bilstein 5100 lift; are springs needed?

might be a dumb question
am still researching and seeing lots of different opinions

are springs needed to get a few inches of lift with 5100's?
Or is the shock alone enough?

It definitely is a price difference. Because if 5100's are ~$300,
then adding front coils and rear AAL or leafpack makes it like $700+

I see Toytec offers all 3. Either just 5100's, 5100 with spring and AAL, or more.

 

It can be done without springs, but it will be stiff as hell. Ask me how I know...
If on a budget, just shocks and an aal will get you by.

 

Ah shit.

co-worker lifted his 4runner on 5100's and said as long as you don't max out the adjustment, it can give lift but still decent ride.
I heard only at maxed out setting, does it put pre-load on the shock and compromise ride quality.

Seller was kind enough to throw in a 13120 Pro-Comp AAL but it's small and ToyTec says the only way to retain rear ride quality is with a long AAL, not short.
Read a few posts on here where people said a short AAL (although cheap) ruined their ride quality and they regretted not getting a whole OME Dakar leaf pack.

In which case it's sounding to me like the way to do this is Dakar leaf pack (rear) and some kind of springs up front, whether they be from ToyTec, OME, etc

was just hoping it's possible to get a few inches with 5100's alone and no springs

 

if you are comfortable working on your car, use the stock springs in the front and put them on the highest setting and see how you like it.
Then if you are not happy, take the spring and put it on a lower perch.

I did this on my 6112 springs. had to play with the spring height till i found what i liked. takes about 20 min to readjust the height setting once you know what you are doing.

 

On 5100’s top notch and stock 2007 off-road springs I thought it was stiff but absolutely acceptable and bearable. I also had a small spacer on each side which net me 2.8in lift.

Now I have a plate bumper and winch on the front, sitting at 2.5in of lift and it did soften up.

 

Never did it but I'll learn. Not sure yet if the perch notch can be adjusted with spring still in vehicle (wheel off) or if I have to yank the strut out to compress the spring and re-adjust it.
Already measured the FTG (Fender To Ground) heights and the truck seems to be up to 3" lower in front, and 0.7" lower on the left side "infamous Taco lean" possibly due to gas tank location.

I already threw some 4600's in there and ride improved vs the stock pencil-thin "TRD" shocks, but it just still has the ugly ride height imo

I always wondered how much OR springs help, because they're said to be progressive (soft at first) vs Sport springs being linear for car-like street handling (to an extent). OR springs are supposed to perform better off road due to the softness at first helping soak up small bumps at the cost of some body roll

 

I have been running 5100's on the 3rd perch with stock OR springs for 20K miles. Ride has always seemed normal. While I was just rebuilding the front end, all rubber parts, UCA, LCA, inner/outer rods, drop links, I thought what the heck I'll move the perch up to the 4th ring.

I have steadily stiffened up the rear which was showing the weakness in the 145K original front end parts and thinking stiffer would be fine in the front while rebuilding. While the ride was noticeably stiffer, complemented the rear and all was good, the increased lift was not ok. The 4th perch leveled the front and rear with my set-up but with ANY load I would have bro lean = totally unacceptable. It seemed as if the 3/4" perch change raised the front about 1 1/2". I don't know if this is in keeping with others experience.

So I lowered back down to the 3rd perch and with the new totally rebuilt front end, the front was plenty stiff and solid going down the road in keeping with the firmness of the rear.

 

getting warmer
OME 884 supposedly 2" front lift, not sure if that levels it with TSB rear leafs
but OME recommends 885 for the truck, which may be 2.5" front lift, though they also might recommend their rear Dakar leaf pack at the same time. So they probably want the whole kit (front and rear) done at the same time. Not just front alone.

886 = heavier spring rate for armor, probably 620lb vs 590lb, and I'm not sure what 885X is though I've seen it done.
Supposedly 885 runs the risk of needing adjustable UCA for alignments

weird thing is I think OME says 884 is for lighter Tacoma's like access cab, etc.
and suggests 885 claiming that double cab is heavier towards the front (might be)

maybe 884 is a "hack" to start cheaper,
keep the rear stock and lift the front 2" to level it
OME 884 + Bilstein 5100 = basically about $300 to lift and level the front, hopefully

versus the whole kit including Dakar leafpack, turns that into $1k+...

 

Stock front springs work well with the 5100s in my opinion after 5 years I have no complaints on ride quality. Have full set of steel skids underneath and a shell so added weight.
Had to get the front up after adding rear ARB OME Dakars for loads/towing. Unloaded my Tacoma rear is slightly higher but loaded level as I wanted running stock size 265/70R16s. If you go up a few inches think about longer brake hoses (stainless) if you flex it or you may rip stock ones so more a safety thing to me.
You can do whatever your budget can afford on the Tacoma.

 

Anyone running 5100’s in the rear with AAL? I see they’re only rated for 1 inch, I’m not sure if I should get the 5125’s or not

 

I run the deaver single leaf from headstrong with my 5100s.. no issues yet lol

 

Are you lifted more than an inch?

 

The Deavers advertise 1.5 to 2 inches.. I never actually measured before and after.

 

Rock my stock TRD OR coils on the 1.75in setting and love the ride, A lil firmer than stock but that was much welcomed over the boat like ride from the factory.

 

Either way, its out of spec lol any off-roading? how long have they been on?

 

Close to a year now.. and just some fire tower roads and forest service roads... so nothing crazy.

 

May the odds continue to be in your favor

 

ordered 883's to start for now, "leveling spring" to add 1.6" up front to level it. Because I measured fender to ground heights at all 4 corners and found it's lower by about 1.5-1.6", which OME 883 would level out. Plus a 1/4 driver spacer to address crooked Taco lean.
Maybe a spacer at rear left leaf spring can do that in the back as well.

Held off on other stuff for now, might do it later. Given the parts involved, price, etc., I'd want to take more time to really figure out a good game plan before making a potentially wrong choice.

Any higher than that adds cost. AAL appears to be $100/side, not to mention $500 for Dakar leaf pack. Although higher OME springs (884, 885, 886, and whatever "X" is such as in "885X" cost the same as 883, the supporting mods do not. For example if requiring new UCA's = more cost.

will set the 5100's to 0 with 883's

 

Just did mine......
Kept factory springs, Bilstein struts on 3rd ring.....up 2”......and truck leveled.
And Bilstein shocks with no rear lift.
Only add on was new strut mounts each side......
Good ride, no bounces, can drive a little faster.