Just bilsteins to level??

I'm sure this has been answered a few million times on here but I've been looking and haven't found an old thread that clearly discusses my issue, so please don't bust my chops too bad.
I've got a 2015 TRD prerunner DCSB and I'd like to lift the front end just a bit to level it out. I thought I read on here that I could simply just get some bilstien 5100's for the front and set them at .85 or 1.75, depending how much I wanted the front raised. So I called Sears auto and inquired about some bilstiens and told the guy my plans. He said "shocks won't lift the front end"...and that I'll need a leveling kit to do that. So my question is, Do I need leveling kit AND bilstiens or is the Sears guy just not up to par with his taco leveling knowledge?

No intentions in off roading.. Purely aesthetics for me.

Thanks guys.

 

Shocks won't lift your front end. Springs will do that. But you will need new shocks for the longer travel with the new springs. A level kit is your best option if you want to raise just the front.

 

The last poster must be the guy you talked to at Sears.

The Bilstein 5100 front shocks multiple grooves in the shock body, allowing you to move the spring seat. In essence it is an adjustable leveling kit, and the shocks are longer than stock.

Don't call Sears for advice. Order them online from someone who knows what they are talking about. Lots of great vendors on the forum.

 

This is the correct info, beat me to it.

 

5100's on all four corners you won't regret it. Better ride than stock shocks. Toytec or Down south motorsports.

 

Thanks guys. So just order some Bilstien 5100's for front and back and I'll be good to go? Nothing else needed for the look I'm after?

 

And in fact, the front shocks of the taco are really "struts", and the bottom spring perch is built into the shock. The front 5100 has an adjustable spring perch. I have the billie 5100 in the front and rancho 5000 series in the rear. The guy at sears doesn't know much about tacos...

 

I'm thinking on doing the same on my '14 TRD/OR. Are the Billy's that much better than stock?

 

My set up is 5100s at 1.75" riding on 265/17/16 on 16x8.5 wheels

You need to measure your center hub to fender on front and back. It should be about 22" in the rear and 20" in front. This is what tells you what to set your 5100s at. If the difference is less you would set them at .85". But if you have 4 leaf springs in the rear, it should be 2" difference (Sports usually have 4, Offroads 3). so raising your front 1.75" will make it level. There will be slight difference from driver to passenger side due to the gas tank & battery being on the driver side. 5100s are not adjustable for the rear, but you should put them on all 4 corners

The 5100s are awesome...it will ride and handle better than stock. Your stock bilstein shocks look like toys compared next to 5100s.

This is pretty much the cheapest/best place to get them. It should be about another $300 to have them installed and you must get it aligned afterward. I just took mine to my local 4 Wheel parts..and they did a great job.
http://downsouthmotorsports.com/i-11...prerunner.html

 

I am about to get bilsteins all around for my sr5 dbl cab. Instead of reusing the stock coils which I think are softer on the sr5, what coils would you recommend for 1" or less lift? I see ebaichs but are about 1.5".

 

subd

 

TRD comes stock with bilstein shocks and struts, just not the adustable bilstein 5100s.

5100s will level the front. Either .85 or 1.75 depending on the rear suspension. Simply measuring the difference from front to rear will give you a pretty good idea of what lift you'll want on front. The stated lift of the 5100s is pretty close to what the actual lift will be. Another words, .85" will be very close to .85", and 1.75" will be very close to 1.75", and so forth.

You don't actually need the rear shocks if you don't want to buy them. They help if you plan to lift the rear end, as they accommodate 1" or 2" of lift.

 

If your only going with .85" of lift, your factory springs will be alright. Unless you're just looking to replace the springs.

 

Just measured my truck. 22" rear / 20" front. I don't want to really raise the front so I'm thinking the .85" setting would be fine. Sound o.k.?

 

so basically a 0.85 lift is good for just leveling?..

would a 0.85 front lift even make it level? I assumed that 1.75 would be too much; and actually make the front higher, hehe

anybody?

 

This depends on your truck. Measure the front height and the rear height. The difference between the two will be what you need to be level. Measure from wheel well to center of wheel for your measurements.

Different trucks have different rear springs that give different heights. Also, springs with some miles will have sagged a little, lowering the height of the rear.

 

thanks for the advice, I guess I will go take a measurement or two! hehe

 

so upon your advice, I measured center-wheel to the fender and its about 1.5 inches of difference.. I have 265/70/17 Discoverer Pro's and they rub a little when I cut the wheel going up an incline. so my preference is to get something that will level the truck out a little AND get rid of the rubbing.

my question is, is that first setting of 0.85 going to do it? I just want to make sure that is actually the distance that the Bilstein 5100's are going to raise it.. I haven't found a definitive answer on that in my searches, lol..

btw, thanks for all your help bud!

 

The best deal was Jet.com, with a 15% discount on 5100.

 

hrm. is 24-239370 the correct part number?