Daily driver shocks upgrade?

I got a 2019 TRD Tacoma off-road with Bilstein 4600s on it but some bumps in the road make the truck almost dance across the road it feels like. I’m looking at a 5100 Bilstein upgrade but wasn’t sure if that would improve handling and the bumps?
I’m doing mostly driving on the road and will on weekends go off roading but nothing extreme. Would 5100s fix my problem??

 

Welcome to TW Bro!
I would say you need a TRD Sport - like set up, not an off-road.

Edit: nobody ever talks about Sport shocks on here, I don't even know what brand/ model is on there myself

 

Any recommendations?

 

Swap with a sport guy who wants a more off road setup. Should be easier to find than the other way around

 

Some people will argue that OR models aren't equipped with 4600s, but rather a smaller yellow bilstien set.

4600's are similar to 5100's in performance but they lack adjustability. If you truly have 4600s you won't gain much from 5100's.

But if you have stock OR shocks, 5100 will make a difference.

 

I have blue and yellow shocks I’ll look if I can see a number on them

 

It just says Toyota Bilstein on them

 

You probably don't like Bilstein in general then. Bilstein is digressive, meaning they are firm at a slower speed and gradually get softer the faster you go. The sports also have Bilstein in it, just has softer valving, but not much.
I upgraded from my stock shocks to basically a 6112/5160 (a bit more expensive than 5100) and while it is a bit better, I still don't like it since I am used to Ranger Rovers and Cadilac suspension style. To get that type of feeling from suspension, you may need to swap out to Fox, Kings, ADS, or Radflo. I actually am in the process of swapping out my suspension again to Radflo and having them custom tune it specifically to my modded truck w/ compression adj so I can change it from cushy to firm when I go offroad.

 

welcome Tbro , lots of choices

 

I did drive a lariat ford ranger a week ago and it’s suspension was like butter and it was the off-road model. So to get something like that I would need fox shocks or something like that?

 

What’s your budget?

 

Get an Eibach Pro kit. Fairly inexpensive and pretty much what you need.

 

Yes. Have you driven the TRD Pro yet? Those come stock with Foxes which is why it feels smoother and not as harsh when going over bumps. It's just preference at that point though. Some people like the firmness of Bilstein/Icon's digressive valving. Firm is better at taking corners, but you will feel every little bump on the road it seems like. Maybe you can find a used Pro suspension if your budget is tight. If not (atleast have $3k to spend) get yourself a fox, king, ADS, or Radflo w/ compression adj so you can do even smaller adjustments to your liking and will be the best suspension setup you can get.

 

My sport came with Hitachi blue shocks.

 

Yea I mean I like firmness but not that firm like... the back end Of the truck almost hops when I hit a series of bumps in the road. Feels like I’d lose control of it did that to much ya know? I’d be willing to save up for fox shocks absolutely if it won’t sacrifice off-road capacity

 

None of the brands I mentioned including Bilstein will decrease the off-road capacity. It'll actually be better.

I hear ya, you can put weight on the back in the meantime. It helped me out a bit having about 150lbs of weight to kinda keep it planted. Or you can change leaf pack to Dobsinson leaf pack if it's the rear that you only having an issue with so it MAY solve the problem, but that leaf pack is not meant for towing from what I am told so you do lose some of that capacity. $3k would be plenty to change leaf pack and get a better suspension. You don't have to get resi or compression adj if you are not offroading or going on fire roads a lot and may be able to drop the price down to $1.5k-$2k for a good set of fox.

 

Sport comes with hitachi, same as SR, SR5, and limited.

Bill, the 5100s sound perfect for what you need. You will notice a huge difference immediately. If you ever load the truck bed up, look in to the 5160s for the rear, they are a step up in price but they feel amazing on and off road.

 

how would Fox Shocks sacrifice off-road capacity? Fox would be a huge upgrade over the stock suspension and the 5100s, but typically the 5100s are used to provide a little lift and better ride for a budget friendly price. The fox suspension (like king, icon, ads) are all huge upgrades that are much better, but you pay a higher price for them.

 

Where are you located? I might trade you my sport shocks for the offroads...

 

Not quite, the sport shocks are Hitachi, but they're different than the SR, SR5, and limited, those are softer. Sport shocks are tuned for on road performance and are firmer than the other trims.