Lift Kit Help

Hello all! I need some advice on my 2020, 4 cylinder, 4x4 Tacoma. I purchased it with less than 17,000 miles on it at an amazing price with only one owner. It seemed like the steal of a life time. The owner before me had all the winds tinted, a sound system put in, side rails put on it but the only issue I saw was there was a lift kit and super over sized tires. Well, fast forward, I thought they were all simple fixes, but I found out the truck has a 6 inch lift, which means they cut the truck to make it all fit. The tires that are on the truck currently 33x22Rx12.5. I just need some recommendations on what would be the best lift kit to replace the 6 inch with since it has to always be a 6 inch kit because it was cut, what tires would be the best for the truck, or if its better to just sell it and stat over. I bought the truck in hope to be able to have a safe ride to camp, snowboard, and travel. I truly am not climbing rocks or going off road in the snow. Any advice is so gratefully appreciated.

 

pictures of the type of suspension that is on the truck would be a good starting point for advice.

 

Tuff call.

I have a simple 2" Bilstein 5100 Lift with 33" pizza cutter tires. Rides great and is super reliable, especially in deep snow. (3 peak snow rated tires).

It may not sound like a lot, but I would be able to cross a river or flooded streets, a little easier than a stock Taco.

 

All I know is it is a Pro Comp 6 Inch Hybrid Lift Kit. I do not have any photos but I can get some photos.

 

hopefully someone will chime in with how reversable it is (or isnt) from the looks of the kit https://www.nexgenoffroad.com/product-p/k5089t.htm you may need to do a parts swap with someone who would like a 6" lift to make out better on the deal. I didnt pick a suspension upgrade that i couldnt uninstall if i decided to change things later.

 

What don't you like about the current setup? Consider ditching that awful tire/wheel setup and installing something more reasonable given your intended usage.

 

Agreed, the wheel/tire setup is probably all I would change.
285/75R17 (roughly 34x11.50R17) tires on wheels that put the tread edge even with the edge of the fenders would look good on that. 17x8" wheels with a 0 or +6mm offset I think would do it. Then you won't have near as much mud & water that gets thrown all over the side of the truck like that.

Have the axles been regeared for the bigger tires (do you know)?

 

What would be the intended use and what don't you like about the current lift kit? Maybe just leave it and swap out the wheels and tires for some narrow 33s in 16s or 17s since it's a 4 cylinder. FN wheels makes some nice light weight budget friendly wheels. I'm currently running the 5 star 17s. I'm my area there are more tire options in 17s

 

A shop I went to locally was trying to sell me a fox kit that is a 6 inch kit with an air bag drop system, but they wants $10k-$12K with parts and labor. I just wanted to make sure it was properly installed and safe for the snow season.

 

10k is a lot for a lift if you have no use for a 6" lift.

 

I like the lift, I have just been told that they are a lot of issues with the lift. Difference shops have told me the lift is too stiff for the snow, and it will not run like a true 4x4 truck. I love the look of the lift, the tires are garbage, I am going to change those first. It would be nice to drop it 2 inches though.

 

I was thinking about 33x10.5x17rs. I have been told the tires on there are too heavy for the axel, but then ive been told they're fine. I keep getting a lot of back and forth

 

I want to safe drive to the snow to snowboard, and camp/fish in the summer. Nothing crazy, I just want to make sure the truck is properly lifted for the motor and lasts me for a long time.

 

That is my whole issue with it. I don't want to swamp it for a completely new kit, if I can just upgrade parts to make it work in my favor. No one seems to want to deal with it being its a 6 inch lift.

 

Removing a drop bracket lift involves having a piece of steel being welded into the frame cross member. Unless you are an experienced welder, you would need to take the truck to a fabrication shop that does that sort of stuff.

If I were you, I would just leave it place and ignore all the nonsense about it riding poorly, not working well in the snow, etc. The main disadvantage of a drop bracket lift is the cut in the frame and you’ve already paid that price.

 

One other thought... a 6" drop bracket lift is likely a combination of a 4" drop bracket lift and a 2" "IFS lift". If so, you could remove the 2" IFS lift and leave the 4" drop bracket in place. This would have the advantage of lowering your center of gravity.

 

You mean just let it be and fix the drop bracket?

 

I mean do nothing.

In any case, I don't know what you mean by "fix the drop bracket". The drop bracket doesn't need to be fixed AFAIK. However, if you remove the drop bracket, you will need to fix your frame because there will be a section missing where the drop bracket was.

 

Yeah there's a lot of fear-mongering & misinformation that goes around regarding drop bracket lifts (the majority of which seems to come from people who have never had one). As was said, the crossmember is the only real downside of a DB lift, and you're already past that.
You said it was a Pro-Comp lift, which is certainly not the worst of the bunch.

You can lower it 2 inches (to 4" lift) no problem without changing anything but the shocks & springs (or if it has spacers, then by changing the height of the spacers).
What shocks are on it now? (stock? adjustables of some sort?) Again, pictures will help us help you better.
While you're at it, also get the vertical measurement from the center of the wheel hub to the edge of the fender above (measured on flat ground). This will tell exactly how much lift it has (stock measurement here would be 21" front, 22" rear).

As for the tires being "too heavy for the axel" (axle), that probably was meant as the larger tire diameter steals away much of your power/acceleration (the axles themselves are fine). This was why I asked earlier if the axles were regeared. Regearing (say to 5.29:1) will help restore that lost power, as well as giving back some of your MPG. 5.29 should be good for 33" or 34" tires with your 4-cyl engine.