Looking to upgrade Suspension - 2012 DCSB

Hi All,

I got a SuperWhite 2012 DCSB this past December, but havent had a chance to really enjoy driving it around in the snow because there was a major lack of it on the East Coast this winter.

I was hoping someone would be able to help me out as far as creating a wishlist of things I will need to upgrade the suspension and tires for the truck. I am looking to do a 3" lift, and put spacers in to bump out the tires 1"-1.5". Also, I've already developed a squeaky leaf but am going to try beachbumberry's leaf fix (http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/98055-diy-squeaky-leaf-fix.html) to resolve that issue. Also would like to have the truck leveled once I have the suspension upgraded. Any input/help would be appreciated.

Attached a couple muddy pictures I took shortly after getting the truck.

 

There are lots of options, here are some of my favorites.

Economical: Billie 5100's up front set at 2.5" with stock springs or set at 0.85" with OME or Eibach springs and an AAL in the rear. I ran 5100's at 1.75" w/stock springs, a toytec AAL in the rear and spidertrax wheel spacers on my 2009 and was happy. But it sagged over the 3 years I owned it.

Reliable: Full OME kit w/AAL or a new leaf pack and spidertrax wheel spacers. That's what I just ordered from Toytec this week and am installing this weekend.

High-end:: ICON, Fox, King, or Camburg coilovers all the way w/new UCA's.

 

Thanks for the input,

So are you going to be doing the install yourself, do you have any DIY's you could recommend? Also, would I be missing something that I would need to upgrade suspension wise after the OME kit?

Eventually I want to set it up so I can take it mudding and trail-running without having to worry about the suspension or tires when I'm off-road.

 

hey dude, im also from new jersey, good to meet you and congrats on the new truck!! and yes the bilstien 5100's are a great set of shocks, thats what im going to be putting on my truck soon (also ill be setting at 1.75 inches in the front order to level the front suspension to the rear suspension) lol xP but other stuff id recommend would be any cat back exhaust, TRD in particular, coupled with any drop in hi flow air filter (K&N or TRD) because a traditional, full cold air intake, causes too many problems over time lol, ummm.. id also try to get a bed cover with a pop & lock tail gate lock, and im also a big fan of the OEM roof rack and OEM skid plate, and also, the NFAB (smittybuilt/predator) or OEM running boards are a nice addition as well! hope to see you around since we are in the same state, hope this helps! peace!

 

I have 5100 set @ 0 with OME 885 springs and LR UCA in the front. 5125 with icon 3 leaf progressive in the rear. Ride better then stock!

 

Thanks, its a bit of a leap from my old car, a 2005 RSX, haha. But im liking the transition. can i set the bil's at 1.75 in the front on the stock springs or would i have to upgrade them as well?

I already got a OEM roof rack that I installed, and just put on a G4 Fold A Cover a couple months ago. My brother in law has the OEM running boards for a 2003 4runner that he's selling, so I have to see if i can fit those on for the time being before i get the nFab's. Everything else will have to come in small spurts, financing is going to be the issue since im getting hitched in April.

 

How much did that setup run you? Also, im liking that retrofit that you did on your headlights, i saw the link that you posted at the bottom of the thread but the photo's didnt show up, something along the lines of "This image or video has been moved or deleted," Could you recommend any others for the retrofit? I think my next investments are going to be tint, retros, and heated side mirrors.

 

How much are you looking to spend. Keep in mind with the OME kit, you may need to get a set of uca's as well, which typically run in the $500 and up range. Even used they seem to be around 4-500 on here.

I have a 2011 DCSB super white. I went with the billy setup at 1.75 up front and had the dealer perform the tsb leaf in the rear. After a year, I wanted to go bigger. After researching I found a brand new kit on the market. It released in May this year. The kit is ishock. It's a mid travel kit that comes with front coilovers, diff drop, new uca's, and your choice of a rear 1" block or 1.5" add a leaf for no additional charge, and rear shocks.

I absolutely love the kit. If you search my threads, I have a review I posted on it along with some pics and youtube vids. Or you can search ishock on here and see what you find. The kit at full retail is 1600, but talk to the guys at downsouth motorsports and see what they can do for you.

My advice is whatever you do, get it right the first time. Billy's are a great option and can't be beat for the price. If you're looking to do the OME kit, by the time you factor in UCA's, you're in the same price range as the Ishock kit and you get front adjustable coilovers. You won't go wrong with the OME kit either. The OME kit is borderline for people needing uca's, some do, some don't. All the trucks are a little different when it comes to alignment after lift.

There's a lot of options out there depending on what you want to spend. I'd suggest posting up what your budget is and what you plan on using the lift for, then take it from there. If you want to lift it for looks and tire clearance and don't plan on offroading much at all, then I'd just go with a block and spacer lift.

Regardless of what you hear on this site, a basic spacer lift is just fine for highway use. If you wanna get offroad and have some fun, then you should be looking at billy's or better. My .02. Definitely check out the ishock kit though. The nice part with coilovers is you can dial in the height of the front end exactly where you want it.

 

Old Man Emu

Spidertrax are the "quality" in spacers but I'd rather see you save for wheels with correct backspacing instead

That's my input

 

Hey Brian. Thanks for the input. From what I've read, replacement of the UCA's may or may not be warranted, but assuming something does go awry, I think i would rather just replace them from the beginning as well. I dont want to have to worry about uneven treads or alignment issues down the road. I took a look at your iShock review, and it seems to be working pretty well for you. Was it a self install or did you send it into the shop? What was the turnaround time to getting everything installed as well?

Budget wise I mean, there's no real limit, its just getting the total installed cost, and then saving up for it. I can drop a few hundred pretty easily, but this will require a little more saving, thats why I wanted to start a thread and get some input in the meantime.

 

Hey Chaz. Looking at spidertrax for the time being because I want to get the suspension put in before i start tires. Hoping to get new rubber on before this winter, whether be new tires on the stock 17's i have now, or new rims with a wider footprint. Any recommendations on some new wheels?

 

oh cool, well congrats to you sir on gettin married lol and thats funnt lol, i had a 2010 corolla xrs before my taco lol, and yep the 5100 are designed to work with your stock springs, thats why im gettin those lol, i dont really wanna spend even more money on springs, and the stockers are pretty stiff to begin with lol, but its about $400.00 for a set of fronts and backs a modest upgrade for a modest price lol

 

I had the shop do mine, but only because I don't have a garage. Install isn't hard at all. The kit came with instructions for everything. If you have a couple of jacks, jack stands, and the right tools, you can easily do this on your own if you're mechanically inclined.

I used my buddy's garage to install all 4 of my 5100's. Took two of us between 3-4 hours, and that's swapping coils from the stock trd's. If I had to do it again, I know I could do that job in 3 hours easy. This kit is all bolt in, the UCA's can be tricky getting the stock bolts out. I've never done the rear blocks myself, but I hear they aren't that difficult.

The shop charged me 5 hours labor and I know they took me to the cleaners, but so be it. I came out at about 400 installed with alignment.

You're spot on with the uca's, 2.5" lift is right at the questionable range. You may or may not need the uca's, but I'd budget for them in case you do. Saving two tires will pretty much pay for your uca's.

I went with billy's/tsb and wheels and tires. Did the install myself and shopped online really hard. I did all that for about $1800. There are deals out there. I got my 4 rocky mountain ats's off discount tire direct for about $600, similar deal on my wheels from elites wholesale (very shady looking site). Then about a $100 for mount and balance. Then the cost of 4 billy's from DSM and $80 for alignment. AFter a year I wanted more and went to the Ishock kit.

The way I did it is a decent way to go if you can't come up with 3+ g's to start. The billy's are in high demand and pretty easy to sell down the road. Normally you can get all 4 for 300 or so, then sell them later for $200. Not a big loss to get a little lift at first.

 

Yeah i think im going to end up getting the 5100's down the road, and ill leave the stock springs on for now, maybe upgrade them later. Thanks for the input, much appreciated.

 

Dont really have the money to be throwing around at UCA's and springs/suspension unless i just save up for the next 6 months. I think ill just try to find someone getting rid of billies and try and pick them up, start with the fronts and rears and go from there. Thanks for all the info.

 

I put the full OME kit on yesterday and had it aligned today...NO need for UCA's here. I also put on the Spidertrax spacers. I used these same spacers on my 2009 for over 3 years and NEVER had any issues other then Discount Tire not wanting to touch my truck with a 10' pole, due to "liability issues" with spacers. As long as you torque all the lugs on the Spidertrax properly, you'll be fine. I love my OME kit. the iShock kit looks interesting, but I was reluctant to buy it since its so new and reliability over time/years has yet to be proven. I would love to get the Icon setup, but it seemed like overkill for what I needed. I ran 5100's at 1.75" with stock springs and a Toytec AAL and the factory rear TRD Bilstein shocks...it was a good, cheap setup and did the job for what I needed at the time with a 2wd truck, but for my 2012 4wd, I wanted something more appropriate for my needs (light offroading and trail running on fire roads in the National Forests and BLM areas).

 

So far, no issues with my kit and I couldn't be happier. I can't wait till a few other guys jump on board! As for issues, if they arise, I have full confidence that the guys at Ishock will do everything they can to get me up and running again. Simply awesome customer service.

 

I imagine it is a great kit. Just reluctant to spend $1000+ on something so new. Although, I still envy your setup

 

Thanks man, OME is a great and proven set up as well. You definitely won't go wrong with that. And congrats on not needing the uca's!