Getting started with a stock truck

Hello everyone!

I think this is my first post here, however some of you may recognize me from IG or Reddit.

Last Thursday I bought my first truck, a 2005 ACLB, 6MT 4x4 with only 76k miles. This weekend I took it to some off road trails, nothing serious, but we had heavy rain so I was splashing around in some shallow to moderate puddles

I asked on Reddit about how deep of water I can go through stock (I am planning on the 5100/OME lift everyone loves) without hydrolocking and people started telling me about breathers for my diff, transfer case, etc which I did not know about.

Is there anything else that seems obvious, but a noob like myself should know about Off Roading? I have read through the safety stickies, but didn't see anything about important/first mods.

Thanks everyone! Here is my truck and dog for your help https://imgur.com/a/DpYcKJl

Edit: Also forgot to mention, I already had to do my first repair. My power steering return line blew, so I got to set up a pop up tent in the rain, lay in my dirt driveway, and replace that sucker. Steering a truck is not fun without power steering

 

Well, your air intake is higher than the bottom of your door sills, so when you start getting water in the cab, that's deep enough, lol.

As far as mods, no. Don't do anything just yet. Bone stock this truck is WAY more capable than your skills can safely go. So just get some seat time, and the more you drive, the type of terrain you like, your skills and budget will determine your mods.

Just make sure you carry appropriate safety gear (1st aid) and BASIC recovery gear, and learn how to use them. You don't need a winch and hi lift and all that stuff to start out. It's amazing what you can do with a shovel and stacking some rocks if you get stuck.

I definitely recommend going out with other people, and other trucks. Safety in numbers, and even if you're all noobs, you can bounce ideas off each other, and pull each other out with a tow strap. If you know some people with more advanced skills, definitely get them to go out with you. Everyone I've ever met is more than willing to go on those "noob" trails to get more people in the hobby.

Go out, get dirty, have fun!

I've replaced a clutch master cylinder in 3 feet of snow before. Had to leave the truck for 3 or 4 days while I got the parts and enlisted the help of my brother. Came back, dug it out to the point I could get under it. And this wasn't even on a trail, just a road that wasn't plowed.

 

Hey man, thanks so much for the response! I had a whole big plan, OME 886s, Nitochargers, Dakars, armor, etc but then I remember pictures like this. I ordered some Falken Wildpeaks yesterday to replace my Grabber HTs, and I think I will leave it at that for now, although I usually get bit by the mod bug hard...

I will definitely be learning more about off road skills, recovery, etc. There is a place by me in Ellenville NY called NY Off Roading Adventures and they do Intro to Offroad, Recovery essentials, etc. that I am hoping to do some classes with. I already bought a shovel to keep with me, am looking into recovery straps, and have been researching come alongs, as I know they can be dangerous

I'll definitely be looking for more people to go out with, but the only person I know is a Jeep Or Nothing guy and turns his nose up at Toyotas, even though I can't remember the last time he didn't have something wrong with it.

Anyways, thanks again! This was really encouraging, and sometimes I get down seeing people with lifts, armor, MaxxTraxxs, winches, RTTs, etc. Do you by any chance have any YouTube channels or other resources you'd recommend?

 

That's my truck! (minus a few accessories)


We are ALL bitten by the mod bug. It's why we have this imoji:



But, yeah, just drive it as is for now. It sounds boring, but all those mods are really dependent on what and how you wheel. Don't get a roof top tent if you like to set up base camps for several days/week while you go out and hit the hard trails.

Most people don't "need" a low profile bumper - I've wheeled for years with a stock bumper, and rarely scraped it. I ended up with a bumper because I wanted a winch, too. I didn't have sliders for the longest time because I never hit the doors/rocker panels on the types of trails I did. Since I bought a 4Runner, the Taco has become my play truck, so I've been slowing building it up (see my build thread in my sig).

There's kind of an order of operations to a lot of mods or accessories, too. Don't bother getting a high lift until you have places to lift on (rock sliders and bumpers). I see a lot of people rolling around with a high lift prominently mounted on their "overlander" rack, with stock bumpers and no sliders.

There's a lot to be said for a moderated approach to suspension mods, too. You don't necessarily need to go out and immediately spend $4k on external reservoir shocks, long travel, and all that stuff. You'll hear a lot about "buy once cry once" but honestly, with suspension, you can screw yourself really fast that way, or at least spend a bunch of money you didn't need to. As a daily driver, a set of 5100s made a lot of sense. For under $400, I had a decent lift, and decently superior shocks from stock. No need to sell any organs. Now that my truck is a dedicated trail truck, I'm spending more time (and money) throwing nicer shocks and suspension at it.

My build thread as a lot more of my manifesto, if you care to read it, lol

 

Good tires

 

I will definitely check out your build, thank you!

I have a quick question since you mentioned the 5100s, they only lift the front, correct? My rear leafs are pretty flattened so I was looking at the Dakars, but if I could get a lift and nicer shocks for just the cost of 2 sets of 5100s, I would love that. just ordered some 265/17R16s and think even a minor lift would help with them. Should I just go with 5100s all around and an AAL?

I was also considering bumpers, sliders, etc because this is my daily and I want to protect it. However, I will hold off until I get a better feel for how I drive, the trails in my area, etc. Thanks again for everything!

 

Yep, you can change where the lower portion of the coil mounts to the shock body, thereby lift it. For the rear, you need some way to lift the leaf springs. I went with an extended shackle which gave me ~1" lift.

If you're a handy sort of fella, I HIGHLY suggest getting a welder and learning to use it.

As an example, my first welder cost ~$400 (new). The sliders I got were a $250 weld-on kit. My bumper, another lego kit, cost $450. When you look at how much fully assembled sliders and bumpers cost, I easily broke even on just those two projects. I've since upgraded my welder (spent another $950), but even still, I've easily broke even/saved money with all the other projects I've done around the house.

$80 in 3/16" steel plate and some time, and I've got skid plates, too.

 

Thank you! A lot of people didn't seem to like them because they're "budget" tires but my options were Wildpeaks or All Seasons. I'm very excited to get them on the truck

I like to think I'm handy, and have been meaning to get a welder for a while. Looking at rock sliders, I saw $400. "Oh, that's not bad", I thought. Well $200 to bolt ons, $200 for powder coating, and $200 to ship, and they quickly became too expensive. I'll keep an eye on Craigslist because really only Harbor Freight welders make sense for me right now. I'll also look into the 5100s and an AAL for now. I got ahead of myself and had a $1400 suspension plan with 886s, Dakar, and Nitrochargers, but I also have my first anniversary coming up... I'll do the 5100s and an AAL or something for now.

Thanks again so much!

 

Yeah, I ended up with a new welder simply because I was impatient, and all I saw on CL at teh time were those HUGE trailer mounted welders, or something that looked like it was from WWII...

Good luck!! Have fun!

Where are you located, by the way?

 

The northeast, and not even the fun part like New Hapmshire, Vermont, etc. I'm in downstate NY about an hour and a half from the city, but I work and my girlfriend lives in CT. Very few trails around here, and the lifted truck scene, from what I can tell, is mostly coal rollers and things like that, no overlanders.

I am taking your advice, just emailed someone on CL with the rear TSB leafs, an AAL, and a block. Figured those, plus 5100s and I'm good to go for now. Maybe 885s, but I'm going to keep it simple for now

 

What do you mean an add-a-leaf and a block? You should only need one of those. Preferably the AAL. Blocks aren't that great...

 

Dude said "Toytec Add A Leaf and block". Since my leafs are pretty shot, I figured if I could get him to $150, it's an upgrade. I could always remove the block too, I suppose

 

If you're looking for extra horsepower, I would look into this

https://shop.tacomaworld.com/

 

I gotcha. How much total lift is that?

I'd go ahead and remove the block. Blacks aren't great for suspension geometry (they tend to increase axle wrap).

I forgot that you're in a 2nd gen. In first gens it's easy to use an extended shackle for a small lift (like what I did), but with your flipped shackles, that's not really an option.

If you get them, def take the block out, and see where they sit. I'd just get new 5100s. They're cheap enough that used ones usually aren't worth it, lol. When I got Kings, I just game my old 5100s (with coils) to my buddy.

A note about 5100s tho. If you have a lift coil, leave the 5100s at the "stock" height. Let the spring do the lifting. If you still rock the oem coils, then you can change the clip position. Ideally, you want lift coils, but lifting with the clip is a cheap and easy way to lift, while still using the original coils. The higher you lift it, though, the stiffer the springs get because you are essentially pre-loading the springs, making them stiffer.

Generally, you never want to stack lifts, as you're exceeding the design of both of those lifts and can create other suspension geometry and alignment issues.

That said, for less than $150, you can get a new add-a-leaf. There's no real guarantee those used springs are any better off than yours.

Just some things to think about...


Here's a 3-leaf setup for $190. 1.5" AAL for $80 icle/wheeler-s-off-road-1-5-lift-add-a-leaf-set-for-2005-toyota-tacoma.html

 

Thank you!

I actually happen to own 886 coils already, because I got drunk and excited about my Nitrocharger build... I know they're not recommended with 5100s though so I will probably return them. I will also look into the 3 leaf set up you posted, would you recommend doing that even if my current leaves are shot?

As for the lift, I just emailed him asking about the height

 

How "shot" is "shot"? Mine have a slight "w" shape to them, and have yet to explode offroad, lol.


Add-a-leafs are definitely a band-aid fix. Ideal? No. Cheap? Yes. Better than what you have now? Yes.

You can also have the entire spring set re-arched at just about any spring shop. Probably $50 or $100 for that...

Or go with a set of OME Dakars for like $350ish. Just depends on how much lift you want, and your budget.

I'd say that the 3 leaf for sure would last you a good many years (so would the single AAL), until the point at which you can decide if you end up going with higher end Deavers, custom Alcans, etc...

 

Huh, there's a custom spring shop down the road from me! I might have to look into that. I was originally going to go with the Dakar 2.75" lift, maybe I could pair that with just 5100s for now... But it's $600 for the pair, and hardware. Here are my leafs, what do you think?

Sorry for so many questions, but I really appreciate the help!

 

Tacoma springs actually should sit fairly flat. So those don't look too bad at all. Better than mine, and my truck is only a year older than yours.

 

I always assumed they were supposed to be a big U! I'm glad to hear it, thanks.

Ok so 5100s and a 3 leaf, then call it a day until I know more about what I want/need?

 

40's and tons son!



I'd say that a lift isn't really even necessary at this point, but it's what just about everyone trends towards anyway, so what the hell...

A good set of tires (I prefer E rated tires) are honestly more important. The lift is really just to get those bigger tires to fit. 33's are pretty easy to fit with a 2-3" lift, 35's are a little extreme for the vast majority of people, and require a lot of body modification to fit unless you do a huge lift which comes with its own issues (namely the quality of even high end 6" lifts are less than a good set of 3" lift coilovers, and your CG gets unnecessarily high).

But you're on the right track, your plan is perfectly reasonable.