Lift Kit (interim solution) for larger wheels / tires.

Hi everyone,


I'm relatively new Tacoma owner and quite new to modifying vehicles. I have a future state that I want to get my Tacoma to which is geared for more heavy-duty off-roading.

However, I need to wait a year or two before I drop 3-4k into a premium suspension lift-kit (King).With that said I want to at least purchase larger tires and wheels. I have been considering going with a lower-end suspension lift-kit but after a good deal thought about it. I realized I won't even need any major off-road performance for the next year or two; it will be purely for aesthetics.


So, I've come to following conclusion:


Rather than buying new wheels and tires that are limited in size to my stock ride-height, I'll purchase the lowest of low lift-kit (spacers I believe?). Simply providing a 3" lift in the front, and a 2" lift in the rear. Then I can purchase the tires / wheels that will fit for my future state of the King suspension lift kit.


Thoughts? Any recommendations on the lift-kit spacers?Anything that I should also get, I think there is a 4WD adapter needed due to the change in lift height?Will I need to do an alignment? And get it calibrated for proper speedometer rating (not sure what that is called)?


I really could use the community’s guidance and knowledge here, I'm quite new to all of this and it's a lot to consider.

 

You don't need Kings if you are going after looks. Spacers are fine for your application. Nothing special needed for mallcrawling

 

I'll be doing moderate off-roading, like https://www.go-washington.com/North-Cascades-National-Park/ATV-Jeep-Offroad/#.
I will go for King eventually as I want to step it up in a few years to more adventures when I'm ready for that.

Thanks for the quick response, hoping to hear a few others.
I'm afraid I'll fuck up my ride or bottom out / required some sorta wear on the inner Wheel-Well

 

Well understood. You will see a lot of replies justifying excess spending on truck parts. I would recommend to wheel it stock and see if you actually need the high-end parts. The barrier to entry for off-roading is low, while the temptation to buy bling is high

 

there's no reason not to do that unless you just can't deal with a block/spacer lift. if you're ok being stuck with mall crawling it's no problem for your truck. the question is if you can deal with that. i'd just be asking if saving that cash now and keeping stock is better, because it will help you get to your expensive solution faster. and what's the point of the fake lift anyway? that's what @honda50r is talking about.

 

Nice avatar OP. We can be friends.

Bilstein 5100's up front with a progressive AAL in the rear is probably the bare minimum to consider. DO NOT GET SPACERS. You'll need aftermarket UCA's for anything approaching close to or at 2.5" of lift or more. Get a CB drop bracket kit, an alignment once completed and you can get something along the lines of a Hypertech Speedometer Calibrator.

Any more questions, let me know.

 

You can get a solid lift for around $1,000. Why waste a few hundred on a spacer lift

 

I got a readilift for cheap on Amazon open box... you can offroad with it on occasion but great for just driving around with it. That being said I hope to upgrade soon

 

Final question with regards to the suspension. Check out this rig, it appears to have a 1" to 2" protrusion of the tires outward from the body. I'm guessing this is either due to wider tires and or different UCAs? Spacers?
How is this achived and are there any concerns I should have?

After a few more questions I'll probably make a new thread with a checklist of parts for what I'm thinking my first round of modifications to the truck would be. Getting in any final "don't forget this" concerns / knowledge gaps.

 

Found the truck owner's build list on the 3rd gen forums.
In case anyone is interested:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/88waveys-bbp-build.536736/