and will handle your constant load better than a 3 leaf will.

I love my OME Dakars, FWIW.. and I wouldn't believe someone got no sag with a shell on OEM suspension.

Put 200 lbs in the back of your truck, and your suspension will compress.. no way around that reality except to ignore it.

 

SnugTop at ~150 lbs with some off-road gear in the bed...Cooper S/T max 265-75 16...stock OR suspension...24,000 miles...no issues...

 

I have a DCLB with the HiLiner Snugtop and after a very short time it settled in and is now basically level. By the time you add in a weekends worth of gear, you will hit the bump stops on every dip in the road. I have considered the sumosprings but plan to lift it later this year so I'm not sure if they would be effective after that.