If you could do it over again, would you still have lifted your truck?

Agreed. My KTM 200 will scare me just fine. Sitting in the cab of a truck slowly rolling over rocks..Interesting? Yes. A joy? Sure. But it pales in comparison to riding on the pipe through trees just big enough for my bars to clear.

Granted, I don't plan on pushing the absolute limits of my truck. But most people are scared to death of Black Bear Pass. It's a great trail, but not all that scary.

 

Question for the group, since there's a lot of good info in here and seems to be a lot of experience to go with it.

I just got a Falcon suspension kit which will give me 0-2.5" in the front and 1.25" in the rear. Currently I'm stock aside from spacer lift in the front (I believe they're 1", but not sure cuz they were on there when I got the truck).

So, the question. Since increasing pre-load tends to stiffen the ride, if I leave the spacers in place and set the shocks to 1" to give me 2" of total lift, will that give me the best of both worlds? I have yet to see anyone do this, but I feel like it would work pretty well. TIA

 

I've got it to do over again, after some additional weight, so yes I would.

 

Back in the day before the 200 ktm was released 125''s were it...much finickier to ride fast through handle bar with pines. Getting off the pipe wasn't an option. Your best friend was a set of bark busters.

 

Laughs....KIDS.....
Back in the day, we didn't have barkbusters...we busted knuckles.

And back on subject.
When I was a young man, I did the lift kit thing....
After wearing out parts and dealing with terrible on road handling, ride and sound I learned that lift kits rendered the truck into a virtual flower pot. Fill the bed with dirt and plant flowers.
Unless, of you live in an area where off roading is your life then a dedicated "wheeler" aside from your daily rig would be a sano idea.

1977 RM100 Buckeye Raceway Ohio Overall Track Champion

 

I run 235/85/16's which are 32's, and they look small in the wheel wells. I'm sure you could go 255/85/16 which is a solid 33 with no problem. I have never seen any need to do that but I wouldn't hesitate. A lot of this is that these are skinny tires. Wide tires limit your options and lead to moral decay.

 

Sorry but i have to disagree. Alot of folks that have lifted trucks tend to be a bit rough on them, with tendencies to tear stuff up. If a lift is done correctly, the only noticeable difference is the height of the truck and a bit harsher ride due to the stiffer springs and shocks. Going into year 3 with my 2018 and it will still ride down the road, hands off the wheel, straight as an arrow. And the truck has been off road and down many Georgia dirt roads. It has been an awesome ride. I think it all boils down to the brand of lift and taking proper care of your vehicle. One important feature of my Pro Comp lift is the front axles remain very close to level unlike some of the other kits i looked at.

 

My plan is a small lift, I will go to 255/75/16 after these tire wear out or something close to that. I will add some skids, thinking aluminum to protect the underside and a bumper insert with a winch for times it’s needed, so I believe that heavier springs & shocks will be needed. I still off road, no longer rock crawl, but I don’t need to be stuck 30 miles from pavement because I didn’t take some small steps to my the truck safer off road. I will work to keep it light as possible and the aerodynamics as good as I can.

I will get my first off road trip in on my stock truck in a couple weeks, meeting friends to spend some time in the Gila. Not really a hard off road trip.

 

For me getting into riding basically put an end to any wheeling beyond going to a camp site. Going to a 14 300xcw made it even better.

Lately I’ve been considering lifting but after I change the bumpers and a high clearance in the rear.

For now I have 255/85/16 coopers on stock rims, they look great, gave me over an inch of ground clearance, better off road but they suck shit for handling on the highway. They’re not as stable and the oem width, especially on curvy roads.

 

255/85R16 is the biggest you can fit without any modification and little to no rubbing at full compression/lock. Cooper makes an AT but from my experience, the Toyo MT is worth the little bit of extra noise and money. They are great on-road and off-road and a true 33.5” tall. I have had them on 2 Tacoma’s and love the way they drive.

The weight of big tires can be challenge for the stock suspension to handle so this is where larger body shocks and coilovers come into play. I switched to the 6112/5169 combo, kept stock ride height and had really great results. The stock rear springs are not doing the job for me though when loaded up so saving funds for Deaver Stage 1 leafs. The new rear springs will raise the rear, no way around it and I will raise the front to match the factory rake. As I add weight, it will lower some and settle. Shouldn’t be too aggressive and it should maintain good wheel travel.

When it comes down to it, it’s all about how much weight you intend to carry that should dictate your suspension modifications.

 

No. If you think about that harder you'll realize it's the exact same thing. Preload doesn't stiffen the ride, but it does increase ride height by adding angle to a-arms which can increase ride harshness. Same net lift with same spring equals same ride.

 

If riding dirt bikes seem scarier to you, you probably shouldn't be riding them in the first place. When you do, the worst thing is trying to ride over your head. Have respect for them.

 

I am a bit of an anomaly here as there are several unique circumstances that apply to me and not the average owner.

1. I get paid $1 for ever mile I drive.
2. My company gave me $10k towards a new vehicle purchase.
3. I have a 2007 lifted, FJ cruiser MT that I mostly use for weekend off-roading, but never Moab etc.

I did a cheap lift (part of the purchase negotiation) and 4R TRD wheels and MT tires. (No rubbing).

Now, adding those tires, that lift, the steel bumper and winch has dragged me into the 15mpg highway range.

So do I regret it?...........not precisely, but I would think twice now and probably wait until it was no longer the truck I drive most of the time in.

If i had waited to sell the FJ before getting Tacoma I may never have since I think I may die before selling either.

It costs me allot of money to have the Tacoma this way. So far I calculate it cost an additional $1,100 in fuel over 25k miles.

That being said, I'm swapping out the cheap lift for a value priced Bilstein 6112/5160 and am keeping my height.

 

I honestly think that it depends on how long you plan on keeping your truck.

 

As a timbren owner, if I had to do it again I'd go durobump

 

I think the only thing I would do different is that I would of waited till I either got the eibach trd pro springs, or the westcott lift for the trd pro fox suspension.

Now I have to remove the fronts again to install those.

 

Can I ask why you don't like your Timbren ?, I never heard of Durobump .

 

Brings back memories. I had a YZ100 at that time.

 

I dont like timbren because they are single option only. Meaning, that if you want to limit uptravel a bit by using larger bumps, you cant use them. They are also quite expensive.

vs durobumps. https://toyotabumpstops.com/

They have selectable heights available. And they are less expensive.

 

Bought a 2020 tacoma. Have a 96 with a 3" lift, also had a 02 with a bilstein 5100s to level up the front. Personal experience from both lifting and lowering vehicles for the past 20 years is that if you bought something new and it's your daily driver, lifting/lowering or changing the geometry of the stock suspension in any way without buying and installing ALL the pieces necessary to do it correctly is more hassle than its worth. I'm old now, so I dont care quite as much how my ride looks. If this isn't a rig where you need a lift to meet your offroad needs, then I'd recommend leaving suspension components alone and sinking the money into a good wheel and tire setup with the offset you like that gives the appearance of an aggressive look without having to get into the suspension upgrade game which, when done correctly, costs money.

Sure.. it looks cool, but everything I've altered the suspension setup on has driven great --- for a while, then after a couple years the ride gets rough, things wear out at a higher rate, and it just seems to cause more stress on related components.

Like I said if it's your daily driver it ain't worth it. If it's a weekend warrior then mod til your hearts content to meet your needs and replace things as they wear.

I sold my 2002 taco and my sports car to get this -- it's my dd and I didn't alter anything aside from OEM upgrades and scs f5 wheels and falken tires.

Drives smooth, mpg loss was negligible, and looks ok without having to drop $2000-$4000 to get the suspension setup right. Not to mention the wear and tear will be less. I've had the truck on service roads, up in the mountains, mild offroading and I'm not really planning on any hardcore stuff, so it ticks all the boxes. 21mpg, looks pretty legit, drives good, tracks straight, costs less. Just my .02